[pct-l] Home

[goforth@cio.net (Joanne Lennox)]

Well, I am home in Concrete, Washington, having arrived yesterday(July 18)
and driven Cat and Hopi in my trailer from Yuba City .  I have decided to
visit my husband., who I dearly miss, and should I want to continue the
PCT, I can do it from the Washington end.

Both Cat and Hopi are fatter than when I started the trail with them, but
not much fatter.  They were shod on the 12th of July and the farrier
commented on what great shape they were in.( He has 4 Tevis 100 
mile endurance race cup finishes, and 2 top ten one with Buckarro 
who also gardnered the the Best Condition
prize, as I recall.)  He said that he would love to do the Tevis on Hopi,
who is now beautifully muscled, shiny, and very strong - while being
compact, strong backed and quite agile.  He believes that Hopi is probably
mostly mustang.  He is a Pinto, pretty, with large feet and good bone, and
will eat anytime.  He looks like a large horse but is not- has the same
girth as Cat and is about 15 hands.

I have done almost 1000 miles of the PCT, all but three days of it alone. 
Neither horse has had any rope burns, cinch rubs, rub spots from the breast
harness, lameness or been injured on the trail. I did not lose a single
horse shoe, but always carried easy boots. I wore a helmet but was not
unseated.  The custom make saddle was refitted slightly, and only one small
patch of white hair (less than the size of a dime) remains on Cat.  My
packs of kevlar have worked well, and there are no rips or tears, or broken
 buckles; I always used a single horse with the packs on the saddle(20-40
pounds depending how much water and feed I was carrying), and for the most
part ,rode uphill and walked downhill.  I have learned a lot and feel that
I have demonstrated good judgement, courage, and a willingness to learn and
apply the skills necessary to ride the Pacific Crest Trail. Most riders and
horses do not make the 200 miles from Campo to Big Bear.  How many riders
contemplate a ride of more than 2 weeks?  How few riders there are that
have done any overnight trail ride(away from their trailers), especially
without a pack animal or a companion. Only 3 people have completed a
thruride, 
and all three took a number of deviations from the PCT& all had pack
animals.

There are two letters that I sent from the trail which have not yet been
transcribed to the mailing list or to the website(pcthiker.com).  These
deal with the
last  couple of weeks on the trail.  I will probably add some thoughts that
I have regarding long journeys - the mental and emotional obstacles are
often more daunting than the physical ones.  In the end, doing such a
journey is not about equipment, or what horse you have, it is about the
mind.

Joanne Lennox(Goforth)