[pct-l] Early PCT casualtis

[Nicole E. Phillips]

Wow, thank you for that!
On May 1, 2013 4:57 PM, "Paul Mitchell" <paul at bluebrain.ca> wrote:

> > THEY ARE  DROPPING  AS  EARLY AS  HAUSER  CREEK???
>
> I've noticed this happen a couple times in past years around KO time,
> usually to older fellas who unfortunately underestimated how much their
> health/fitness has declined since the last time they were on a trail.  I've
> also seen a lot of very fit young hikers suffer stress injuries in the
> first
> 50 miles by starting right from Campo with high mileage days.  I've seen
> hikers with little/no experience, and hikers with moderate/high experience
> run into trouble early on, typically by starting with high mileage days.
>
> > I am not at all surprised.
>
> Nor should you be.  Hundreds of people start around the same time, a few of
> them are going to run into trouble early.
>
> > It used to be that a PCT thru was best left to be attempted by
> experienced
> hikers.
>
> Times change.  The PCT is a well-established trail, and although
> collectively it's a huge distance, it's also ultimately just a series of
> shorter stretches between roads/towns.  How much experience does one need
> to
> follow an obvious trail for a few days, then resupply and follow it again
> for a few days, and so no?
>
> Maybe back in the-good-old-day it was more difficult, gear was heavier,
> resupplies were further apart, there weren't guide-books, etc ... but it's
> physically and practically easier now, and that's just the way it is.  I've
> personally met people who set out with little more than a week's notice and
> no long distance experience who made it to Manning.
>
> > This seems to have changed.
>
> Indeed!  :)
>
> > For some time now the trail has been romanticized and attracted an ever
> increasing number of novice, inexperienced hikers with statements like...
>
> Everything gets romanticized!  Nobody would take on a huge trail, now or
> back in the day, if they weren't focusing on the great parts of the
> experience.  We romanticize lots of things, not just a thru-hike.
>
> One reason the trail may attract more novice/inexperienced hikers is the
> ages when people have the freedom to take it on.  I've hiked on the PCT
> with
> kids just out of high-school with no real trail experience.  Good on them
> for taking it on!  One of them got a stress injury 900 miles in, the other
> three went on to finish as far as I recall.
>
> > ooohhh, your safer on the trail than in your own home...
>
> That's silly.  I've never heard anyone say this.  I've certainly heard
> people say that the most dangerous part of the trail is the highway drive
> to
> get there, which is likely true.  I've heard people say the trail is safer
> than cities in response to friends/relatives expressing various fears, i.e.
> dangerous people; also likely true.
>
> > ooohhh, anybody can do it...grandma can do it....
>
> Well, true enough, some grandma's could do it.  Mine couldn't now, but when
> she was sixty-five she sure could have, she's always been amazingly fit!  I
> don't think people are generally saying "ANYONE can do it" meaning
> LITERALLY
> anyone, but anyone reasonably physically healthy can give it a try.  It's
> just walking long distances, as we all know, it's 80% a mental challenge to
> stay out there.
>
> > you don't need any experience,...you will get experienced as you go.
>
> Very true!  Doesn't mean you wouldn't stand a better chance of avoiding
> some
> mistakes and making it all the way, but yeah, I've met quite a number of
> very inexperienced PCT hikers who made it all the way.  Ultimately, it's
> just walking, it's what our bodies were designed to do.  Check the data
> book
> about the next water source, walk, cook a meal and set up a little tent,
> get
> up the next day and repeat, make some mistakes, learn from them, etc.  One
> has to generally make a series of very bad decisions to wind up in a really
> serious predicament; e.x. John Donovan.
>
> > Don't worry about the snakes, bears or Mountain Lions.
>
> Well ... yeah, pretty much.  Were old-time PCT hikers somehow better
> prepared for these things?  Did they train for three years in
> anti-snake/bear/lion martial arts before hitting the trail?  How prepared
> can/should anyone be for those things?  How big a risk are they, really?
> I've heard of one PCT hiker bit by a snake, I've heard of a brown recluse
> bite - neither of these was fatal, nor were they avoidable.  Personally, I
> had a rattlesnake slide across my bare foot (in sandal) when it crossed the
> trail out of some tall grass, luckily wasn't bitten, but ultimately how
> could any kind of preparation prevent an incident like that?  Shit happens.
>
> If anything though, many of us, myself included, could certainly be more
> careful about properly securing food in bear country.
>
> > They will not bother you unless you bother them....
>
> With the exception of unsecured food in high risk bear areas, this is a
> very
> true statement.
>
> > You don't need a map or compass,
>
> Also, arguably, true.  I've met first-time-PCT hiking buddies using nothing
> but the data book.  It's a very easy trail for most to follow, though I
> personally wouldn't advocate hiking it with just the data book.  I've never
> used a compass or seen another PCT hiker use a compass.  It's a very well
> established trail.
>
> > and if you get lost or in trouble you can always call 911....so be sure
> to
> bring your cell phone and emergency beeper.
>
> As with most things, if you dig into it, it's not such a simple thing to
> debate.  I, personally, do not want to have that kind of technology with me
> when I hike, it spoils my sense of being "out there" ... but others could
> make pretty good arguments for why it might be irresponsible to not bring a
> bit of technology that could save your life in the unlikely event of a
> serious incident.
>
> > This is a recipe for a disaster in the making.
>
> Bah! Humbug!
>
> > The more inexperienced hikers on a trail like the PCT,  the greater the
> risk of failures and casualties .
>
> Yes, it's true: the better prepared we are for ANY activity, the better a
> chance we have of succeeding at it and avoiding failures, but: we all learn
> best from mistakes, not all of us have the time or opportunity for
> extensive
> training hikes, it's not even realistic to be prepared for all the things
> that could but most likely won't occur, the trail is easier to take on than
> it used to be, blah, blah, blah.
>
> Regarding casualties I've heard of on the trail, two were hit by a car, No
> Way Ray was very experienced, another was suicide, one had a bad fall up
> out
> of Hauser, John Donovan had experience but made very foolish choices ...
> this notion that inexperienced noobs are a disaster in the making doesn't
> hold up.
>
> Not sure why some people seem to almost want others to fail when they see
> them doing it differently than they did - I guess it is self-validating in
> some way.
>
> - Potential 178
>
>
>
>
>
>
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