geared up

Well folks, it looks like we're finally ready.

After months of research, reading, talking to friends, many trips to the outdoor store, hours at the sewing machine, and a few days in the woods, it looks like we've got the gear and are ready to begin this adventure.

Preparing to leave home for six months takes a lot of planning. There are bills and renters and cars and insurance that still need tending to while we're gone, so that requires a lot of prep work up front. And on top of thinking of what we'll be leaving behind, we've put a lot of thought into where we're heading and what we'll take with us. The bulk of the hours I've spent getting ready for the AT have centered around what is going into my backpack. Makes sense as my pack will serve as my kitchen, my bedroom, my shelter, my lunchbox, and my car. The goal is to stuff everything I will need to live well for six months into a comfortable, accessible, and very lightweight bag, and leave out anything I can do without. Which, apparently, is a lot.

Hikers love talking about gear, and, for many long distance hikers, the main goal of fine tuning their gear is to get the backpack as light as humanly possible. Some people cut the tags out of their shirts and drill holes in their toothbrushes to shave off puny amounts of weight; I haven't gotten quite that obsessive, but I have weeded out everything I think I can sanely go without and have gotten my pack down to less than 20 pounds (that's without food and water in it).

Another goal in preparing for the trip has been to keep our costs down and use what we have instead of buying new gear. We were able to use a lot of the clothes we already have, and we got some hand-me-downs from friends and siblings that have helped out, too. Some items we clearly needed to invest in, and for those we looked for sales and asked a few stores to support us in our fund raising hike. Overall we saved 30% on the purchases we made.

I did a cost analysis of the trip, curious of how expensive life in the woods will be. Turns out with food, clothing, all the gear plus anticipated replacements, insurance and other unavoidable evils, the five month trip for the two of us will cost around $5,500. Put another way, that is an annual cost of living of roughly $6,000 for one person. That's cheap. Somehow we survived on half that amount in Bolivia, but for American standards, I think walking through the woods must be one of the least expensive ways to get by. Sitting in the woods perhaps would be even cheaper, but not as fun.

For anyone curious about those 20 pounds coming with me, here's a breakdown of the gear, what each thing weighs (for the ones I can remember) and what it cost:

The *starred* items Tom and I will share, so that helps keep our weight down (mine, in particular, since he's manly and will probably carry most of them). The un-starred things are what I've got in my pack. Tom's pretty much got the same stuff in his, but somehow he spent a lot less than I did.

Pack: Gregory Jade 50. 3 lbs. $179 at 10% off
Pack cover: plastic bag. 4. oz. Pretty much free.
Sleeping bag: Western Mountaineering 10 degree down bag. 2 lbs. $400 at 10% off (this was hands down the most expensive item on our list, but a girl's gotta get her beauty rest.) Tom is using a sleeping bag he already had.
Sleeping pad: Thermarest Z-lite. 14 oz. Christmas present.
*Tent: Golite Hut Two. 2lbs. $156 (this is a tarp tent -it has no floor and no poles to hold it up; you hang it between two trees or use a trekking pole to put it up. The tent we already had weighs 8 lbs, so this was a good thing to spend on)
Ground cloth: plastic bag. 4 oz. More or less free.
*Stove: Primus pocket rocket. 8 oz. Already had it.
*Pots: MSR duralite 1.5 L and 2 L. $20 at 40% off
Trekking poles: Leki Youth adventurer. $25 at 50% off (they're kid poles, a benefit of being 5'2")
Water storage: camelbak I already had, plus 2 new nalgenes without the toxins. $10
*Water treatment: MSR ultralite pump. 8 oz. $89
Umbrella: Birdipal ultralite trekker. 8 oz. $24
Stuff sacks: homemade. $10 of materials.
Hiking shoes: Solomon gortex trail runners: $45 at 50% off.
Camp shoes: Crocs. 7 oz. Already had them.
Socks: two pairs of Smartwool hikers. $30 at %20 off.
Gators: Garmont gators. Already had them.
Lightweight long underwear top and bottom: silk underwear. Already had em.
Midweight long underwear top and bottom: fleece pants I already had and a patagonia wool 4 top $75 at 50% off.
Warm top: Down vest. 8 oz. Bought it for $3 in Bolivia on the one day it was cold in our site. Also doubles as a pillow.
Raincoat: Marmot precip. $50 at 50% off.
Rain pants: homemade. $10 for materials
Underwear: one, maybe two pairs (still contemplating this one). Already had em.
Sport bra: Champion synthetic. $14
T shirt: Icebreaker wool. $20 at 60% off
Shorts: Old Navy running shorts. Already had them (and they ran a marathon with me, so I figured they'd like this trip, too)
Hat: one of Ryan's fleece warm ones. Christmas present. And an OR rain hat. $28 at %20 off.
Bandanna: already had one.
*Medicine cabinet: toothbrush and paste, floss, nail clippers, sun block, daily vitamins, ibuprofen, band aids, tweezers, needle and thread, diva cup, and 4 oz. of dr. bronner's soap. I think we're gonna look and smell weird. For $20 and a life of freedom, can't complain.
*Cell phone and charger: 6 oz. Already had them
*Camera: Canon SD1000 plus charger and USB cord. Already had them.
Journal, one pen, one pencil.
Maybe a book -can't decide if I like reading or not yet. No, I think I'll skip it for now.

And that's it! That, plus food and water is all I will have with me. All said and done, Tom and I have spent about $1,200 on gear for the trail. His pack is under 20 pounds as well, and we imagine that at their fullest (the days we go to towns to buy food), we will be carrying around 30 to 35 pounds -a manageable amount for both of us. We'll cross roads frequently and head into nearby towns every three to five days to buy supplies and pick up packages that my mama sends. That way we won't have to carry ten days worth of food or hunt squirrels to stay alive.

We get a lot of questions about the hike, but mostly people want to know if we're glad we're about to hike the AT, if we really want to do this and are excited. There's often a slow shaking of the head and a look that says, "I can't believe you're going to do this," which might translate to, "why in god's name would you do this?" or perhaps, "thank god you're doing this and not me."

I guess a five month hike isn't for everyone, but I for one am downright stoked. I can't wait to be out in the forest, surrounded by trees and birds and beautiful views, my lungs full of fresh air, my legs working hard, my mind wandering. I don't really know what it will be like. I'm certain it will be miserable some days when we're soaked and cold and our socks are dirty and the stove won't light, but I'm equally sure that I will feel alive and purposeful and lucky to be where I am most days. I'll try to keep a pulse on that and keep you all posted.

So, friends, it's time to begin. Wish us well!