[pct-l] "Close Encounters with Hypothermia"

[Scott Williams]

Great story and worth a read.

We were snowed on in the desert on the PCT, but then had only one hail
storm south of Tahoe and one near Sisters OR.  A wonderful, mostly dry hike
until WA were it started to drizzle and never seemed to quit.  The downside
was drear and damp and depression for some of those I hiked with.  The
upside was mushrooms!!!  What a wonderful addition to the cold.

We eventually needed every bit of rain gear and umbrellas we had carried
unused for most of the trip, and were glad for all of it.

This year on the CDT in Montana I met a new hiker going Sobo who carried no
rain gear at all in his little child's school book, backpack, as he was
going as light as possible.  He was hiking with a seasoned thru hiker when
I met him thank God who didn't approve of his cavalier attitude toward the
weather.  I told him of some of the thunderstorms we had weathered on the
Divide and that I thought he was taking his life in his hands, and he
listened, but I'm not sure he really got it. He had earlier asked another
experienced thru hiker if it was a good idea to just send his tent home.
 Her comment to me was that he should just ship his food home to save
weight, because you can live without food for weeks, but hypothermia can
kill you in a matter of a few hours. Wow, he was hiking a dangerous hike.

This story shows just how quickly hypothermia can happen.

Shroomer