Final preparations...

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

I wasn’t getting any better and my concerns were growing. The Adirondacks can be very cold and damp this time of year and neither condition does much to improve a severe head cold. There really was nothing to think about though…I was going. I’d bring the Hall’s for my throat and the Sudafed for the congestion and make the best of it. I could have taken another night off from working out, but I’d get little exercise on our travel day and didn’t want two ‘slacker’ days in a row so I headed for the park for the Survival workout.

The workout wasn’t my best effort but I got it done and headed to Paul’s parent’s house to pick him up so we could do some last minute food shopping for the trip. I’ve learned that Paul, probably one of the most experienced backcountry campers on the continent, has a method to the calories he takes on a trip and wouldn’t want me packing his food. John would eat whatever I put in front of him...and then complain that the pinole was too dry. We went to BJ’s and grabbed some fresh and dried fruit, and the right energy bars. I dropped him back at home and promised to return at 6 the next morning.

The night before an extended trip is rather hectic for me as I look to make sure I haven’t forgotten anything essential and have the food figured out to meet our different tastes, caloric needs and the ability to carry and store it all. We were hiking only a short distance from the car to pitch our tents and could leave food in coolers in the car and eat when returning. This would simplify what and how much I could bring, allowing for more fresh food…something I could never take in a bear canister. Once I had it all together and mounded near the door to put in John’s Mazda the next morning, I again questioned the capacity of his vehicle. I wasn’t going to ask Holly to let me take the van for a week, so I would just have to squeeze it in. With that thought, I headed off to bed and set the alarm for a 5 a.m. start.

Survival Workout duration: 60 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100 to 150 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 600.