Lightning Crashes

Wow...has it somehow been two and a half months since I hit the top of Katahdin? Amazing how quickly that time goes by back in the real world. It was a pretty short transition back into work and refereeing and I had meant to write this post for quite a while now. The plan is to try to pull out some of the tips and tricks that both Sabrina and I learned along the way...lets see how this goes.

1) Tiny ziplock bags are the best piece of equipment we had for the trip. Used them for medicine, protein powder, parmesan cheese and various gear repair items. Look for them from a jewelry supply or beading store.
2) On the topic of protein powder...getting the extra protein that I did during the trip really felt like it made a difference especially in relation to some of the other people I saw on the trail. I was definitely less sore in the morning and was able to do several long or difficult days in a row. And it tastes like Tang, so tough to go wrong there.
3) Also important for food are treats sent from home. I especially enjoy brownies and Princess found a great way to make and ship them so they don't turn into a crumbled mess in your pack. Cook them in a square pan then cut the batch into 9 squares. Wrap each brownie individually (tightly) in plastic wrap, then package them into one or two quart size ziplock bags. They survived life inside my food bag that way and more impressively, the USPS deliveries.
4) A lightweight pack is only good if you are carrying a lightweight load. It was worth the extra weight I carried as my pack to ensure that it rode comfortably at total loads from 20 to 45 pounds. Princess' initial lightweight pack was too "floppy" and didn't transfer the weight well to her hips, making for some uncomfortable hiking.
5) Dehydrated ground beef works much better than dehydrated ground chicken. It rehydrates much better and is not as chewy as the chicken turned out. Both are just as easy to make at home (presuming you have a meat grinder of some form) but the beef is much tastier.
6) Previous backpacking experience is over-rated. I hadn't done any real backpacking since Boy Scouts and Princess had 1 (yup...just one) total night of backpacking experience prior to starting and made if 413 miles, stopping because of a foot injury. She wasn't the only one out there with minimal experience and many of those people made it all the way.
7) It WILL NOT BE FUN all the time. If your plan is to stop hiking when it isn't fun anymore you will probably not make it all the way as a thru-hiker. The length of time you are out there makes it almost inevitable that at some point, you will not be having fun. There is nothing wrong with taking multiple years or decades to finish the trip, but the choices are either to trek on through or head for a section hike.
8) Take care of your gear. We had very few (might be zero) gear that had to be replaced due to getting "roughed up" along the way. Sure, some items wear out from the intense use that it goes through along the trip, but a little bit of care makes the rest of your gear last a lot longer.
9) Be organized. I saw a lot of lost items along the trail and I saw people along the way that I had no idea how they managed to keep all of their stuff together. I might be a little bit OCD about this (but hey...I am an engineer, I can't help it), but one really good way to do this is to use stuff sacks or other bags inside your pack to keep things organized in there.
10) That leads me into my next point, when at a shelter or crowded campsite, keep your gear contained and organized (again). Lots of people ended up losing things at shelters that they got back a few days later when they ran into the person who's pack it ended up in.
11) Have a routine. This works for a morning routine to get out of camp, an evening routine to get into camp and get fed and for something relatively mundane like packing your pack. There is no easier way to make sure you have all your stuff when you leave a campsite than to follow a loading routine. If the pack doesn't pack the same way as yesterday...you forgot something.
12) Food is gear (yes I borrowed that from Mary Holmes...but it is true), so putting as much planning into your food as you would into your pack and tent will go just as far for making the trip a success. Even if you don't want to do a lot of maildrops, when you go into a town to resupply, know what you want to get and have a reason for getting everything. I saw a lot of people walk out of towns with a lot of food they either didn't want or didn't need and not necessarily with food that would help them maintain the level of energy and performance required for the amount of work they were doing. Protein and fat are two important things to make sure you have in your meals, unfortunately they are heavy, but only eating really carb-heavy items will end up burning you out in the end.
13) Take a journal or some other way to keep some notes about what you did, who you met, the cool things you saw, and the great towns you pass through. At some point into the trip, a lot of the events begin to blur together and sometimes the only way to have those memories are to have a written record that you did shortly after it happened.
14) Take notes about what the pictures you take are of or where they were taken from. The scenery views can be epic but a lot of times they look just like the view from "that other mountain" and tough to figure it out later.
15) Eat the wolf burger in Stratton. Just get it, it is phenomenal.
16) Take gloves with you into the Smokies, trust me it isn't warm enough yet, even if it is 90 degrees as you cross the dam.
17) You can make a lot of the gear you need for the trip, much more than you think you can. We had made our hats, gloves, some cooking gear and other miscellaneous items. I saw homemade packs, tents, sleeping bags/quilts and a whole host of other things.
18) Be on your own schedule. If you get hiking with a group of people, don't feel bad about moving on ahead of them if that's what you need or about taking an extra zero day somewhere if you need the recovery. You'll catch up eventually.
19) Go to Palmerton, PA. Nicest/friendliest town on the trail in my opinion.
20) A lot of people say that the trip makes them want to hike other long distance trails. For me, I don't see many other multi-month trips in my future, but it has definitely re-invigorated my enthusiasm for getting more into backpacking again. Probably some 2-4 week trips, but I think that is about where my line is drawn now. Very happy I did this trip, but it got to be a very long time away at the end.
21) If you say "I want to hike the AT"...just do it. I hear SOOOO many people who, when they hear about my trip, say "I've always wanted to do that" or "That's on my bucket list". If it is that much of a goal for you, make it happen. There is always a way to get out there and do it, even if it means doing a week at a time for the next many years. Most of these people who say this will probably never get out and give it a shot, which is too bad, since it is was definitely a trip of a lifetime.

I've never been good at being introspective or coming up with big philosophical thoughts or talking about my feelings (despite the efforts of Princess to drag this out of me), and that still hasn't really changed, even with days and weeks of alone time. What I do know is that I owe a huge THANK YOU to Princess, my family, her family and everyone else who sent emails and messages encouraging us along. Also a big thanks to all of the random nice people along the trail who gave me rides, left food for us hungry hikers or who ran establishments in the towns that catered to the stinky, dirty group that we were. All of that made the trip the experience that it was. After living in larger cities for the last many years, it was also nice to see that there are so many kind and helpful people in the world, not bound up in the hustle and bustle of a big city, who can take the time to pick up a hiker needing a 15-mile ride into town to get more food, or calling their friends from the car to find the closest WalMart so I could replace my camera. Their help was a huge part of the success of everyone who finished the trail or made progress on a section hike. Most people I never got their names, but they deserve a big thank you also.

All my feelings comin' back again, like a rollin' thunder chasin' the wind, forces pullin' from the center of the earth again, I can feel it...

- Snowfox