Since I announced to my friends and family that I am going to walk from Mexico to Canada... I have been bombarded with all sort of questions... this post will attempt to answer the common ones in one fell swoop... this post is mainly for people that aren't really sure what backpacking is, how a thru-hike works, or aka...mom and dad :)

Q: This answer is for the "WAIT, WHAT?!?!?" people... the conversation typically goes like this.... "hey, don't count on me for tennis (or whatever) I am going to try and hike the PCT..." Person responds with "so you won't be able to be here next week?".... me: "um...more like 4-6 months".... then you get the face... jaw dropping...confused look in eyes... and it always comes.... "wait, what?" (and then quite a few eventually get to the "like Reese Witherspoon?".... then I try to explain the PCT... so WHAT IS THE PCT?

A: The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is one of America's National Scenic Trails...there are a number of them, the most historic and well known is the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine. The PCT has a southern terminus in Campo, CA at the Mexican Border (like literally at the border...that wall that Trump talked about...I will be posting a photo of it ;))....and a northern terminus near Manning Park, Canada (this terminus is literally on the border line). That is 2653 miles (give or take depending on fire closures, etc) through California, Oregon, and Washington. To thru-hike the trail is to complete the entire thing in one go over the course of a few months. This takes the average hiker 4.5-5 months.... and since I like to be above average...well I am thinking 5-5.5 for me. :)

Q: Are you going alone? What will Charlie do?

A: Yes, I am starting the hike alone...however, there will be a number of other hikers starting the hike as well...and hikers look out for each other. No, Charlie and I did not break up and he is a very competent grown man...I think he will survive just fine without me for a few months. (Just in case, if you are reading this in live in the Redlands area...please invite him for dinner and serve a salad ;)).

Q: What type of weapon will you bring? I always answer with this what is the weapon you speak of to be used for - animals or other humans?

A: No weapon. I will not be foraging and hunting for food, I will be purchasing food along the way. Most weapons aren't very useful in the backcountry... if an animal attacks you...it's probably too late to grab a gun out of your pack (and seriously guns are heavy!) and the humans that have worked their way that far on the trail.... they are usually lovers, not haters. At my friend Alison's request, I will be carrying a small neck knife...which provides a safety measure to go with a little pepper spray for when possibly having to hitchhike to town for resupply or for cutting those pesky avocados. To be honest...I feel safer walking through the backcountry, then walking through most cities.... animals or the ones I will encounter usually want less to do with you, than you do with them.

Q: So, what are you bringing? Oh the fun part... I will attempt to describe my gear setup below...I am in no way a gear geek...I am sure a lot of these things have names and I just don't know them...if you really really want to know..message me and I will find a receipt. My goal was to keep things light, but also be comfortable. If you are looking for an ultralight, super cool gear list...I am not your girl :)

1) A BACKPACK... this is essential ;) --- I have always used Osprey packs and love them...my aura ag 65 is my go to for comfort and luxury for weekend trips...but it weighs over 4lbs without anything in it... my eja 58 is great too and weighs about 2lb less, but has a few things that bug me..no hipbelt pockets, a lot of dangling straps... so I am going to start off with a new bag...it weighs under 2lbs and so far seems comfortable.... it is called a ShadowLight and seems to be right in the middle of the ultralight style bags and what I am used to with a frame. If something goes wrong with it...I will switch back to one of my Ospreys.

2) A SHELTER.... I like a tent. I like to explode my pack at the end of the day into said tent. Charlie and I are big fans and highly recommend our Big Agnes Copper Spur UL3 - it is freestanding/semi-freestanding (technically doesn't have to be staked out, to have vestibules you have to use stakes, comes with it own set of poles, it is super easy to set up and extremely roomy for the both of us). I seriously considered just bringing it for my hike - a 3 person tent - just for me...it would be the Taj Mahal.... but that is a lot of extra weight and I am always a little sensitive to funny looks from others.... so I was going to get the same or similar Big Agnes tent just smaller...but instead decided to start off trying a non freestanding tent - 1) they are way lighter and 2) you don't have to carry extra poles because your trekking poles support the tent. So the tent, I will start with is a Six Moon Designs Skyscrape Trekker Solo. I went with this one for a few reasons, namely the price, size and the hybrid double wall construction. It was under $300 for the whole setup (when you start looking at lightweight non-freestanding tents... most are more in the $600+ range, the most popular being the Zpacks Duplex), I am still not sure I wouldn't prefer a semi-freestanding tent and didn't want to invest heavily in case I just hate it. I like double wall tents (usually the walls are bug netting and then a water-proof rainfly layer) - they are better at controlling condensation inside the tent and they allow for direct access to starry night views. With the Trekker - I was able to get a solo tent because it is made for a very big person, which I am not. The Trekker has 8 ft of length (being 5'3" - that means all of my gear and me fit very comfortably inside. The tent has a vestibule on either side, which is great for a solo tent - stinky shoes on one side and element protected cooking on the other. I have taken my new tent on two shakedown hikes - and it works as intended...but I will say, I was a little jealous looking across our camp spots at Charlie in his 3p mansion....

3) SLEEP SYSTEM... my sleep system is pretty normal - a 10 degree down quilt, a Sea To Summit inflatable sleeping pad (I believe it is called the Ether Light - it is a little heavier than some, but the comfort (it even has a little down insulation in the cells) and warmth value (R3.5) was worth the ounces) and a tiny Sea To Summit Aeros inflatable pillow. I have tried the old clothes and puffy in a stuff sack pillow - and am constantly "plumping" it during the night...so I splurged and got a real pillow and will use my head/neck buff as "pillow case". I also depending on temps as I enter the sierra - may switch out my quilt for my 0 degree mummy bag.... I hate mummy bags - I always feel claustrophobic and am constantly zipping and unzipping things in the night (hello fellow feet outside the covers sleepers)...but I do like being toasty!

4) CLOTHES... pretty self explanatory - the clothes I will be wearing starting in the desert: Columbia Button Down Sunshirt, Athleta Odor Resistant Tank Top, Patagonia Barely There Sports Bra, North Face Aphrodite Shorts, Ex-Officio Sports Mesh Underpants, Injinji Toe Liners, Darn Tough Mid Crew Socks, ON Cloud Trail Runners. The clothes in my pack in entirety are: Patagonia Capilene Base Layer Top and Bottoms for sleeping (only for hiking if it is really cold), extra pair of darn tough socks, pair of soft sleeping socks, extra pair of undies, lightweight north face rain jacket I bought years ago, a patagonia synthetic down puffy. For headwear - a sun hat, a buff and a fleece beenie for sleeping. And a pair of gloves for warmth. In other words - I will stink to high heaven for most of the time.

5) ELECTRONICS.... 20,000mah backup battery pack, garmin in reach mini (Rebecca DeLoach insisted I have a tracking device and sos emergency satellite communicator), iphone, fitbit sense watch, rechargeable NiteCore headlamp, and 3 charging cables to cover all the devices.... hello to world of micro-usb, usb-c, usb-a, and whatever the hell fitbit has going on...... waiting for the days when everything has the same plugs...

6) KITCHEN.... my kitchen isn't the lightest...but it is quick and everything is self contained. I will carry the Jet-Boil MicroMo - Charlie and I have used an MSR and Snow Peak in the past....when it is windy (which it will be)... it takes forever to boil water. Lets just say on our last shakedown hike... I cooked my dinner and boiled water for Charlie's, while his pot had barely started to bubble. I have a long handled titanium spoon, and a small dish rag. I may bring a small, titanium coffee mug - just because it weighs nothing and keeps my coffee and tea hotter for longer than the Jet-Boil pot. A lot of people keep asking me about water.... I carry a sawyer squeeze water filter (I also would recommend a Katahdyn BeFree - both are great). Basically, water sources along the trail can be a stream, a puddle, a dirty trough, a cache of water that some amazing person has left for hikers.... in the desert and in the current drought year...water can be scarce with long, hot walks in between. Water is also heavy...2.2 lbs per liter. I will start off with a carrying capacity of 5-6L; a 2L platypus bladder, 2 CNOC collapsibles, 1L collapsible flask for flavored water, and some smart water bottles, sometimes I will only have to carry 2L other times 5-6 (mainly for times when I can't camp near a water source and need extra for cooking dinner and breakfast),. Once I get to the Sierra, I can reduce all the extra water storage bottles to 2 1L Smart Water Bottles and the backup platypus. Basically, I will gather dirty water in the platypus with the sawyer screwed onto the opening squeeze it into the other containers for safer drinking water - but you can also just collect water into a water bottle and drink it straight through the sawyer.

7) MY BATHROOM, FIRST AID, TOILETRIES, AND NICKS AND NACKS... my bathroom involves a duece of spades trowel for digging holes, a kula pee cloth for cleanliness, a little bit of tp/dried wet wipes, hand sanitizer and a grocery store bag for packing out. A few friends have been concerned about my minimal first aid... the truth is the point of first aid supplies when backpacking isn't necessarily healing, it is mitigating the issue until you can make it to a town. I am actually only taking half of what is the photo - gauze pad, a few bandaids, body glide, leukotape, blister patches, some antispetic wipes/swabs, safety pin, needle, some immodium, benadryl, ibuprofen, nail clippers, tweezers and floss. My toiletries again minimal - sunscreen, chapstick, lotion, toothbrush, toothpaste, powder, small hairbrush, wet wipes...and a cheapo razor because I just can't with the armpits. Nicks and nacks.....again minimal...some gear repair patches, duct tape, extra guy line, zip ties, super glue, a few more safety pins, and backup water filtering tabs. I will also have a foot massage ball and trekking poles.

8. Finally...and most importantly FOOD!.... the truth is people have done tons of research on this and there is no way to take in the calories you are putting out on a thru-hike, one it is really hard to eat that much and two, it just weighs to much. The more you carry, the more you burn.... really it is hard. Most averagely-proportioned, fairly in shape women burn 5k-6k calories a day. My food plan is to try and keep a balance between proteins, fat, carbs and processed sugars. All kept in a food bag. A typical day for me will be:

Breakfast 1: A packet or 2 of Instant Grits Country Bacon Flavored (with some cheese and pepperoni or jerky added in) and a cup of Trader Joe's instant coffee packets (which already have the cream and sugar in the pack!)

Breakfast 2: A poptart or fiber bar fruit bar

Lunch: A tortilla or 2 with either peanut butter and jelly or a tuna creations packet (tuna and veggies)

Snacks: high protein kind bars or something similar, cookies or salty chips

Dinner: Either: Mac/Cheese, Instant Mashed Taters, CousCous - with chicken, tuna or dehydrated beef - and for flavor I have a few Chick-Fil-A sauces (Andrew Barnes...help a gal out)...

I will be passing through towns pretty regularly in the beginning...so town food will be plentiful and I can pack out sandwiches, salads, etc...

And that is a wrap.... now you know as much as I do about thru-hiking ;).

Cheers! Amy