Date: 2015-07-27
To: Back in the States and started a countdown
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

So I went to the west side of Mexico for work last week and wasn't really able to update on my journal at all. It was hot. As in, "102 deg by 11am", hot. I spent the days working ridiculously hard on some validations, spent the evenings eating the biggest and most delicious steaks I've ever had, and the nights working on my gear spreadsheet while lounging on my hotel bed. It was exhausting but pretty awesome, plus it was a work trip so all my food was free! I love it when I don't have to pay grocery bills because I get free food. I bet I'll be even more excited on the trail when I get free things to munch on!Speaking of the trail, I ordered my sleeping bag!! I picked the Egret Ultralight 20deg down-filled one from Feathered Friends - it's only 28oz! That's a teeny tiny 1.8lbs! I did pay a bit more to get the one that is a few ounces lighter (the Egret Nano is the very-slightly-heavier version). Also, the Egret Nano/UL is the 'women's style' version of their super popular Hummingbird Nano/UL style. It has more room in the hips/torso area and I'm a side sleeper, so I need that extra width for my arms to spread out and brace my weight against the ground. I did think about just getting a Hummingbird but the lengths are kind of awkward for my height - I'm about 5'7" and I wanted a bag that was closer to my normal height than a man's 6' bag. I hope that I'm not cutting it too close by getting a 5'9" bag!! Has anyone ever slept in a bag that almost perfectly matched their height? Do you feel comfortable or do you wish you had more room to stretch out? This is concerning me way too much, I think.I'm so excited for it to get here and to be able to test it out. I did a lot of research about which kind to get and all the reviews for Feathered Friends bags mentioned how awesome the company is and how wonderfully durable the bags are. I hope I get the same experience! (link to bags: http://featheredfriends.com/down-sleeping-bags.html)Other than that, I'm working on making a decision on tent vs hammock (and subsequently, which to get). I'd really like to get an Osprey Exos 58 pack (I'm a small, so it's only 40oz/2.5lbs) but I want to make sure that I have my 'big gear' together first so I can take it all to REI and test out packs with the real weight and my real gear volume. I'm extremely (unreasonably?) concerned that the Exos 58 won't fit all my gear and will break because I stuff too much into it. Then again, that must be a silly worry because most of my gear is very light (if not UL) and I'm purposely choosing items with small volume and tiny weight. I just want to be able to have my real tent, sleeping bag, cooking setup, and some of my clothes to be in my possession so I can simulate packing it when I test it out. And SHOES. Ahhhhh I'm so nervous about shoes. I wear New Balance shoes in 'real life' and have never had a problem with them causing blisters, so maybe New Balance trail runners would be the best choice? Or should I test out Merrells? And what about camp shoes!? Crocs are so heavy (and I don't even own a pair anyway) but I don't like wearing sandals. Maybe super-ultralight running shoes will be the right choice, like those Saucony Hattori Minimalist ones that have such cute colors! But the websites that sell the Saucony shoes all say they run really small and nobody seems to be carrying large enough sizes that could fit me. DECISIONS.I started a countdown app on my phone. 233 days until trail start!