I love trail life! Already I am feeling more at peace. I am finding that without the distractions of work and other social pressures, I feel calm and have more endurance.
A few definitions before telling the story of my first day as a PCT thru hiker.
Thru hiker: a person attempting to hike an entire long trail such as the PCT in one season
Trail Angle: a person who donates their time or resources to help hikers be successful in their journey.
Trail Name: a nickname used while hiking a long trail, often given to a person by others on the trail. Typically trail names seem nonsensical but will have a story.
Last night I stayed with the PCT Trail Angels Scout and Frodo. They have opened their home up to hikers starting at the southern terminus of the PCT. They help arrange for transportation from the airport to their home, feed all of the guest hikers dinner and breakfast, and arrange for transportation to the trail head early in the morning. The amount of time these two put into helping strangers is impreasive. On Thursday night there were 14 hikers staying in their home and at 5:30 am we were fed fresh muffins for breakfast and shuffled into 3 vehicles that left San Diego at 6 am. At the boarder they collected our cameras and took a slew of group photos. Not everyone who hikes the PCT northbound (nobo) stays with the Trail Angels. I started hiking north at 7:30 am and over the coarse of the day met an additional 8 people who were not in the initial group. 21 people started hiking the PCT northbound with me today.
I have not had as much time to train for hiking as i wanted. One of my motivations for doing a thru hike of the PCT is that there will be nothing to distract me from getting some much needed fresh air and exercise. I took a camping trip to Guadalupe Mountains National Park in February to test out my new gear and get some practice hiking in thw desert. I wanted to know how my body would handle the heat. The answer was, not very well. In Guadalupe Mountains I drank 5 liters of water on an 8 mile hike carrying a 22 pound pack over 7 hours in temperatures in the mid 80s. Not a good pace and high rate of water consumption.
This morning my pack weighed 11.4 lbs of basic gear + 6.5 lbs of food and 12 liters of water. The southern California section of the PCT is known for long stretches between water sources. The first reliable water source after leaving the boarder is 20 miles later at Lake Morena. I knew I was not going to be able to hike that far in the warm weather (82 degrees) in one day. I was expecting to be pushing hard to complete 10 miles, hence the extra water.
I surprised myself with what I was capable of. I found that with a clear mind, I was fully in thw moment all day and while the hike was physically taxing, the lack of emotional stress made it easier to push through the physical challenge and keep going. I do have a few blisters and some very soar muscles, but feel fabulous! I have just over 4 liters if water left to get me the 5 miles to lake Morena tomorrow where I will celebrate with a shower and ice cream.
Life is a journey, not a destination.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
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