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

[Timothy Nye]

I'd like to echo what Mango said, but with a couple of additions.

First, there are different levels of severity with each type of injury. Torn
knee cartilage ( the meniscus) encompasses a lot of different scenarios.
With a very minor peripheral tear; yes you could probably continue.  You
could not with a larger tear as a flap would catch and actually restrict
range of motion.  Apart from the possibility of making a small tear
progressively worse the likelihood is that it would also alter your gait
causing a probability of additional injuries occuring as a consequence of
the first.  And take it from me, shin splints can take you off the trail if
you attempt to hike through them.

The most significant predictor of success, in my opinion, is age.  The
younger you are the more miles you can do on a daily basis with the body
able to successfully heal itself from the abuse overnight.  The trail is
seductive.  It is much easier, at least for me, to hike rather than not
hike. I find it a problem to pace myself.  It's boring to just sit around.
Of course, when you're not hiking byself this isn't so much of a problem.

I agree on saving the money on beer - whiskey is much more effective in
terms of a weight benefit.  It's portability.makes it a trail favorite.
Nothing adds to a bond among hikers than when you produce and share a drink
on the trail after a particular milestone or accomplishment.  This is under
the heading of morale.

Connective tissue disorders are the primary problem.  Try to walk on uneven
terrain as much as possible while training.

Try not to obsess over gear.  Each piece of gear represents a
compromise; there is no one perfect piece of gear for any particular
purpose.  You have two choices.  First, you can get the gear that will
fulfill the widest range of possible scenarios with the best comfort to
weight ratio, or, second, you can swap out gear for expected different
conditions on different parts of the trail which should result in weight
savings.  In reality you will likely adopt a combination of the two as it
fits your particular abilities, stocism and finances.  This year I started
out with base pack of 10 1/2 lbs.  By the time I got to Kennedy Meadows it
was up to 14 lbs and that was just for the desert.  Generally, the lighter
the gear the less utility in terms of it's effectiveness in terms of the
range of conditions and comfort.  Again, however, age places a role here, as
well.

I suspect that many thru-hikers who get off the trail for financial reasons
are actually using that as cover for having seen the elephant. You pretty
much know at the outset whether you have the financial wherewithal to
actually complete the entire trail.  Those who don't...well, Canada was
never the actual destination for many.  The exception is where progress
isn't what was expected usually due to injury even where recovery occurs.