Still Planning

Well, my summer reprieve from classes and structured schooling has ended and I'm still in the planning stages of the Vermont trip. At this point I've arranged for transportation to and from the trail and decided upon a route, which I will be posting via GoogleEarth soon. Anyhow, I've factored in both the End-to-End and Side-to-Side routes so that I will be covering over 546 miles since I'll have to tread down and back some of the side trails. Based upon the speeds that I've been hiking with a pack this summer, the estimated times in the Long Trail Guide and the End to Ender's Guide seem like good guidelines. I will post an updated itinerary at some point.

At this point I have only four major concerns about the trip: money, food, gear, and transportation. Money shouldn't be too much of a problem as I'll be working all year - I just need to balance that with the bills and having a somewhat enjoyable time in the present. Food is just a matter of money and planning out my trip to the mile, which isn't going to be very hard, but will probably be moderately time consuming. Gear is another story. I have most of what I will need, but am lacking a few major components. Most noticeably, I need a smaller pack than I currently have and a smaller, lighter tent. I've got a few ideas of which packs I'd like to try on, but most of them aren't locally available despite living in Boulder. Oh, and about transportation... I've found a friend who will take me to the trailhead and I'm planning on leaving my vehicle at the end of the trail, but I'm concerned that my 30-year-old van won't survive the journey. So the last concern is mostly just an anxiety that will probably be dismissed once I'm on the road.

I'm guessing that I won't be able to really focus on the final aspects of planning until closer to Thanksgiving this year. I am in the process of writing up my Master's Thesis at the moment, taking classes, and preparing for the dreaded Third Semester Exam that I'll be taking in late October.

Wish me luck!