Triple Zero
Oh, my. Where did the first two days go? I was clearly at a pretty high exhaustion level after my mini breakdown coming off the trail. I'm not even sure what I did during those first two zero days. I didn't even make it to the gym to use the hot tub. I'm assuming I slept, ate, and watched TV.
I had a lot of mini gear repairs to do, which I took care of on the evening of my second zero day. I also resupplied my food bag and printed out the new Halfmile paper maps for the upcoming sections. Additionally, my upgraded sleeping bag had arrived. I now was the proud owner of an Enlightened Equipment 10 degree ultralight bag (or "quilt" as they call it), which was at least 17 degrees warmer than my Sierra Designs Backcountry Bed, and over a pound lighter in weight. Because my new bag was warmer, I could also change my sleeping bag liner from a thermal liner to a silk liner.
I think I may have shaved off 1.5-2 lbs of weight from my pack, which should make a huge difference, especially when I am fully loaded with food and water. I had abrasion marks on one of my shoulders after last week. My pack is supposed to handle up to about 40 lbs, which I was definitely under, so I think the pack isn't sitting correctly anymore. I have definitely changed in shape (something that happens to every thru-hiker) since I started so maybe the pack needs to be adjusted? I did a half-hearted adjusting of the straps, but I may eventually have to start the fitting process from scratch.
At the end of my second zero, I had pretty much everything ready to go to get back out on the trail except my tent pole repair. One of the connectors in my tent pole snapped the last night I had been on the trail. I thought it was an easy fix, slide the splint up to the break and duck tape it in place until the replacement arrives, but it turned out to require a little more attention. The pole had bent in a way that needed to be reshaped before the splint could slide over it. That was something I could not do at 4 am, so I decided to take another zero day.
I probably should not be taking so many consecutive zero days. It messes with my hiking rhythm, and I end up back on the trail having to introduce myself to a whole new set of people for the week. However, I also am trying to time my arrival at Kennedy Meadows (South) for the second week in June, which means I probably have to slow down my pace through Southern California. I am coming off the trail in early June for about 1-1.5 weeks to attend some family events in the Midwest. Kennedy Meadows (South) seems like a good place to do so because it is right before the major snow of the High Sierra begins. People were saying they may be camped there for a week or two anyway waiting for the snow to melt some more before entering.
Even though I still felt a little guilty of taking an extra zero, I felt a little better about my decision when I checked both the weather and Facebook updates. There looked to be some rain and snow right in the area I would have been walking. One person posted about trying to get out of the rain in the section I would have been walking by hitching to a restaurant, only to find the restaurant was closed. Since my rain gear strategy hadn't been nailed down yet (I just ordered appropriate gear this weekend), I was kind of happy to be indoors.
I had a lot of mini gear repairs to do, which I took care of on the evening of my second zero day. I also resupplied my food bag and printed out the new Halfmile paper maps for the upcoming sections. Additionally, my upgraded sleeping bag had arrived. I now was the proud owner of an Enlightened Equipment 10 degree ultralight bag (or "quilt" as they call it), which was at least 17 degrees warmer than my Sierra Designs Backcountry Bed, and over a pound lighter in weight. Because my new bag was warmer, I could also change my sleeping bag liner from a thermal liner to a silk liner.
I think I may have shaved off 1.5-2 lbs of weight from my pack, which should make a huge difference, especially when I am fully loaded with food and water. I had abrasion marks on one of my shoulders after last week. My pack is supposed to handle up to about 40 lbs, which I was definitely under, so I think the pack isn't sitting correctly anymore. I have definitely changed in shape (something that happens to every thru-hiker) since I started so maybe the pack needs to be adjusted? I did a half-hearted adjusting of the straps, but I may eventually have to start the fitting process from scratch.
At the end of my second zero, I had pretty much everything ready to go to get back out on the trail except my tent pole repair. One of the connectors in my tent pole snapped the last night I had been on the trail. I thought it was an easy fix, slide the splint up to the break and duck tape it in place until the replacement arrives, but it turned out to require a little more attention. The pole had bent in a way that needed to be reshaped before the splint could slide over it. That was something I could not do at 4 am, so I decided to take another zero day.
I probably should not be taking so many consecutive zero days. It messes with my hiking rhythm, and I end up back on the trail having to introduce myself to a whole new set of people for the week. However, I also am trying to time my arrival at Kennedy Meadows (South) for the second week in June, which means I probably have to slow down my pace through Southern California. I am coming off the trail in early June for about 1-1.5 weeks to attend some family events in the Midwest. Kennedy Meadows (South) seems like a good place to do so because it is right before the major snow of the High Sierra begins. People were saying they may be camped there for a week or two anyway waiting for the snow to melt some more before entering.
Even though I still felt a little guilty of taking an extra zero, I felt a little better about my decision when I checked both the weather and Facebook updates. There looked to be some rain and snow right in the area I would have been walking. One person posted about trying to get out of the rain in the section I would have been walking by hitching to a restaurant, only to find the restaurant was closed. Since my rain gear strategy hadn't been nailed down yet (I just ordered appropriate gear this weekend), I was kind of happy to be indoors.
Comments
Post a Comment