[pct-l] planning priorities

[Eugene Leafty]

Buying shoes right now is risky.  Your feet will probably grow the further
you hike.

As Shroomer said, training and camping can be very helpful.  It will get
your body in shape and expose weaknesses while there's time to fix them.  I
found out too late that my ankles were not up to doing a thru hike this
year.  Your muscles may grow quickly on the trail, but the parts between
your muscles don't adapt as quickly.  Camping will also help you find out
what you will eat a LOT of.

As for food, I went completely cookless.  It was impossible for me to cram
4500 calories down my throat with normal food.  I can drink though.  Going
with a custom meal replacement drink allows me to consume 3000 calories a
day while I hydrate.  The rest comes from gorp.  I save time, weight and
bulk.  The first was especially valuable early in the season when the days
were short and I was especially slow.

For maps, you may want to look at Postholer or Halfmile.  Postholer has more
detail.  I'll start hiking with the Postholer maps later this year.