Heading back out there

c) Andrew Carter, 2022

I’m heading back out there tomorrow to try to complete my “thru in two” hike of the PCT. I have Walker Pass to Paradise Valley in Kings Canyon NP and Santiam Pass to the Canadian border still to hike. That’s 801 miles of trail.

Sadly, completion is not guaranteed. Beyond the risk of wildfire all hikers face plus the hope that the Forest Service will reopen the Mt. Jefferson area in Oregon in late August or early September, I’m dealing with a 65-year-old worn-out body.

I injured my left knee and right hip this spring while thru hiking the Benton MacKaye Trail in GA/NC/TN (264 of 290 miles completed, wildfire closure) and the Tuscarora Trail in VA/WV/PA (all 253 miles completed).

The knee is the real issue. (I got physical therapy for the hip.) The knee has been an on-again, off-again problem my entire life, ever since I injured it playing baseball in high school. But hey, I was able to thru hike the AT on it in college. The knee was operated on a few years ago and likely needs to be operated on again. It’s definitely past its “best before” date.

In the spring, I tore the meniscus in the knee and also suffered a stress fracture. I was aware of the meniscus the moment I tore it. I wasn’t aware of the stress fracture until I went to see the knee surgeon to talk about the meniscus. I never felt any pain from the stress fracture.

I’ve taken the requisite three months off for the stress fracture to heal, but it was an overuse injury — 1852 miles of the PCT last year plus 317 miles of East Coast trails this year. So who knows if I will reinjure it on the PCT this year? And if I do, will it hurt this time?

The meniscus is being held together by my trusty compression sleeve and knee brace. There’s very little pain. But for how long? Ultimately, I need surgery. But even after that, the knee will be weak.

I’m hoping I can hold it all together over the next 2.5 months to complete the PCT. If not, I’ll have to try to finish the trail over the next few years with one-week to two-week section hikes. Wish me luck.