[pct-l] Re: pct-l-digest V1 #1137

[KBerger466@aol.com]

I just wanted to chime in and agree with Blisterfree -- NO WAY is Idylwild to 
Big Bear 35,000 feet -- Not even nickel and diming every molehill. Same with 
the supposed 17,000 feet from Laguna to Warner Springs. NO WAY -- it's mostly 
downhill from Laguna to Scissors Crossing, then one climb, then pratically 
flat and back down.  I did the same math as Blisterfree -- IMPOSSIBLE. 

Believe me, I am the biggest elevation wimp in the world. I was also in 
terrible shape when I started the PCT, and tend to whine about "This climb 
wasn't in the guidebook." etc. The guidebook only very rarely misses climbs 
of more than 500 feet. I estimated that the guidebook and data book 
elevations neglected about 30 percent over the course of the trail. No way is 
it off by a factor of 3 or 4!!  (And watch out folks -- the California 
Guidebook is much more detailed and complete than the Oregon Washington one 
-- I think by the time the writers got to the North Cascades they were about 
worn out. So they cover like 10 miles in a sentence.)  

Also, having gained probably more than a million feet of elevation (just a 
rough guess based on about 15,000 miles of hiking -- YIKES!) I tend to trust 
my legs and am actually pretty accurate in judging elevation. I got to test 
it on Baden Powell -- remember those little markers put in by the Boy Scouts 
giving mileage to the hundredth of a mile and elevations to the foot? I 
amused myself by checking out my internal pedometer and altimeter, which were 
pretty accurate. Believe me, I'd have been SCREAMING if the data was off by a 
factor of four!!!  Jim, I'd buy a new altimeter if I were you.

If you're looking to impress the folks back home, I think you'll need to look 
for other ammunition. 

Karen Berger
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