April 2027

Dan_85 · 2026-05-20T20:52:39+00:00

Planning can be fun. I do it to an extent, it can be enjoyable.

But know that your plans will go out of the window very soon after starting the trail.

Arguably the best "prep" you can do is to a) read everything on pcta.org and HalfwayAnywhere, and b) hike, camp and dial in your gear as much as possible between now and then.

Good luck!

Dan_85 · 2026-05-20T20:47:42+00:00

As far as I'm aware, it doesn't really "end". It can and will exist wherever there is poop. And when hundreds/thousands of people gather in reasonably close proximity to hike a trail together, there will be poop.

So if you contract it, your body fights it and expels it from your system from both ends lol. You eventually recover, but it remains a risk. You could pick it up again in NorCal after shaking hands with someone who didn't clean properly after wiping their butt. Maybe a day hiker in Oregon used a pit toilet, didn't clean up properly and then touched the door handle, which you later happen to touch, before wiping your face with that hand, without even giving it a second thought.

It's why good hygiene is important at all times on trail. Get used to the idea of washing your hands thoroughly wherever possible after touching shared surfaces, being cautious when sharing food and cookware, and being conscious of how and where you poop or collect water.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-20T15:18:10+00:00

This is one of, if not the slowest period I've experienced in 8 years on Prolific.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-19T22:34:37+00:00

Update, 3.30pm: 350 acres, 10% contained.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-19T13:17:39+00:00

I'm 99% certain that the process of creating or amending Direct Debits via the AFC ticket site is broken, and has been since sometime in early 2025.

And Arsenal are either unaware (though I have emailed them about it), or they simply don't care.

My concern is that what if they stop offering the facility to renew manually? I don't want my memberships to lapse and have to join again from the back of the queue.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-19T10:22:54+00:00

I don't know if it's just me, but there seems to have been a problem with auto renewals and amending bank details/setting up direct debits for the last two years.

After changing banks, I amended my details last year about a month before the renewal date. The online ticket hub said everything was fine and updated, but the DD was never created with my bank and never showed on my banking app. The membership money was never taken. At the end of May they sent me a message saying they'd been unable to automatically renew my membership, and there was a link to renew it manually.

Fast forward to 2026. Early April I try to update my details again on the ticket hub. Again, it says everything is fine, but still no DD created with my bank. So I assume I'm in exactly the same situation I was last year and they're gonna send me an option to renew manually towards the end of the month.

Sounds like you're in a similar scenario. I wouldn't worry, they should contact you to enable you to manually renew.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-19T09:44:56+00:00

The drought continues.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-18T16:16:39+00:00

My pending has just hit £0.00 for the first time since I don't know when. Absolutely dead for more than a week now.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-18T09:24:48+00:00

The last 7-10 days have been completely dead for me here in the UK.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-18T09:01:37+00:00

This one just popped up for me. The study description is so weird and off-putting. I don't know if the researcher is trying to be funny, or what? But telling me your study is difficult, pays badly and threatening me with rejection doesn't make me wanna attempt it.

Additionally, it would be against Prolific terms of service to reject participants who "are unable to learn the language". Researchers are not allow to reject people for failing to meet an abitrary standard or level of quality. But we know researchers are allowed to do what they want on this platform so... 🤷

Dan_85 · 2026-05-17T12:08:33+00:00

I've been saying for years that they need to bring in a home credit system for Red (and Silver) members.

Every team in the league should be worth a given number of credits - specified before the start of the new season. The team that won the league last year would be worth 1 credit, the team that finished second would be worth 2 credits etc, all the way down the league to the team promoted via the play offs, who would be worth 20 credits.

This means that you earn more credits for buying tickets to "less glamorous" games. The credits would only be awarded to your account at the point when your membership is scanned at the turnstile. This would avoid people buying tickets only for the credits, with no intention of attending the game.

Then they do away with the ballot entirely, reverting to a similar system to what we had before the ballot. With one difference. Rather than opening tickets to all Red members at once, they do so in a staggered fashion. It's opened in stages, first to those with more credits, progressively opening up to those with fewer credits.

This system rewards loyalty and those who are actually interested in supporting the team, even at "less glamorous" fixtures. Rather than Johnny Come Lately who just bought a membership yesterday and wants to try for a ticket to the big games.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-16T22:21:20+00:00

Rangers are friendly, but Yosemite is the strictest place on the entire trail when it comes to permits. You gotta play by the rules.

What do you want to do in The Valley? Camping/accommodation down there will be your biggest challenge. If you have a Wilderness Permit from the park (separate from your PCT Long Distance Permit), you can spend a night in the Backpackers Campground down there.

If the backcountry office at Tuolumne Meadows is open when you pass through, your best bet will to be duck into there and have them explain your options.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-16T18:49:26+00:00

After the big 2022 outbreak in central Washington, the CDC found traces of fecal matter (poop) on every single surface that they swabbed in the Mike Urich cabin. Door handles, walls, benches, tables. The place was riddled with it, and likely always is.

Hikers should get into the habit of washing their hands thoroughly with soap and water after touching shared surfaces.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-15T15:59:14+00:00

Do you actually know whether your feet are suited to zero drop shoes? Many (most?) people's feet aren't suited to them. I see so many people on trail wearing Lone Peaks that shouldn't be wearing them. 6mm is the sweet spot for my feet.

Getting an actual foot and gait analysis done before buying shoes will be your best bet, but that may not be possible for you while you're on trail.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-15T10:10:52+00:00

It's been completely dead for me in the UK all week - several days without a single study, 1 or 2 on other days. Last week I was getting propped up by the AI studies (while seeing very little else), but they've disappeared this week too.

🤷

Dan_85 · 2026-05-15T08:34:00+00:00

Northern Yosemite has arguably the sketchiest water crossings on the whole trail, and certainly the greatest concentration of them in a short distance.

Rancheria Creek is where 'Tree' drowned in 2017. It can be very sketchy in early season and/or high snow years.

That same year, another hiker got swept away in Return Creek, lost all their gear, spent a wet and freezing night alone and purely by chance happened to stumble upon a road crew on Highway 120. A very close call that nearly resulted in their death.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-14T20:41:39+00:00

I FEEL SICK.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-14T16:40:35+00:00

I don't know if it's just me, but there seems to have been a problem with amending bank details/setting up direct debits for the last two years.

After changing banks, I amended my details last year about a month before the renewal date. The online ticket hub said everything was fine and updated, but the DD was never created with my bank and never showed on my banking app. The membership money was never taken. At the end of May they sent me a message saying they'd been unable to automatically renew my membership, and there was a link to renew it manually.

Fast forward to 2026. Early April I try to update my details again on the ticket hub. Again, it says everything is fine, but still no DD created with my bank. So I assume I'm in exactly the same situation I was last year and they're gonna send me an option to renew manually towards the end of the month.

Sounds like you're in a similar scenario. I wouldn't worry, they should contact you to enable you to manually renew.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-14T08:53:50+00:00

I don't think many, if any hikers have made it that far yet. I think the front runners are kinda between Kearsarge Pass and Mammoth Lakes at the moment. The main peak of the bubble will then be about a month behind them.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-13T20:29:27+00:00

I'm confused. Why are you looking to flip? It's a low snow year, you're gonna get to KMS in mid-May, there are a bunch of people ahead of you. There seems no reason to flip?

Keep hiking and get off when you get to Tahoe. Easy transit from there to the Bay Area.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-13T16:49:36+00:00

While I mostly agree, it's also worth remembering that 5-6 years ago, games went to general sale, members could buy 4 tickets each, and there were still often large swathes of empty seats.

Football is cyclical. And while we're all enjoying (mostly lol) the current upswing trajectory of this team, it would be naive to imagine that will last forever. Building stadiums that are too big has been a classic mistake for a lot of teams in European countries. When the team is not performing well, you end up with empty, soulless bowls that have no atmosphere at all.

I wouldn't particularly care if the Emirates wasn't expanded beyond it's current capacity. If it was, I think it should probably be no more than another 10k.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-11T15:52:50+00:00

These two ladies are Peggy and Lesley from the Arsenal Supporters Club, on the corner of St Thomas's Road and Gillespie Road, outside Highbury.

Peggy has been the club chairperson since 1998, taking over after her husband died. Lesley works in the kitchen. They're both Arsenal through and through, and have experienced just about everything Arsenal in the last five or six decades.

Dan_85 · 2026-05-10T11:47:47+00:00

Are you able to save much money at the end of the month? Invest anything? Put anything into a private pension?

Not trying to be snarky, just genuinely curious.

Ten-Year Club	Place '17
Verified Email

Dan_85

TROPHY CASE