aaaannnnnndddddd GO!

Well, it's that time. All the gear is packed. The food is ready. A float plan has been created. All of the eight million odds and ends have been taken care of. Tomorrow morning at 8am I will start driving north and west. Hopefully five and half days later I will be in Skagway, parking the car, and getting on the ferry to Ketchikan. If it's not done by tomorrow morning at 8, it isn't going to get done. After about 10 months of hard core planning - and years of dreaming - this trip is finally going to start.

People tend to think that the hard part of something like this is the actual paddling, and while that will be difficult - particularly the hours we will be doing in the cockpits - I personally think it is the 'getting everybody, and their gear, and the kayaks to the starting point'. I think that is the most difficult and stressful part. Time will tell how it all will play out. Hopefully close to how it was planned. I won't be updating this blog from the road, but I will be updating my twitter feed. When ever possible I will add a current position as well as what is roughly going. on.

Thanks for following this blog and the trip. See you in Skagway around the 18th of July.

Ironically,

I will be eating Freeze dried food on the long drive cross cross country,

and eating real food once the kayaking starts!

This is the 'don't do something stupid' phase.

It's like the days before the big game. You don't want to break an ankle. Or cut a hand. You don't want to do something stupid that could jeopardize the trip. Be careful driving so that you don't total the car you need to drive to Alaska. Make sure a limb is hanging - about to break off - and puncture the kayak you need to paddle 409 miles.

No food poisoning, no colds, or viruses, nothing stupid. You have planned this for too long. Spent too much money, spent too much time. Don't make a stupid mistake.

This phase will continue right up until you hit the water. Don't drive behind the big truck spilling gravel all along the highway.

Certainly, whatever you do, don't pull a muscle in your back at the gym. That would be dreadful. I know, because that is what I did this morning. I think it is actually just a muscle that is spasmed, and I think it is primarily due to stress. I have been chewing motrin like m&m's and am working my way through a bottle of red. After work I did a short run, then hit the rowing machine - which felt pretty good - to loosen it up. Then spent some time in the steam, and then hit the shower. I will be fine in a few days.

I just have to be careful.