Pre Hike 18 April 2018
/My days are filled with anticipation. I am at my sister’s home near Columbus working on my resupply. It’s going about as well as can be expected given my inexperience planning a thru hike and my rising level of anxiety. I had previously created a blueprint of my hike using Craig’s PCT Planner - https://www.pctplanner.com. I charted out my expected arrival dates at each of the resupply locations. I then used Yogi’s PCT Handbook and Mac’s Halfwayanywhere web site https://www.halfwayanywhere.com to identity towns or trail landmarks that I would want to send myself a resupply box. These are locations that most likely don’t have robust local resupply options. I have eleven mail drop locations. i plan on buying food and supplies for those eleven resupply boxes. I picked up the USPS Priority Mail Boxes from the local post office and created a Click and Ship account on USPS. Then I added all of the addresses into my account contact list so that Julie can just print out the labels when she is ready to send me the next box. It’s $18.95 to ship each box. That adds up of course. But this appears to be the best strategy for the moment. I am following a hybrid strategy of mostly buying food along the way and sending myself mail drop boxes for eleven towns.
I decided I would only buy enough food and supplies for the first five of the eleven boxes. This way if my plans should change, I won’t have six boxes filled with food going to waste. I could always resupply from the trail and ship myself the remaining six boxes. Or I could decide that I would rather resupply from another town. I’m giving myself the flexibility to adjust everything once I start the hike. My resupply blueprint is merely a tool to guide me along the trail and identify the major towns I plan to visit. So today I will spend a good part of the day filling each box with the number of days’ worth of food needed according to my blueprint.
I believe my gear is complete. I have been working on my pack list to determine my base weight. Base weight is all of my gear less the clothing I will be wearing, food, fuel, water and any other consumables. Right now my base weight is 15.56 pounds. I was really hoping to be under 14. And maybe once I have been on the trail for a few weeks, I can send home anything that seems like it is not needed. I am not an ultra-light hiker. To be ultra-light your base weight should be under 10 pounds. I simply am not experienced enough to brave those digits.
With the help of my brother in law, Ed, I have been practicing setting up the Zpacks Duplex tent. I ordered the Flex version with poles so I would have the option to set it up free standing rather than using my trekking poles and guy lines with tent stakes. But after a few clumsy attempts, we both realized that it was actually easier to set up without the tent poles. And I would save myself 11 ounces by leaving them at home. However this morning when I woke up I thought about what would happen if one of my trekking poles broke. I would have to rig something from the trail to set up the tent. I’m not sure I want to experience that kind of gear malfunction with my shelter. Up until now, I have always used the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL1. I know how to set it up. It’s fast, easy and reliable. But it’s also small and I wanted more living space inside the shelter. So I went with the Zpacks Duplex. The Duplex is considered a two person tent and it is lighter than my Big Agnes which is a one person tent. I know the Duplex is a very good tent as many thru hikers have used it and provided rave reviews. I am taking the Zpacks Duplex out on a training hike this weekend. I’ll make the final determination then about which tent I plan to take and if I choose the Zpacks, whether or not I will leave the free standing tent poles at home.
My mind is swirling with details – a wide array of scenarios that may or may not happen. And of course I couldn’t begin the hike without some kind of pre-hike injury. Last Saturday I noticed the muscles on my mid-lower right side of my back were sore and starting to seize up. I’ve had numerous back issues over the years including a herniated disc between my L4/L5. But that was in 2005 when I was still dancing and touring. I managed to work through that injury and haven’t had any issues for the past eight years. I’ve never stopped dancing or taking class or working out due to injuries. I have modified and made adjustments but I truly believe in staying active as part of the recovery. I performed with injuries all the time. In fact in 2005 when I was diagnosed with the herniated disc, I had two of the longest tours of my dancing career and performed in three separate evening-length works. The adrenaline would kick in and get me through the performances. But this current back strain is new. And I’m not really certain how I hurt the affected muscles but they’re not happy right now. Sunday evening it was difficult to stand from sitting. I couldn’t twist or tilt my spine without sharp pain. In my mind I began to think of alternative plans in case this injury prevented me from hiking the PCT – move back to New York City and find another job in the art world (Huh?), take a month to really heal and then hike the Colorado Trail instead, feel like a complete failure and just have a grand total nervous breakdown.
But the dancer in me won and I knew that no matter what, I would not be giving up on the PCT. Injuries heal. And unless I simply could not walk due to a broken ankle or limb, I would follow through with my PCT attempt. I have invested so much time and money and resources to have this experience. I quit my job, gave up my apartment, sold most of my furniture, moved out of New York City – all to have a glorious experience in my life. I won’t be defeated before I’ve even started.
Today my back is definitely on the road to recovery. The sharp pains are gone. The muscles still feel tight and somewhat rigid. I have been going through a series of light stretching and core work. Today, I think I am going to put my pack on with just my base weight and walk and then see how I feel. And this weekend I will be going on a training hike with Julie and Ed. I am really looking forward to hiking. That will help put my mind at ease. When I am physical and active, I am focused. And by the time I start on May 7th, I hope my back will have had a full recovery.
In three weeks I will be on the trail starting day three. Three weeks.
