[pct-l] PCT-L - Most Common Causes of Thru-Dropout

[Jim & Jane Moody]

JJ, 

>From my layman's experience on the PCT (half done) and the AT (thru'ed in '06), it seems that foot and leg injuries are by far the most common type of hike-ending injuries.  When you think about it, this is obvious, since your feet and legs are doing all the work, while your arms, head, ears, fingers, etc. are just along for the ride. 



Traumatic injuries caused by a single accident occur every year but are probably relatively rare.  Same with snake bites, bear and cougar gnawings, and hernias.  Of course, this is not to diminish their seriousness - on average, I believe a hiker dies on a thru-hike every year or so.  On the PCT it is usually due to accident, fall, drowning, etc.  On the AT, heart attack. 

In my case, repetitive stress injuries on the knees forced me off in '10 and '11.  I'd guess that this is the most common type of trail injury - pushing too hard to make miles, day after day, with inadequate rest. 



And I'm glad you don't drink beer.  That means there's more for me. 



Mango 

----- Original Message -----


From: "Jeff Judd" <frotiss_lupus at yahoo.com> 
To: "PCT listserve" <pct-l at backcountry.net> 
Sent: Wednesday, September 21, 2011 1:18:02 PM 
Subject: [pct-l] PCT-L - Most Common Causes of Thru-Dropout 

Quick background - my wife and I are planning on thru-hiking in 2013.  We're currently gathering and testing gear as well as increasing our hike mileage and frequency.  My wife just got a different/better job which will allow us to hike together much more frequently as we ramp up our training.  Very excited to get this journey underway.  I've wanted to hike the PCT ever since I first heard about it as a wee Cub Scout.  Albeit that was only 13 years ago. 


As we watched the 2010 class DVD that Tortoise mailed us, (Thank you!) I was reminded of the Nat Geo special on the PCT where it showed the thrus gathered at kickoff and stated "only half will make it..." dun dun dun!  The numbers commonly tossed around are roughly 300 attempt per year with ~half finishing.  Which begs the question, how do I avoid being one of those that do not make it?  I 


My understanding based upon lurking on this list since last November is that the most common cause of dropout is lack of funds or injury.  My wife and I are setting aside money already and planning our finances etc for us to be gone up to six month, so I don't expect the financials to cause us to drop out.  We're not particularly big party animals, and as neither of us drink alcohol it sounds like we'll save a fortune on beer in town compared to the average thru.  Which leaves the possibility of injury knocking us out.  Are the hike ending injuries typically things that can be avoided by proper conditioning and training (repetitive motion injuries etc?) or are they more likely to be unfortunate events like falling and breaking an ankle? 

tl;dr - In your experiences what are the most common injuries and causes of hiker dropout?  What can we do to avoid these pitfalls?  Any particular training we should consider beyond hiking, hiking, and more hiking? 

Any points for consideration will be greatly appreciated. 


PS It was amazing how many of the locations I recognized in the 2010 class DVD as the famous sites along the PCT.  Hiker oasis, third gate, Painted Lady, Forrester, Eagle Rock, Muir Hut, Warner Springs, Mt Shasta etc etc.  Places I've never been before.  It was only then that I realized how much I obsess over the trail looking at maps and pictures and reading journals.  Suffice it to say my wife was sufficiently weirded out by the whole thing. 
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