[pct-l] Hiking to WashingtonKraig

[elee at microsoft.com (Eric Lee (GAMES))]

Kraig wrote:
>
I realize you, the only one on the list whom I've ever hiked with,
probably laugh at my ambition. You probably have a low and false
impression of my hiking abilities.
>

Well, your original email asked how long people think it would take for
you to hike from Big Bear to Seattle.  They told you.  You apparently
don't like the answer.  That's fine - as someone else said, what you're
proposing is not completely outside the realm of possibility.  There are
a handful of people who could do it.  But as yet another person already
said, the vast majority of thru-hikers will be in Lake Tahoe, not
Seattle, in early July.  If you turn out to be merely as good as the
average thru-hiker (who are no slouches), you're not going to make it
anywhere close to your destination in your allotted time.

Remember, snow will dictate how early you can enter the Sierras.  You
can't leave Kennedy Meadows at an arbitrarily early date unless you're
prepared for winter mountaineering and everything that implies.

The good news is that regardless of any speculation on this email forum,
you can always just get out there and start hiking.  If reality turns
out not to match your expectations, you can jump on a bus at any point
if July 1st is looming too closely.

>
Though, do you know, does caffeinne addiction disapear if you can tough
out the headaches for a period?
>

Yes, it does, but it can be a miserable few weeks.  :-)  I'd recommend
doing it well in advance of your hike, if possible.

Eric