[pct-l] Jim still has the best answer :)

[Paul Magnanti]

OK, even I'll admit that if you can get to a pie quicker
(and perhaps a  beer and a burger, too) the GPS may be needed after all. :D

Being serious, look, I am not trying to say yeah or nay on anything. I really don't care.

I'm just curious how something that was/is convenient
became a must have item.  This cultural shift is interesting. 

I am notsure how much 'easier' it makes hiking the trail like the PCT. Maybe I'm more comfy
with map and compass (or, in reality, tend to wander until "Hey..this looks about right!" :D),
but whenever I see a cultural shift in something that is NEEDED as opposed to a nicety,
I just wonder.

Silnylon, a digital camera, cubin fiber, polypro etc are technology but are functionally
the same as their older counterparts. There is no difference.

SPOT, PLBs, smartphones, etc. have no real analogue in older gear.

A GPS? Somewhere between the two. I've just more and more outdoor users
think the NEED this device. And just wondering why.

The answers seem to be:

1) Increased comfort level
2) Easier experience on the trail
3) Because it is a cool toy

I have used GPS before (above canyon in Utah, some winter trips to be on the safe side.  I can honestly
say it was only useful in Utah though) and find they complement a map (UTM coordinates anyone? Best part
of a GPS. The mapping feature is too limited IMO) but do not replace it.  Sometimes it is just plain quicker to look at  a map and shoot
a bearing. Other times UTM coords certainly solve the WTF factor better. 

But, maybe I'm naive, I just don't see how the PCT became this big, bad, beastie  where people
want the comfort level. What changed? (Or maybe I answered my own question above?)  Is it
really the much more difficult? Is it that difficult at all?


What can I say, I'm the product of a Catholic school education. I refuse to wear navy blue
pants. The smell of incense does not make me think of hippies and/or Buddhists but 
mumbled Gregorian invocations from the parish priest. And I tend to advocate
knowing how to do something from the ground up. :)

Anyway, enough from me. I think Jim has inspired me. No pie 'cause it is
during the week (plus Pi(e) Day was yesterday), but think I'll chomp on
a banana. If I squint and look side wise it could be a banana cream pie!!! :D

More skiing this weekend. No trail. There will be snow. :)



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