Fighting a Grizzly Bear and Leaving the Mormon Church with Wesley "Megaman" Tils (BPR #324)

In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek brought to you by Topo Athletic, we are joined by Wesley Tils, known on trail as Megaman. Buckle in because oh boy does Megaman have an origin story. After growing up in the Mormon church, leaving the church to become a pro boxer, quitting boxing to give the church another shot and going on a missionary trip as his trial of faith, and ultimately leaving the church for good during this missionary trip, escaping onto the PCT with several church members essentially chasing him in pursuit, Megaman’s path to thru-hiking was not exactly conventional.

Since hitting the trails, Megaman hasn’t stopped hiking, accumulating more than 15,000 miles across 18 long trails in 9 years. We learn about all his adventures, including hikes of the Maah Daah Hey Trail, River to River Trail, his self-made Mexico to Canada Trail called “the fourth crown route, and a goosebump inducing story about an aggressive encounter with a grizzly bear on the CDT.

We wrap up the show with our one-minute elevator pitch to convince aliens that humanity deserves to survive, the triple crown of cable channels, share the news of Tara Dower’s latest FKT, and deliver a five-minute one-minute gear review of a new free-standing tent from Hyperlite Mountain Gear.

Topo Athletic: Use code “TREKFALL15” at topoathletic.com.

Gossamer Gear: Use code "LT520" for 20% off LT5 Trekking Poles at gossamergear.com. 

Ka’Chava: Get 10% off at kachava.com/backpacker.

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Interview with Wesley “Megaman” Tils

• Wesley's Instagram
• Wesley's Youtube

Time stamps & Questions

00:05:35 - Reminders: Apply to blog for the Trek, take the 2025 AT Thru-Hiker survey, and listen to our episodes ad-free on Patreon!

00:07:30 - Introducing Megaman

00:08:20 - Tell us about your religious upbringing

00:11:30 - Do you ever experience anger while boxing?

00:12:40 - Why did you decide to leave the church?

00:15:25 - How did people react when you left the church?

00:18:02 - What was your mission like?

00:26:00 - How did your family feel about your decision?

00:27:30 - What did your kit look like for your first 200 miles on the PCT?

00:28:29 - How did you go from the PCT to the AT?

00:32:40 - What’s your relationship with spirituality and religion now?

00:35:25 - What’s your trail name origin story?

00:36:45 - Discussion about Megaman’s time on the trail

00:38:30 - When did you know you’d keep thru-hiking?

00:40:20 - How was hiking through the Sierra in a high snow year?