[pct-l] When is the best time for someone to join???

[Brian Lewis]

Edan asked: "But I was wondering when the best time would be for someone to
join hiking with me after the High Sierra?"

Conventional thru-hiker wisdom is "never".  Unless you're willing to slow
way down.  You'll be up-to-speed and strong/fast by then, so unless your
friends train a lot and you're willing to slow down some anyway, it might
not be a happy experience --- expectations misaligned, if you will.

My wife trained quite a bit, understood what to expect, and joined me last
year on three separate stretches, and I was pleasantly surprised at how well
she did and how well that worked out.  She trained quite a bit ahead of
time, and did 22 miles her first day on the trail.  And 22 miles the second
day.   This was in southern Oregon, fairly nice trail, but still --- it
turned out better than most such experiences I've heard about.

In terms of the specific question you're asking, I don't know that it
matters that much after you're through most of the Sierras.  Oregon is a
pretty good area in general, however, especially if you have a more typical
year for bugs than we had in 2008 (!).


Brian Lewis / Gadget '08
http://postholer.com/brianle