In San Diego

So, I just realized I have not posted in almost a month. It has been crazy busy. We have been running around packing up our places, getting food that is going to be shipped all prepped, and figuring out where to ship said food, all while still having to take care of normal life.

We are currently in San Diego. An awesome trail angel named Bob came and picked us up from the airport. He is letting us stay at his house tonight and tomorrow, and will take us to the trailhead at 5:30 Thursday morning.

We are not the only hikers here. There are two Israelis, 3 Aussies, a Canadian, and a New Yorker. It is cozy, to say the least.

Tomorrow we run around and pick up some final things we either have forgotten (pack cover for AJ), or couldn't take on the plane (fuel).

Today is my birthday. It is also one month til we hit the trail. Almost everything I own that I don't need for the next month is in a storage unit. All the big items I need for the hike are purchased and either here or on their way. I have alternate and back-up footwear for when they wear out on the trail.  I have a bunch of freeze-dried food ready to be shipped to me to supplement what I can buy in towns on the trail. All my monthly bills are on auto-pay. We have researched available water along the trail and set up a schedule for the desert to make sure we have enough. I have read multiple autobiographies of people who have hiked the trail to learn from their mistakes and try and prepare myself as much as possible.

And I still get anxious thinking about the trail.

I have never done more than a single night backpacking trip. I have never even gone on vacation for more than a couple days at a time. This will be a huge step away from anything I have ever known.

While this causes me anxiety, I also welcome this fact. Stepping away from everything will help me step out of my routine, and hopefully not just go back to that routine when I get back.

Getting my gear finalized

With just over a month til time to start hiking, I'm getting my final gear list ready. I will post a full list once I have everything.

As a preview, here are my "Big 3"

Sleeping bag: REI Igneo 17 (https://www.rei.com/product/111164/rei-co-op-igneo-17-sleeping-bag)
I was waffling between this bag and the Marmot Phase 20. I ended up choosing this one over the Phase due to it having a higher denier shell and being a little less expensive. While it is not quite as light as the Phase and won't pack down quite as well, the Igneo will likely be a little more durable, especially with the dog being along for the trek.

Tent: MSR Mutha Hubba. (https://www.rei.com/product/896095/msr-mutha-hubba-nx-tent)
A compromise between ultralight, and toughness and liveability. This tent is a 3-person, which we decided on in case we need to bring the dog into the tent with us for any reason, which makes it a little heavier. We also wanted something that the floor would be more likely stand up to the dog's nails. Many thru-hikers choose the Big Agnes Fly Creek, since that is one of the lightest true tents on the market (as opposed to a tarp-tent), but not only is that paper-thin, it also has no liveability to it. If one has to spend more time in it than just crawling in and sleeping, its going to be miserable.

Backpack: REI Flash 65. (https://www.rei.com/product/893906/rei-co-op-flash-65-pack)
I had considered dropping down to the Osprey Exos 58, but the Flash both fit better and carried the weight better. Simple as that. The Flash is still on the lighter end of packs in that capacity range, and I have put up to 35 lbs in it for a hike with no issue. I feel good about using it for a long hike where I will probably only have that range of weight for the first day of a very dry section, and usually will be in the 25ish lbs range.

GoFundMe

If anyone feels like donating to the cause, I have a GoFundMe going for my girlfriend and I.

https://www.gofundme.com/my-girlfriend-and-i-hike-the-pct

As it says on the page there, we ARE trying to raise all the money by ourselves, but we are not sure we will quite have enough, so I started the fundraiser. Just throwing it out there.

2 months!!!

I have my official start date for the PCT: April 28th. Life has become crazy. I have to save up enough money to be gone for 5 months, figure out about storing what I don't get rid of before leaving, decide how we're getting to the trail head, and buy a few more items I need for the trail.

I still don't have a sleeping bag. I have been waiting on the Marmot Phase to become available, but if it doesn't soon, I might go with the Marmot Helium. There are other bags out there that are higher on the list of what PCT hikers use, and have incrementally better stats, but with my current money situation, either of the Marmots will be more doable.

I also need to get bear protection for my food, a couple more shirts, shorts, and socks, and other miscellaneous items.

Food update

I've been reading a bunch more about eating while through-hiking. Looks like most people don't even try to eat enough to keep up with the calories they are burning. There's some logic to that, though. 

The more you carry on your back, the more calories you burn. The more calories you eat, the more time you have to spend eating. The more bulk you carry, the bigger your backpack has to be, further increasing the weight on your back. The more weight you carry, the slower you go, further increasing the amount of food you have to carry.

The generally accepted practice is a sort of feast-famine plan: eat just enough to keep you going while on the trail, and gorge yourself while in town to help make up for the deficit. Scott "Bink" Williamson, a perennial through-hiker of the PCT and contributor to "Yogi's PCT Handbook" with 13+ hikes of the PCT alone to his name, as well as being a Triple-Crowner, does this. He averages right around three thousand calories per day on trail, and then stuffs himself when he can.

You're going to lose weight on the trail. Period. You just have to be careful not to lose too much weight. Every year people have to give up on completing the trail because they become too far underweight. Many others realize they are heading for that, and have to take a few days to a week off to regain some bulk and stamina.

There are some tricks to help with this problem.
1.If you're of a slender build generally (like me), try to put on some extra fat weight before heading out. Gives you more to burn.
2. Get in as good of hiking shape as you can be before leaving. The better in shape you are, the more efficient your body is, so the less calories you have to burn.
3. Lighten your load as much as reasonably possible. As I mentioned earlier in this, the lighter your load, the less calories you burn and the faster you're able to go.
4. Make most of the food you carry very dense in nutrients and calories. Malnutrition can be as bad as lack of calories, and the more calories per ounce, the less load you need.

Putting off the PCT

My plan for next year was to go to school winter quarter, then skip spring and summer quarters to do the PCT and be back in time for fall quarter. That would have given me five months to complete the trail, which is about average. The year after that, go spring to early fall for the CDT, and then the year after that late spring through summer for the AT. Triple Crown in three years.

Unfortunately, it looks like three of the classes I need to complete my degree are only offered spring/summer. If I stuck with my plan, I wouldn't get my degree for four more years, and I would probably be pretty rusty on the subject matter by the time those classes came back around. If, instead, I take those classes this spring, I will be able to graduate at the end of that quarter and be done.

So, I'm pushing back the PCT til 2017. I had considered doing the AT next year instead, but 2100 miles starting in June might be pushing it a little to finish before winter in the north. If it was after having done the other two trails, I would be more enthusiastic about my ability to haul it a little and still complete. Also, with "A Walk in the Woods" out this fall, there are probably going to be a ton of people trying to do the AT next year. (Haven't seen the movie, yet, but I've heard good things and my girlfriend says the book is hilarious.)

As it stands, I'm considering trying to do the Pacific Northwest Trail. 1200 miles from the Continental Divide in Glacier National Park to the Washington coast on the Olympic Peninsula near Cape Alava. It looks to be a good mini version of the PCT. There's high desert in Eastern Washington, which will be good training for the Mojave section of the PCT. It also runs through the Olympic National Rainforest, so (especially if we're heading east to west and so ending in early fall) a good chance to try out our rain gear and preparation. It also starts about where the CDT ends and crosses the PCT, so it will connect the two together. Might have to connect the CDT to the AT after doing those, too.

Check it out: http://www.pnt.org/