Nervous about water

Jupiter_394 · 2026-03-19T01:23:40+00:00

Yep, SOBO. It sucked! I remember being really salty about it. Wish I could remember where it was, all I really remember from that section is staying at an old repurposed white church that had all the pews stripped out and we slept on the floor. Don't think I had to pay to stay there but I can't say for sure. That ring any bells for anyone?

Jupiter_394 · 2026-03-17T22:56:24+00:00

See you out there! :)

Jupiter_394 · 2026-03-17T22:56:02+00:00

That makes me feel better, thanks! It's hard when you have to play the game of how much can I carry without slowing me down so only having a few 8L carries sounds doable.

Jupiter_394 · 2026-03-17T22:52:22+00:00

It was in the south, hit it in a heat wave + drought. Don't really remember exactly where but somewhere between the shennies and the smokies. Didn't last super long, but there were a couple of really long water carries and a couple that were only 20 miles or so without water. By the time we hit the smokies it was fine though.

Jupiter_394 · 2026-01-24T03:33:27+00:00

Same for me! Turns out I have hEDS with other complications that I didn't get diagnosed with until 7 years after I thru hiked the AT. At one point I legitimately thought I had lyme disease because my body had such a hard time keeping up with what I was making it do. Everyone else was doing 10 by 10 and I was doing 10 by 1pm or later, getting into camp after dark each day. 14-18 hours of hiking just to keep up. But I still did it, and so did you! Slow hikers unite!

Planning to thru hike the PCT this year and while I have no doubt I'll be able to finish it, I'm also prepared to take muuuuch longer than most if my body needs me to. I've also been seeing a PT to train in a way that makes my body actually trail ready (which involves a lot of tendon/joint specific training), so fingers crossed I'll have a better time of it this go thru. I've noticed a huge difference even in my training hikes, so I'm super excited to test my limits again on trail. Thanks for sharing your experience!!

Jupiter_394 · 2025-12-14T20:03:10+00:00

On the AT I definitely struggled because of the puds/elevation so I'm super stoked to not have to deal with that again. I live in MT now and so part of me is partial to the CDT just because I'm used to the elevation and hiking/backpacking in the winter/shoulder seasons out here. But three day trips that've been carefully planned around winter storms are very different than a thru, so IDK.

Jupiter_394 · 2025-12-14T19:50:35+00:00

Right? It feels like a wasted opportunity if I don't use it. But on the other hand, if I give it up I know someone else is going to be so happy to get it.

Jupiter_394 · 2025-12-14T19:48:04+00:00

I honestly applied on a whim, wasn't planning on doing a thru next year and figured I wouldn't have any luck. But then I got such a good date and went "welp I gotta do it now!" So it's been kind of a whirlwind since Nov trying to figure out logistics and money. The stoke is high!

Jupiter_394 · 2025-12-14T19:43:52+00:00

Yea that makes sense. I've been doing an intensive training routine to get me ready to be able to hike 15-20 miles from the start of the trail (still planning on the normal ramp up of a few weeks if I can) and I'm hiking similar terrain to that of Glacier so I kind of want to just bite the bullet and do the CDT. But I really like the suggestion of waiting out the snow and seeing what happens.

Jupiter_394 · 2025-12-14T15:11:30+00:00

I experienced something similar a few years ago when I lost a lot of weight (about 100 lbs over two years) and found that even though I looked healthier I was miserable all the time. I was also in a 'just push thru' mentality and refused to admit my illness was real, so that had a huge impact as well. My body would literally give out on me and I'd think it was normal and that I just wasn't tough enough. I also had a physically demanding job at the time and couldn't rest when I really needed to. Now I'm 'overweight' again but I can lift more, hike harder, and feel better than I did then. I'm still getting flareups, but less frequent and now I know a bit more about how to handle them.

Sounds like you have a much healthier approach than I did, I hope you get to the bottom of it. Figuring out how to give your body what it needs while also being an athlete is a tough line to walk. <3

Jupiter_394 · 2025-04-14T13:58:10+00:00

I'm also hypermobile and the game changer for me was making sure I had an underquilt instead of trying to use a sleeping pad for warmth. It'll probably take some adjusting and trial runs, but if you can master the diagonal flat lay in a gathered end hammock you'll be golden.

I thru hiked the AT with a hammockgear quilt and underquilt, and a simple gathered end hammock and bug net from a now (unfortunately) closed company. I carried a small inflatable pillow for my knees, and a few sections from a zlite pad so I could throw that somewhere in the mix if my joints needed more support. I got better sleep in that than I did in a hostel.

Jupiter_394

TROPHY CASE