Jonathan Jonathan

Food resupply

OM NOM NOM.

Dude, srsly, we are gonna eat SO MUCH. ALL OF TEH FOODZ. How are we gonna get all that food?

Our resupply method will be a hybrid strategy. Some portion of the resupply will happen by mail drops. We have packages all packed up and ready to go addressed to about 10 different spots on the trail. Most of these spots are more remote places where we A: won't be able to find a decent store (price or variety) or B: where we will need different gear for changing conditions, ie: the Sierra Nevada mountains.

For the most part our plan is to walk or hitch into towns that are close to the trail. Many of these towns have decent grocery stores where we can simply buy food for the coming stretch. Our resupply distances will be an average of three and seven days apart. The longest we should have to go between resupply is eight days (in the Sierra Nevada). 

Most of this information is hypothetical though. Things can always change once we are out there. What I do know is that every blog I read talks about thru-hikers losing weight along the way. Now matter how much you try and eat it doesn't seem to be enough to maintain your weight when you are putting your body through such rigorous activity on a daily basis. Because of this I intentionally put on a few pounds as a buffer. WHAT'S UP ICE CREAM!

325,000 calories ready to be boxed up for nine resupply boxes.

325,000 calories ready to be boxed up for nine resupply boxes.

- Jonathan

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pre-hike Dan pre-hike Dan

Preparation!

Gear, gear, and more gear.

Gear, gear, and more gear.

Obsessive. Preparedness is a state of mind. Getting the gear, food, water, and other logistical challenges for the PCT is a part time job, not even touching on training or actually doing the hike! Always I am cognizant of balancing cost with weight and size and necessity.

Lynne Whelden proposed the idea that packed weight is fear. Fear of wet, cold, sore feet, bears, hunger... one could apply the axiom to anything. 

I'm a gearhead, I'm thrifty, and I've walked more than a couple of miles with a backpack. But I haven't bought a new sleeping bag, backpack, hiking shoes, or jacket in a couple of years and my kit is a bit threadbare. Additionally, I'm trying to join the ultralight to light weight club, which means hiking with a base weight (everything I carry not including food and water) ringing in at a total of 10 to 20 lbs. Why is this difficult? My old sleeping bag = ~4 lbs, my old hiking pack = ~5 lbs, tent was ~4 lbs, and my boots were 1 lb apiece (that's 15lbs for four items!) so I've had to research new, lighter gear and become conservative about my packed weight economy.

I think I've invented to gear buying indexes. For example, using assigned scores to pick trail running shoes:

  • Total Cost = Cost of Shoes * (Total PCT Length / Projected Mileage per Pair of Shoe)
  • Score = ( Total Cost * Weight in Oz. ) ± Feature Factor   
    *Feature Factor is an attempt to give shoes with "exceptional breath-ability, comfort, good reviews" a subjective adjustment for the added value (from 0.00-1.00).

Did I use this when buying my trail runners? Hell no. My point is that switching from my old backpacking style to lightweight backpacking means that everything I carry must be justifiable to the ounce. The research can be fun, but has driven me a bit crazy. I think about why I really need anything at

There will be more posts on gear to come - what I'm bringing, why, what I'm not bringing - and our final gear list will be available (cant wait), but I want to share some references I've been using while I research and prepare for the PCT.

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