Day 21: May 14, 2019
Destination: Pie Town, CDT Mile 424.6
Today’s Miles: 0
Start Location: Pie Town,CDT Mile 424.6
Trip Miles: 348.9
Well, parts are on their way! I made contact with Zpacks today.
They are shipping me new tent strut supports (this is what I’m calling them) for my Plexamid. They are shipping them priority 1-3 days, so I’ll rest here in Pie Town and wait for them. Honestly, it is a good long-term investment for my feet. As my father likes to say, “Remember Damascus!” It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
I’m quite happy that Zpacks got back to me relatively quickly! They are a relatively small company, so I think the fact that it took a day is reasonable. I do think it would be cool if you could register as a thru-hiker with them to get expedited support if you have either a tent or pack, but that’s just an idea I think would be cool for any company, not just them.
If you have a Plexamid tent or plan to get one, I have heard from other hikers that this issue is happening a lot. The replacement part they are sending is completely different than the part that broke. I will post a picture of the replacement part that they sent me. I have a feeling they will change their manufacturing to use this part. In the meantime, if you have this tent and are planning a longer section hike, it might be worth trying to get the replacement as a backup, just because it is probably a matter of time before the standard issue part breaks. Otherwise, I love the tent! Condensation is an issue if I don’t have both flaps open, but that is life with a lighter, single wall tent.
Today I ate. I tried to go do laundry at The Top of the World 3 miles away. A nice couple stopped for me when I was thumbing a ride. We got there and it was closed on Tuesdays – whoops! They were so nice they just gave me a ride back to the Toaster House! My plan is to do laundry tomorrow.
I managed to find some more socially acceptable loaner clothes – a Southern Comfort polo shirt and a pair of women’s short tights. It’s the best I could do and both are quite comfortable. At least I don’t look like I’m ready for Mardi Gras!
The group of hikers I got to know have left, except for one guy named Pincushion. He was waiting on a new phone. He’s young and has long legs, so he’ll fly towards Grants. I’m now meeting hikers I haven’t seen before. It’s interesting how batches of people roll through town. I’ve gone from more solid interaction, to people watching and introductions! I’m ok with that though. It usually happens a few times on trail as schedules shift and whatnot. I’m honestly surprised by how many people I’ve hiked around so far! It’s also funny how I might not see anyone all day while hiking, but I always see groups of hikers in towns.
Tomorrow I will do laundry and relax. There are some cats near the Toaster House that like to come around for some attention, so I may play with them tomorrow. I just ate a burger, fries, and veggies. I’m about to eat a piece of banana cream pie. I can’t wait!
I tried to catch up on comments, and I appreciate everyone who left comments. My website isn’t quite where I would like it to be in some respects, but overall at least it is working fairly well for updating from the field. I posted another summary update for The Trek, but don’t have a link on the website. If you’re reading this journal, then you are already caught up and getting more detail :-).
I’ll keep you posted and try to find some interesting photos to post! I have taken a LOT video. I should have enough to produce a full blown video journal of this trip when I’m done. We shall see!
Adios for now….
You might also like
