[pct-l] Being joined by friends

[Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes]

On Mar 26, 2008, at 4:09 PM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
>
> Hi Diane
>
> I have a slightly different perspective on this, being the 'friend who
> joined' rather that than through hiker.
>
> ...
>
> So it seems that having me along as a guest cost him about 5 to 8
> miles per day, but more significantly it cost a day or more killing
> time at the rendezvous point.  I'm really glad I was able to do it,
> but it does impose on the thru-hiker and perhaps friends should be
> dissuaded from what may seem to them to be an easy enough thing.
>
>
> Denis Stanton
> denisstanton at mac.com

Thanks Denis (and everyone else who responded). It doesn't look like  
you caused that much of a slow down really. 8 miles isn't much in the  
grand scheme.

I guess I can look at this as taking a little vacation during the  
hike. One friend is an old friend of mine from childhood. We did a  
section of the John Muir trail where it matches the PCT back when we  
were teenagers. That was a highpoint in my young life. Perhaps she  
wants to revisit that experience. Or perhaps she wants to relive her  
days as a camp counselor near Big Bear. I will have to find out what  
part of the trail she wants to do.

The other friend is my boyfriend and I will probably need a bit more  
patience to handle it as he likes to be in charge and doesn't like  
pain or discomfort much (except that he seeks it out as some kind of  
Catholic punishment thing or something. I really don't understand  
Catholics much.)

I guess, just like trying to figure out how all the resupply  
logistics works, figuring out how it will be to hike with friends is  
similar. It's all just a way to learn to be flexible and go with the  
flow. Let things unfold as they will.

Diane