Re: [at-l] SORE knees!!

["Terry Norton" <terry_norton@iname.com>]

Kristen,

There is alot veteran thruhikers often forget to tell newbies.  I don't know many would start if they knew some of the pain coming their way!  Maybe we just keep the details under wraps hoping not to scare others off.  In other cases, others cannot be swayed.

 

After several weeks on the trail your knees are used to replishing the cartilage on a rather rapid basis.  I found that when I sat down the "rust" set in almost immediately.  After my thruhike this condition lasted almost 3 weeks.  I felt like an old man moving around.

 

By the way, I am not a doctor, but I would recommend taking "vitamin I" continously for ~2 weeks.  Be sure to stay away from alcohol during that time since most of the anti-inflamatory drugs will cause intestinal bleeding if used with alcohol.

 

Another aliment which affects many hikers is loss of feeling on the surface of the feet.  It took about 4 months for my feet to "feel" normal again.

 

I am sad and glad you decided to leave the trail.  If your heart is not in the journey, it is a rotten way to waste 6 months of your life.  I was completely the opposite.  I had a rough first month, but I could not imagine being anywhere else.   (Plus I couldn't move back into my house until September!)

 

Grace & Peace,

Terry Norton

Ultralite'98