Author: jpkastner

Day 5: Zero in Two Harbors

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Location: Two Harbors

Distance: Zero + 7.0 Extra Miles

Today was a rest and do chores day.  The first priority was the laundry.  That was a two mile round trip, but completely worth it.
I cleaned my filter, charged my battery pack, and sorted out my resupply.  I’m ready for the next five day push.  Hopefully, I’ll eat better.
Calorie wise, I successfully carbed up.  The backpacking diet allows me to eat a medium sized pizza, a bacon cheeseburger, a slice of pecan pie, and have some sugary drinks, all for the good of the hike.
I mostly rested and healed.
After dinner at Judy’s Place, I decided to walk around and see the sights.  It was a dreary day, but it was a good walk.
The last chore will be to charge my phone in the morning and off I’ll go.

Day 4: Bonus Miles Are Bad

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Location ; Burlington Bay Camp Site, Two Harbors

Distance: 18.8 miles + 5.0 road miles + 1.8 bonus
First, Cooper.  Cooper was only going tem miles today, so he was sleeping in. I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye. He will understand. This is hiking your own hike.
Now for these miles.  Let me to explain…  My resupply point, Two Harbors, has two entry points.  The first is at mile 52.1 with a six mile walk into town.  It is against the law to hitch.  The second is at 57.5 with a five mile road walk.  However, it was supposed to be easy to get a Lyft from the second stop and the additional miles were supposed to be very flat.  So, I was up at 4:30 a.m. with a stretch goal of 18.8 miles.  Unfortunately, the Lyft ride was but a false rumor and I walked the 5.0 miles in.
The road walk was all down hill and my pack had neither food or water, so it was fast.  The pizza place was right next to the post office, I set my pack down and made it to the post office with little time to spare.
Put simply, I really really over did it.  I have reserved an extra day here and I’m doing to heal my feet and rest.
I should mention that last night I discovered that this trail has an unusual pests.  Slugs.

My shoes were covered on them.  My tent was covered with them.  As I hiked I discovered that they hang from trees on slimy snot webs.  So gross.

Here is a peaceful view of a remote river to clear your mind of that horror 

Now to sleep for a day.

Day 3: Like Old Friends

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Distance: 14.8

Location: Ferguson Camp (38.7 miles)

What an eventful day!  I slept had and woke up at 6:00 to the sound of drizzle on my tent.  I packed up quickly and was on trail.  The drizzle turned into an absolute downpour that lasted another four hours.  While it was terrible to hike in, all I could hear was the trees cheering.
That also meant that every mosquito woke up.  Since this trip started, I have struggled to take in calories.  I’m more thirsty than hungry.  The rain was an excuse not to eat.  I was barely moving, and I knew the reason why.  I needed to force myself to eat.  It was a struggle, but I choked down two Cliff bars.  That kicked in my hiker hunger. I would hike for an hour, get hungry, eat, and hike some more.  The miles were less of a struggle today 
I reached camp at 3:30.  Again my choices of where is camp are limited.  I’m either hiking 14.8 or 22+, so 14.8 it is 
A short while another hikes stopped to camp.  We started talking. We shared trails.  I told him I completed the PCT.  He said he sectioned hiked.
His gear was not the normal fare, however.  A section hiker is going to have gear you can buy at REI.  He had a cottage industry backpack.  He had an $700 zPacks tent.  So, I asked a loaded question.
“What is your base weight?”
“12.8 pounds.”
“Mine is 13.8.”
No section hiker was going to know that off the top of their head to the tenth of an ounce.
He asked what it was like hiking the PCT.  I was reluctant to tell him stories of that hike.  Who an I kidding, I told him some of the classics.
He said that in full disclosure, he attempted to hike the PCT this year, south bound, but discovered that he was really afraid of heights.  The views were awesome, but he didn’t realize that he’d spend so much time just inches from falling.  He didn’t believe at first that I finished it, but my stories were not something you just made up.  Without reception, I couldn’t show him any pictures.
His name was Cooper, and we stayed up until the mosquitoes forced us to retire to our tents.  It was a good day.

Day 2: Roll On Down the Highway

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Distance: 12.3 miles

Location: Fox Farm Pond (23.9)

I was up by 5:30 and on trail by 6:00.  To this point, the trail consisted of dual use trails.  Hiking trails in the summer and snow mobile trails in the winter.  They are flat and not very interesting.
Today the goal was 12.3 miles with a stretch goal of 19+ miles.  I had 2.5 liters of water remaining and the next sure source was 7.2 miles away.  As I was leaving early, I was taking advantage of the cooler temperatures.  The high was supposed to be close to 90° with high humidity.
I hiked the first 7.2 miles by 10 a.m.  I rested and ate second breakfast.  The next 5.1 miles were much harder.  It became quite hot.  I made it to my goal by 2:00 p.m. Now I had to decide to wait out the heat and try and hike the last 7.4 miles.
A little while later, two southbound hikers, Loren and Alise stop.  The had just come from where I was going.  They said it was reasonably flat, but there was no place to stealth camp.  If I couldn’t finish, I’d be in trouble.  So 12.3 it is.
Loren and Alise also told me that many people skip the first 50 miles, because it is boring.  That means I’ll run into more people soon 
That means I have to do a minimum of 14+ miles tomorrow to stay on schedule, but it is supposed to be ten degrees cooler.  It is a much better option.


Day 1: Foreplay / Long Time

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Day 1: 11.6 miles plus bonus.
Location: Lone Tree Camp

I set my alarm for 6:00 a.m., but went to bed as soon as it was dark.  I woke up refreshed and ready to go at 5:20.  There are so many things that are chores for thru-hiking that you take for granted when you have a place to live.  You have to filter your  instead of turning on a faucet.  In my case, I need to charge my phone.

I have a fully charged battery that should charge my phone five times, but it takes half a day to charge it.  Waking up early gives me some extra time to charge while I’m in civilization.
I did my hiker trash priorities correct.  Power over shower.  I watched the sunrise by the outlet.  Yes, those are port-a-potties.

Not exactly the epic views like I had on the PCT.

After I was good to go, I walked to the Senior Center.  I passed by a coffee shop and went in.  The smell of coffee was repulsive.  That only happens when I’m hiking.
While I waited, another hiker came aboard.  I was hoping he was doing the same I was, but he was leaving the trail early.  He started at the Northern Terminus, hiked two 25 mile days in a row, and decided to quit.  Turns out that he parked his car where I was starting, so we took a Lyft together.  He paid for it, despite my protests.

I started hiking at 11:00 a.m. My goal was six miles, with a stretch goal of 11.6.  I made an unforced series of errors.  I didn’t hydrate.  I skipped breakfast.  I was crushed after three miles.  I was expecting to go five miles per liter of water   I think I went two.  Eventually, I made it to the six mile camp, but it was only 3 p.m.  I really had no choice but to reach for the stretch goal of 11.6 miles.  The only problem is that I had to carry water as the site is dry.
So, I tried pounding out five more miles with five liters of water. I made it by 6 p.m.  I am a soggy sweaty mess.  Now I’m getting rained on in my own tent as all my sweat became condensation on the tent wall.  Good time.
I haven’t seen a soul today.  I hope that changes.
This is why it is called Type-2 fun.

T-Minus 1: Grand Marais

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I left home at 7:30 in the morning to drive 7.5 hours to Grand Marais.  The drive was completely uneventful.  Along the way I saw four have hikers.  The views on Minnesota Highway 61 were amazing — when it was save to look.
I arrived at 3:45 p.m. and set up camp in a matter of minutes.  I’m camping in the Municipal campsite.
With that done, I needed to find a couple of places.  The first was the Senior Center.  That is where I’ll catch the bus tomorrow.  The second place is Harriet Quarles office.  That is where I’ll park the car tomorrow.  I found both places.  I was looking for other hikers in town, but I didn’t find any.
Now that I know we’re everything is, I could drive my car up to Harriet’s and save myself some time tomorrow.  Sitting here I’ve counted three chipmunks.  I think I’ll keep my food in the car.
Quick Update

Harriet wanted to meet me, so I drove up and parked my car early.

She is a saint.  She gave me a water update and will pick me up or deliver water if necessary.

T-Minus Two Days

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There is nothing left to do but wait.  My kit is packed.  My resupply boxes have been sent.  Now all I can do is wait for the morning to come and I’ll hit the road.

Friday was resupply day.  I shipped three boxes.  One went USPS to the Two Harbors post office.  I will be getting in on a Friday, so picking that up will be easy.  Two were shipped via UPS.  One to the very hiker friendly Claire Nelson Recreation Center in Finland, MN and one to the also very hiker friendly Sawtooth Outfitters in Tofte.

Food was pretty standard fare.  I will have enough town stops to add calories if I do not have enough.

Saturday was getting everything together and packing it.  The Lighterpack website is idea as a checklist to make sure I have everything.  Once I was fully loaded, I put the pack on and walked down the block, wiggling as I went.  I needed to adjust the internal frame as too much weight was on my tailbone.  After some adjustments, it felt like an old friend giving me a hug.

That left today.  Today was for honey-do’s.

Looking at the weather, it looks like some badly needed rain is coming, including some thunderstorms.  That means the mosquitos will come to life, but that is a small price to pay.  The drought has been bad and the land is in need of rain.

A storm has done some damage in and around Two Harbors.  One report is that it took nearly four times as long to pass through one area.  I’m not sure what that means.  There were reports that some hikers were hiking with six liters of water due to the drought.  There is still water roughly every ten miles, so that seems to be an over reaction.  I will have the capacity to carry six, but I’ll never actually carry that much.  In general I’ll have three liters max.

So, I’m just sitting here waiting.  My heart is beating faster and honestly, I’m a bit nervous.  It has been a while since I did this.  Regardless, I’m ready to hit the trail.

Plan B Updated: Now With 50% Less Smell!

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(Better Site, Better Picture)

Just as I finished publishing my ‘Plan B’ post, I received a phone call from the Burlington Bay campground.  Someone has cancelled their reservation at a regular site.  This new location is far away from the dump station, so it is not going to smell like crap!  The only stink is going to be dirty piece of hiker trash.  I rather like that smell.  It is the smell of freedom with a touch of awesome!

This new site also has the advantage that is has some actual privacy.  Personally, I don’t care that people might look at me like I’m some kind of animal in a zoo.  

I cannot tell you the number of times people came up to me to take pictures with the old thru-hiker.  As I was hiking down from Timberline Lodge in Oregon when I ran into these three older women.  I stopped and talked with them for a bit.  When I was just about to leave, one of the women asked if she could pet my beard.  It was quite foggy that day and my beard was quite epic.  I said, “sure”.  She did and giggled.  Not creepy at all I tell you.

I don’t expect any petting of the epic beard on this hike, but I’m sure there are going to be some epic stories when I’m done.

    

T-Minus Six Days – Plan B

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(A crappy picture of a crappy camp site.)

As I wrote about last time, this hike logistically is
proving to be more challenging than I expected. 
The biggest factor I need to deal with is the drought.  Normally, finding water is not an issue on
the Superior Hiking Trail.  At most, you
are carrying two liters for ten miles. 
As the average rainfall for the area is six-to-eight inches less than
normal for the year, the distances to sure water sources are farther.  That means carrying more.

On the Pacific Crest Trail there were areas where water was scarce.  The desert of Southern California is obvious,
but Northern California also has some long water carries.  There were two helpful guides to deal with
that.  The Guthooks app was updated in
real time and was the primary source I used. 
There is also a team that tracks reports and saves it on a spreadsheet
called the Pacific Crest Trail Water Report. 
With these two sources, I was pretty confident of the water
situation.  I also knew that I needed a
liter per five miles to start.  At first,
I would carry a liter plus one per five miles. 
After a while, I would chug a liter before I started hiking again and
that would cover the first five miles.

The Superior Hiking Trail doesn’t have a real time app
supporting it like Guthooks.  There is no
team tracking the water situation.  All I
have is a guidebook that says whether a source is normally reliable and some eyewitness
reports on the SHT Facebook page.

I can deal with this. 
I have a list of the sure water sources, so I will hike from sure water
source to sure water source.  That is
where I run into a problem with the very first section.

I will start the hike first by taking a bus down to
Duluth.  I will then need to arrange transportation
to the Martin Road Trailhead.  I expect
to start hiking at roughly noon.  I can
only camp at designated campsites.  The
first two sites with a sure water source are at 4.9 and 6.0 miles.  The next campsite is at 11.6 miles; however,
it is dry.  The next site with reliable
water is 19.4 miles in.  I’m not going to
be able to hike 19.4 miles on my first day when I start at noon.  So, my first day is going to be six miles.

Assuming I’m hiking 15 miles a day, that gets me to my first
resupply point in Two Harbors on a Friday. 
Two Harbors is six miles from the trail. 
Hitchhiking is against the law in Minnesota.  On top of that, everything is booked and has
been booked for some time.  Ideally, I
will hike in early, resupply, shower, do some laundry, and make any adjustments.  That is not possible.

If that wasn’t enough, there is a closure which is making this already unnecessarily complicated start even more complicated. Leaving Two Harbors is a five-mile road hike
and the next place to camp is roughly eight miles up trail.  Doing that in a day is probably impossible when I have chores to do.

Put simply, there are no good way to navigate this speed bump.  So, I posted a question on the SHT Facebook
page and surprisingly received no good answer.

As I always plan the crap out of every hike, I’ve been calculating distances in a spreadsheet.  I’ve used Google Maps with the satellite mode on searching for water sources not in the guide book.  No matter how I calculated it, the result was always shitty.

Today, on a whim, I decided to call the Burlington Bay campground which
is located in Two Harbors.  I studied
their webpage hoping to find something for backpackers to no avail.  Many campsites near a major hiking trail have a dedicated walk in site for backpackers.  Alas, this one does not — at least at first glance.

They got back to me with an answer.  They have one tiny campsite code named ‘Camp B’.  It is in some trees near the office parking
lot.  It is near the dump station, so it probably smells worse that I do when I get in.  You cannot select it on the website, but it
is there.  

Honestly, it is perfect.  This changes everything.  The math works.  I take a leisure stroll towards Two Harbors.  I make camp at Camp B.  I take a shower.  I do my laundry.  I resupply.  I get a large pizza and I have an easy day.  The next day, clean, recharged and ready to go, I hit the trail again.  It is a much better plan. 

Fittingly, I’m calling this — Plan B.  

Fire and Water

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The big topic this week on the Superior Hiking Trail is the dry conditions on trail.  The Superior National Forest has banned campfires.  A number of water sources are stagnet or completely dry.  This has caused a widespread panic and a number of people on the page have announced that they are cancelling their plans for this year.

As a successful PCT hiker, I know a thing or two about hot, dry conditions and long water carries.  Should I worry?  No.  I’ll make some adjustments.  First, I will add another Smart Water Bottle, increasing my carrying capacity of three liters.  I will also have a two liter bladder for a dirty water bag.

There is a hiker who just finished a thru-hike and it was a struggle for him.  What I don’t know is how many miles they were hiking per day.  I’ve sent him a message asking for a bit of a scouting report.  Hopefully that will clear things up.

tHarriet has said that The rule of thumb is that if the water source says creek or pond, it is dry.  If it is river or lake, it has water.  I will camel up and carry more.  No big deal.