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[at-l] The Gathering (West Coast)

For all of you attending the ALDHA Gathering, I just thought I'd drop you a 
note about the West Coast Gathering from this weekend.  I wasn't even aware 
there was one until last Thursday night. I received a phone call from a 
friend informing me of the meeting ,starting Friday, and wandering if I was 
going. Fortunately for me it was held Cascade Locks where the PCT crosses 
the Columbia River. That's only an hour from my home.

Since I'd spent the last couple weeks lamenting the fact that I couldn't 
attend the one in Hanover, I was quite relieved. Just what I wanted and in 
my own back yard.

The meeting started at 1:00 on Friday. During the day there were slide 
shows on the West Coast Trail and the Desert Trail. The West Coast Trail 
follows the coast from Canada to Mexico along the coast mainly over a 
network of existing trails. The Desert Trail is still in the planning 
stages with only a couple of sections completed. When finished will the 
travel the desert regions from border to border. Eventually there will be 
three major trails traversing Washington, Oregon, and California.  One on 
the coast, the second on the  mountain peaks and a third in the deserts.

Friday evening we had a slide show by Dave Cobb about his 1996 thru-hike of 
the Continental Divide Trail. After seeing the slides the only thing 
holding me back is the pain still in my knees from this summer. (Lack of 
funds may share a slight role too.)

Saturday there were two slide shows of Thru-hikes on the Pacific Crest 
Trail.  We also had discussions about equipment, women's issues and 
readjusting to life after the trail.