[pct-l] Bear Cans and Intimidation

[Umstead Tim-MGI1984]

You have to understand where I come from.  My wife and I thru-hiked the
PCT in '96 and it was our first long distance hike.  There were no water
caches.  L-Rod had not started taking in hikers.  The KO had not
started.  The biggest group of hikes I saw was 11 and they broke up just
after the Mojave.
 
Water caches are not necessary.  We paid very close attention to how
much water we consumed and the distance to the next source.  We learned
how much water we needed given a distance.  It made it much easer to
judge our needs.  We only ran low on water once or twice and that was
around Lake Tahoe.  We also adjusted our hiking to cook dinner at the
last water source and then dry camp.  Ex. In the later morning we cooked
dinner at the North Fork San Jacinto River and carried it all afternoon
before dry camping.  The next afternoon we got to the bottom of Fuller
Ridge and the water fountain.  On a side note, the only time we found
water left by the trail, it was in two boxes and we figured that a trail
crew left it.  It was south of Aqua Dulce.  We were unsure if we should
get into it, so we just quenched our immediate thrust and hiked on, not
really needing the water.  But to answer your question we carried 14L up
from Scissors Crossing.  But that is not the longest dry section, that
is the Hat Creek Rim and there we carried about the same amount of
water.
 
As for bears, in the Sierras they have already learned that hikers are a
free food source.  My question is why they have not learned that in N.
Ca?
 
My comment about a toll was meant to be humors.
 
Let me say one thing about the KO, I like it and I've been to the first
four of them.  Living San Diego makes it easy.  What I do not like is
the group that forms because if it.  If they were to move it's date
ahead or behind by a month I think that it would lessen the impact on
the trail.  When my kids are older and we rehike the trail we will leave
several weeks before the KO, just to stay in front of the herd.  I would
rather be there then behind.  In my opinion, I think towns become burned
out on hikers and I would rather be in front then behind.
 
As for your comment about why people hike the trail, I agree.
 
As for opening the trail to more people, I do not have much of an
opinion one way or the other.  I will say that I hope the PCT never hits
the same numbers as the AT.  I could just imagine having 3000+ people
trying to hike a trail will create many problems.
 
That got a lot longer then I ever thought it would.  Sorry.  Did I get
to radical with you?  I hope not.
 
The Ravens
PCT '96