It's a pretty common phrase on the Trail. In fact it even gets it's own acronym out here- HYOH. You'll hear people say it to one another when someone gets on their high horse about their hike.
People say it, but few people actually abide by it. There are a thousand ways to hike this trail. Some people have to see every white blaze and hike every inch of trail (we call them purists), others often take blue blazes (side trails) to see waterfalls or for better trail. Some people yellow blaze (skipping trail miles in a car).
Early on I was a little annoyed with people yellow blazing. It seemed like cheating. In retrospect, I wish I had been more gentle to those folks. The Trail is hard. More so than most people can understand. And for some it is considerably harder than others. Some folks flew to a foreign country to do this and have no support nearby. Others are hiking with medical issues or disabilities. For some folks the miles come easy, but for some it is constant struggle.
And everyone has different reasons for being here. For some it's the physical challenge, others it's the adventure, others it's a way to find themselves, and for a few it is a chance to grieve a loss.
With a thousand different reasons for being out here and so many different challenges each person faces, it's not fair to expect everyone to hike the same way.
That's really true of life too tho. You don't know everyone's struggles, so be gentle with them.
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