[pct-l] a lurker no longer

[bmcfeely@tripwire.com (Brian McFeely)]

	Hi!  My name is Brian McFeely and I've been lurking around for a
while.  My wife Ashleigh (hi Ash!) and I are headed out April 26th from
Campo to thru-hike north this year.  Our longest backpacking trip to date
has been less than a week, but we figured, hey, what's 2600 miles between
friends?
	We're living in Portland, Oregon, and recently went to a meeting of
the Mt. Hood chapter of the PCTA to see Ron Moak's slideshow and prototype
tent.  Both looked great.
	We're slowly replacing all of our old heavy gear that we've spent
the last 6 years amassing (no pun intended) with lightweight gear.  Took a
test hike last fall around Mt. Hood with lightweight packs and we were
amazed at the difference.  Where before I would try to "tough it out" with
heavy loads, now we were stopping to look at flowers, and noticing the
peacefulness of the mountain without all the heavy breathing that
accompanies heavy packs <g>. I don't miss anything that we've left behind
and appreciate even more the stuff we do bring (luckily Yahtzee dice are
lightweight).
	We'll be at ADZPCTKO on Saturday -- looking forward to meeting some
of you!  If anyone is looking for a ride from San Diego to Campo early on
Friday morning, feel free to send me email.
	Pestering questions about the hiking the PCT to follow...

Cheers,
Brian

brian@mcfeely.com