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Re: Error Condition Re: Re: [AT-L] AT-L:i just joined, my questions (longish)


 Ellie,
 We can't answer all your questions but can tell you
 what we are planning for our 1997 thru-hike. Which
 we hope to begin March 27, to answer an earlier post
 about departure dates.
  
> > 
> > 1. How many pairs of boots can I expect to go through?  Do people carry
> > pairs with them or mail them ahead to a likely location?
 
 We are planning on at least two pairs. We have one pair we
 recently finished breaking in (about 200 miles) and are now
 working on the second pair. Our plan is to mail our second pair
 to Harpers Ferry. 
 
> > 2. Do people maintain their apartments while on the Trail, or do they do
> > things like subletting?
 
 We are keeping ours and having friends check it regularly.
    
> > 
> > 3. Are any of you writers who managed to write while hiking?  How so?  I
> > write fiction, and I'm concerned about the weight my notebook will add.  I
> > might try to start with it and tear pages out and mail them home as I go
> > so I won't carry the whole thing the whole way, but I'm wondering I'll be
> > able to make time to write at all, except in a journal.
> 
 The only writting we are planning is our journals. Alison and I have
 agreed to each carry a journal, but not let the other person read it until
 after the hike is over, then we will exchange them, and see how each
 of us viewed the thru-hiking experience.
 
 > 
> > 4. Are there any places on the Trail where you have to climb, as opposed
> > to scrambling?  In other words, can you go the whole way using just
> > your feet to carry you?
 
 I'll defer this one to someone who has already done it.
   
> > 
> > 5. What about jobs?  Are companies willing to give leaves of absence for
> > the AT?  Should I quit and find a new job when I get back?  Should I line
> > up a new job before I go?
 
 I am taking a leave of absence. My employer allows them and has been
 very supportive of my request, going out of their way to make it happen
 for me. Even though at the moment we are having trouble fulfilling
 the only stipulation, and that is we must fill an open position,
 to fill in for me while I'm gone. If we don't fill it, then my
 leave could be in jeopardy. Any DBA s' out there need a job ?
> 
 > 6. How safe is it for a couple hiking together?  How safe if we split up
> > and meet intermittently through the day?
> 
 We are hiking together as a couple, as we have done for twenty years, I
 feel we are safer on the trail, than we would be in most urban areas.
 Alison and I sometimes during the day will hike apart just to give
 the other person some space, and we don't always feel like doing the
 same thing at the same time. We are usually never more than
 a quarter mile apart, and haven't had any experiences that made us
 fear for our safety. I will have to say, though, that I am an ex
 Army Special Forces member and Alison has had numerous self
 defense courses, which could account for a slightly higher
 confidence level regarding personal safety. Don't get me
 wrong we are not over confident. With my size and
 looks Alison says most people think I am the one to stay
 clear of, even though I am a very nice guy. Even though I have
 known people who said I was, mean, evil, rotten, nasty
 and cruel and those were just my good points. (insert laughter here).
  
> > 
> > 7. My husband wants to bring climbing gear and find places along the way
> > to climb.  Is this as impractical as I think it is?
 
 Being a weight shaving freak I don't carry anything that I don't use
 everyday, with a very few , very light exceptions.  
 
> > 8. Any other potential '98 thru-hikers out there?  I'd love to hear from
> > you.  :-) 
 
 I can't help you with the Class of '98.
 
> > Thanks!
> > ellie
> >  ---
 
 Sandy and Alison
 "The Smiths"
 Ga to Me '97
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