Date: 2015-08-03
To: Camping vs. "camping"
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I went out of state all weekend to ride four-wheelers and get muddy at a huge dirt park a few hours away. We brought a bunch of campers and big pickup trucks and huge coolers of food and beverages and trailers full of loud, fast machines. It was awesome and hilarious fun.My friends and I call this "camping".But, I couldn't help but think that it's nowhere close to what I think of when I hear "camping". I think of single-person tents and backpacks stuffed with essentials and little lightweight stoves and trekking poles and absolutely no motorized vehicles. I've mentioned to a few people that i'm going to be backpacking for 5-6 months next year and the response is overwhelmingly "You're going to live in the woods for half a year!? Where will you sleep? What will you eat!?" I get the sense that most people think of camping in terms of fifth wheel trailers and coolers and big, cleared out spaces in the woods. I tried to explain that I'd be sleeping in a sleeping bag in a tent - yes, one that I pitch myself every day and carry from place to place. I tried to explain that I'd be carrying the type of food to which you only need to add hot water in order to eat - no, I won't be carrying a charcoal grill. Some people are really concerned about my safety, trying to convince me to get concealed carry permits for each area of the AT and lug around a pistol and ammunition. I try to appease those friends by saying I'm considering taking a small can of bear spray with me (but really, I doubt I'd even take that along). And I know they are just asking because they've never been backpacking and most have never heard of the AT and thru-hiking and they are worried about me - so I am patient and I try to answer everyone's questions. But really, I get asked "Why!?" more than anything. People want to know why I'd choose to do this crazy thing. And for most people, I can't really articulate a satisfying answer. I want to do it because I've always wanted to do it. It's a stupid, circular answer. Hiking those 2,200+ miles is this big, huge, difficult, time-consuming thing, and it will change everything. I've always known that, which is why I never attempted it before now. I was too busy working on my life - in school, then working on my career, then settling everything and making plans so I'd be comfortable... and it was never the right time to just get up and live in the woods for a while. But it's the right time, finally! I guess a better answer is "I want to do it because I've always wanted to do it, and I have the perfect opportunity now" Does anyone else have a better reason for hiking?In OTHER, VERY EXCITING NEWS: my sleeping bag arrived!! I shook it out and put it on my bed and snuggled into it immediately! And it's super comfy! And it has so much ROOM! And it's so, so, so warm... kinda too warm for my 73 degree house and my leggings and sweatshirt that I was wearing at the time. but I'm so happy with it - that it's not purple or pink, that it's the right size for me, that it arrived already and that it's all fluffy and new and begging me to haul it from Georgia to Maine. Yesss!!