Hello all from Vancouver....

Introduce yourself to the group! We welcome novice and expert alike! We especially love hearing from those new to Portland and those new to hiking
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Navycop68
Posts: 1
Joined: October 20th, 2016, 9:36 am

Hello all from Vancouver....

Post by Navycop68 » October 20th, 2016, 9:49 am

So, my name is Steve and I have been hiking on and off (mostly off due to a knee injury this last summer) for the past couple of years. I retired from the military in 2010 and have been living a fairly stagnant lifestyle since then, gaining weight and not being anywhere near as physically fit as I need to be. I think much of it stems from the end of my marriage of 17 years... But a story for around the camp fire. Suffice it to say I am in need of getting back into it.

About me... I am recently 48, a bit overweight, a big bit out of shape, and in need of reassessing me life. I have done a bit of hiking over the past 2 1/2 years, but nothing major minus Angels Rest which was pretty daunting to my fitness level. I have also been biking but when grave yard shift happened, that took a hit and I haven't for upwards of a year now... I am developing several goals (a 100 mile bike trip and longer hiking trips) and need to really start focusing on those. My biggest goal at this point is to do a section hike of the Oregon portion of the PCT. How's that for a midlife crisis response?! Still want the older 2 seater convertible, but for now this is my new goal!

With that in mind I need to really start getting myself into shape to carry a pack (have some decent equipment from when my son was in the boy scouts) and be able to climb even gradually increasing elevations with petering out in the first 15 feet... I will scan through the boards looking for tips and tricks and hopefully can get myself going on this.

By the way, does one need to do the whole PCT to earn a trail name? Just curious!

squidvicious
Posts: 525
Joined: May 11th, 2015, 8:41 pm
Location: Troutdale

Re: Hello all from Vancouver....

Post by squidvicious » October 20th, 2016, 5:04 pm

Yeah, a lot of that sure does sound familiar.

But "big hills" turn into "fun strolls" surprisingly quickly. And since you're starting in the winterish season, you can tell people/yourself that you're just sticking with those low-level, flat trails now so you don't run into snow or icy conditions.

Hiking is as good a prescription for mental health as physical, so you have lots of good stuff to look forward to here in Life 2.0.

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