So, I didn't thru-hike the entire trail. Actually, I didn't even manage half of it. I got bored, got off trail, and started hitch-hiking. Since then, I've hitched up the west coast of the US, across half of California, all of Oregon, and again a quarter of Washington. I've met some awesome people, received some kick-downs of food and money (despite my protests), and been shown the kind of kindness and compassion which keeps me traveling in this way.
The actual hiking part of my adventures were...Well, adventurous. My gear was minimal, a tarp, ground-cloth, stove, metal cup, filter, sleeping bag, jacket, and a few other small odds and ends (lighter, knife, first-aid, emergency stuffs). The actual hiking ranged from exciting to pleasant to downright miserable, as I crossed the deserts of southern california up to 3000m mountains in the High Sierras, to 4400m at the top of Mount Whitney.
Highlights:
The awesome other hikers I met
Spending a week building a hiker dorm at Hikertown (similar to Casa, for hikers)
The views
Ice Cream after a week in the wilderness
Downsides:
Food poisoning from bad peanut butter for a week in wilderness
Dehydration due to dry water sources
Wind storms in the desert
Overall, an awesome experience, and a ton of learning.
Comments
Hello
Hitchhiking - it is great. Thanks for the interesting information.