[pct-l] The High Desert

[Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes]

This is great stuff.

I'll add a little bit.

On Mar 1, 2012, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
> Water Sources:
Most of the water is really good. If you can find the pipe feeding  
the trough, the water will be fresh. I drink water like that without  
treatment all the time and haven't gotten sick. So if you opt to  
treat it you'll be more than fine. I met people at mile 500 in 2010  
who were proud they had never used any natural water sources. Only  
water caches. There's no need to be so paranoid or whatever that is.
>
> Water:
To maximize water I would drink a liter at the source before moving  
on. I did not just pee it all out. I really needed it. To help me get  
it down I used Crystal Light hydration lemonade mix. I liked the  
taste over most other drinks. The point was if it tasted good I could  
get that whole liter into my belly. Then I could fill the bottle for  
later and hike on with a belly full.

For me, the symptoms of hyponatremia (when you drink too much water  
and don't get enough salt) are unquenchable thirst and feeling weak.  
If your energy is flagging and you are so thirsty you can't quench  
it, put down the power bars STAT and eat some salt. Power bars aren't  
going to restore your energy under these conditions. You need salt.  
Even if you have to make soup. Don't listen to your doctor who tells  
you to take it easy on salt. One guy went to the doctor in 2008 and  
the doctor was flabbergasted he was trying to reduce his salt  
consumption under these conditions, standing there in the office with  
salt stains crusted all over his clothes. There's a reason they drink  
margaritas with salt in the desert!

> Training:
Sometimes all the training in the world won't prevent blisters. The  
PCT seems to give almost everybody really bad blisters. Bring a  
needle and lots of tape that sticks to your skin well. You're  
probably going to need it and if not, somebody else will!
>
> Lastly, Cleanliness- Keep it clean.
Please don't do what some hikers did in 2008: they would use the  
water in the water tanks to wash  up at the end of the day, filling  
up a big huge bag and dumping it on themselves. That's just not cool.  
The water in the tanks isn't filled up continuously. They fill it  
once a year, maybe. Take only enough for food and drink and learn to  
wash up by simply wetting a bandana and wiping that on you.