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Re: [at-l] maildrops

I alternated "maildrop weeks" with "non-maildrop weeks," which was a good
thing. I'd bought a lot of my food in bulk before the hike at Sam's
Warehouse, and I didn't allow myself much variety. By the end of the hike
I'd gotten pretty bored with the maildrop food, but (like the junker car I
drive) it was paid for. Still, by sending myself maildrops about every two
weeks, rather than every week, I could shop in town during the "off" week
and vary my diet as I came to be bored with the maildrops. I wished I'd
thrown in a few surprises for myself.

Another thing that you might consider, though it's a little more expensive,
is simply putting together food maildrops "on the run." By this, I mean
that you go into town, buy the food you want, pack only as much as you can
carry in, say, five days, and mail the rest ahead in a "drift box." You can
buy food for two or three weeks this way, and you won't be wasting or
giving away food you've paid for (though you do have to pay postage, so
it's not a great savings). Another advantage is that, should you quit or
have to take time off the trail, you don't have to recalculate all your
maildrops for the rest of the hike.  With this system, your maildrops from
home are usually only things like maps, batteries, extra clothes, etc., and
you can send many fewer of them. I found this a useful technique when I
planned to take a day off in town, and had time to fuss with all the
repackaging and re-mailing.

--Rhymin' Worm



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