Everything's Ready- Just 6 Weeks To Go.

I can't believe it, but we finally have all of our gear bought...

My hiking poles are in the mail, and I'm going to order a simple knife and bandana from the ATC website today.  What a strange adventure it's been gathering all of our equipment!  Not as stressful as one might imagine- it was mostly fun.  And since we took our time in researching our gear, we fell in love with every bit of equipment we purchased.

I was lucky to be able to squeeze in a trip home to Ohio in between all the hustle and bustle of our final weeks here in South Carolina.  Stewart and I will be going to Ohio next week for a few days.  I can't tell you how excited I am to be able to see all my family before I leave for my six month hiking trip.  Rest assured that I'll post several wonderful family pictures as I know I'll be taking a lot during my visit. 

Aside from all that, Stewart and his dad are in the process of trying to find Stew a new vehicle.  They're searching high and low for a Jeep Wrangler, which is really exciting.  Stew's current truck is on it's last leg (wheel?) and so it will be great to have some reliable transportation for when we return from our trip and need to tow all our belongings cross-country.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the Jeep they looked at this week will be The One.

Everyone's asking us if we're getting "in shape" for our hike!  I'm assuming they mean physically, and to answer that I say "no"!  Hah!  Honestly, the first couple of weeks of our hike will be mostly to allow our bodies to adapt to our new way of life.  We definitely plan on doing 10 mile-or-under days during our first couple weeks.  We'll just get used to walking every day, setting up camp, and our new pace of life.  In fact, I would say that currently I'm doing the exact opposite of getting physically in shape:  on the advice of those who have done the trail or seen others walk the trail, I'm trying to pack on whatever weight I can in order to have some extra "fuel" to burn while I walk.  You see, hikers can burn up to 5,000-6,000 calories a day while hiking, depending on the terrain, and certainly are not able to replenish all those calories every day through food intake.  The result is hikers typically end up using/burning fat reserves (or, unfortunately, muscle).  Of course, that's a good thing for people who have a little extra fat.  Now, I'm not stick thin, but I certainly don't have too much junk-in-the-trunk... so I've been eating whatever I want whenever I want for the past couple of months, and loving it!  :)

Stewart and I have been thinking a lot about what we want to "accomplish" while on the trail.  No big goals, really, but little things we'd like to do or work on.  I suggested (after reading an online article on meditation) that we reserve 30 minutes to an hour everyday and practice silence.  Just sitting somewhere and not talking.  Not communicating.  Just observing and watching what's around us.  He seemed game to that idea.  In truth, I can't wait to get out on the trail and away from the noise bombardment I'm faced with daily.  I'm a person who enjoys my peace and quiet, and find I need it to be fully mentally healthy.  Nothing drives me crazier or gets me in a worse mood than having to listen incessantly to noises I would rather not be hearing, such as a neighbor's music, stereos blasting from passing cars, etc...  In fact, I'm going to relish in the absence of music this year.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm certainly a music-lover, but I honestly think people (our society?) has a "music addiction" in that people always seem to be needing to be having some sort of music playing.  And most of the time, they're not even listening to it.  Not truly.  I don't want music to become a background noise for my life.  I want to select what I want to hear and appreciate it while I'm hearing it. 

Having said that, my favorite band has a new album coming out in May, and I hope that either Stew or I have an iPhone by then so that I'll be able to listen to some of it while I'm on the trail.  The band is Fleet Foxes, and it was their first album (and the EP released simultaneously) that originally inspired me to want to move to the Pacific NW.  Great stuff...

So I'll call it quits for today and return to cleaning up our little apartment in preparation for packing and moving.  We're almost done!