Dress Rehearsal! Places Please!

As Hannah mentioned, we will be departing very shortly to take part in a 90-mile hike. In accordance with recommended safety guidelines set forth by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, we will not disclose any detailed itinerary, though I have planned one to the 1/10th mile. Also according to these guidelines, I will disseminate copies of this itinerary only to a few trusted individuals who can help arrange search parties if the need arises. There are a lot of safety guidelines set forth by the ATC. After reading them all, I have the feeling that the trail is not a safe place at all, but many people assure me that it is a safer place than most.

Our plan coming up is to hike approximately 15 miles per day. I know, for me, a 15-mile hike is a perfectly doable distance in a single day. What I don't know is if it is possible every day. Since March 1st, I've logged 122 miles hiking and 60 miles biking, but I've always had at least one day of rest between hikes/rides. What I've noticed is that I have a mild case of patellar tendonitis that causes me slight discomfort after the longer hikes (>10mi.). What causes this discomfort to abate, I imagine, is this nice day of rest (which is actually a day of work since I hike on my days off...) - I will soon be investing in my own set of Cho-Pat knee straps so I can fit in with the cool kids. Fingers crossed.

The opportunity to take this "dress rehearsal" hike can't really come at a better time. I've been dreaming almost nightly of hiking, and when my mind wanders during the day, it has something to do with the trail most of the time. We will be able to try all of our gear and hopefully get a sense of what we need and don't need. We should also derive some encouragement from the following fact: after completing Mt. Greylock, we will only encounter 2 taller peaks between Virginia and returning to New England. This gives me the sense that if we can climb Greylock, we can conquer anything else in our path before unleashing our newly acquired athleticism on the tall peaks of Northern New England.

People seem to have really strong opinions of us and our hike. One side says we cannot possibly make it, and they have no faith in our abilities. The other side says they have no doubt we will hike all summer and still ask for more when we finish. I've been shocked by which sides people have taken (and truthfully, that people actually care). Individuals I thought would support us do not, and others I did not think would care really seem to have all the faith in the world in our abilities. Our mission is to prove the first group wrong and not let the second group down. This trip has already been a learning experience, and I can't wait to see what future lessons the trail will bring us. Scores of hikers insist it is a magical place.