T-Minus 15 Days

So, I find myself just 15 days out from the start of this thru-hike.  Here is a status update.

Resupply Strategy

I've narrowed down my hike into four resupply stops.  The first stop will be in Two Harbors.  Unfortunately, I will most likely be getting in on a Saturday.  From a resupply point of view, that is not a problem.  Two Harbors is the home of the SHT headquarters and they accept resupply packages for thru-hikers.  The problem is that there is no place to stay in Two Harbors.  Everything is booked!  On top of that, it is a 6.5 mile road walk into town.

I asked about some options to deal with this situation on the SHT Facebook page, but I did not receive an answer.  So, what I will do is hike into the Silver Creek campsite the night before, get up early, do my chores and resupply and start hiking again.  Hopefully I can get a shower and some laundry done there.

My second resupply point will be in Finland.  I've already contacted the Clare Nelson Recreation Center, and they are happy to receive my resupply package.

My third stop will be in Tofte.  There I will send my resupply to the Sawtooth Outfitters.

My last stop will be in Grand Marais.  That one is easy.  It will be stored in my car.

With that settled, it is just a matter of buying food, packing it up and shipping the boxes.  There are enough towns on this trip that I can pick up some extra food if I need it.  The food in my pack will be the motivation to hike the miles.

Training

From a training perspective, I've increased the weight of my pack to 30 pounds.  I'm able to keep a good pace and I do not have any soreness.  I did a tweleve mile hike and went on to do errands afterwards, so I should be good.

Equipment

I had hoped to cut my base weight down another pound from where I was went I hiked the PCT (13.8 pounds).  It turns out that doing that was much harder than I thought. My PCT pack was extremely well optimized.  The only way I have any hope of doing that is to throw some serious money at it.  I would need to replace my pack and my sleep system.  That is some of the most expensive parts of my kit.  So, in the end, I'm taking what I took on the PCT.

With that, I'm ready to go.