Tricks of the Trade (Or, how not to Kill your Spouse)

As a couple attempting a thru hike, we are nothing special. We have our moments of great joy out on the trail, and we have our moments of complete meltdown. We thought we would like to go into a little detail on how we are going to complete this task without throwing each other off a cliff!

Too much togetherness tends to take a toll on us. We are both happy together (We are approaching our 25th wedding anniversary), and alone. We each seem to need our space at times, and hiking together doesn't allow for a whole lot of alone time. There is a recollection of one particular moment coming into Kennedy Meadows where we just had to hike alone to cool down, so we could re-enter society halfway civil to each other. On the other hand, we will still be able to share with each other the most beautiful and fantastic moments together, such as the picture taking at the start, the end, and the breathtaking scenery of the High Sierras.

This time around, we have decided to go with totally independent packs. We bought two of everything, from water filters to jetboils to tents. Our premise is to do some sections alone and then meet back up after having had a few days of relative peace and quiet. We won't know which sections we are doing by ourselves yet, we'll figure that out as needed. We may see a section where one of us just needs the time, and even if we aren't fighting, we will still take the by ourself option.

Since people who travel this trail solo are carrying all their own gear, there seems to be no reason why we can't each carry our own also, even when together. This way also allows us to eat our own meals, and we don't have to eat macaroni and cheese if we don't want to just because the other person is.

Similarly, we each have our own tents and when hiking together, we can set up as close to each other as we want, or as far from each other as we want. This allows us more freedom than we had last time (we were sharing all the equipment), and if you know us, you know we love freedom! And we can still get together in one of our tents, and play cards. We are just so excited to be traveling together but seperate, and we really think this plan will work well for us.

Not a Happy Camper!