n June 1995, despite a lack of hiking experience, recent divorcée Cheryl Strayed

(Reese Witherspoon) leaves Minneapolis, Minnesota, to hike 1,100 miles of the

2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail[6] on a journey of self-discovery and healing. During
the hike, Strayed reflects in flashbacks on her childhood in Minnesota and memories
of her mother, Bobbi Grey (Laura Dern). Bobbi's death from cancer sent Cheryl into a
deep depression that she tried to numb with heroin and anonymous sex, which
eventually destroyed her marriage to her husband Paul (Thomas Sadoski). After
finding out she was pregnant, Strayed got an abortion and resolved to hike the trail to
redeem herself.

Strayed begins her trek in the Mojave Desert in Southern California with her
backpack. On the first night, she discovers she has brought the wrong type of gas for
her stove and is therefore unable to cook food. After a few more days, Strayed meets
Frank (W. Earl Brown), a farmer and construction worker who takes her in for the
night and with his wife offers her a home-cooked meal and a warm shower.

Strayed meets a hiker named Greg (Kevin Rankin) who agrees to meet her at
Kennedy Meadows, California. Upon arrival, she meets a camper named Ed (Cliff
DeYoung) who helps Strayed strategically lighten her overweight backpack and
convinces her to replace her undersized hiking boots with a new pair, to be delivered
to a future stop on the trail. Strayed continues her hike into Northern California
despite Greg's warnings of deep snowfall. After removing a boot to remove a loose
toenail, the boot accidentally falls down an inaccessibly deep slope, forcing her to
continue the journey wearing sandals reinforced with duct tape.

Strayed's best friend Aimee (Gaby Hoffmann) sends her provisions to stops along the
trail, including letters that congratulate her on her progress. Strayed also receives
letters from her ex-husband Paul along the way.

On the morning of Day 58, Strayed is out of water and desperately licks the dew off
her tent. Dehydrated and near exhaustion, she siphons water from a muddy puddle.
While she waits for her water to disinfect, two hunters approach, one making
suggestive remarks that leave Strayed feeling threatened and vulnerable. This causes
her to quickly leave and run away.

Strayed makes her way out of California and arrives in Ashland, Oregon, where she
meets a man named Jonathan (Michiel Huisman), with whom she attends a tribute
concert to Jerry Garcia and later spends the night. Days later, Strayed arrives at Mount
Hood National Forest and encounters a friendly group of young hikers who share their
experiences. The hikers recognize her from the signatures she's been leaving in the
hiker's record books along the PCT. Strayed frequently leaves quotes or poems that
are meaningful to her along her journey.

One rainy day, Strayed finds a llama that escaped from a young boy hiking with his
grandmother (Anne Gee Byrd). Strayed chats with the boy, who asks her about her
parents. After she mentions her mother's death, the boy sings "Red River Valley" to
Strayed, saying it is a song his mother used to sing to him. After the boy and his
grandmother carry on down the trail, Strayed breaks down and cries.

On September 15, after hiking for 94 days, Strayed reaches the Bridge of the Gods on
the Columbia River between Oregon and Washington, ending her journey. At various
points along the trail, including at the end of the bridge, Strayed encounters a red fox,
which she interprets as carrying the spirit of her mother watching over her. She
reflects that, four years in the future, she will remarry at a spot in view of the bridge,
five years after that have a son and one year after that have a daughter named Bobbi,
after Strayed's mother.