Plans
I got approved for another Mexico to Canada PCT permit, this one for 2019. I'm not going to attempt the whole thing, but instead plan on starting a little south of where I ended this spring and reach Echo Lake in Desolation Wilderness--a place where Lola and I hiked a few years ago when we thru hiked the Tahoe Rim Trail. It's easier to get a PCT permit for the whole trail than to try to get one for the John Muir Trail...210 miles of highly-coveted trail, almost impossible to get permits for. I know....I've tried about 60 times! The JMT is 210 miles from Mt Whitney to Yosemite NP. The PCT is co-located along 185 or so of those miles.
It's a bit unethical to do this stretch camouflaged as a PCT thru hiker, as it denies someone else a permit, but I made sure to apply for an undesirable start date in the middle of May because it doesn't matter when my real official start date at the Mexican border is since I won't even be there. What I plan on doing is overlanding with Lola and Milo from Denver to Cottonwood Pass near Lone Pine, CA and hiking north from there...detouring for a day hike at the JMT junction to summit Mt Whitney once and for all.
What is overlanding? That's something else I've been obsessing over lately. Basically, it's modifying your vehicle (in this case my Jeep Wrangler JKU, Roscoe) for long term off-road capability and self-reliance. It's about the journey, not so much the destination, which I guess is how I've approached many things in life. I mean hell....the PCT is not so much about touching the two monuments at the Mexican and Canadian borders; it's all the stuff between the monuments that counts the most. Any fool knows that.
And so, Roscoe is getting upgraded. He'll get to live out the rest of his many years as a bad-ass.
A 2 1/2" lift and new suspension, new wheels and 2" taller tires are the first things on the agenda. After that it will be new heavy duty bumpers, a winch, a galley build in the back (my DIY winter project), a roof rack install and a roof top tent so we can camp anywhere and not have to deal with the hassle of pitching a traditional tent every night.
I'll try to remember to post pics of Roscoe's build as it happens. It's gonna be expensive for sure, but he'll be ready for battle and adventure when it's all done.
Getting back to the PCT plan...Lola, Milo and I will spend a few days overlanding to the Sierra Nevada where I'll jump back on the trail. The loose plan as of now is for Lola and Milo to toodle around the area with Roscoe while I'm hiking--maybe visit some sights and towns and go on dayhikes--and then meet back up with me at designated places where we'll car camp together overnight and eat a proper breakfast and have some coffee, etc. Milo has become somewhat neurotic and if there is even a chance of a thunderstorm (or a car passing by) he can become obstinate and not go any farther. We can't chance that on multi-day hikes so he no longer gets to hike with us if we have to cover a certain amount of miles in a certain time frame.
It'll be fun, though. Lola will be on summer vacation and Milo will get to go on nice day hikes, which he loves more than anything. I'm hoping to cover 340-ish miles. I'm already laying the ground work for my absence with my excellent boss. She doesn't see it as a problem as long as I work out the logistics.
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Winter is here in Denver, occasionally. Time to wait it out. Work, plan, dream...the usual. Thanksgiving came and went and now it's time to buy presents and all that shit.
The boat yard where John and I store Reservoir Dog is up for sale so we have to re-locate our little beastie. John thinks he can find some time in early January to trailer the boat behind his Sprinter to Florida where we can store it in his parents' barn in Lakeland. We'll share driving duties and I'll spend a few days with the family, who I haven't seen in more than two years. Two years...that's too long. I'm a terrible son/brother/uncle.
I'd like one day--on another trip to FLA--to tow the boat over to Anna Maria and take Matt and his daughters (Mallory and Malanna) on a day sail across Tampa Bay to Egmont Key. I don't think those little girls have ever been on a sailboat. And they live on a lake! That's a damn shame and I'd like to fix that. R Dog would like that, too. The water is much cleaner there than in Cherry Creek Reservoir and the Texas Intracoastal waterway. He'd have a great time, doing what he does best: giving thrills.
Update: John and I Sprinted RDog down to Fla in early January. We made the trip in just under two days and now RDog rests under a roof in John's parents' backyard. I'm already making plans for an October Anna Maria beach trip. RDog will be happy to be sailing on the Gulf again.
It's a bit unethical to do this stretch camouflaged as a PCT thru hiker, as it denies someone else a permit, but I made sure to apply for an undesirable start date in the middle of May because it doesn't matter when my real official start date at the Mexican border is since I won't even be there. What I plan on doing is overlanding with Lola and Milo from Denver to Cottonwood Pass near Lone Pine, CA and hiking north from there...detouring for a day hike at the JMT junction to summit Mt Whitney once and for all.
What is overlanding? That's something else I've been obsessing over lately. Basically, it's modifying your vehicle (in this case my Jeep Wrangler JKU, Roscoe) for long term off-road capability and self-reliance. It's about the journey, not so much the destination, which I guess is how I've approached many things in life. I mean hell....the PCT is not so much about touching the two monuments at the Mexican and Canadian borders; it's all the stuff between the monuments that counts the most. Any fool knows that.
And so, Roscoe is getting upgraded. He'll get to live out the rest of his many years as a bad-ass.
A 2 1/2" lift and new suspension, new wheels and 2" taller tires are the first things on the agenda. After that it will be new heavy duty bumpers, a winch, a galley build in the back (my DIY winter project), a roof rack install and a roof top tent so we can camp anywhere and not have to deal with the hassle of pitching a traditional tent every night.
 | ||||
| I'll steal this guy's build idea |
Getting back to the PCT plan...Lola, Milo and I will spend a few days overlanding to the Sierra Nevada where I'll jump back on the trail. The loose plan as of now is for Lola and Milo to toodle around the area with Roscoe while I'm hiking--maybe visit some sights and towns and go on dayhikes--and then meet back up with me at designated places where we'll car camp together overnight and eat a proper breakfast and have some coffee, etc. Milo has become somewhat neurotic and if there is even a chance of a thunderstorm (or a car passing by) he can become obstinate and not go any farther. We can't chance that on multi-day hikes so he no longer gets to hike with us if we have to cover a certain amount of miles in a certain time frame.
It'll be fun, though. Lola will be on summer vacation and Milo will get to go on nice day hikes, which he loves more than anything. I'm hoping to cover 340-ish miles. I'm already laying the ground work for my absence with my excellent boss. She doesn't see it as a problem as long as I work out the logistics.
----------------
Winter is here in Denver, occasionally. Time to wait it out. Work, plan, dream...the usual. Thanksgiving came and went and now it's time to buy presents and all that shit.
The boat yard where John and I store Reservoir Dog is up for sale so we have to re-locate our little beastie. John thinks he can find some time in early January to trailer the boat behind his Sprinter to Florida where we can store it in his parents' barn in Lakeland. We'll share driving duties and I'll spend a few days with the family, who I haven't seen in more than two years. Two years...that's too long. I'm a terrible son/brother/uncle.
I'd like one day--on another trip to FLA--to tow the boat over to Anna Maria and take Matt and his daughters (Mallory and Malanna) on a day sail across Tampa Bay to Egmont Key. I don't think those little girls have ever been on a sailboat. And they live on a lake! That's a damn shame and I'd like to fix that. R Dog would like that, too. The water is much cleaner there than in Cherry Creek Reservoir and the Texas Intracoastal waterway. He'd have a great time, doing what he does best: giving thrills.
Update: John and I Sprinted RDog down to Fla in early January. We made the trip in just under two days and now RDog rests under a roof in John's parents' backyard. I'm already making plans for an October Anna Maria beach trip. RDog will be happy to be sailing on the Gulf again.
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