Magic in the Mountains

This article originally appeared on The Trek, which you can read here.

Thru-hikers might stand out in the “real world” because what we do is unusual, but once we hit the trail, we blend in fast: same dusty gear, same ramen-bomb dinners, same tired feet.

That’s not the case for mountain unicyclist Jamey Mossengren, perhaps better known as the Unicycling Unicorn. 

While most of us trudge mile after mile on two legs, Mossengren rolls down the trail on one wheel. He has thru-unicycled the Colorado Trail (CT), Arizona Trail (AZT), and most recently, the Continental Divide Trail (CDT).

Meet the Unicycling Unicorn

Mossengren grew up in Minnesota and discovered unicycling by chance when, at age 10, his grandmother bought one from a garage sale. “My brother and I showed up at her farm, saw it, and thought, ‘What’s that?’ We’d spend every visit trying to ride it … and eventually we both learned,” he says. “I got hooked immediately.”

He went on to compete in national and international unicycling competitions, but it was always just a hobby. After high school, Mossengren got a degree in mechanical engineering and worked for several years at a medical company. “I didn’t like the corporate world. It felt like jail. So I quit and moved to California. I saw a street performer, and thought, ‘That looks fun — I wonder if I could do that?’ That was 18 years ago. I’m still doing it.”

Mossengren has now spent nearly two decades performing around the world at festivals and fairs. Along the way, he adopted the Unicycling Unicorn persona, dressing up as a unicorn for his shows and even outfitting his unicycle as a unicorn.

From Fairgrounds to Footpaths

While going through a divorce in 2015, Jamey heard about the Colorado Trail. “I learned you can hike it or bike it. I loved mountain unicycling, and I thought, ‘I wonder if I could unicycle it?’ So I just did some research and bought a bunch of stuff and learned to go lightweight … Then I went and did it. It was my first time ever camping by myself on any overnight trip or anything,” he explains.

The Colorado Trail gave him space to heal from his divorce. “It helped me think about things. I had three weeks to just be by myself and try to figure things out,” he says. “When I started the trail, I was a bit lost and sad. And then when I ended the trail, I just felt better. I felt like I had a plan. I felt I learned how to forgive myself for what had happened, for not being perfect, and then I also learned to forgive my ex for what she did. And it was an amazing adventure.”

He also fine-tuned his gear setup on the trail. Like bikepacking, uni-packing requires creative gear solutions. Mossengren carries most of his gear on the unicycle while his food and water are in his backpack.

LISTEN – Backpacker Radio 74: Jamey Mossengren aka “The Unicycling Unicorn”

Trading Wheels for Boots (Sometimes)

The Colorado Trail gave Mossengren a taste for long trails. But not all trails are open to wheels, so he had to hike like the rest of us when he embarked on the Appalachian Trail along with three friends from home. 

After the CT and AT, he sought out other wheel-friendly routes. He convinced two other mountain unicyclists to join him on the Arizona Trail, and also unicycled the Oregon Timber Trail. Between working performances, Jamey hiked the Superior Hiking Trail in his home state of Minnesota, along with large portions of the Pacific Crest Trail and the Long Trail. In 2023, he completed half of the Continental Divide Trail, knowing he’d eventually return.

Uni-packing gave Mossengren a chance to spend time in nature doing something he loved. It offered respite and healing after a divorce, a gift he didn’t know he’d need again.

Loss, Healing, and Wheels on the CDT

On January 1, 2025, Mossengren’s sister died by suicide. Struggling to cope with it, he decided to take time off work. “How am I supposed to make people laugh and smile when I’m not OK? I’m not a super religious person, but nature is my religion. I knew from the Colorado Trail that it helped, and it healed me when I was going through that difficult time. So I just had a good feeling that it was gonna help me move through this difficult time.”

When Mossengren hiked the first half of the CDT in 2023, he and his friends used two vans to flip-flop up the trail to avoid snow. There were sections of the trail he missed, so Jamey devised a strategy to make up those miles with his unicycle.

Mossengren headed out to the CDT in his van, bringing along a moped and his mountain unicycle. “I would park (the van) at a trailhead, hop on the moped with my unicycle strapped onto it, drive north to a different trailhead, ride my unicycle south to the van, get to my van, and then drive it north past the moped to a different trailhead, and then ride to my moped, hop on my moped, and just kept leapfrogging.”

At one point, chugging up Wolf Creek Pass at 10 mph on his moped with a unicorn horn on his helmet, Jamey couldn’t help but laugh. “I just remember feeling like Dumb and Dumber. My unicycle is strapped to the moped, and I’ve got my horn on my helmet. People are passing me thinking, ‘what the heck is this?’”

Learning To Forgive in the Mountains

Undeterred by the complicated logistics, Mossengren persevered. As convoluted as his CDT itinerary was, it was nothing compared to the complexity of his path toward healing. 

“Some days I’d be crying and miserable,” he reflects, “and the next day, I’m laughing at the fact that I have a unicycle in these mountains, middle of nowhere, and then I’m riding down these (passes) just hollering and just having the best time ever. I don’t think I’ll ever fully be healed from this, but it definitely helped.”

The first few weeks were especially challenging, he says, but as time went on he had time to reflect and process. “In the mountains, I learned how to forgive myself for not helping her and maybe not doing some things that I should have to help prevent it. I learned to forgive her for hurting me and doing what she did, and also her husband. For me to move on, I needed to forgive those three people. And the mountains help.”

Trail Magic and a Mission

Wherever the Unicycling Unicorn goes, Mossengren tries to share his message of love and laughter. On the CDT, he did this by providing trail magic to other hikers when he was able. He brought coolers to trailheads, made food at campsites, and delighted hikers with his infectious unicorn energy. He also donated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

“I wanted to give a little something to suicide prevention. And so I ended up just donating … That was just me trying to be a good human and trying to help contribute to preventing suicide. I didn’t realize how big of a problem suicide is in the US, and it’s pretty common … If more people were outside enjoying this beautiful world, I think there would be a lot fewer deaths.”

The Trail Ahead

Mossengren uni-packed about 1,200 miles of the CDT from Grants, New Mexico, to Yellowstone between June and August 2025. Afterward, he went back to work performing at Renaissance festivals in New England and spent the fall performing and hiking sections of Vermont’s Long Trail and plans to spend his winter traveling. 

Wherever he goes next, expect love, laughter, and a unicorn horn.

You can follow Mossengren on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, or learn more on his website. To learn more about the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, you can visit their website.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, you can call or text 988 or chat via 988lifeline.org 24/7.