[pct-l] Tarp tent vs. traditional tent

[Eric Lee (GAMES)]

L-Rod wrote:
>
You are WAY okay, and far from alone.  It's all part of hiking your own hike.  One thing I've noticed though is that it takes a lot of persistence and effort to complete the entire trail in one season.  So, you'll have to balance your desire to stroll leisurely and stop to smell the flowers with any desire you may have to thru-hike the entire thing in a single season.
>

It's also ok to *not* do a thru-hike.  If you want to stroll leisurely and stop to smell the flowers, or carry a big heavy pack, or bring a full load-out of professional photo gear, or bring your dog, or walk the trail on stilts, or whatever else strikes your fancy, go right ahead.  Do as much of the trail as you can while still following your guiding light.

It all depends on what your first priority is.  Echoing what Donna said, if your first priority is doing a complete thru-hike in one season and everything else is secondary to that, then that imposes certain reality-based constraints on your choices.  While anything is possible, it's pretty safe to say that the lighter your pack is (within certain limits), and the more you walk per day, the better your odds are of getting to Canada.  That's just common sense.

If on the other hand your first priority is something else, then that's great too!  There's nothing wrong with that.  Make your choices based on your personal priorities and do whatever makes you happy.  The catch is, it's really difficult to have *two* first priorities.  If something else is first, and a one-season thru-hike is second, then just recognize that your odds of actually finishing in one season go down substantially.  If you're ok with that, then great!

This list, for better or worse, is oriented around people whose first priority is the one-season thru-hike.  So when people rant about 3 extra ounces in their sleeping bag, just keep that in mind and you'll understand where they're coming from.  <grin>

Eric