[pct-l] Have had a hard time convincing my hiking partner...

[will.hiltz at gmail.com]

HYOH! And let her hike hers.

This can only lead to tears, hike to KM together and if she wants to skip ahead and you don't-- let her.  Some of the worst decisions I made on the trail stemmed out of adhering to other people's schedules.

Easy
------Original Message------
From: Marcello Cerniglia
Sender: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Subject: [pct-l] Have had a hard time convincing my hiking partner...
Sent: Nov 29, 2009 4:34 PM

Hey everyone...

We are planning a northbound trip for 2010....and I have had a hard time
convincing my hiking partner about how to go about a thruhike on the PCT.
She has one trail under her belt, the Colorado Trail, which she did this
past summer.  She loves the high country, wildflowers, and lush green alpine
tundra.  She has been very weary of entering the Sierra's when it is not the
best time to be there.  To her, the best time to be there is when its fully
melted, with the flowers and bunnies and butterflies.

She thinks entering the Sierra's anytime before mid July is doing a
dis-service to it.  She wants to hike the Sierras in late July-August after
the snow melt.  Her plan would be to hike to Kennedy Meadows from Campo, and
then skip around past the Sierra's (she is not sure where to, Sierra City
maybe?) and hike north to Canada.  Then return to do the Sierras last in
September.  Or, skip the Sierras in mid June and hike to Ashland.  The
return to hike the Sierras.  Then get back to Ashland and hike north to
Canada.

I cant say she is wrong, because everyone should hike their own hike.  But,
when I even mention beginning with the intention of doing a straight thru
northbound hike I can see the tension fill the room.  It spells disaster.  I
am all for adjusting as you go, with the circumstances presented to you at
the time.  I am not the speculative type, who plans around unknowns.  If I
get to KM, and its June 10, and it was a high snow year, I am either taking
some time off or skipping ahead.  But, I cant justify trying to piece the
trail together in one year based on the optimal time to be in each different
section.

To make the matters worse, she is a vegan and needs to plan all her
maildrops up till Ashland.  I am not worried about it, but she sure is.

Another complication is the perceived section D closures, which put hikers
at KM even earlier.  Without wanting to start in mid-May, she thinks there
is no way for us to slow down enough to leave KM by June 20-25, which is my
preference....

I know thats a lot, so sorry about that....but any talking points or
opinions of how to convice her that the Sierra's are beautiful from the end
of June through July, would help out immensely!

Catch Up
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