[pct-l] [John Muir Trail] PCT hikers

[Ned Tibbits]

Herb,

Great and classic observations of two different sets of wilderness wanderers, the Hikers and the Campers!

“Hikers” like to:
    - walk! (sometimes even into the dark),
    - get up early and make camp late to walk as far as they can in a day for various reasons,
    - challenge themselves to see how far they can go,
    - travel light and try to be as efficient as they can with what they carry, how they carry it, and what they do with it, and
    - to go places and see stuff and get the job done in the brief time they have on-trail.

“Campers” like to:
    - well, camp! (sometimes even staying there from well before sunset to long after sunrise),
    - carry luxuries like more food and clothing on heavier packs with books hidden inside,
    - loiter, both here and there, soaking up the sounds, sights, smells, and other memories to take home and savor forever,
    - go slow, stop often (even taking the pack off!), and look forward to the nice campsite just ahead,
    - make campfires just to stare into them and let the mind wander (they got into camp early enough to do this and still get enough sleep), and
    - be prepared for simple climbing, exploring, photography, swimming, fishing, extended meals, bad weather, sound sleeping, and a good book by headlamp.

HYOH comes to mind. Each wonders about the other. Some know both sides. Some think it’s funny!



Ned Tibbits, Director
Mountain Education, Inc.
www.mountaineducation.org 
ned at mountaineducation.org 


Mission:
"To minimize wilderness accidents, injury, and illness in order to maximize wilderness enjoyment, safety, and personal growth, all through experiential education and risk awareness training."

From: mailto:johnmuirtrail at yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2014 8:12 AM
To: johnmuirtrail at yahoogroups.com 
Subject: Re: [John Muir Trail] PCT hikers

  
My experience hiking Tahoe to Yosemite face first into the herd was entirely positive. The PCT'ers I encountered were uniformly friendly and exchanged greetings as a matter of course. In fact, I knew they were a PCT'er because they often began their pleasantries 20-30 feet away--enough time to exchange greetings without either of us having to break stride. 

Sure, there were some smoking the trail like they were late for an appointment. But I engaged at least 5-10 PCT'ers per day in extended conversations during my 10 day hike and never once felt someone was anxious to move on or annoyed at the interruption. Because I would like to do a thru hike in the future, I asked about gear, food, stove versus stove-less, mosquitoes, resupply strategy, hitchhiking, etc., and received great feedback. Several hikers, unsolicited, gave me contact info and said they would gladly answer more questions and help me plan my hike.  

Perhaps the difference in experience is that the section I hiked had few southbound hikers--after I left the Tahoe Rim section of the trail I saw no one heading south until TM--whereas the JMT would have greater traffic, much of it hikers doing segments or weekend jaunts just touching upon the JMT.

I do note several PCT'ers commented on the heavy loads that the JMT set seemed to be carrying. And I think we all can say we have seen some packs along the JMT reminiscent of the Clampets on their way to Beverly Hills. You have to imagine how that would appear to someone hiking 2,600+ miles with a base weight of 10 pounds.

Herb

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