From Memories to Milestones: Incredible Days and Huge Steps towards My Pacific Crest Trail Start

Oh boy, what a week. A lot was going on in the most positive way possible. A day I´ll probably never forget, a 3-day trip to Vancouver sums up intensive days I need to share with you. And, most importantly, big steps towards my Pacific Crest Trail Start:

 

The best skiing in the world:

 

As you might know, I´m currently working at Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing in Blue River B.C., a pretty remote and special place. Mike Wiegele was a pioneer for helicopter skiing in the 70s and built a little paradise lodge in the middle of nowhere, a cute little town along the Yellowhead highway. My home for the second winter season. Yes, we can go skiing with guests whenever there are open seats in the helicopters. A pretty cool treat and definitely the reason I applied in the first place, and returned this winter.

 

 

 

But Sunday was extra special. Together with three friends, we were able to catch a rare opportunity to rent our own helicopter and guide for a super special staff discount. We had our own helicopter plus guide and were not only allowed to join skiing but could bring in what we wanted to ski and could go hard. Work hard – play hard.

 

THIS WAS SO FUN!

 

And definitely, the skiing experience I have been longing for since my very first day here. If this is spoiling my skiing long-term? I have no idea, but maybe 😀

Knowing that I´d never be able to afford this as a regular guest, I´m more than humble and thankful for the experiences and memories I was able to make here. Thanks to MWHS for everything 😊.

Off to the Big City:

 

The day after, I left cute little calm Blue River for a 3-day trip to hustle and bustle Vancouver for my VISA appointment at the US embassy. I wrote about my visa struggle in a previous post. So, obviously, I was nervous. Of course, there was no obvious reason to deny my visa application, but you never know. Driving the 2,5hours down to Kamloops to catch the super short 50-minute flight and 20 minutes in the sky train and I´m downtown. First time in a bigger town in 4.5 months. Directly overwhelmed by everything: People, buildings, people, noise, smell, …. Crazy 😀

But I made the best out of it! Strolled around, got a haircut, visited some of my favorite places for food, made new friends in the hostel, and even went to a hockey game – a must-do when in Canada. More importantly: I GOT MY US VISA. And it went pretty smoothly. In the interview, I was asked why the 90-day ESTA isn´t enough. On my answer, that I want to hike the Pacific Crest Trail and can´t do it that fast, the officer only replied with: “Why do people want to hike that”… A question I will definitely ask myself at one or another moment during the hike.

It´s gonna happen (time to freak out)

 

But THIS is a huge step for me. The last big administrative barrier passed and it´s getting real. In 48 days, I´ll start my hike. I still have trouble picturing myself hiking and starting this adventure. All this has been in my head for such a long time, and the thought that I´m going to actually do it is unimaginable. Just unreal 😊

 

Time to get into detailed preparations again. The last 4 weeks I was a bit lazy in that regard. But honestly, I read so much about “don´t overprep” and that things will work out. I just need some more overview about certain things. And my to-do list before leaving Blue River is gigantic 😊.

 

Preps breakdown:

 

Gear:

There’s a full cart at Amazon, Garagegrowngear.com, and sixmoondesign.com. I just need to order it and I´m good to go. Some things like my sun hoodie I´m going to buy at REI either in San Francisco or San Diego. Gear is set and I can´t wait to pack my Kakwa55 for the first time. As I left mostly all of my gear in San Francisco, I need to wait a bit longer – but I´m thrilled to pack this bag.

 

Resupply

I need to get into the detail planning and work on my overview of resupply towns on the way. By now, I know where I want to send boxes to. But I want a better understanding of where I can get stuff in-between. Again: My strategy is to send lunches and dinners in boxes for the section until Kennedy Meadows (first 700 miles). On this stretch, I assess if this is how I´m going to continue, or if something needs to adapt.

 

Further, I need to think about what I need in every resupply box despite food. Hygiene stuff, supplements, gear replacements/additions and other things I want to restock. Big thinking ahead, but in the end it should be done in one focused evening session.

 

Admin

I still need local permits, as my Pacific Crest Trail Long Distance Permit starts in Agua Dulce. So, I need to get the Cleveland forest permit and the Mt. Jacinto Wilderness Permit. Mt. Jacinto I can get as walk-in at the ranger station. For the Cleveland permit, I need to fill out a form 1 month prior. Which is soon (I´m so thrilled and getting chills every time I remind myself, that it is going to start soon :D).

 

Tech

I need to enlarge my Google Drive to x00 GB, and to finally install the photo backup to not only empty storage space on my phone but to be able to get them in the drive when having wifi. Additionally, I need to activate my SPOT plan and need to figure out what to do with my Canadian number and signing up for an American plan. I thought of keeping my Canadian as exchanging the number on every 2-factor authentication at the phone appears to become more and more a major pain in the a**. But we´ll see.

 

Physically

The last weeks have shown, that I´m pretty happy with my legs and that the mix of ongoing 20.000 steps per day, cardio, skiing, stretching, etc. put me on a solid base to start hiking. Of course, I haven’t done the super long prep hikes, but at least I´ll have one right before leaving for San Diego. I´ll hike with my cousin and his wife the Lost Coast trail in California mid-April. This will be a good test run for all my new equipment and I can´t wait to spend quality time with these 2 awesome humans in nature.

 

Mentally

The closer my start day is coming, the more I have the feeling that I have no clue what I´m about to experience. Of course, I know about how multi-day hiking feels, and all the skills with camping and stuff. But honestly, I never hiked a desert. I never hiked that long. I only know that I´ll get on the edge of my comfort zone a lot and that it might start right away. But I think I´m mentally prepared for that, and that I can endure a lot. And in the end, this is what counts, what you are willing to overcome.

 

For me, this is the most amazing thing of an adventure, right? The uncertainty of outcome, the big unknown you courageously walk into.

 

Thanks for reading, leave a comment, subscribe, and follow me on my Pacific Crest Trail journey <3

 

Simon