The Salt Path

Part 2 contains some of the lowest moments for Moth and Raynor, followed by some indication that things could turn around for them. Thematically, Part 2 explores The Stigma of Life on the Margins. Many of the people they come across seem to brush off their plans as unrealistic or irresponsible, and Winn portrays the pair at their most socially isolated. A few times they are referred to as “vagrants,” as when a dog trips Raynor outside of a grocery store, causing her to lose some of the money she had. Winn records this stigmatizing language to highlight the stark reality of their situation. The dog owner, unwilling to acknowledge her responsibility in the situation, asks Raynor if she is drunk. They also quickly learn not to be too honest with their story, because when they inform people they are unhoused, people quickly withdraw from them. Therefore, while there is a rotating cast of secondary figures in the text, they are transitory, making Winn and Raynor the center of the story and highlighting the isolation that marginalized people often suffer.

As a pair, Raynor and Moth are still very much in transition, learning to deal with their recent losses while also adjusting to the physical realities of life on the trail. Though they did their best to prepare for their hike, they also have to deal with the reality of some of their decisions and things they didn’t anticipate. There are individual consequences for each of them as they sort through this transition. For example, Raynor neglected to pack a hat and quickly becomes sunburnt. Throughout the book, she will make numerous references to her peeling nose. This represents the constantly perpetuating cycle of marginalization: After she is sunburned once, she is more susceptible to further damage.

Due to Winn’s reflections on marginalization, The Salt Path is full of questions. They can be grouped into two major categories: rhetorical questions and contemplative questions. They serve opposite purposes. Rhetorical questions, which by definition have an answer that should be apparent, are used to assert value and pass judgment. Winn tends to use them when she is making political and social statements. When she and Moth run into a group of soldiers doing maneuvers, she reflects that they could end up dead in a war zone: “Young lives over before they’d barely begun, and for what?” (66). In this instance, the reader is prompted to infer Winn’s antiwar stance and her belief that the soldiers will have died for little.

Contemplative questions, on the other hand, are more open-ended. Consequently, they speak more broadly to the book’s themes and philosophical matters. They also present opportunities for critical engagement with the book and even invite criticism of Winn and Moth. These questions may be answered by the unfolding of the story, as when Winn wonders if the hike hastened Moth’s symptoms: “What if by suggesting this insane trip I’d accelerated the CBD?” (72). In fact, once he experiences withdrawal from the medication he was taking, his mental and physical health seem to improve tremendously. However, the questions may never receive a clear answer, as when Winn ponders a few pages later, “Is it human nature to crave ritual?” (74). In her quest to come to terms with her circumstances, this deeply philosophical question does not have a clear answer but does invite the reader to critically engage with the text and its concerns.

Raynor and Moth are also both dealing with physical transitions that compound their psychological moods. For her part, Raynor realizes that she is going through menopause. Moth failed to pack his medication. The medication is also an antidepressant, which partially explains his mood. As the medication was left in their van, one implied, though not explored, possibility is that Moth intentionally left it behind. When he emerges with a clearer mind and a commitment to staying off medication, Winn conveys the first indication that she and Moth are finally confronting their difficult circumstances. Until this point, there was little direct evidence that this plan was more than a way to stall confronting their problems.

A second indication emerges in Chapter 7, aptly named “The Corner,” when Raynor and Moth come across two people in their twenties. They came across the pair earlier when they were quickly overtaken by the pair in their previous group of four. Two of the men abandoned the hike. The fact that they had passed these young men highlights their ability to persevere when others who are more capable do not. Moreover, the young men describe the pair as “lucky bastards,” which stands in stark contrast to how they and almost everyone else they’ve come across views them up to this point. While they are hardly prepared to view themselves in this way, the fact that others can points in the direction of hope.

By the end of Part 2, Raynor and Moth have the vague outlines of a new direction, and Winn has begun to convey The Impact of Nature on Healing and Well-being. They seem more capable of shrugging off the negative perceptions of those around them. For example, at the end of a section, Raynor wakes up to realize that a dog walker is letting his dog pee on their tent. While she isn’t happy about the incident, she shrugs it off and goes about her day.