Happy Mother's Day

Hiking the PCT is a really great experience, but it's something that likely wouldn't be possible without the support of my mother. Monday she will mail three boxes full of food and gear to our next resupply point on the trail. Without the help of my mom Dan and I would literally starve in the Sierra Nevada. 

I'm sad I can't be with her on this Mother's Day, but I'll never forget how much her love and support has meant to me. Thanks for being OK with me wandering in the wilderness for five months Mom. 

Cheers,

Jonathan

P.S.:Vicki, thank you a million times over for all of your support and kindness throughout this whole trip!

My mom and I the day I graduated from college

The McDash

Mile 342 of the Pacific Crest Trail has a McDonalds 0.4 miles away from the trail. Hikers choose to gorge themselves at this haven of free wifi, food and clean water. Even hikers outwardly against McDonalds plan to camp within easy hiking range to gain the Golden Arches the next day.

We were overcome by hunger, you see. Not starvation, but knowledge that $10 could get you 3000 calories of already prepared food and maybe a milkshake, this fact drove us all. 

The day before we had hiked over 20 miles and managed to find a lake to swim in. After finding a place to camp 13 miles away from McDonalds, the Dash was on. Pedi and Quinoa flew down the trail while Half'n'Half and myself held a steady pace. Beautiful country with great gashes in the landscape from seismic activity - we were hiking over the San Andreas fault. Finally I saw highway 10 and was within sight of my goal. Upon arrival Pedi welcomed me with the most divine 10pc chicken nuggets, and after that the afternoon was a blur of burgers, fries and fountain soda.

At one point the PCT hikers outnumbered the regular guests. A pair had fallen asleep in a booth, cell phones and camera batteries hung from the ceiling like stalactites, and the trays of empty fries and burger wrappers filled the tables. 

After gorging ourselves we had to rally to hike up and away from sanctuary and back into the mountains. After eating all that food it felt good to put some miles behind the place where we shamed ourselves. 

​

People on mountains

"DUDE, this place is beautiful." 

Moonshine's beard. 

Most of the way up San Jacinto. 

photo/probably Half and Half

Soap Box, Pedi, Half and Half, and Quinoa at 10,800 ft atop Mt. San Jacinto. 

photo/random nice couple

We climbed over many a fallen tree at higher altitudes.  

Jonathan hiking through the fresh snow.

Jonathan descending, seeking warmer climbs.

Half and Half snapping photos at the summit of San Jacinto.

We say our goodbyes to the snow covered mountain (Not unhappily).

Greater than a marathon

I ran my first marathon in 3h40m and it was one of the most proud moments I'd ever experienced. Yesterday I completed my second marathon length endeavor, except this time I did it in 11 hours with 30 lbs on my back while climbing 4000 ft in elevation. 

It felt like a mere drop in the ocean. 

But I didn't stop once I had done 26.2 miles. Throughout the day I'd been leapfrogging with Zippy Morroco, a fellow thru-hiker, and by mile 22 we had banded together for the day's endeavor. 

"Wanna try for a 30 day?" Zippy asked me once I passed my marathon mark. 

Sure, why the hell not. 

I'd split up from my group a few days prior. It was my first time hiking alone and I had it stuck in my brain that I could push myself to complete this seemingly ludicrous feat. 

At the completion of 30 miles we knew there were only five more left until Big Bear, my hiking family and a soft bed. We donned our headlamps, scarfed a few granola bars pounded out the last miles. Darkness, tired legs and sore feet be damned, 14 hours after I started walking I had made it. 

Zippy Morroco, my hiking partner for the day. It was a joy getting to know him and experience the day together. I could never have done it all without him. 

My feet at the end of the day.  

A Joshua tree as night fell.  

Cheers,

Jonathan

2nd zero day

Wait, wait, no mileage for two days? Why? Snow, 5 inches or more, and 70+ mph winds on a mountain ridge would be an acceptable answer. After reading our local weather our merry little band - joker, whisk, moonshine, sideways, Half'n'half, quinoa, pedi and myself (soap box) all decided to stay in Iyllwild a second day. What did we wake up to on the morning we were supposed to depart? More snow. What precipitation we see at 6000ft, in town, will be much worse at 9000ft (and much colder). What an adventure...

Highlighting the difference a day can make for mountain weather. 

We meant to avoid what turned into a wintery morning. Instead we hiked out in the snow. On the plus side we enjoyed a wonderful small mountain town, we had two days off, and my legs knew it was time to get back to work. The US is a big country and we have a lot more to do if we're making it to Canada.

J and J brothers gave us a lift to the trailhead. 

Back on the PCT, hiked the Devil's Slide trail out of Idyllwild. 

 Cheers

Dan (Soap Box) 

Scenes of snow

Walking through the snow for a day and a half has been one of the most challenging and exhilarating experiences of the hike so far. As I panted for breath in the cold wind and trudged my feet sloppily through snow it was all I could do to stop myself and shoot a few frames every five yards. The scenes were spectacular beyond any words that I can write. With my camera at least I could put forth a worthwhile effort. 

Cheers,

Jonathan

Zero day

Hiking is great. I love seeing all of the sights, pushing over a mountain ridge and learning how to live in the back country. 

That being said, zero days are absolutely necessary. My feet are trashed and in bad need of repair. We found a loose group of fellow hikers with whom we've bonded nicely. Now we sit back and relax for a day or two before getting back out on the trail. I couldn't be more thankful for this period of rehabbing my feet and spending time with fellow hikers. I even slept in a bed last night! 

To top it all off, Idyllwild is the most adorably quaint town. I'm not usually the biggest fan of tiny towns, but this one has treated us well (read: BOGO ice cream cones).      

Soap Box, Moonshine, Joker, Half and Half, 

Pedi, Sideways D, Whisk, Quinoa

Cheers,

Jonathan

Day 6 - Resupply!

iking with a jar of peanut butter, some angel hair pasta and a single liter of water, Jonathan and I made it to Warner Spring early day 6.  We broke camp quickly and started out knowing every person we passed meant a shower that much sooner (maybe even warm water?).

Warner Springs isn't a huge settlement, the part we saw consisted of a fire station, complete with bunkhouse and a backcountry fire fighting rig, and a community center which had been transformed into a hiker center - showers, laundry, wi-fi access, and cooked meals. All of which came at a price but was worth any amount and all proceeds went back to the community.

Aside from bathing, which we all needed, the real pay dirt was our first resupply box. We had done ourselves quite well - snickers, nuts, mashed potatoes. Every meal we've cooked has been delicious, but we didn't buy enough for Jonathan and I  so we'd been splitting meals. Oops. A problem no longer! Protein powder, Mass Gainer Complex, and packaged tuna solved our crisis. 

Opening supply boxes at Warner Springs like it's Christmas morning. 

It's difficult to describe PCT culture, but this resupply day was a short hike - 8 miles in the morning (passed the beatiful Eagle Rock). After we got in line for showers the rest of "The Pack" first trickled then poured into the community center. So many that the staff had to stop accepting laundry by noon so they could catch up on what had been dropped off. 

One of the center's staff said they had served 100 breakfast the previous day and that our cohort was setting the new record for number of burgers cooked in the afternoon. Yet another sign of the popularity of the PCT this season. 

It felt good to hike on after a day of refueling.

Heading back out, northward! 

A few trail photos

Dan being glamorous in the desert

ramen for lunch on a hot day

Quinoa jamming out with Dan at a trail angel spot on day 7

Quinoa napping at a trail angel's house.

break is over, back to hiking

need more water!

biggest squirrels ever up in Idyllwild

the beauty I witness each day is breathtaking

Cheers,

Jonathan

I am a runner

By my nature and experience I am a runner, not a hiker. Maybe I'm a hiker now, but only since six days ago. 

Blisters have been my biggest struggle on the trail so far. When, on day three, my feet screamed in agony with every step from the pain of 10 different blisters I decided it was time to run. Three miles later I could finally walk again, and my inner-runner smiled with pride. I don't know how it worked out that running with 25 lbs. on my back was anything less than awful, but in that moment it helped get me through the day

http://youtu.be/EVxoBhIEJbs

Pardon the vertical video. Plz.  

Day 5 - happy Easter!

Ok, I don't think we'll be finding Easter Eggs on the trails. We stink, we walk funny, we dress in goofy clothes, and we will eat anything - we've become hiker trash.

Today has been rough. The first few days are behind us and we are taking a break at mile 91 as I write. We will be crossing our 100 mile marker! However, the desert sun is beating down and as another hiker said, "there are bodies under all the trees." We are seeking out shade. It's hot, water is short and the tallest tree is close to 5 ft tall. Every day I am drawing on my experiences with Double H and Philmont to help make things easier. 

Day 1 I was extremely excited to be on the trail, maybe even nervous with anticipation. Our trail angel, Girl Scout dropped us off at the border, we snapped some pictures and we were on our way through the desert, putting distance between ourselves and the border patrol.

Day 2 brought sore muscles, but new friends and I was able to dole out backpacking tips. We were playing leap frog with a Belgian guy and a German all day and finally we decided to hike together. We hiked over 20 miles to our next camp and went from the desert to Ponderosa pines and the scenic town of Mt. Laguna.

Day 3 was more incredible scenery and the landscape opened up to vistas overlooking the enormous Noble Canyon. A long day of walking on trail with solid rock on one side and a 2000 foot drop on the other side. 

Day 4 was a long one, but was a blast: fighter jets, bridge beers, camping in the desert. During lunch we found water at a fire tank. If there hadn't been water there we would have been in trouble - no other water for 30+ miles. Jonathan had/has terrible foot problems so I hiked ahead (thinking if he needed help I'd find more water and closer road access) while he laid up with hiker friends. Half an hour later I hear yelling behind me. I turned as fast as I could to see Jonathan bolting down this mountain ridge trail, flying by other hikers. He's yelling for me to take video. After he passes me, I cinch down my straps and run after him. That evening we hiked to Scissors Crossing to find beer stored in a cooler, left by a trail angel. Perfect.

Side note: we had to leave the bridge hangout - lots of people were showing up at the bridge and we needed sleep. From our hillside campsite we saw bikers and some guy with a search light on his car drive by the bridge so I think we made an excellent call when we moved on. 

I feel like all my experience from working at Double H has made me more prepared for the desert, mentally. And I have been extremely lucky, very few blisters. Been trying to get some good pictures and teach the guys some skillz! As a group we have taken on our trail personalities, are growing accustomed to walking all day, taking notice of our surroundings and getting past our aches and pains. 

-Dan (no drawings yet, just pics!) 

Southern Terminus

Afternoon of Day 1

Day 3 - tons of ridge walking, breaking for a snack!

The ridge we were walking along (day 3). Jonathan is in the middle someplace. 

Day 4 - Scissors Crossing, the bridge vortex. We founds water, beer, trash collection and things got strange.

Day 2 and day 1 reflections

I was overly eager and have an ego. I thought I could haul ass and make great time on day one. In fact I did, but at great expense. My whole body was completely shot and I had blisters. I told Dan it wasn't day one I was worried about, it was day two. 

It turns out that after ibuprofen, a crapload of protein and a good night's sleep I was recharged and ready to rock. Even still, I didn't know what I would be able  to handle after that first day, but day two proved to be the most glorious of days. We upped the mileage to 22, didn't have to fight thought a scorching sun and walked through three different ecosystems. What a blissful day. To top it off, we have adopted two hikers into our merry gang. 

As our day came to a close, or so we thought, we got kicked out of our campsite by a park manager or something and were forced to commence our first night hike. While it wasn't something I was terribly excited about, it wasn't bad at all, minus my aching feet. A clearing for four presented itself and it was decided that tents were not needed tonight. What a day, what a day.  

Cheers,

Jonathan

Day 1

miles hiked: 20

snakes seen: 3

bee stings aquired: 1

fun had: not quantifiable. So much. 

Getting thrown into this adventure is like most akin to the beginning of studying abroad for me, but with hardcore physical activity involved.  

The southern terminus made me smile so much. The moment of arriving didn't let me down. 

Two trail names got doled out around dinner tonight. Looks like I'm Pedicure. Figures. 

-Jonathan   

Day 0

Sunburned and not even on the trail. Grrreat.  

We landed in San Diego (after a 5 hour flight) at 8:40 am. While in the air between Pheonix and San Diahhhgo we looked out the window at the landscape below. Unless I can't read a map, we were flying over where we would soon be hiking. 

Im excited, don't get me wrong, but when we read about the desert and drought maybe that point wasn't driven home enough. It is now. Desolate expanses of nothingness, dried and cracked. Even from the plane window the land looked thirsty. We'll deal with it when we get there. 

--- 

On the other hand San Diego was fantastic and strange. Walked from the airport past a large marina, a military base, through some neighborhoods where looking is likely as close as I'll get to entering a home, until finally... The Pacific Ocean. My first time and I ran in then out of the frigid waters.

After the beech some kind strangers, Dan and Jada, helped us get to the park where we encountered Girl Scout, the first trail angel of our journey. He picked us up off the city street, drove us to get tacos and dropped us off at the southern terminus. We are on the trail.

The odyssey begins

Miles: 0

Weather: freezing, but clear

Wake up, no alarm, 3:18AM according to my watch. Snap to it. Outside, the moon is pink, "the blood moon", a lunar eclipse greets me when I step out into the freezing morning.

Jj and I Fly from St. Louis, Missouri to San Diego, California. Then south, to the beginning of our journey. A "short walk", the Pacific Crest Trail.

much better Blood Moon Pics

Finally all the planning, scouring the web and guides is done, this is it. Our packs are ready for the airport, checked bags containing the stove and trekking poles, first load of food - to last us a couple days on the trail, tents, 1st aid and water bottles. We've both brought small bags to carry on the plane to keep the cameras safe. Seems odd that this is all I'll have (and still may be too much) for months.

The Pacific Crest Trail still feels so far off (it is). Adios Missouri, see you in the fall. 

We would love to receive your packges

Quite a few people have expressed interest in sending us stuff along the trail. We would love to receive your packages. There are, however, a few things to take into consideration.

The biggest concern is weight. Dan and I have spent hours and hours making sure our respective pack weights are as light as possible. Sending us anything big or heavy is extremely burdensome. I'm not forgoing soap and deodorant because I want to be stinky, but rather it's simply too heavy to be worth it. I love you guys and it warms my heart that you would make the effort to send us stuff, but please think about how much it weighs. 

Now that we've got that covered, here is a link where you can find pretty much every possible place to mail something along the trail. Next to each location you'll see a number: that's the mile-point along the trail. If there's a '+X' next to it, it's because we'll have to hike/hitch that many miles off trail to get to it. We're likely to be doing those extra miles anyway, so it shouldn't be a big deal.

Please send us packages about two to three weeks before we are expected to arrive at the package's intended pickup location. Don't know when we are supposed to arrive somewhere? Just ask. You'll also want to let us know that you sent something so we actually go to the post office to pick up the package. As a corollary, be sure to send us stuff where we will be, not where we are.

Since the packages will generally be held at a post office they should be labeled:

HOLD FOR PCT HIKER

Jonathan Hinderliter / Dan Beerman

general delivery

town, state

zip

Cheers,

Jonathan and Dan

Food resupply

OM NOM NOM.

Dude, srsly, we are gonna eat SO MUCH. ALL OF TEH FOODZ. How are we gonna get all that food?

Our resupply method will be a hybrid strategy. Some portion of the resupply will happen by mail drops. We have packages all packed up and ready to go addressed to about 10 different spots on the trail. Most of these spots are more remote places where we A: won't be able to find a decent store (price or variety) or B: where we will need different gear for changing conditions, ie: the Sierra Nevada mountains.

For the most part our plan is to walk or hitch into towns that are close to the trail. Many of these towns have decent grocery stores where we can simply buy food for the coming stretch. Our resupply distances will be an average of three and seven days apart. The longest we should have to go between resupply is eight days (in the Sierra Nevada). 

Most of this information is hypothetical though. Things can always change once we are out there. What I do know is that every blog I read talks about thru-hikers losing weight along the way. Now matter how much you try and eat it doesn't seem to be enough to maintain your weight when you are putting your body through such rigorous activity on a daily basis. Because of this I intentionally put on a few pounds as a buffer. WHAT'S UP ICE CREAM!

325,000 calories ready to be boxed up for nine resupply boxes.

- Jonathan

Preparation!

Obsessive. Preparedness is a state of mind. Getting the gear, food, water, and other logistical challenges for the PCT is a part time job, not even touching on training or actually doing the hike! Always I am cognizant of balancing cost with weight and size and necessity.

Lynne Whelden proposed the idea that packed weight is fear. Fear of wet, cold, sore feet, bears, hunger... one could apply the axiom to anything. 

I'm a gearhead, I'm thrifty, and I've walked more than a couple of miles with a backpack. But I haven't bought a new sleeping bag, backpack, hiking shoes, or jacket in a couple of years and my kit is a bit threadbare. Additionally, I'm trying to join the ultralight to light weight club, which means hiking with a base weight (everything I carry not including food and water) ringing in at a total of 10 to 20 lbs. Why is this difficult? My old sleeping bag = ~4 lbs, my old hiking pack = ~5 lbs, tent was ~4 lbs, and my boots were 1 lb apiece (that's 15lbs for four items!) so I've had to research new, lighter gear and become conservative about my packed weight economy.

I think I've invented to gear buying indexes. For example, using assigned scores to pick trail running shoes:

• Total Cost = Cost of Shoes * (Total PCT Length / Projected Mileage per Pair of Shoe)
• Score = ( Total Cost * Weight in Oz. ) ± Feature Factor   
  *Feature Factor is an attempt to give shoes with "exceptional breath-ability, comfort, good reviews" a subjective adjustment for the added value (from 0.00-1.00).

Did I use this when buying my trail runners? Hell no. My point is that switching from my old backpacking style to lightweight backpacking means that everything I carry must be justifiable to the ounce. The research can be fun, but has driven me a bit crazy. I think about why I really need anything at

There will be more posts on gear to come - what I'm bringing, why, what I'm not bringing - and our final gear list will be available (cant wait), but I want to share some references I've been using while I research and prepare for the PCT.

• Outdoor Gear Lab - interesting and helpful reviews by experienced hikers
• Halfway Anywhere - Love this guy's blog.
• Jason Hikes - another great source
• Mexico to Canada 2013 - hiker blog
• In These Woods - still getting updates!
• lighterpack - great design!
• yogis guidebook - dare I say, essential? At the very least - great for research and planning

We made a video!

In case you needed a more personal introduction to the tenacious twosome of cross-country trekkers, look no further.

Colorful weather map - incites fear into Dan's heart.

i09 article with pictures of this year vs. last year.

NBC news feature about the drought in SoCal - just straight up terrifying pictures for a duo about to traverse those barren slopes.

On personal safety

Of all the questions that people ask, one seems to be repeated more frequently then all the rest:

"Are you guys going to carry a gun?"

No. Simplest answer: guns weigh a lot. When embarking on a journey of this length, we plan to carry pretty much only that which is essential (except my camera). Every extra pound (even ounce) means more stress on our bodies and more calories to consume. A gun simply weighs us down. 

We are going to look like we're living out of backpacks - dirty, hairy, rough. We really don't have much to offer a potential robber (cept granola). Who would want to waste their time confronting us in the first place? I'm more concerned about bears and mosquitos than I am dangerous people. And no, a pistol isn't going to stop a bear either. 

More than any of that, though, I DON'T LIKE GUNS.  You may disagree with me politically. Deal with it.

Cheers,

Jonathan

---

I felt the need to weigh in on this. Will I carry a gun on the trail? As a lightweight hiker I will answer this question with another question from postholer.com, as follows:

"What serves me better, the extra weight of a gun or the extra weight of cookies?"

Edit: Not certain I'll carry bear mace either, really... so bulky...

Cheers!
Dan