There and Back Again
So I completed my first ever solo backpacking trip, in January no less! I hiked over two mountains (Vermont-style mountains; in other parts of the world, they're known as "hills") to get to the Birch Glen Camp shelter, which is a pretty cushy shelter, by the way. There was a semi-enclosed front room with a picnic table, and a back room with bunks. I got there in the pearly light of winter evening, and started by going to get water. Alas, my filter wasn't working! I think it froze...I tested it out before screwing it onto my water bottle and it worked fine, but then I got very little pressure and only a few drops of water flow. Now that I'm in a non-freezing environment I'll test it out in the kitchen sink and see what's what. No worries, I just boiled my water instead.
The next step was to get my stove going. Butane lighters can be persnickety in sub-freezing weather, but I got mine working and was able to get the stove lit...and then it went out because I didn't open the fuel valve in time after the initial warming up period. I tried again, with the same results. The third try was successful. I cooked up some mac and cheese and wrote in the shelter log. I noticed I was starting to get a sore throat, but figured it was either due to my drippy nose in the cold weather, or the beginning of a cold that would hit harder later on. After a quick cleanup, and with darkness falling, I retreated to my sleeping bag with a couple of hotties (hot water bottles) to write in my journal.
I wrote a few pages, and then suddenly felt very tired. So I put down the journal, turned off the headlamp, and laid down. Then things began going downhill. The sore throat intensified, and the post-nasal drip turned into a flood. Throughout the night I had fever, chills, and a strange semi-delirium. At one point I was so congested my ears hurt, like an ear infection, but I was able to alleviate it by repositioning my head to encouage better draining. I also got up to pee four or five times. My body beat whatever bug I had sometime in the wee hours, and I was able to sleep a little. The only symptom remaining of my illness was the sore throat, and general fatigue. I was interested to note that the soreness from my hike in, which I expected to feel today, was completely gone.
I felt well enough to hike out right after breakfast, and I'm glad I did, as it started snowing on my way back out and was really coming down after I got home. I hopped on the scale when I got home and found my pack weighs a whopping 37 pounds, so I definitely have some retooling to do before my AT hike. I know simply removing my heavy winter parka will shed a few pounds...but beyond that, what I have now is what I'm planning on taking. We'll see. Anyway, I felt good carrying it; it's much lighter than my pack was when I worked for the wilderness therapy program and carried, in addition to my personal stuff, a bag full of hard skills materials and a fifteen-pound super fun happy "guide pack" (formerly known as a "burden").
I think what I really got out of this was a confidence that I can do this. Even when I'm sick, sicker than I've been in years, I can.
The next step was to get my stove going. Butane lighters can be persnickety in sub-freezing weather, but I got mine working and was able to get the stove lit...and then it went out because I didn't open the fuel valve in time after the initial warming up period. I tried again, with the same results. The third try was successful. I cooked up some mac and cheese and wrote in the shelter log. I noticed I was starting to get a sore throat, but figured it was either due to my drippy nose in the cold weather, or the beginning of a cold that would hit harder later on. After a quick cleanup, and with darkness falling, I retreated to my sleeping bag with a couple of hotties (hot water bottles) to write in my journal.
I wrote a few pages, and then suddenly felt very tired. So I put down the journal, turned off the headlamp, and laid down. Then things began going downhill. The sore throat intensified, and the post-nasal drip turned into a flood. Throughout the night I had fever, chills, and a strange semi-delirium. At one point I was so congested my ears hurt, like an ear infection, but I was able to alleviate it by repositioning my head to encouage better draining. I also got up to pee four or five times. My body beat whatever bug I had sometime in the wee hours, and I was able to sleep a little. The only symptom remaining of my illness was the sore throat, and general fatigue. I was interested to note that the soreness from my hike in, which I expected to feel today, was completely gone.
I felt well enough to hike out right after breakfast, and I'm glad I did, as it started snowing on my way back out and was really coming down after I got home. I hopped on the scale when I got home and found my pack weighs a whopping 37 pounds, so I definitely have some retooling to do before my AT hike. I know simply removing my heavy winter parka will shed a few pounds...but beyond that, what I have now is what I'm planning on taking. We'll see. Anyway, I felt good carrying it; it's much lighter than my pack was when I worked for the wilderness therapy program and carried, in addition to my personal stuff, a bag full of hard skills materials and a fifteen-pound super fun happy "guide pack" (formerly known as a "burden").
I think what I really got out of this was a confidence that I can do this. Even when I'm sick, sicker than I've been in years, I can.