shakedown, wake-up

Overconfidence,  presumptuousness, egotism; call it what you will, but it is, perhaps, a thru-hikers worst enemy.  Lesson learned last weekend, as we both ate a large serving of humble pie. We completed our first (and possibly only) shakedown hike before the real deal.  A shakedown hike is a  practice hike, during which a hiker tests out his system, works out all of the kinks, ensures that gear selections are on point and the body is up to par.  We packed our packs just as we would have if we were setting out on the PCT, and drove 3 hours south to the Neusiok Trail (this is the closest proximity trail where backcountry camping is permitted).  The Neusiok Trail is a 20.4 mile trail on the coast of NC; therefore it is relatively flat, and extremely wet.  We intended to hike the trail out and back in 2 days, totaling about 41 miles; we thought that we would sail right through.  I must include the fact that we have not been on a backpacking trip in about 2 years.





one of the more scenic sections of the hike

After a Friday night including some adult beverages for Moonshine and a less than desirable night of sleep for me, it's no wonder we got a bit of a late start; we arrived at the trailhead around 10:30.  We hiked about 19.5 miles on day 1, which was less than we intended, but we were happy with the day's progress, considering we hit the trail so late in the morning.  We were dragging ass, though, and our bodies were telling us to stop long before we actually did.  We loaded up with ibuprofen, setup our Tarptent Double Rainbow, cooked dinner, and hit the hay.

Day 2, we got an early start.  I had a great night's sleep, while Moonshine was kept awake by the pleasant sound of pistol-fire.  My feet were feeling tender; through my Merrell minimalist shoes, my tootsies felt every rock and root.  The 5 mile road walk did not help matters, and the condition of my feet continuously deteriorated.  Other than that, and the aches and pains that we expected, everything was all good.  Unfortunately my feet caused us to abort mission after about 12.5 miles on day 2.



neat longleaf pines

I won't bore you with the remainder of details of our weekend, which we termed a reality check hike, rather than a shakedown hike.


Here are some things we learned on our reality check hike:
-We are not necessarily in "trail shape".  We plan to amp up our training regimen. (And I renege my statement made in last post regarding my excellent physical condition.)
-We will probably not be making it to Lake Morena on day 1 of our PCT hike, which was our original plan (at mile marker 19.4, and likely the first water source on the trail)
-Minimalist shoes are not OK for thru-hiking.  Therefore, I need to buy some new shoes.
-Our packs could stand to be lightened.  We're working on trimming down our base weights by making some minor gear modifications (base weight = weight of pack contents less consumables [fuel, food, water])
-Backpacking is more enjoyable when one is not traipsing through scenery-lacking bogs and over roads with piles of shotgun shells on the shoulders, accompanied by the sounds of gunfire.

Off to do some much needed hiking...
Thanks for reading, happy (gunfire-less) trails to you!

PS-Moonshine's backpack didn't fall apart (yet)!