What have I done again...?

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 I am thinking to myself as I stare down onto the pile of gear I assembled. Glancing to the left I see my five buckets lined up neatly against the wall, topped with three boxes and my bear canister, all filled to the brim with food and other essentials. Almost everything I will consume during two months...

It's March and I plan to leave tomorrow. While I am in great skiing shape, I have done very little hiking. Stuffing my gear and the bear can full of food into my backpack I try to remember the last time I carried it. November of last year. For a two day hike only. I'm sure the first few days will be tough as my body takes its revenge for my lack of physical preparation...

Capitol Reef

So, why then? Why not just stay home in the city that I love, now that the weather is getting better, the trees start blossoming. Why indeed... I posted parts of this interview with Osho already in my blog about hiking the PCT. Four years later, it still rings true for me.

Osho: What does it mean to live dangerously?

DANGEROUSLY? To live dangerously means to live. If you don’t live dangerously, you don’t live. Living flowers only in danger. Living never flowers in security; it flowers only in insecurity. If you start getting secure, you become a stagnant pool. Then your energy is no more moving. Then you are afraid, because one never knows how to go into the unknown.
And why take the risk? The known is more secure. Then you get obsessed with the familiar. You go on getting fed up with it, you are bored with it, you feel miserable in it, but still it seems familiar and comfortable. At least it is known. Unknown creates a trembling in you. The very idea of the unknown and you start feeling unsafe.
There are only two types of people in the world. People who want to live comfortably — they are seeking death. They want a comfortable grave. And people who want to live — they choose to live dangerously, because life thrives only when there is risk. Have you ever gone climbing the mountains? The higher the climb, the fresher you feel, the younger you feel.
…

Stuff...

In terms of gear, I changed a few things around. The swankiest new addition is my new Dursten X-Mid 1 tent. It's a bit roomier and lighter than my old Sierra Design High Route. While the design is similar, the Dursten has many thoughtful details that allow quicker and simpler set-up. The Sierra tent served me well, but I needed to replace it due to excessive wear and tear.

I also bought some Xero Z-Trail hiking sandals as back-up foot wear. Thoughtful friends sent me several videos of hikers struggling in quicksand on the Hayduke. While it is not common to get permanently stuck, losing a shoe or two in the morass seems a more likely scenario. Another thru-hiker noted that the Hayduke "eats shoes" and I read a report of yet another one who had his shoes swept away in a flash flood. Hiking out barefoot does not sound very attractive.

The biggest change is a different one though. I expect to carry more water than on previous hikes, so saving weight elsewhere is paramount. There will also be areas where I will have to climb steep sections and pull my pack up or down on a rope. Last not least, some canyons will be full of water, and I have to cross the Little Colorado River and hike up Tapeats Creek. Those activities will likely submerge my backpack. So, with a heavy heart I hug my beloved Canon R6 one last time and leave it behind. This will save a lot of weight as the camera was by far the heaviest item I carried in the past. In addition, I won't need spare batteries or a special charger.

The Elephant In The Room

I will rely on my phone for pictures. I bought an iPhone 16 Pro, mainly for its satellite emergency capabilities and the camera improvements. It is also capable to take pictures in raw format. While I will miss the ability to shoot the Milky Way at night and create star trail pictures, I think the phone camera will be adequate for landscape photography and everything else.

I spent the last few days saying goodbye to many friends in Seattle, then slowly traveled southwest with a stop in Reno to visit my friends Minor and Adriana. Now I’m in Las Vegas and just finished uploading the relevant maps to my phone and backup device.

Tomorrow I’ll make my way to Utah und start stashing my supplies. I want to take my time and also do a little hiking on trails that are nearby, but not part of my route. All in all I estimate three days to properly secure the stashes and to reach Moab, the starting point of my hike.

Walking Up In Capitol Reef


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