With only two months and some change until my departure, I’ve been busy planning & preparing. As the date approaches, I’ve begun taking a look at California’s snowpack reports for the Sierras, and water reports for Southern California especially–this creek is flowing, that one is dry, there’s a faucet on at this road crossing, but it’s turned off, and that horse trough is full.

And I’m getting nervous. Excited, mostly. But also incredibly anxious.

What if the water report is incorrect, and I’m stuck in the desert without a drop to drink? Are my resupplies in the Sierra too far apart? Will my reduced mileage through the rock and snow force me out for several more days than I anticipated–without my requisite 3,500+ calories/day? What if I tumble down a remote ridge, traveling without a GPS location/rescue device?

My heart rate increases ever so steadily, I feel a slight sweat on my palms.

Am I an idiot? Am I really doing this?

An idiot? Probably.

And yes, I’m really doing this.

Two weeks ago I sat down with Halfmile’s PCT maps, Yogi’s PCT guide, The Internet, some wine & cheese & crackers, and planned out my resupply stops. Though subject to change, they are as follows:

• Mt. Laguna, CA (42.6)
• Warner Springs, CA (109.5)
• Idylwild, CA (179.4)
• Ziggy & the Bear at Cabazon, CA (210.8)
• Big Bear City, CA (266.0)
• Cajon Pass/I-15, CA (342.0)
• Wrightwood, CA (369.5)
• The Saufley’s at Agua Dulce, CA (454.5)
• Tehachapi, CA (566.5)
• Kennedy Meadows at Inyokern, CA (702.2)
• Independence/Lone Pine, CA (788.9)
• Muir Trail Ranch, CA (857.7)
• Mammoth Lakes, CA (906.8)
• Tuolomne Meadows, CA (942.5)
• Kennedy Meadows North, CA (1018.5)
• South Lake Tahoe, CA (1094.5)
• Soda Springs, CA (1155.6)
• Sierra City, CA (1197.5)
• The Braaten’s at Belden, CA (1289.5)
• Chester, CA (1334.7)
• Burney Falls State Park at Burney, CA (1423.5)
• Mt. Shasta, CA (1506.5)
• Etna, CA (1606.5)
• Seiad City, CA (1662.1)
• Ashland, OR (1726.0)
• Crater Lake/Mazama Village, OR (1829.3)
• Shelter Cove Resort, OR (1912.3)
• Bend, OR (2007.4)
• Timberline Lodge, OR (2107.3)
• Cascade Locks, OR (2155.0)
• Trout Lake, OR (2237.5)
• White Pass, WA (2303.0)
• Snoqualmie Pass, WA (2402.0)
• The Dinsmore’s at Skykomish, WA (2476.0)
• Stehekin, WA (2580.2)
• Manning Park Lodge, BC (2668.8)

Those towns marked in blue designate places wherein I’ll have resupply boxes mailed to me, as stores are sparse or non-existent; the parenthesized numbers denote which PCT mile the town lands on, or to/from where I’ll be hitching a ride.

Though I’m waiting till mid-late March to put my boxes fully together, I’m experimenting with a dehydrator. If all goes well, I’ll throw a few meals together, dehydrate, and mail them to myself–just add hot water!

Along with the particulars of my mail drops, I’ve been going through my gear, ensuring I have everything I need, ditching this item or that, and deciding what exactly I plan to carry on my back for 2,660 miles. Though I’m sure I’ll switch up an item or two before departing–not to mention chucking the things I realize are useless and/or not worth the weight while hiking.

My baseweight (how much your pack weighs, minus consumables–food, water, fuel) is hovering around 18lb at the moment, landing me in the upper echelon of the “lightweight” backpacking designation. Ultralight hikers boast sub-10lb baseweights, lightweight under 20lb.

As of today, this is what’s in my pack/on my body, though I’m still waiting on a couple smaller things (Ursack, a couple smartwater bottles, some first aid items). Some things I’ll only want or need during certain portions of the trail. Warm gloves (and maybe warmer pants?) for the High Sierra, a bear-proof (heavy and incredibly inconvenient) canister required in Yosemite, King’s Canyon, and Sequoia National Parks, and my little alcohol-burning brass stove. This stove is currently disallowed in Southern California as part of the campfire ban, as it requires uncontained fuel and can be a bit dangerous. I’ll likely switch out my canister-fueled MSR Pocketrocket for the brass stove when I reach Northern California.

For those interested in specifics, see my Gear List.