Backpacking Weekend

If I lug my pack around and don't camp does it still count as backpacking? I hope it does because I put some serious miles on my feet this weekend. So maybe I was not smart enough to make camping reservations far enough in advance and by the time I thought about it everything was sold out. Now why can't I ever remember that Memorial Weekend is when lots and lots of people go camping? 

My solution was simple load a pack with weights, carry it around for some miles, hop in the car, go home to eat a gourmet dinner, get some rest in comfort, wake up early and head out again. Each time I went to a different park so maybe not being able to reserve any campsites was not so bad after all. It all turned out for the best.

Friday

I wish I recorded this little fellow's singing. What a voice!
What expression. What passion!

That was a bonus training day. One of homeschooling moms totally messed up one of our activities and felt so guilty that she offered to drive Kenneth and his buddy to their class in Palo Alto. I love when people feel guilty enough to try to make up for it. :) Then she was late picking him and the other kids up but was nice enough to call and let me know. Why am I writing about it? Because that meant that all of a sudden my busy day turned into a day just for Ewa so I could do some backpacking with my best friend. We headed to Rancho San Antonio, a pretty cool place where one can encounter all kinds of interesting people. An elderly gentleman was curious why I carried my backpack since there is no camping there and soon we found out that he loved hiking and hiked insane miles on all continents, all after he turned 70. Now at 76, and after bouts with cancer, he is still very active and fast. Boy, is he fast! His stories earned him a big hug from me.

Saturday


Mount Diablo almost killed me. Or maybe it was the inaccurate weather forecast that did. Can I sue weather bureau if they mess up? They promised partly sunny day and temp around 70. It ended up raining and as for temperatures, read on.

I wish somebody moved Mount Diablo closer to my home. It is a fantastic place for hiking; steep trails, grand views, and a few nice and sheltered trails. The key word here is sheltered. So I went on one of those and was happy as a clam until I got to the ridge. Only then did I realize how cold it was. And here comes the good part. I had a huge backpack filled with weights, bottles with water (these make for good weights too), old towels to add some cushioning and no jacket, no fleece, NOTHING to keep me warm. I left them on the seat of my car. Smart. Oh, and did I mention I was sweaty? Yes, I sweat and a lot. I wish I could claim it was because I was going up so fast, but I am actually quite slow, and still I sweat. So I started shivering, I mean shivering very badly. I thought I could hide somewhere and wait for the sun to warm things up but there was no place to hide from the wind. Oh, forgot to mention that it was still darn early, I mean the park officially was still closed when I got to the ridge, I just know of the side entrance (To be fair, I still paid the fee on the way back home). So in total desperation I turned back and rushed to the car. I got some decent miles but not as many as I was hoping for. This was supposed to be a double effort day. 

See what an experienced hiker I am? OK, I'll just say it out loud. That was totally stupid.
I just realized something. I could have used one of the towels to wrap myself in.  Double stupid!!!

Sunday

Kenneth had a late Saturday party which meant I went to sleep way past my bedtime and since I had not been sleeping well all week long, it caught up with me and I overslept. Now that never happens to me so I never set an alarm clock. This time I could have used one. That meant no going back to Mount Diablo since it is quite a drive. So, since we are so lucky here in the Bay Area and can pick and choose from many wonderful parks I headed to Mission Peak. Now this is the place I hike quite often way before the sun rises. It was a lot of fun to do it in daylight this time. I went on a different trail than usual to add some miles and a few steeper hills. Why did they have to make them so steep though? What a fantastic hike that was. I put a nice warm fleece in my pack, added a wind breaker, gloves and a hat. Did not need any of them. It was quite warm and sunny. Go figure. I wish I had more time to do that trail twice. Maybe I'll manage during the week if I get up early enough. 

Luxuriously soft, heaven for my feet
after miles of rocky trails

Monday


Santa Teresa County Park is pretty close to where I live. How convenient on a day when I don't have a lot of time. I cheated again and ignored the signs that park opens at 8am (why on earth so late???). I couldn't wait till 8; by that time I wanted to be half way done with  my hike.
This park has some nice hills and a few steep climbs and good views. There isn't a lot of shade but the day started cold and cloudy. This time I was prepared and had my fleece with me. Yes, I can learn. It was surprisingly quiet and there weren't any mountain bikers on my trails. I consider this a luxury.
I was pleased to notice that my legs felt pretty strong after the last few days of heavy punishment. This time I was wearing my minimalist shoes and loved every second of the hike. No overheating, no knee pains, no ball of the foot pain either - all of those experienced in heavier boots. 


Next weekend I'll be in Yosemite so I will make sure to do a trek in the snow to see how that feels without heavy hiking boots. Yes, it snowed there just a couple days ago and probably will again this week!!! I am hearing intel from people who are crazy brave enough to venture into high country in such conditions that all that white stuff is not melting fast enough. It's the end of May and snow levels are at April 1 average. This is going to be an interesting season. 


Tomorrow, I think, just yoga and some rest. Or... maybe I'll backpack some more in my neighborhood. This is actually fun.


BTW, thank you all for your supportive comments. They mean a lot to me. Once on the trail I won't be able to really keep in touch, I will be able to post only very short messages of where I am and if I am still alive. 

By the time I was done with my training, the sun decided to show its face. 

6 Weeks to Go

I am so not ready. I have only 6 more weeks before we start our trek and I am panicking. 

I am not in the kind of shape I was hoping to be at this time. I am trying to find some balance so I don't get injured but still get a good workout. I worry that I will have to make up for my worries by getting the rest of my fitness on the trail. 

Nothing to it, right? 

I keep revising our trip plan knowing perfectly well that we won't be able to stick to it anyway since the conditions in the Sierras are quite difficult and unpredictable this year. A snowfield can slow us down to a crawl. If only somebody could tell me where those snowfields will be and how many miles of them we will have to cross, I would account for that but since nobody seems to know, all my planning seems to be totally irrelevant. So all these maps they post online are quite useless for what I need.

I still have infinite amount of food to dehydrate and the sun does not want to come out and help. Instead we have rains at the end of May in CA. That is just not normal. I love rain but right now I could do without it right now. At least this problem can be easily solved by buying commercial food. I just hope I won't have to.

I am still obsessing about the right clothing. I get cold easily, especially at night, but I don't want to carry then thousands pounds of fleece and down. A warm body would solve my problem but as of now no bodies are coming with me and my son does not count. 

I have already resigned myself to one t-shirt only. Somebody on JMT forum (have I mentioned how wonderful that forum is? best I have ever seen) wisely noticed that one would have to carry quite a few changes of clothes to look fresh on such a long trek. No matter what I will look dirty and I will stink. - No way around it. (maybe it's better no bodies are coming with me :-)  )

Very comfortable, great grip, pretty lightweight
 Keens kill my spoiled by barefooting
and minimalist shoes feet. 

I am going back and forth on the hiking footwear issue. I love minimalist shoes for backpacking but I know that this time I will have to be more reasonable. I thought I finally found boots I could possibly live with but my feet overheat in them terribly after just a couple of hours.  ... and then there is my son who is wondering if... going barefoot would not be a good idea. Right! He thinks that if he can do 10 barefoot miles with a pack on some of Yosemite trails, maybe he can do the entire 220+miles too. I think for him snow is the only deterrent. I am not going to tell him but right now I am desperate enough to consider that option. (well, not really) Will crampons (or a mini version of those, microspikes) look funny on Vibram Five Fingers?

I am dreading creek crossings. My feet get numb very easily and then I cannot feel what I am stepping on. This year water is going to be deep and fast. Ouch! Hiking poles will help with balance, I hope. I am filling my head with good advice from the people who know how to do it well but all that is theoretical knowledge. Next week, when I go to Yosemite I will practice. If you don't hear from me, it means I am stuck in the middle of a raging creek unable to move. Somebody, please come and rescue me.

I am questioning taking a GPS with us but again with the snow covering the trail and trail signs, a unit with preloaded maps can save my butt. I watched a couple of You Tube clips where hikers lost the trail and it took them hours to find it. So yes, I will carry a few additional ounces so I won't have to wander around totally lost (Mary, I have no trail sense). And then there is that fun part of being able to download the trip data and brag about it to our friends. 

Unbelievable, this is the exact rock I was sitting
on when I sent the message of where I was. So if
anybody needed to find me they would really
know where to look. How cool is that?

I am still testing my SPOT device, yet another safety gadget. If I were going solo, I would not be taking it but I feel I need to protect my offspring (like he needs and wants my protection these days). Ah, that motherly love. Actually it is a neat toy (aren't all gadgets?) that will send coordinates of where we are either to friends or rescue agencies, depending on which button I push. I've been having some problems configuring it but I think I got it now. (3.5oz more - I'll let Kenneth carry it.) It is fun. 

I am obsessing over every piece of equipment we are taking, questioning its usefulness on the trail but at the same time wondering if maybe I need to have a backup in case that one fails.

I am not too paranoid, right? Right?

John Muir would just die laughing looking at my preparations. Actually, he would probably shrug his shoulders, grab his small pack and without much fuss just head out there.