Had a brutal 50 mile stretch on the Pacific Crest Trail near Etna last August

I was 5 days in with blisters forming and hit a section where all the water sources were dried up after a hot spell. Had to carry 6 liters for 18 miles and the weight wrecked my knees on the downhill. Anyone else hit a dry stretch that forced you to rethink your water carry strategy?

2 comments

2 Comments

hannah_williams1mo agoMost Upvoted

Gotta say, that kind of forced carry reminds me of how we all end up packing way too much emotional baggage on trips that don't really need it. Like I've noticed people haul around old grudges or stress from work on vacations, thinking it's helpful but it just wears them down faster than the actual trail does. You learned a hard lesson about weight distribution, but that same idea applies to daily life where you can dump the extra mental load before it wrecks your knees metaphorically speaking. Blisters heal but those heavy choices stick around if you don't adjust.

knight.diana1mo ago

That part about blisters healing but heavy choices sticking around is good, but I'd argue some blisters can actually get infected and cause way bigger problems if you don't deal with them right away. Same with emotional stuff I guess, sometimes the small stuff festers if you ignore it too long.