[pct-l] Thru numbers

[Diane Soini]

If you don't want to deal with the group-think, just don't get caught  
up in a group. Walk on through. Let people sleep in on town stops  
while you instead get up early and hit the trail again. You'll  
probably enjoy the people you meet, but there is no rule you have to  
fall into a group and stay there. Just walk on through.

If you really want true solitude, find a way to get ahead of  
everyone. Either split your hike into sections that you do multiple  
years, or split it into sections you do in one year. For example,  
start at Lake Tahoe and go north, then return and go south. Or do  
some of So Cal (Section A, half of B, Section E and maybe F) early in  
the season (like February/March/early April) so you can skip those  
parts later and get ahead of everyone. Or do what the Wilderness  
Press guide book suggested which was to leave the JMT part for last  
and end your hike on Mt. Whitney.

On Jun 11, 2013, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:

> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Thru numbers
>
> On that note, aside from off season hiking, are there any good  
> suggestions
> on avoiding getting caught up with this type of herd? Based on the  
> blogs
> I've been following for the 2013 group, it seems to be a recurring  
> theme of
> group-think, and folks 'dealing' with the trail to get to the next  
> town
> stop. For 2014 I plan to start early (conditions permitting) with  
> the idea
> of the hike taking precedence over the social experience.