[pct-l] Mt. Whitney permit

[Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com]

On Mar 17, 2009, at 1:44 PM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:

> youve
> got to have gps with some kind of emergency alert on it". I say  
> "yeah I that
> would be nice, but I just am not sure if im going to have the money  
> for it".
> He says " Oh dude it's just like $100 maybe or so". OK freeze right
> there..........
>
> LOL. Everything is just like a $random amount or so. There are so many
> things like this that have piled up for me over the last few  
> months. All of
> them are vital pieces of equipment that I must supposedly must have  
> or don't
> want to risk going without. Seems to me though that  
> well....probably not
> even that many years ago I am sure we didn't even have gps and  
> people hiked
> without it..Or for that matter without cell phones either. Believe  
> me I
> would very much like to have the gps and if I can affford it I  
> will, but it
> all really equals to me more money.

Sean, it's not only more and more money, it's more and more weight.  
You'll end up sending so much stuff home. If you know you can live  
without some "crucial" piece of gear that someone who has never done  
a thru-hike recommends, then you don't need it.

And it's not like once you set foot on the trail you have no more  
chances to change your mind about your gear. You can adjust your gear  
along the way. Add something, remove something, swap something. I  
guarantee you will do much more removing than adding or swapping.

Finally I would suggest that a lot of the "you have to have this  
____" (fill in the blank) represents a basic fear that most people  
have about living away from civilization. The fear comes from being  
so well steeped in advertising and our culture of constant  
consumption. I think it's part of the "thru-wallet" factor that  
postholer complains about. The thing I liked most about what I  
learned out there on the trail last year is how very little is  
necessary for survival--and not mere survival, but comfortable  
survival--and how little is required for happiness. Really. It's a  
cliche, but when you get it it's an amazing realization.

It's too bad the culture of consumption steeps back into you after  
you get home. Here I am planning for round 2 and I'm again worrying  
whether I have the right things. I even bought some new things. You'd  
think after hiking 1500 miles I would have learned that I had all the  
things I needed.

Just smile and nod when people say "you gotta have it". Same as when  
they talk about the bears and lions and the overkill 10 essentials  
and how dangerous it is to hike alone, especially if you are a woman.  
Just smile and nod, smile and nod.

Diane