OMG, IT'S JUST A SHIRT!!!

A couple of days ago I happened to be working near an REI, so naturally I had stop and check the clearance racks, just in case there was some piece of gear I needed! I am still in need of several pieces of clothing on my gear list, and way too much research and scanning the internet for prices has been going on lately! After trying on a bunch of shorts and having the REI sales women try and push pants with the detachable legs (I had a pair of these and have no idea what I did with them!) I found my way to the clearance rack with shirts.
One of the first ones I see is Orange (my favorite color) and a size Medium (my size), is a style I like but it is made of 50% cotton. ExOfficio Java tech

The next shirt I found was an REI brand shirt, (I can't find a pic of it) it had the special "cooling fabric" thing going for it, it was purple and was the cheapest option, also was a size small.

Shirt #3 Was an Outdoor Research t-shirt.  Great Brand, made of polyester and merino wool, but it was a size L. (shown bellow in pink, and will be referred to below)

I headed to the fitting room with 3 shirts, all different sizes, this shouldn't be too hard, right? Well They all fit, wait, what? yeah somehow all 3 shirts fit nicely and were all comfy tees.  so I hung all 3 up next to each other and stared at them. I weighed all my options, read all the tag info, even compared the original prices, you know because maybe the more expensive one was the best one right? Well the most expensive one was the one made with cotton.  Hiking and cotton = bad, but the sales lady said it was specially designed and is great for hiking and I would love it!! Should I listen to her?? I don't want to tell you how long I stood in the changing room starring at all 3 shirts trying to make this decision, but the length of time was not normal, lets just leave it at that.

Why am I having such a hard time picking a shirt? I guess the main reason is that I will have to wear this shirt for pretty much 6 months straight.  I will only be carrying 1 short sleeve shirt. My other shirt will be a long sleeve shirt that can be worn in the desert to shade my skin from the sun, and when its cold. I will also have a long sleeve "thermal" shirt.  that is all. I must love this shirt.

I finally decided on the Outdoor Research shirt, size L, in Blue, made of Polyester and merino wool.  It was originally priced at $49 and I got it for $27.73

Congratulations Colleen, you made a decision!!

Well... kind of.

So I get home and am all eager to update my gear list and add my shirt, so I look it up on REI's website and.... dammit.... it is not only available in another color (the pink one shown above), but another style.  and the other style with a v-neck is available in a size Medium.  OMG! why?

I have spent the 3 days since trying to decide what to do.  Should I order the one online and return the one I bought or just keep the one I bought? 

So I decided to sit down and share my insanity with you! I went and got the shirt and put it on (tags still attached) you know, to be in the spirit of it all while typing.  A few minutes into this post, I grabbed the tags and ripped them off.  Decision made.  

Now what should I do about shorts?....

Up and Running!

Yeah I finally got this blog up and running!

In exactly 6 months I will be at the PCT Kickoff event, ADZPCTKO 2015 (annual day zero pacific crest trail kick off) in Lake Morena California.  I will have been hiking for 11 days by then and will get a ride back to lake Morena for the event, then get a ride back to where I left off on the trail.

It is amazing how quickly time is flying by! I have so much to plan for yet! I have to admit that I have been pretty obsessed over the planning so far.  I have done a ton of research on gear, food, the trail ect.

When will I leave? I am planning on starting the trail on April 14th from Campo California at the Mexican boarder.  Although I live in LA I will be heading to WI to prep for my resupply and visit with family.

When will I finish? I should finish somewhere between Sept 15 and Oct 1 (well that's my goal anyhow)

How will I get food? My mom will be sending me resupply boxes containing what I will need for the next leg of my hike.  When I can I will resupply in town, but the boxes will probably save me $$ and I will eat better food.  I will also have some backup gear that she will send when requested.

Why? Why not? I'm not doing this to "find myself", or because I read the book "wild".  I heard about the PCT from a friend who's son was hiking it.  I immediately wanted to do it too.  The more I researched it, the more I wanted to do it! easy as that.

What will I take with me? I am trying to hike as light as possible! Ultralight hikers typically have a pack (minus water, food and fuel) that weighs under 10 lbs.  I am shooting for 12 lbs. Money is the obstacle. Check out my gear list to see what will be in my pack.

6 months to go.. can't wait!