Hannibal's Pacific Crest Trail Chronicle

A number of comments have accumulated since I began this endeavor, so I thought I would take this opportunity to respond to your questions. In no particular order...

Barb, Eric and Simon: I hope you had a wonderful honeymoon in Hawaii. Can't wait to hear all about it. As far as my socks go...I wash them infrequently, when I get a chance to do the rest of my laundry in town. Every week or so. Of course, because the desert is a sandy and dirty place, and my feet are pretty dirty anyway, clean socks don't stay that way for long.

Julie: Be patient, I will resume washing your socks as soon as I return. In fact, the thought of washing your socks and other unmentionables is one of the things that keep me going.

Sandy: The weather has been pretty good. It has rained once, and I woke up in a cloud once. Otherwise, very sunny and clear. There was a week with temperatures over 100 degrees up to 110, very hot, but temps have generally been cooler than normal, only about 90 or 95. I have a tarp I can set up and sleep under in inclement weather. I have only done this three times though. Most nights I sleep under the stars and what was until recently a waxing moon.

Shirley: No military issue items are used because of weight. I do use a poncho liner as a quilt when I am sleeping in a hot climate, but in the desert, where nighttime lows can be in the 40s I am grateful to have my down bag. As far as the picture of my new wife...I don't find it necessary to carry this because her image is seared into my mind. Isn't yours in Gordon's?

Gordon: Sorry buddy...your better half is going to ask you if her image is seared into your mind. Just say yes.

Granadaman: No camembert. This cheese is too soft, and would not survive as a solid very long. I do carry cheddar, however, because it lasts, believe it or not, 4 or 5 days in the backpack.

Yasmine and Anika: I do have a story. When I was in the town of Big Bear, I was sitting outside a supermarket eating a fudgsicle. There happened to be a 12 foot tall wood carving of a big bear nearby. A woman and her granddaughter were walking by when the woman said, "Say goodbye to the big bear". The girl, who was your age Anika, looks right at me and says, "Goodbye". It must be my furry face.

Pere: What motivates me? Despite the hardships (which may be too strong a word), this really is fun, interesting and a great adventure. It is a chance to experience a challenge, to see new places, to enjoy relative solitude, to contemplate without the distractions inherent in everyday life (an exercise typified by Thoreau and largely lost to our modern world), to truly get in great shape, to meet wonderful people on and off the trail. The rattlesnakes, desert flowers, cacti, mountains, glaciers, lava fields, trail towns, etc..., are the backdrop for this Experience.

Well, my computer time has all but expired. I can't wait to tell you about Hiker Heaven in Aqua Dulce in a week's time.