And don't forget the M&Ms test
A bag of M&Ms has been spilled on the trail.
Day hiker: Steps on the M&Ms without noticing while going by.
Weekend backpacker: Angrily glares into the woods hoping to spot whoever dropped the M&Ms, then carefully picks each up to put into his trash bag.
Through hiker: Gleefully eats the M&Ms!
It is amazing the variety of equipment and pack weights. It would be cool to see a regression of pack weight to success.
After finishing hiking PCT section J at Stevens Pass a couple years ago, I gave a ride to a couple of thru-hikers who were heading to Skykomish for the night. One of them had what I would consider a typical weekend backpacker's pack size at maybe 30 pounds; the other's pack I would be surprised if it weighed even 8-10 pounds (of course, he'd used up most of his food and water by then).
You get a biased sample in Washington. We only see the ones who've made it a long way. Generally, you can tell by their compactly organized kit, they've been walking for a long while. It is amazing the variety of equipment and pack weights. It would be cool to see a regression of pack weight to success.
You also have to filter out the boatload of section hikers, or people who have hit the PCT from the numerous feeder trails and are doing loops or traverses (that would be me on several occasions). They might stink just as much as a true PCTer but aren't quite the same thing.
Out on trail crew yesterday near Mirror Lk south of Snoqualmie Pass - ran into a NOBO who stated he was a "no skips, no flips" NOBO from Campo.
They're arriving in our area.
This is funny.
We were at a family wedding on Saturday, and the groom and bride met on the AT a few years ago. The wedding attendants were family (whom we knew), long-distance hikers, and social workers from Seattle. It was clear who the hikers were. One guy looked like he had come straight off the trail for the wedding. He was wearing a plaid button-up short-sleeved shirt with permanent backpack marks on the back, strap marks coming down the front. It was like the shadow of a backpack on his shirt permanently. Long beard and hair, baggy clothes on a super skinny body.
I felt a warm fuzzy kinship just looking at them all, even though I haven't been able to do any long-distance through-hiking.
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A bag of M&Ms has been spilled on the trail.
Day hiker: Steps on the M&Ms without noticing while going by.
Weekend backpacker: Angrily glares into the woods hoping to spot whoever dropped the M&Ms, then carefully picks each up to put into his trash bag.
Through hiker: Gleefully eats the M&Ms!
