[pct-l] Pct hike summer 2013

Thu Jun 7 23:29:22 CDT 2012

I think i found my feet workout routine!  I need to find a summer camp with monks with canes and hot coal fire walking.

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Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat!
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A man's interest in a single bluebird is worth more than a complete but dry list of the fauna and flora of a town.
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________________________________
 From: CHUCK CHELIN <steeleye at wildblue.net>
To: Chris Anderson <srhspaded at yahoo.com> 
Cc: Bill Burge <bill at burge.com>; "pct-l at backcountry.net" <pct-l at backcountry.net> 
Sent: Thursday, June 7, 2012 8:55 PM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Pct hike summer 2013

Good evening, Chris,
The best conditioning for hiking in the
mountains with a pack is to hike in the mountains with a pack, but any physical
conditioning is better than nothing to develop the cardiovascular systems and
some of the muscles.
There can be a bit of a problem with a program
that doesn’t heavily emphasize walking, such as biking or swimming:  Soft tissues – such as heart, muscles, and lung
capacity – develop fairly quickly, while bones require much longer to adapt to
increasing loads.  The lack of foot toughness
is another problem.  Blisters are a fact
of life for many new hikers starting at Campo.  Soft feet don’t go well with hard muscles, a strong heart, and big
lungs.
Another problem early in a long hike is the
inability to get a good night’s rest.  Sleeping on the ground isn’t easy for the long-time bed sleeper.  During training the hiker probably sleeps
poorly and becomes convinced that the only answer is to invest some kind of
fancy – read “heavy and expensive” – sleeping pad.  What works for me is to begin months in
advance sleeping at home on a carpeted floor wrapped in a blanket in lieu of in
a bed.  That makes sleeping during
training hikes much easier.  When it’s
time for the long hike I can spread my 3/8” foam pad on the ground about
anywhere and enjoy the sleep.
Enjoy your planning,
Steel-Eye
-Hiking the Pct since before it was the PCT –
1965
http://www.trailjournals.com/steel-eye
http://www.trailjournals.com/SteelEye09/

On Thu, Jun 7, 2012 at 6:56 PM, Chris Anderson <srhspaded at yahoo.com> wrote:

:)  It would be grand if I could just hike every single day for the next 10 months to get ready for what the trail is going to serve up fresh and raw...but alas, that isn't feasible...so my thinking is that I need to immerse my self in minimalist situations to constantly asses my gear, even if just for weekend trips...trying to incorporate it everyday, so that I can get accustomed to not having "everything and the kitchen sink" with me (funny story...my roommate is suprised that I won't be bringing a gun with me, and said I should at least by a kukri..."dude, its only like a pound and you can fight off bears and mountain lions").  I plan on starting eating the same ol' cold fast breakfast I expect to have out there before work everyday...also i want to test out food to find that "special breakfast" that meets my calorie needs and I won't grow tired of.  Also, I am thinking about biking to work EVERDAY to get accustomed to the elements, rain or shine
> (its actually hard to find rain days in so. cal. thouigh) ...to break out of my cocoon of comfort...cuz i know it isn't gonna be a stroll in the woods and i gotta build up my callouses, feet, hands, and soul...us flat-landers are behind the learning curve ;)
>
>
>On a side note...any and all advice is welcome from seasoned vets and aspirationalists alike
> 
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>Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat!
>-------------------------------------
>A man's interest in a single bluebird is worth more than a complete but dry list of the fauna and flora of a town.
>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
>________________________________
> From: Bill Burge <bill at burge.com>
>To: Scott Bryce <sbryce at scottbryce.com>
>Cc: "pct-l at backcountry.net" <pct-l at backcountry.net>
>Sent: Thursday, June 7, 2012 6:32 PM
>Subject: Re: [pct-l] Pct hike summer 2013
>
>BINGO!
>
>I too learned that I could put on a 40 pound pack and hike 15+ miles.
>
>BUT, learned it was different to do it day, after day, after day…  Sleeping on the ground wasn't that big a deal, but wearing the same clothes, battling UV exposure, elevation gain, blisters, searching for water, etc - made it an entirely different process!
>
>325 miles later, it became a bit of a grind...
>
>SomeGuy
>Bill Burge
>bill at burge.com
>
>
>
>On Jun 7, 2012, at 6:28 PM, Scott Bryce wrote:
>
>> On 6/7/2012 6:43 PM, Chris Anderson wrote:
>>
>>> I can do 20 miles in a day on easy terrain but i think its going to
>>> take some endurance training and a strict regiment to be able to do
>>> it day in day out.
>>
>> This is good thinking. I started in 2008 knowing I could put on my pack
>> and walk 20 miles. No question. What I did not know is whether I could
>> sleep on the ground, and do it again the next day. The trail kicked my
>> butt. I was one of the many who dropped out early.
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