Date: 2010-02-23
To: Prep #16
Miles today: 0.0

T MINUS 9 DAYSAll the mail drop food (435 meals) is packed and delivered to my logistics person, taxes filed, doctor, dentist and podiatry visits completed, backpack is ready, satellite tracker activated, goodbyes said. Only a few minor details left to do. Ready for this show to get on the road. The excitement continues to ratchet up each day with only occasional bouts of trepidation. As a distraction, I went on a 3-day, 2-night camping and cross-country skiing trip to Newport State Park at the eastern tip of Door County, Wisconsin for their candlelight ski, which has been an annual tradition with me for many years. Temps were in the 20's during the day and the low teens at night. I purposely brought my AT clothing and gear along to make sure it would function okay with that kind of cold.   My Quarterdome tent was extremely difficult to set up, had to have help to get the poles into the grommets. It was like the fabric had shrunk with the cold. It set up fine in warmer temperatures in the fall, so I guess I'll just deal with the cold temperature difficulties. My 30 degree down bag with silk liner was almost warm enough. Had to wear an extra layer of clothes to bed before I achieved "toasty". Neo with 3/16" CCF pad under it worked fine¢didn't get any ground cold seeping through. Only went through 2.5 ounces of white gas fuel a day for two hot meals and melting snow for drinking water. I'm sure I'll use considerably less per day on the AT without having to melt snow so my 11 oz. fuel bottle should be sufficient fuel to last 7 days on the trail. In the past, I've pulled a gear sled and snowshoed the mile to our base camp but this year I put my gear into a backpack and skied in. Much faster. I remembered to lean forward a bit more than I usually do when skiing and managed to stay upright. I'm famous for spectacular falls on skis even on level ground. Went skiing and hiking on Saturday. A day of extended physical activity leaves a wonderful physical lethargy that beckons one to sleep long and quite sound. The simple pleasure of a hot drink in front of a crackling campfire on a cold winter night in the wilderness rearranges one's appreciation of the simple things. Winter camping = long nights and short days; forcing yourself to stay up even though you just want to curl up in the toasty warmth of your sleeping bag, but it's only 6 PM and the sun doesn't come up until 7 AM. So you throw another log on the fire and the thoughts and stories start. Firebug and Prosecutor joined me for this trip, both of whom I've backpacked with a few times before. It's a strange intimacy you form with your camp mates. Reckless behaviors are discussed, indiscretions revealed, and core beliefs are laid bare. In some ways these transitory camp mates know you better, and you them, than close friends and family back home. I suspect one of the reasons I enjoy backpacking so much is the opportunity to be the "real" me; to discard the filters; perhaps be the "better" me that I should strive for in my daily life.Morning arrives, camp is torn down and packed up, and you all go your separate ways. And should you meet again, there's an instant fellowship that's deeper than a mutual love of backpacking¢you know their quirks and foibles; their humor and moral compass.