[pct-l] Things I wish someone had told me before I started my thru-hike:

Mon Mar 8 16:43:58 CST 2010

Great advice ... Here's just a few more tips:

1. Don't go home for ANY reason! I made the mistake of getting off the trail
at VVR and went home to Oregon to FIX a problem that in the end couldn't be
fixed. By the time I got back on the trail, everyone I had been hiking with
was at least a week ahead of me. Don't go home for a wedding. Don't go home
if someone dies (they'll still be dead when you do get home). Don't go home
because your JOB can't get along with out you. Don't go home because you
miss the people back home (have them meet you at a trail town). Only go home
when you reach Canada!

2. Force yourself to take some zero days! When I did my 2008 hike, I really
felt like I had to keep hiking every day. Even if I only hike 5 miles, I
felt like I had to keep making progress. WRONG! Your head will want to hike,
but your body will over-rule, and sooner or later, your spirit will break.
When I got to Ashland and did the math, I realized that I wasn't going to
make it to Canada (a lot due to #1 above), and I almost threw in the towel
right then and there. I was staying at the Ashland Hostel, and went to see a
couple of plays, ate some really good local food, and just hung out with
other slow PCT thru-hikers. I got my spirit back, and said, just keep
hiking! So instead of quitting, I kept on hiking and I made it all the way
to Sisters, and even went on to the Columbia River. A lot of my trouble came
from NOT taking enough zero days.

So, if you are hiking along, and you come to this incredible camping spot
along a creek or a lake, or some other spot with a great view, or in a trail
town that you really love, go ahead and treat yourself to a zero day! You
won't regret it, and your body will thank you for it!

I also agree ... it's all about the people you meet along the way. Wonderful
people hiking and even better people that live in the trail towns and other
places you come to along the trail. You will never forget them!

O. Ikem Sofar  - Class of '08

On Mon, Mar 8, 2010 at 1:43 PM, Paul Mitchell <bluebrain at bluebrain.ca>wrote:

> Good tips.
>
> I'm not sure I entirely agree with #2 though.  The lighter your gear, the
> more room you have for food, water, etc before you're suffering from the
> weight.  This is particularly true with frameless packs, the general rule
> of
> thumb being that they work well for total loads around 20lb or less, but
> can
> feel uncomfortable above.
>
> I reduced my weight from about 12lb in 2007 to 7lb in 2008 and though I
> only
> hiked about 90 miles in 2008, I felt like that 5lb made a VERY noticeable
> difference.
>
> I had a competition in Lake Isabella in 07 with Mr. Fusion to see who could
> carry the heaviest food load from there to Kennedy Meadows - cans of chili,
> seafood chowder, canned fruit, avocados, case of bear, burritos ... it was
> a
> heavy (and delicious) load.  If my base weight had been five or ten pounds
> heavier I would have had to dump the beer!
>
> Potential 178
> www.hikefor.com
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net]
> On Behalf Of Julian Plamann
> Sent: Monday, March 08, 2010 1:10 PM
> To: PCT MailingList
> Subject: [pct-l] Things I wish someone had told me before I started my
> thru-hike:
>
> Now that the class of 2010 is gearing up to head out there in the next few
> months, here are some things I wish I had known before I began my own
> thru-hike last year:
>
> 1. Don't over-think or stress about your resupply strategy. Even if you're
> vegetarian, you can find enough food for a 4 or 5 day resupply nearly
> everywhere
> (even places like Stehekin and the tiny Warner Springs store!). Kennedy
> Meadows is the only place that it is really necessary to send a food box.
> This can easily be
> done from The Saufley's or Mojave/Tehachapi on a zero day.
>
> 2. Make sure the things you carry on your back are as light as you can (15
> lbs max is a good goal), but there is really no reason to go overboard.
> Unless you're trying to
> pull 40 mile days, the difference between a sub-10lb ultralight pack-weight
> and a 15lb baseweight are just really not going to matter two months into
> your hike. In the
> weeks leading up to my thru-hike, meticulously adding tenth-of-an-ounce
> measurements into an excel spreadsheet gear list in order to get an 8.5lb
> baseweight, I never
> would have guessed that I'd be carrying a 4lb case-hardened steel chain
> attached to a giant Flava Flav clock through a good deal of the northern
> Sierra, or that the sheer
> weight of my food bag would eventually make a laughing-stock out of my
> ultralight ways.
>
> 3. Silnylon does not make good rain gear. There. I said it! It wets through
> almost immediately in heavy rain and feels gross and clammy... even
> ponchos.
> The best rain
> gear money can buy is a DriDucks jacket ($25).
>
> 4. It's about the people. You'll meet some amazing people on the trail!
> Even
> if you initially intend to hike solo, don't be surprised if you roll up to
> Monument 78 in
> September surrounded by a pack of good friends. Looking back on my hike,
> all
> of my best memories involve other people.
>
> 5. Carry your camera around with you in towns... not just on the trail!
> Looking back on the countless pictures I took, I have almost none from town
> stops! I attribute this
> to the fact that I'd usually stow my camera deep in my pack when hitching
> into a town... or maybe I was just too busy stuffing my face with food in
> town to take photos.
>
> 6. Start from Campo with 6 liters of water for the 21 miles to Lake Morena.
> That may sound extreme, but you'll drink wayyyyy more water in the desert
> than you'd expect.
> I started with a little less than 4L and felt like I was going to die for
> the last hour and a half before stumbling into the  Morena campground.
>
>
> Good luck and happy trails. I wish I could be out there with you all this
> year.
>
>
> -Julian
> PCT '09
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