[pct-l] planning ahead, but how thoroughly?

[walkinglarry at yahoo.com (larry hillberg)]

Hi Mark,

In my humble opinion, planning every campsite would
lead to a stressful, unenjoyable hike.  Even planning
one's campsite for a given day can lead to things you
might regret.  Planning is almost always helpful, but
sticking rigidly to plans would be anal.

Starting out slowly, 10 to 15 miles per day, is a good
thing.  Setting the goal for higher mileage is also a
good thing, actually essential.  But trying to reach
this goal after 100 miles is arbitrary, and likely not
a good thing.  Arbitrary goals are not consistent with
enjoyable thru hiking.  Make an effort to be fit ahead
of time, hike on each day with the body you bring, and
allow each day to unfold as it will.  Plan the number
of days it will take between re-supply stops so that
you don't get overloaded, and it will all work out.

All the best.  You can do this.

Larry H
 
--- Mark Wright <MarkWright@AboveCalifornia.com>
wrote:

> Looking for some trip planning suggestions here for
> a 2005 though hike.  
> I'm wondering just how thoroughly I should plan
> things. For example,  
> how far ahead do people plan their campsites? I'm
> sure some people plan  
> every place they plan to camp all the way up to
> Canada, but I can't  
> even stick to such plans for a week long trip. I
> figure it ought to be  
> good enough to plan out my first week's campsites
> and after that just  
> try to plan a couple days ahead. I know I'll want a
> pretty good idea of  
> which towns I will visit for resupply so that people
> back home can send  
> me things, though even these plans will likely
> change over time except  
> when I know I have a package waiting for me.
> 
> So basically, any thoughts from pct veterans on how
> they planned  
> everything and how their plans changed over time
> would be appreciated.
> 
> One plan of mine which I would like feedback on is
> to start out hiking  
> about 10 miles a day and work my way up to 20+ miles
> a day. My goal is  
> to be at 20 miles a day no later than 100 miles into
> the hike. Does  
> that sound reasonable? My reasoning behind this is
> that no matter how  
> much I prepare physically my body will not be
> accustomed to hiking 20  
> miles a day every day and I don't want to hurt
> myself, especially my  
> feet. And I understand that a lot of people
> overexert themselves at the  
> beginning and their feet (and other parts) pay the
> price.
> 
> 
> Thanks,
> Mark
> 
> -----
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> die.
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