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Defeating Perfectionism one check box at a time

Yesterday I drove 392 miles with 2 dogs and a car full of food. The goal: to organize some semblance of a resupply strategy. According to Halfway Anywhere the PCT class of 2018 sent 9 resupply boxes on average. This seems to be so few to my over prepping mind. At my last count, I am planning on around 17 give or take. The final count will be no less than 10. There seems to be a consensus on where you “need” to send boxes and then the rest ends up being preference.

Most of (but not all) my food supplies

The 10 that will be for sure on the list are, in NoBo (Northbound) order:
1. Warner Springs
2. Kennedy Meadows South (Non negotiable bear canister from this point on)
3. Sierra City
4. Crater Lake/Mazama Village Store
5. Big Lake Youth Camp (Apparently they will hold a package and feed you for about $5!)
6. Timberline Lodge (All-You-Can-Eat Breakfast here too!)
7. White Pass
8. Snoqualmie Pass
9. Stevens Pass/Skykomish
10. Stehekin

My sweet mama writing notes to keep my nonsense straight!

Getting the list of resupply stops down to 17 was difficult. I think I am worrying my poor parents. They shook their heads at the quantity of food/size of the boxes that don’t look like it could sustain me for any amount of time. It is strange, on one hand I have a hard time envisioning the bounty that will be mine for the purchase at any of the grocery stores along the way. Yet, on the other hand, I will be hiking miles upon miles on a primitive, 18 inch wide strip of dirt that is not really that far from civilization for most of it. But is it really any wonder that we (my parents and I) have a hard time envisioning it though. A lot of the Washington stretch of the PCT is pretty secluded. Other areas just don’t have reasonable options to resupply a hiker (a poorly stocked gas station or none at all). Our Alpine wilderness is not the same as the Southern Californian desert, obviously.

At a certain point I just have to acknowledge that my best planning is all I can do. After that I just have faith that I will be taken care of. In using Craig’s PCT Planner (This is a link to my personal plan) I can check and uncheck all the necessary boxes to make what I think is a do-able plan. I am so thankful for all of the patience my parents offer me as they sit through me thinking and rethinking (therefore changing) my plan of attack on this monster hike. I think I am really just chomping to get out there on the trail and see what I can see.

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Desert Section Gear

Deciding on what is worth carrying and what should be left at home is a difficult task to complete. The trail is long enough that I will have time to decide if my decisions are worthy of the trail or, if deemed unnecessary, will be relegated to the hiker box/shipped home.

How do I choose!? Well. some of its easy. No micro spikes for the desert is a good example. But there are some other questions to be answered. How cold will it be at night in the desert? How much sun can I handle on bare legs, do I really need pants? Do I want to carry a sun umbrella or just a sun hat? Would I really need both? All legit questions I have been struggling with.

Here’s what I DO know:
1. I like hot food at night, a stove makes sense for me. Some people cold soak (add water to dehydrated meals long before they want to eat and rehydrate slower than hot water would) and don’t need a stove. I may decide to ship it home until colder climates but at this point I am not willing to forgo the luxury.

2. I might be cold at night. I have a down sleeping bag rated down to 30 degrees. I decided on this bag for weight and how much room I have to move around in it as a side sleeper (specs here: https://www.rei.com/product/111167/rei-co-op-joule-30-sleeping-bag-womens) I will be wearing long underwear, hat and possibly a down jacket if the conditions call for it. If I decide it is too cold I will add a liner to up the warmth.

3. I might be packing too much clothing. I don’t want to wear dirty socks too often, I don’t like dirty underwear and I would like to be able to wash my clothes with a little decency. I feel safe saying that I probably am carrying too much clothing to start out with but I am comfortable with that.

4. I will not starve. I have been waffling on when/where/how much to ship to different stops (more on that later). I will not starve, there are stops all along the way that I can make. Some easier than others. I believe that “the trail will provide” in the form of transportation, resupply sources and hiker boxes (where other hikers unload what they don’t want of their food and supplies).

Anyhow, I have created a list that is not quite complete. But until I am packing up to go I won’t know. Here is a link (https://lighterpack.com/r/8m39w5) to the nitty gritty of weight and nuances. There is a nice little calculator that someone created to make the weighing and reinvention of the wheel unnecessary. This does not include food or water at this point.

I am planning for 5-6 liters of water for the first 20 miles of desert and will see what my needs seem to be like. From everything I’ve read it varies from person to person so I will plan for have too much rather than too little to start with. I will mention that I feel it’s highly unlikely that I will go 20 miles in the first day to reach Lake Morena. We will see what my body says when I get there!

Until my next post, happy trails!

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Planning and future tripping

It’s funny, you would think that I would be planning like mad. That I would be obsessing over every detail that could be obsessed about. Instead I’m going slow, one step at a time. I felt unable to complete details while still working full time. My last day at The Hangar Cafe was Friday, April 5, After eleven and a half years with the Cafe, and even more with Justin, I will be parting ways; at least for awhile. I don’t know how my mind will be reshaped by the trail, the journey. I will refrain from making any choices about the future until my return from the trail. Only  collecting ideas and more dreams for a time. I have resorted to scheduling out my days like I am working. Oh wait! This is my job now!

But I digress, I start a new chapter NOW! The work starts NOW! I will be doing my best to keep obligations with friends before I leave, finishing up appointments and all self appointed tasks.

Along with that is the exciting part of finishing my preparation for the Trek. I get to sort through all my gear and weed out the luxuries that seem too heavy or frivolous to justify carrying them. Sort out the different gear that will be carried in different sections. A future post will detail all the nitty gritty stuff about gear. I am a low level gear geek at heart and this has provided me with an outlet for THAT little passion.

I also get to sift through all the food I have prepped and purchased to see how far that will get me. The plan is to keep as Keto friendly as hikerly possible. I will be prepping more food as needed or looking into Next Mile Meals to possibly fill any gaps. You should check them out at www.nextmilemeals.com, they have generously given us a discount code for 10% off which is usually reserved for large orders. (use code PNWCHILD expires 4/30/19 and tell them I sent ya!) Feel free to support my trail resupplies along the way via my travel registry here as well.

I feel truly blessed by all the love and support you all have given me! I am also pretty stoked to not go into this alone, I’ve got all of you behind me too!

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Gearing Up For My Hike

So I left off with stating my intentions to hike this long hike on a trail called the PCT. Now I need to complete my collection of things that will take me through the journey.

I will be acquiring some new gear, some of which I will be relying upon some of my fellow OSATers (One Step at a Time is a outdoor club similar to the Mountaineers only smaller) to give me some lessons in the use of such fearsome tools like an ice axe. I will also need micro spikes, new camp shoes, regular replacement of trail runners etc.

To detail the kind of equipment I am specifically looking to add to my pack…
Ice axe: this valuable tool will help me to stay upright. it will act as a hiking pole when it’s snowy as well as a way to find a purchase in the snow. It will also be essential for “self arrest” if I should start sliding in the snow without a way to stop myself on my own power. I can use it to slow then stop a fall down a hillside. I would like to never have to use this tool in this way.
Micro spikes: These little ditties are made out of rubber and metal. The metal is chain and spikes connected to the rubber that stretches to go over your shoe/boot to aid in gaining traction in compact snow and ice.
Trail runners: From what I have been advised, I can expect to go through a pair of shoes every 500 miles! This trail is 2660 miles! That’s almost 6 pairs of shoes!
Camp shoes: I like to carry something somewhat light with me for when I get to camp. In the past I have favored crocs because they are so light but these days I prefer the strapped sandal security that Tevas offer. It can offer damp or sweaty feet a chance to dry and the ability to wade through streams without getting my shoes wet or losing a sandal.


Photo by Sébastien Goldberg on Unsplash

I will do a detailed post a little later about all the actual gear I will be bringing with me.

For those of you who would like to help me out on trail, I will be using a travel registry to help keep things that I need organized. Here is a link to support my adventure if you are so inclined. I will be adding a few more things as I have time to add them.

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Welcome to my grand experiment in Blogging!

Welcome to my work in progress. I’m excited to announce my plans to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) this year!

For those of you who don’t know, this trail is one of the 3 major South to North (or North to South as the case may be) in the US. It Starts (or ends) at the southern terminus in Campo, California, on the Mexican boarder, and ends some 2660 miles later, at the Northern Terminus, in Manning Park, British Colombia.

Yes, I’m going alone. Yes, I will be hiking the whole thing (barring some misfortune). It will take anywhere from 5-6 months by my estimation of my hiking speeds. Yes, my plan is to blog along the way to let everyone know where I am and share the adventure!

I will be sharing the things I learn along the way as well as planning, gear and other such thoughts. I hope that you will decide to follow me on my journey of trails and self discovery!

Peace,
Sarah

P.S. I’m waiting to earn a Trail Name organically.