Date: 2009-04-17
From: camp

To: camp- low gap
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: clear sky

ohhh today was a long day. it got to the point of being painfully tired. if i wasnt hiking with krank for the past 6 miles i dont know if i would have made it. the last 4 were the worst! the inclines at the end of the day were killing me! but it was another erally really nice day! no clouds in the sky, it was sooo nice! ive been wearing my skirt while hiking which is working out really well actually. it prevents me from taking too large of steps which is better for my tenden so thats good. it was hard to step up on some of the large rocks though. at times i had to hike the skirt up! the rocks on the down hill were hurting my knees real bad today. i was the first one to fall asleep last night and the last one to get up. im finding that when i sleep in my tent i sleep better and dont wake up as much and its way easier to sleep in. im definitly not doing another 17-ner anytime soon. it kicked my ass! everyone at camp was feeling this way though. it was a hard hard day. it was nice getting into camp with some time though to just relax and not have to hurry to put the tent up and cook dinner and collect wood while still having some light. here are a few things ive noticed:1)so ive noticed that i hike about 2-3 miles an hr. depending on how i feel. if im headed towards town or feeling great i usualy hike faster and go about... 3 miles an hr. but if im not feeling so hot ill hike about... 2 1/2 miles an hr. its werid how during the day i can wake up and feel lousy, hike a few miles, rest and then start hiking again and feel great! then later i feel lousy again. it just goes back and forth it seems. werid. 2)my hiked hunger is kicking in too. i am hungry all the time it seems! im like a baby, i need to eat every two hrs. its werid. and i can definlty tell the difference if ive eaten enough or not with my energy and stuff. 3)im noticing that i actually like to hike up the mountains rather then down them. it just hurts my knees too much going down for so long. i mean, its hard as hell to go up but not painfully hard. just exhusting. i never thought id say i like to clime the mountians rather than go down them. 4)everytime its hot outside i just crave a diet coke like theres no tomorrow.5)after hiking the first two weeks alone and these past two weeks ive been hiking with people, i dont know what i like better. i think i like them both at different times. like for the most part, i like to hike alone. i dont get rushed or stressed about my pace or push myself too hard to keep up with people. i also like to take lunches alone in a nice spot. but then i really like i hike with someone if im headed towards town and want it to go fast. or at the end of the day with the few miles left and i need a distraction to not think about how hard it is.6)the last 3 miles of the day, wheather its a 9 mile day, a 12, 15, or a 17 mile day, are the hardest miles. its like after you tell yourself your doing 12 or 17 miles that day, your body prepares for that and knows when its coming to the end. and if i were to hike 15 miles and somebody asked me after i was done if i could hike another 2 miles, i wouldnt be able to. but if i told myself i was hiking 17 to start with itd be a different story. so werid.