ADZPCTKO!!

Okay, so Bobbi and I both had to work Saturday morning, but we made it out to the Kickoff event in time to have an impact on me. No, I won't talk about how friendly a community of hikers they are, because they're like any group of humans, mostly friendly and some snobby. I won't talk about the lightweight gear that was for sale, but holy crap you can get light stuff. A rundown of events is even out of my thoughts right now. What I found was shear determination.
This determination I found in myself. On Saturday night they showed a "film" which was essentially a fancy computer presentation of photos from last years "graduating class" of hikers. This was all the photos they took on their hikes along the PCT (some all the way through, some not) divided into four sections; Southern California, Northern California, Oregon, and Washington. It was unbelievable. Literally species upon species of flower I had never seen before! Awe-inspiring views! And the utter weight of a thru-hike that would take someone through that many different environments. As each picture progressed I was able to understand how long this little walk is. I saw hundreds of photos and no two were of the same place. I can't think of the word for my thoughts, but as I thought of how much work it would be I was more and more relieved to know I had taken on this task. This is something I can conquer and this is something that will be a huge part of me. This trek is that thing I have always wanted to do and didn't know it was there. I am determined and I am resolute.
Some people will truly understand this next part and others will wonder, but fate really stepped in and confirmed things for me today. You see I was at work and looking for a hat on the REI site to put onto my list of wanted items, because on Sunday we were in REI and Bobbi found me this great hat. As I was looking to put it on my list my mother looked over my shoulder and saw the listing of hats and pointed out that they sold Tilleys. Her next words were, "I have Grandpa's Tilley at home if you want to use it?"
For those of you that don't know, my Grandpa enjoyed hiking and the outdoors. I still remember watching him cook us spaghetti with his backpacking stove on a hike we all took once when I was young. Grandpa would have loved the hike up the PCT and I sure would have loved this opportunity to spend six months with the man. I will wear his hat and hopefully he'll walk along with me.

So...

This new diet has me eating a good amount of food, but the workouts are intense! The food is generally tasty and I've learned some great recipes (i.e. open-faced apple and cheese sandwiches!) but the workouts are well-designed to fool you into thinking it's not all that tough. Just when your relaxing and everything seems great, your muscles suddenly say in their best Eddie Izzard, "What was that then?"

Okay, reading a lot of go-BIG's tales. Unbelievable stuff! He is insightful and brings the beauty of the hike out. Also, he has some great photos. I strongly suggest that you click the photo tab on the left and look through the pics. I have to admit to some early fear on this. The trail has quite an impact on go-BIG and poses some tough challenges. Don't for a second think that I'm second-guessing here, I'm going and I'm going to finish that trail! But I have a lot of fear mixed in. I feel it's productive fear though as it's motivating me to focus on preparation and training.

Amazingly excited about my trip with Bobbi to the kickoff event this weekend. We are camping with 5 other people (Kerins, Merriman, Woolston, and the two Lau's) in campsite #27. I hope to learn a lot about the trail, community, and my tent.

I will write Monday with the exciting results.

Deep thoughts

I've been reading the journal of Go-Big (see link on right side) and have read about 2 deaths. He mentions them almost in passing as if he is keeping them out of mind, but here I am planning a trip instead of stuck in the middle of one. It's interesting to think ahead about how it would be to die from the elements. Not fun. I don't think I'll think much more, except to plan as thoroughly as possible.

Diet update:
The fruit in the morning diet did it's job and started me shedding some pounds. Still down to around 263.5. I have moved on to a new diet. This one is a long term diet and exercise program designed to help packers build up the stamina and strength to go on long hikes. It's provided on the site for Backpacker Magazine. I'll post some details and links later. Damian has insinuated that he may take the hike, but I don't believe he's read this blog yet. He's addicted to online gaming I think and can't go near a computer without playing (just kidding).

Unresolved. . .

Well, as we get ever closer (still 3 years) to my thru-hike I have pondered about where to find a hiking buddy. This needs to be someone with the physical endurance to accomplish the task, a knowledge of the outdoors, and the ability to spend cash on equipment. Prepare your gasps, I have asked Damian. I know what you're saying. His ability to be oblivious and not see you when your standing next to him, might be a bit of a hindrance in emergency situations. However, I know he can be successful if I wear bright colors and jump around and make a lot of noise. Also, we have become a lot closer friends through our nerdy Dungeons & Dragons endeavors.
There is one unresolved issue however. Damian has refused to commit (I'm sure Tracy understands what I mean). His initial response was hysterical and brilliant by the way.
You see, the way I asked him was to send a text message that read, "In 09 or 10 I'm gonna thru-hike the 2,650 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, look into and tell me if you wanna go with?"

Damian's response: "I'm pretty sure you're on heavy drugs! But that's not necessarily a 'no'"

Classic.

The countdown to the party

Well, for those of you that don't know, next weekend is the ADZPCTKO. This stands for Annual Day Zero Pacific Crest Trail Kick Off. What does this mean? A big party with vendors and hikers (present, past and future), all celebrating the beginning of this years thru-hikes. There are already a few that have started, but this is for those that want to kick it off together. The journals of hikers spending this year on the trail have already started posting. I'll try to scan for interesting ones to read.

The one I noticed today is the journal of Ladybug. She is hiking for charity. All the details can be found on her webpage. Once there you can read her journals by clicking on "Trail Tales" and an even cooler feature is to click on "Where Is Ladybug?" and see where on the map of the trail she is located. I most enjoy that she had her first rattlesnake encounter while stopping to relieve herself.

If you haven't hit the link for Go-Big's journal from last year, I highly recommend it. Interesting to note on the May 10 log entry he mentions Jon Donovan who died on the trail the year before.

New Toys

Well, today I got the REI Half Dome 2 HC Tent. It's a little bit heavier than some of the 1 and 2 person tents on the market, but here's the thing about 1 and 2 person tents. Generally 2 people can't actually fit into these tents. The 1 person tents are actually "1 small person who never wants to situp" tents and the 2 person tents are "myself and a friend of legally small stature really enjoy sleeping on our sides and being miserably uncomfortable" tents. So I got this little gem because 2 people can fit in it and sleep if they want to. Why is this important? Well, let me tell you this first, the tent with all equipment weighs 5 pounds 11 ounces. Many tents get down around 4 pounds while still being good tents for most weather conditions, so you might say that this tent weighs 1 pound 11 ounces more than those tents. Ahhh, but here's the exciting part, if two people can sleep in it, it means 1 person doesn't have to carry a tent. Thus the weight can be distributed in 2 packs via seperating the tent parts or trading off some other items. Therefore this tent is actually about a pound and a half less weight.

Even better is the price. I looked at a lot of $250 - $300 dollar tents, and this tent comes in at $109 on sale this week. Now, I just gotta set it up and sleep in the backyard to find out how cool and exciting my new tent is.

So, who wants to sleep in the tent? Come on I know someone does. Better yet, bring your tent and we'll setup a little hippie commune in my backyard!

Silverwood Lake Hike

This Saturday (04/07) Bobbi and I hiked the PCT near Silverwood lake. It was a late afternoon hike so we only got about 1.5 miles in before we had to turn around but it's a beautiful stretch of the trail. The pics you see here are the new sign (thank you Pacific Crest Trail Association for your trail maintenance this weekend, sorry I couldn't make it), the trail as it meanders on the hillside over the lake, and these beautiful little wildflowers that were sparkled with the most beautiful little blue flowers. Also, new equipment has arrived in the form of 2 32 oz. Nalgene bottles (in sage green) and a new knife, the Benchmade Mini-Griptilian with black handle. Then I was surprised and delighted to find out that Bobbi had bought me the MSR Miniworks Ex water filtration unti which screws right on to my Nalgene bottles and Backpack bladder.
The trail is really beautiful and we saw a lot of wildlife. There were multiple wild bunny sightings as well as LARGE HAWKS looming over the same area as the bunnies, a bit worrisome. We also saw a roadrunner running the trail.
I'm hitting the scale at a lighter 266.5 now and must go buy new jeans for the ones I'm wearing literally fall off if I don't concentrate on them.
Those that are interested in hiking with me should let me know. I'm trying to do a hike a week to keep getting into shape. I'm also hoping to start walking nightly. Next targets for gear are a tent, sleeping bag, and bedroll. After those items are purchased I'll have no excuse not to go overnighting. Wait, add one Bear Resistant Food Container. If I'm gonna sleep the night I want to know my food won't get me killed.

Okay, so I got a NEW backpack. It's the REI Mars model. 5,100 cubic inches of packing delite. It holds a 3 liter bladder of water with a nice water tube opening and distributes the weight quite nicely onto my hips. Hard to tell in the pic, but the best feature is the large U-shaped zipper that opens up 80% of the face of the pack for easy access. And I got to use it today on.....

The Pacific Crest Trail!!! Only went about a mile and a half on it today, just above Wrightwood, but it's my first time hitting the trail and it was a good test for the initial wearing of the pack. Scenery was beautiful up there. I'm am getting more and more excited about this thru-hike every day. Also, I've lost a few inches on the waist and have to get new pants because the ones I'm wearing keep wanting to fall off.

Alright, more info soon as there is an update about the future of the Pacific Crest Trail!