Getting really real
Today, if I decide to put on deodorant, it will likely be for the last time for five months. We're packing our stuff up for the final time, and putting the last bits and pieces away for storage with my parents while we leave. My phone is cancelled, and my email away message is set. We've got the next four days worth of food sitting on the floor to be put in our UrSacks this afternoon.
We'll leave Las Vegas bright and early in the morning, with my mom driving us to the PCT start at Campo (about 6 hours from here). We'll start out in what is I think an appropriate manner - with her taking the first steps with us in the afternoon, to get in a few miles on our first day. By the next day we'll be meeting up with the first of our friends along the way - Tony Sandoval et al - who plans to do an out and back from the Lake Morena campground to meet us and hike for a while along the way. Then hopefully, we'll spend the next five months doing more of the same: traveling slowly and surely up the PCT, meeting friends and family intermittently.
Tomorrow will actually be one of our heavier carry days, as there are no reliable water sources for the first 20 miles of the trail, so we'll be fully loaded with both food and water - which should be okay because that's what we've been preparing for in our tune up hikes. Our first few weeks we've budgeted to do 10 or so miles a day so we can get ourselves into shape, carrying heavy packs every day, and will eventually pick up the pace when our bodies are handling it. Right now I think our gear is in pretty good shape, but we'll almost definitely do some more tweaking along the way, as per the usual.
After having spent the last few weeks in the Southwest, I'm pretty excited for the desert. Some people think it's bland and featureless, but I think it's cool like being on another planet, full of lizards and plants that stab you. The weather here is warm, but not crazy, with current temps in the 80's during the day and 30s - 40s at night. Next weekend they're actually predicting rain and 60s for SoCal, so that'll probably be a nice reprieve for us from the heat, and a nice chance to pose for some photos in our stylish Frog Toggs.
We're excited, and will keep folks updated on progress as much as we can! It's going to be a nice long walk.
We'll leave Las Vegas bright and early in the morning, with my mom driving us to the PCT start at Campo (about 6 hours from here). We'll start out in what is I think an appropriate manner - with her taking the first steps with us in the afternoon, to get in a few miles on our first day. By the next day we'll be meeting up with the first of our friends along the way - Tony Sandoval et al - who plans to do an out and back from the Lake Morena campground to meet us and hike for a while along the way. Then hopefully, we'll spend the next five months doing more of the same: traveling slowly and surely up the PCT, meeting friends and family intermittently.
Tomorrow will actually be one of our heavier carry days, as there are no reliable water sources for the first 20 miles of the trail, so we'll be fully loaded with both food and water - which should be okay because that's what we've been preparing for in our tune up hikes. Our first few weeks we've budgeted to do 10 or so miles a day so we can get ourselves into shape, carrying heavy packs every day, and will eventually pick up the pace when our bodies are handling it. Right now I think our gear is in pretty good shape, but we'll almost definitely do some more tweaking along the way, as per the usual.
After having spent the last few weeks in the Southwest, I'm pretty excited for the desert. Some people think it's bland and featureless, but I think it's cool like being on another planet, full of lizards and plants that stab you. The weather here is warm, but not crazy, with current temps in the 80's during the day and 30s - 40s at night. Next weekend they're actually predicting rain and 60s for SoCal, so that'll probably be a nice reprieve for us from the heat, and a nice chance to pose for some photos in our stylish Frog Toggs.
We're excited, and will keep folks updated on progress as much as we can! It's going to be a nice long walk.
Comments