April 1st, 2016
Oracle to Roosevelt - Slightly ahead of schedule again, so we are taking a well deserved rest day in a campground at Roosevelt Lake. All possessions are being aired and washed, including our stinky selves. We are experiencing some extremes during this expedition. Starting with the weather; we' ve endured scortching afternoon heat and nightime freezing; cooling breezes to gale force winds as well as rain, hale and snow. As for water, in some passages there's been no water and we've had to carry two days worth and other areas we cross many clear streams |
Our routine is adjusting to our surroundings. We now wake up before sunrise to be off on the trail around five. This gives us three + hours of walking in the cool morning air. It's nice to witness the sunrise and the world wake up to the new day. The trail gods continue to play with us. They promise a moderate day that turns out to be strenuous. They keep our eyes glued on the trail and thus we miss a turn off (twice now we've had the missfortune to retrace our steps). They play with our minds and cause us some moments of stress. Luckily the vistas and the fantastic desert life lift our spirits and make every day worth the effort.
We continue to meet others. There are the thru hikers, such as Haiku and Mountain Prana, a young couple from Utah, and Jimmy a cyclist riding from San Fran to Orlando. Our hosts at the businesses where we drop our food caches are all very helpful and generous. We continue this journey day by day. We have walked 550 km in the first month. |
April 12th, 2016
Roosevelt to Pine - Here we are in Pine, AZ. Approximately 750 km from the Mexican border and the start of our trek. We passed the halfway point a few days ago (Julie and the 400 mile photo), it was an interesting mental boost. Since Roosevelt the sections have been very difficult and the weather challenging. Every mountain group (Four Peaks, Saddle Mtn, Mazatzal, etc.) is a rollercoaster of elevation gain and loss. We also heard from the other thru-hikers that the food intake is dramatically changing. By now most of our reserves are spent and the body is looking for more. All the thru-hikers we talk to say the same thing. More food. For Julie it's pretty good, we had about 3000 cal. per day and although she's lost a good amount of weight she is maintaining the energy level required. Simon lost a lot of weight in the last two weeks and we need to increase the calorie intake. We'll likely supplement the remaining ten days to Flagstaff with peanut butter and cheese - Simon needs to go to 4000+ cal. per day. [might be because Julie carries much less weight - Ouch! I just got slapped by Julie - obviously she carries almost as much]. |
We had three of seven days of rain, high winds and very cold (freezIng) temperatures. Yesterday we had to pull and emergency stop under a juniper tree when the wind and sleet got bad, Simon was getting hypothermic... Julie (the rock) helped set-up an emergency shelter and both of us got warm after a few hours. Scary how fast that shit happens!!
It is really tough, and we've seen and heard from other hikers that some are taking longer breaks or having to resupply more often - the AZT is throwing curve balls at all of us. Julie blames the 'trail gods'.
It is really tough, and we've seen and heard from other hikers that some are taking longer breaks or having to resupply more often - the AZT is throwing curve balls at all of us. Julie blames the 'trail gods'.
All this said, our spirits are high. What is a gift in all of this is that we have all the time we want. We slowed down our pace this past section so we could be in Pine for our reservation. We will likely continue at this pace, walking from 6 am to 2 pm with three or four breaks, the afternoon hours are spent in the shade (or under a tarp when it rains) chatting and playing cards. Call it luck, faith or just life - we love spending time together and sharing... nice!
Other special moments include meeting thru-hikers like Mike (the photographer), Bruce (with his tiny dog Amy - what a tough dog!), 1gallon (fron Idaho), etc. We spent a fabulous night at the pub in Pine enjoying their company and many stories. For now we are spending 3 days in Pine resting and eating... once on the trail again ( Friday the 15th) we will climb the rim - the Northern Plateau in Arizona - the terrain should be a little easier but the temperature will drop. |
There is likely another post before this rest in Pine is done. We are struggling to define or describe this experience. Words like 'grinding', 'simplicity', 'survival', 'full-on', 'superb', 'unexpected' and likely a few more mashed together is close. We know there will be a long lasting effect... not sure what yet!
BTW - we received a lovely 30th Anniversary card when we arrived at the guesthouse. Thank you so much Jesse (as well as Robyn, Grant and Kai) for the great wishes - you guys are special, a friendship to be cherished for sure!
BTW - we received a lovely 30th Anniversary card when we arrived at the guesthouse. Thank you so much Jesse (as well as Robyn, Grant and Kai) for the great wishes - you guys are special, a friendship to be cherished for sure!
Love and Hate on the AZT!! No, don't panic we are not fighting. I'm talking about our relationship with the AZT. Let's go back a bit.
We started the trail with some preconceived notions. Having done a good amount of hiking and other outdoor pursuits, we had an idea of what to expect from this trail. Stages quite common to long distance hikers includes: physical challenge, mental challenge and finally a spiritual opening of sorts. We expected this trail to offer similar phases. In some ways I guess this may be happening. During the first stage (from the Mexican border to Oracle) we were influenced by many young thru-hikers that were walking 30 to 50 kms every day. It wasn't really our competitive side it just seemed like the thing to do - walk as much as you can all day! |
This really pushed our physical limits. These longer days were exhausting and created some stress and, I admit, grouchiness. The terrain and trail conditions are grueling, the weather often extreme and water is heavy to carry - long days means drinking much more water.
The trail played tricks on us. We often had to walk more than expected to find a decent flat spot to camp.
The trail played tricks on us. We often had to walk more than expected to find a decent flat spot to camp.
I had, almost daily, thoughts of quitting. Being competitive, I kept these thoughts mostly to myself. There were no real reasons to stop, so every morning we walked. I did finally open up to Simon regarding these thoughts and to my surprise he was also having these thoughts. For him, it was the frustrating side-winding trail. It would, and still does, snake through every gully and makes you loose your sense of direction. If you know Simon you can imagine his frustration.
During this second stage, although with no changes to the trail we are learning to be more present in the moment. We slowed down our pace and shortened our daily distances. We stop and talk to the people we meet on the trail and in the communities. We often stop mid or early afternoon and find a spot to sit and chat. |
Our expectations of the trail only go as far as we can see. This has made the experience much more pleasant. By softening our own expectations and being open to what is presenting itself to us we see this journey in an amazing new light. As we passed the half way mark on the trail it was clear to both Simon and I that we will complete this challenge.
We love the AZT.
We love the AZT.
April 23, 2016
Pine to Flagstaff - No sighting of the Mogollon Monster, although Julie claimed to come across his very musky smell a few days ago.
We left Pine in sunny conditions on a long and fairly strenuous section (passage). Once up a really difficult trail section and on the Mogollon Rim the weather deteriorated. Blistering winds, sub-zero weather and snow - but the trail and terrain got easier!
Pine to Flagstaff - No sighting of the Mogollon Monster, although Julie claimed to come across his very musky smell a few days ago.
We left Pine in sunny conditions on a long and fairly strenuous section (passage). Once up a really difficult trail section and on the Mogollon Rim the weather deteriorated. Blistering winds, sub-zero weather and snow - but the trail and terrain got easier!
The weather forecast was to improve throughout the week and after three very cold nights and cool days warmth and sun were back. A visit at the Mogollon Ranger Station for our food pick-up and water was the start of four easy passages, cruising everyday with 30 kms or so. Still stopping around 3 pm to smell nature and appreciate the landscape on the Rim. Nice rolling terrain; sometimes through dense tall pines, other times in open grassland with junipers. Always full of life - spotting a fumbling porcupine who fell awkwardly from a tree when we surprised each other. Lots of songbirds, woodpeckers and a few large elk at a distance. We were even visited by a large herd of deer, grazing in the open field one evening as we were quietly enjoying a sunset.
We were mostly meandering on this rolling terrain at about 2400m (7400ft). A quick stop in Mormon Lake for some resupply where we spent time chatting with a newly retired couple (who gave us a ride to the nearby campground). |
Two days later we walked into Flagstaff, meeting two wonderful ladies (Marci and Rachel) - they helped us navigate through the city trails. They escorted us to Whole Foods where we had a little sushi and a San Pellegrino. That night after a shower we had pasta - funny the small things you crave for while on the trail...
Did we mention how incredibly nice people are! Without fail, we continuously meet people who are sooo nice, friendly and inquisitive about our journey - everyone offers to help. This isn't a surprise it's just a superb element of this journey - we just assumed or expected this trip (the AZT) to be a very isolated Julie and Simon thing... Yet these connections are such a blast of energy for both of us.
We are focusing on the business of Stage 3 resupply drops. We haven't included water in our drops to date but the feedback from some thru-hikers ahead of us is of dryer conditions. So, we are adding two more stops with our jeep in remote trail intersections - dropping two gallons of water - should help. Unfortunately this takes time... The weather is also turning a bit and we are likely to expect 10c or 12c as highs and well below zero at night in the next week. There may also be a day of rain (snow at night) every three or four days as a pattern - the forecast has been fairly reliable to date. We added a layer (from the thrift shop in Pine last week. We now wished we had our winter sleeping bags. Ah well, all is good... 940 (or so) kms done out of 1300 (or so). We're old weathered Canadian mountaineers after all! |