It's All Starting To Come Together...

December 29, 2014

Wow, this is starting to get real now!!!!  WooHoo!!! I've started putting together my mail drop boxes. I'm going to set them up for all the way through to The Bridge of The Gods on the Oregon, Washington boarder.  I'm hoping at that point I will have family and friends meeting me through Washington and bring me my resupply box; Hint, Hint....

Mt Si on a beautiful December day...

My resupply strategy is a Hybrid type.  I am mailing myself dinners and breakfasts with little items added in like canned meats, coffee, sugar, etc.  A few months back when REI was having its 30%  off sale I purchased $1,700 worth of Mountain House Freeze Dried meals.  I saved almost $600! I will supply my lunch stuff on the trail.  Things like tortillas, bagels, cheese, raisins, candy, etc.  This will allow me to add a little bit of variety to my trail food.  I think it will work, but then, too late now.



I have spread sheets, weight charts, maps, books, schedules, mileage marker lists, "to do" lists, list about the lists, and an overview list.  I'm getting listed out.  Hell, I feel like I have already hiked the whole damn trail at this point.  Huh, well, I guess that's good actually.  I still have a lot to figure out. Like, how I'm going to get from San Diego to the boarder and how I'm going to get from Warner Springs back to Lake Morena for the Kick Off thing, then back to Warner Springs to pick up walking where I had left off.  Then my brother in law is going to be in Palm Springs and invited me to come and stay a couple of days.  Huh, let me think about it; Shit yeah!!! Air conditioning, remote control, wifi, swimming pools, hot tubs, good food, good people.  I'm all over that. He will have to pick me up at Cajon Pass, and drive back to Palm Springs, but said he would be happy to do it.  Plus, drive me back and drop me off again.  Your the best Lewis, thank you so much!!!  Will certainly include that in my itinerary.

I've been getting in some great hiking and a snow shoe up on Mt Baker a couple of weeks ago.  Very nice with some great people from work.  The snow pak so far is unbelievably non-existent.  Mt Baker Ski area isn't even open and they are ALWAYS open by the first of December.
I keep looking at the Web Cam in Lone Pine, CA that looks up at the East side of Mt Whitney.  Just a dusting of snow so far.  I'm sure the West side has an accumulation.  I do follow the snow pak charts for the Sierras and to date it is very, very low.  I may consider moving my start date to early April or even late March depending on the Sierra snow pak come the end of February.
I have to put in for my Leave of Absence from work somewhere around the end of February.  The whole work thing is a bit uncertain.  I hope to have a job when I get back, but I certainly know that asking any employer to hold a spot for six months is, well, just not reasonable.  I am fairly certain I will have a Per Diem position when I get back, and then may have to take what ever opens, which would most likely mean going back to the night shift again.  Oh God, I dread the thought of that, but then, if that's the only "work" price I have to pay in order to do this absolutely CRAZY thing, then I will consider that well, well, worth the price.

October 20th, 2014