A Southbound Adventure

Christine and her husband, John, decided to hike the PCT to Mexico. Before they started their southbound hike toward the PCT they planned to take a low elevation alternate route for the first  60 miles. They chose this route because they heard of the bad conditions that had been on the PCT for the first South bounders. Due to Christine's fear of heights this plan did not work in her favor. When she arrived at the next section through Glacier Peak it was very challenging for her.  She would run out of energy quickly and collapse in the snow from exhaustion. Her hiker appetite did not kick in yet, so when she did collapse John would be handing her a jar of Nutella to eat. Even though she had hardships at Glacier Peaks, she still couldn't deny the amazing view from the mountains. When they got to the Oregon, multiple north bounders passed them. Later on they arrived in Northern California, they were happy that they could finally have the wilderness to their selves. When they passed through a community they learned about the water shortages and wildfires; they were chased off the trails in parts of Oregon earlier. When she saw more of the water shortages, she stayed aware of where every liter of their water came from. As they approached Sierra, the amount of water began to increase. While they were climbing to the highest point in the Continental of United States they were running low on food. Luckily other hikers who were ending their hike gave them their leftover food. When they reached the desert with their water report in hand, they noticed the solitude of the route. On the last night of the trail, it rained and they believed it to be a reminder from Mother Nature that their journey was almost over. As Christine looks back on the trail she realized that this journey has made her a better person.

Questions:
1. Why did it seem that most hikers wanted to be in the wilderness alone?
2. Why did they prefer being mistaken as weekend or day hiker?
3.  Why is it funny about the moment when a north bounder and a south bounder cross paths?

Thing learned from this article:
1. Ice axes, crampons, a GPS, maps, a compass and extra batteries are very important when hiking.
2. Even though hiking is challenging, the beautiful views would make it all worth it.
3. Water reports may be important when hiking.
4. Nothing could really help prepare a person for what they will experience with the PCT.