[pct-l] Brian in Big Bear........

[pcnst@oakapple.net (David planning PCNST)]

> There are hikers that would do that kind of mileage
> just to announce they did that kind of mileage, which is that unfortunate
> competitive ancillary of long distance hiking that some people get caught up
> in. 

> Sometimes it is a challenge, sometimes a macho thing.  I'm afraid that, in 
> retrospect, that I got caught up in both ;-(  I'm proud of the big miles but 
> sad at the missed details of a slower pace.

While walking along Flathead Flats in the dark last week, a happy accident,
I wondered how my life would have
been different if I had done or at least attempted
the PCT when I got out of graduate school in 1977, which had been my plan
while in graduate school... if you could call it a plan - there were no
guide books in 1972 and my plan was a list of important peaks I would climb
along the way while still averaging my 20+ trail miles per day.     The
trail WAS shorter in those days, but not that much shorter.

Then I thought perhaps some young people think regretfully that
there are no interesting challenges left - eventually SOMEbody will do the
PCT SOMEhow in 90 days, then 80 days, and all three trails in 12 months,
then 11 months, etc... but then it occurred to me:

So far I haven't heard that anybody has attempted to hike/run the whole
trail in the DARK, in the NUDE, and BAREFOOT, in 90 nights.     Isn't this
the kind of challenge that guys like Larry Ellison need?   Sure he'd be
helicoptering into and out of wilderness areas at sunset and sunrise,
so he could run his company during the day, but by not landing his private
jet in San Jose late at night, folks near the airport could get 90 nights
of peace and quiet.    [Folks outside Silicon Valley may not know about
the latter issue - try a web search involving 
"Larry Ellison private jet night curfew San Jose"]

Of course, if one celebrity tries it could soon get totally out of hand.    
Four years
ago the Grand Canyon didn't have any special rules about hiking/running
rim to rim in one day.    
Since then it's gotten so popular that special permits are
required for large groups.

I think I'll stick to half-section day hiking.