Rlhdancer - Pacific Crest Trail Journal - 2013

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Split and Two Step in front of their PCT resupply boxes

All our bags are packed, we're ready to go, trail mile

All our bags are packed, we're ready to go, trail mile "prestart", Day minus 1

After months of preparation for this PCT 5+ month excursion, I thought the last day and night would be calm and relaxing.

Oh, how wrong!

There were a host of last minute items to take care of before abandoning our home, including returning library books, videos borrowed from dear friends, last minute calls home, and even picking up a pendulum clock that was rebuilt and refurbished 60 years ago by my Grandfather and was in desperate need of its half century tune-up. Then it was final assembly of our gear into the appropriate stuff sacks and bags, marking each item off of our gear list, and checking our final weight. Depressingly, both of our packs were about a pound or two heavier than when we started the AT last year. Some things, like having more water bottles in preparation for hiking through an unusually dry southern California, is hard to avoid. Others, like adding a battery backup for my phone, since we expect to have fewer town stops than on the AT and I need my phone to keep an electronic journal, are choices that are entirely for comfort and are optional. We were bouyed up by the knowledge that our base weights and pack volumes were much lower than they had been with all the winter gear we carried in October and November on the AT through Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia and particularly through the Smoky Mountains. A small conciliation.

About 3/4ths of the way through checking off the items on our gear list as we placed them in our backpacks, carry ons, and luggage to check, we took a break for dinner. We went to one of our favorite Pleasanton restaurants, Gay 90's Pizza, with Ron, our house sitter and "resupply angel". We talked about Ron's new activity that we have been mentoring. Ron took up hiking and backpacking this spring, and we have been showing him the trails in our local, and extraordinary, East Bay Parks. He hikes nearly every day, and has read about a dozen books on backpacking the National Scenic Trails. He is an ideal choice for sending us our resupplies.

We eventually returned home and finished up our backpacks and started on our resupply gear boxes which include new shirts (for when the smell just can't be washed out of the ones we're wearing), items to be sent for the colder and wetter Washington climate, and of course new shoes for when (after 500 to 1000 miles) our old friends are worn through the soles and need to be quietly, if sadly, put to rest. Each item was place in a numbered and labeled bag, so when we write Ron to send our item there will be less chance for ambiguity.

We had a final cleanup of the house to leave it in shape for Ron, uploaded our final files to Googledrive, and went to bed...

Perchance to dream of our imminent PCT adventure?

Enjoying our last night at home,
Split and Two Step

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