[pct-l] Arguing with Idiots

[Reinhold Metzger]

Diane,
Nobody called you an idiot....nobody in particular was singled 
out.....if it sounded like that, I apologize.
The "Arguing with Idiots" post was directed at what appears to be a 
prevailing naive attitude by some members that it is so cool to pretend 
that  "There is absolutely no danger in the wilderness and that you are 
safer on the trail than in your own home".
Nobody says you should be afraid of the wilderness and let fear control 
your hike.
You should, however, respect the wilderness for what it is...."A 
WILDERNESS".....with wild animals that are not necessary your cuddly 
little friends, but wild animals that could do you serious harm, not to 
mention dangerous stream crossings, snow covered Mountain Passes, and 
unpredictable weather.

People do get killed and injured in the wilderness....that is an 
undeniable , indisputable, unquestionable fact and should not be 
dismissed as hype but accepted as a risk of venturing into the wilderness.

Everybody knows that driving a car is dangerous and people get killed 
and injured driving cars....yet, we accept that risk and plan to 
minimize that risk by buckling up.
Apply that logic to wilderness travel and you should be able to enjoy 
your hike without fear, by being aware of the risks and minimizing the 
risks through proper planing and, as in cars, buckling up.

Ooohhh yes, remember.... ...use your turning  and stop signals to avoid 
collisions with speed hikers on the PCT.

BTW....Most hikers would benefit by attending Ned's free snow training 
course at  "Mountain Education"  to get prepared and ready for snow 
hiking on the snow covered passes in the Sierra....it could save your life.
I know, I know,......it's not as dangerous as it is hyped up to 
be.......but, like cars,....they are known killers.
So do as Ned says.....be safe.....buckle up and take the course.
Remember, it could save your life!!!

JMT Reinhold
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Diane wrote:
I don't believe I am an idiot with my head in the sand. I'm as big a 
fraidy cat as you'll ever meet, and had a pretty negative attitude to go 
with it. Still, what I discovered is that there are lots of OH MY GOD 
THE WILDERNESS IS SO DANGEROUS hand-wringers before you get to the 
Sierra and very few afterwards. There are also a lot of huge packs in 
the Sierra and almost none afterwards. There are people who worry 
terribly about heat, rain, creek crossings, snow, bears and whatever 
else before the Sierra and almost none afterwards. People I met in 
Washington, when I complained about the weather, said to me, "Weather? 
Oh, you mean the rain? I like the rain. It makes me walk farther." When 
I heard that, I realized the key to success on the PCT is a positive 
attitude toward all adversity. The longer you are on the trail the more 
you realize that all the dire warnings are mostly just hype and that 
it's all manageable. Even by unbalanced scardy cats who complain about 
everything like myself. I still have 60 miles left to complete in the 
Sierra. I'll complete it when my boyfriend can do the JMT with me. Then 
I will celebrate with my PCT 2600 miler patch (even though I have hiked 
3000 miles on the PCT I don't feel I've yet earned the patch.) There are 
scary creek crossings in the 60 mile section I still need to do. I'm not 
afraid anymore. So, worry all you want and keep posting that it's a 
dangerous Man against Nature kind of experience. Maybe you'll post some 
information that's useful to someone who has never hiked in the 
wilderness before. I just want people to know that the experience really 
is more a quiet, contemplative walk in the woods than a battle with 
nature and don't let all the scary stories make you think it's going to 
be really, really hard. The hardest thing is really just getting up and 
walking day after day after day. Diane