SavageLlama
07-14-2004, 10:31
Article on the new West Coast Trail.
http://www.nola.com/sports/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-11/1089793955199110.xml (http://www.nola.com/sports/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-11/1089793955199110.xml)
TRAILBLAZERS
Nate Olive and Sarah Janes intend to be the first to hike the 1,800-mile West Coast Trail in one continuous trip -- although it hasn't been a walk in the park
By Andrew Canulette
The Times-Picayune
July 14, 2004
It was on the picture-perfect Oregon coast that Nate Olive and Sarah Janes realized their lives were in danger.
As they walked along the shoreline, the tide from the Pacific Ocean began racing in. Separated from high ground by a mass of volcanic rock, they had only a few moments before they would be engulfed by rising water.
[/url]Together, they figured out the best route to safety.
It wasn't an experience the average hiker has. Then again, Olive and Janes aren't exactly average. The two are attempting to become the first known people to hike the 1,800-mile West Coast Trail in one continuous trip.
The trail -- which begins at Cape Flattery in Washington and ends at Border Field State Park, where California meets Mexico -- is a work in progress. Though the overwhelming majority of the trail travels along public beaches, through state and national parks and Native American reservations, there are several spots where hikers must wade through a river or solicit a boat ride across a bay.
Olive and Janes' journey began June 8 and is expected to end sometime in early October.
Both said their travel is an adventure, something they're doing for personal fulfillment. But there are other reasons why they plan to spend four months on the trail.
Olive, a 27-year old Atlanta native, is keeping a journal and taking photographs for a book he hopes will be a guide for other West Coast Trail hikers. He and Janes, a 23-year old Slidell resident, also are raising money for a family in Georgia that has reared more than 50 foster children through the years.
They also want to draw awareness to the trail. Though the state parks services in Washington, Oregon and California recognize the trail, there is no federal designation to preserve and maintain it, said Al LePage, director of the National Coast Trail Association, which helped organize and is promoting the trip. LePage said that, in a worst-case scenario, portions of the trail eventually might become what he considers dirty words -- "private property."
"We want to keep the coast for everyone, keep it accessible so people can enjoy it," Olive said.
First steps
Olive and Janes met when both were students at the University of Georgia. Olive was already a seasoned hiker, and their love for the outdoors drew them to each other. Soon, they began dating.
The relationship was cemented when they first hiked together in 2001.
"He was hiking the (Appalachian Trail) and would call to tell me how great it was," Janes said. "When I joined him, I stayed several weeks. It was really fun walking from place to place and seeing things you wouldn't see if you were whizzing by in a car."
It was evident that hiking wouldn't be a one-time experience for Janes. In 2002, they hiked the 500-mile Colorado Trail from Denver to Durango. And last year, they completed the Pacific Coast Trail, a 2,650-mile jaunt that is approximately 150 miles inland from the West Coast Trail. During that journey, they had the idea of hiking along the coast.
"There was a section that was burned out with fire and we couldn't cross," Janes said. "We said maybe we can go to the coast. It grew from there."
Soon after, they learned of LePage's efforts to promote the West Coast Trail. Olive said he considered the timing "an omen," and they began making plans to walk the entire trail. LePage proved to be a valuable resource because he had walked the trail in sections between 1988 and 1996 and could offer insight into what they could expect.
Still, this -- trying to walk all of the trail in one hiking outing -- was a different endeavor.
"We didn't know if it was possible," Olive said. "We had concerns. No one had done it (at one time) before.
Setting out
Olive said it took nearly eight months to prepare for the trip. They collected maps and books to become familiar with the territory and acquired the gear necessary for the different types of terrain.
Inside their small backpacks, they carry sleeping bags, a tarpaulin for shelter, foam pads, essential toiletries, clothing and a variety of lightweight and dehydrated foods. When they reach parks or other inhabited areas, they stop for a shower or a warm meal. Olive writes his journal entries in longhand and mails them with film to his mother, who, in turn, posts the travelogue on his Web site.
At the same time, they send "bounce boxes" that contain food, maps and film to post offices farther along the trail.
Hiking approximately 20 miles a day, Olive and Janes have completed the first 200 miles of the trail along the Washington coast, traveling through the Makah Indian Nation, the Olympic Coast Strip in Olympic National Park and the Quinault Indian Nation on the way. Though the weather was cool, they were able to wade across the Raft River in central Washington and hitched a ride with a salmon fisher across the Hoh River to avoid the 35-degree water.
The 400 miles of Oregon's coast have been a bit more harrowing. In addition to the day they were almost swamped by the Pacific's rising tide, they had to stuff all of their belongings into giant trash bags to protect them from the water when they swam across the Sixes River.
In California, they can expect drastically different weather. Typical weather patterns indicate they'll endure climbing temperatures and slackening winds. The trip also will become more urban as they journey across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and along the beaches of Los Angeles and San Diego.
LePage said that after completing two states in a relatively short time, the remaining 1,200 miles to hike in California can "play with you psychologically."
"Well, in two weeks, they got through Washington," LePage said. "That's one state. And at the rate they're going, it'll be 3 ½ weeks in Oregon. That's another state. There's only one to go, but it's a pretty big hunk of the trip."
CONTACT POINTS: Anyone interested in following Olive and Janes can track them on the Internet at [url="http://www.trailjournals.com/westcoast"]WWW.trailjournals.com/westcoast (http://ads3.udc.advance.net/RealMedia/ads/click_lx.ads/www.nola.com/xml/story/P/PSP/1516119318/StoryAd/default/empty.gif/64306334653830353430663534316530). For additional information on the West Coast Trail, go to www.coasttrails.org (http://www.coasttrails.org/).
. . . . . . .
http://www.nola.com/sports/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-11/1089793955199110.xml (http://www.nola.com/sports/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-11/1089793955199110.xml)
TRAILBLAZERS
Nate Olive and Sarah Janes intend to be the first to hike the 1,800-mile West Coast Trail in one continuous trip -- although it hasn't been a walk in the park
By Andrew Canulette
The Times-Picayune
July 14, 2004
It was on the picture-perfect Oregon coast that Nate Olive and Sarah Janes realized their lives were in danger.
As they walked along the shoreline, the tide from the Pacific Ocean began racing in. Separated from high ground by a mass of volcanic rock, they had only a few moments before they would be engulfed by rising water.
[/url]Together, they figured out the best route to safety.
It wasn't an experience the average hiker has. Then again, Olive and Janes aren't exactly average. The two are attempting to become the first known people to hike the 1,800-mile West Coast Trail in one continuous trip.
The trail -- which begins at Cape Flattery in Washington and ends at Border Field State Park, where California meets Mexico -- is a work in progress. Though the overwhelming majority of the trail travels along public beaches, through state and national parks and Native American reservations, there are several spots where hikers must wade through a river or solicit a boat ride across a bay.
Olive and Janes' journey began June 8 and is expected to end sometime in early October.
Both said their travel is an adventure, something they're doing for personal fulfillment. But there are other reasons why they plan to spend four months on the trail.
Olive, a 27-year old Atlanta native, is keeping a journal and taking photographs for a book he hopes will be a guide for other West Coast Trail hikers. He and Janes, a 23-year old Slidell resident, also are raising money for a family in Georgia that has reared more than 50 foster children through the years.
They also want to draw awareness to the trail. Though the state parks services in Washington, Oregon and California recognize the trail, there is no federal designation to preserve and maintain it, said Al LePage, director of the National Coast Trail Association, which helped organize and is promoting the trip. LePage said that, in a worst-case scenario, portions of the trail eventually might become what he considers dirty words -- "private property."
"We want to keep the coast for everyone, keep it accessible so people can enjoy it," Olive said.
First steps
Olive and Janes met when both were students at the University of Georgia. Olive was already a seasoned hiker, and their love for the outdoors drew them to each other. Soon, they began dating.
The relationship was cemented when they first hiked together in 2001.
"He was hiking the (Appalachian Trail) and would call to tell me how great it was," Janes said. "When I joined him, I stayed several weeks. It was really fun walking from place to place and seeing things you wouldn't see if you were whizzing by in a car."
It was evident that hiking wouldn't be a one-time experience for Janes. In 2002, they hiked the 500-mile Colorado Trail from Denver to Durango. And last year, they completed the Pacific Coast Trail, a 2,650-mile jaunt that is approximately 150 miles inland from the West Coast Trail. During that journey, they had the idea of hiking along the coast.
"There was a section that was burned out with fire and we couldn't cross," Janes said. "We said maybe we can go to the coast. It grew from there."
Soon after, they learned of LePage's efforts to promote the West Coast Trail. Olive said he considered the timing "an omen," and they began making plans to walk the entire trail. LePage proved to be a valuable resource because he had walked the trail in sections between 1988 and 1996 and could offer insight into what they could expect.
Still, this -- trying to walk all of the trail in one hiking outing -- was a different endeavor.
"We didn't know if it was possible," Olive said. "We had concerns. No one had done it (at one time) before.
Setting out
Olive said it took nearly eight months to prepare for the trip. They collected maps and books to become familiar with the territory and acquired the gear necessary for the different types of terrain.
Inside their small backpacks, they carry sleeping bags, a tarpaulin for shelter, foam pads, essential toiletries, clothing and a variety of lightweight and dehydrated foods. When they reach parks or other inhabited areas, they stop for a shower or a warm meal. Olive writes his journal entries in longhand and mails them with film to his mother, who, in turn, posts the travelogue on his Web site.
At the same time, they send "bounce boxes" that contain food, maps and film to post offices farther along the trail.
Hiking approximately 20 miles a day, Olive and Janes have completed the first 200 miles of the trail along the Washington coast, traveling through the Makah Indian Nation, the Olympic Coast Strip in Olympic National Park and the Quinault Indian Nation on the way. Though the weather was cool, they were able to wade across the Raft River in central Washington and hitched a ride with a salmon fisher across the Hoh River to avoid the 35-degree water.
The 400 miles of Oregon's coast have been a bit more harrowing. In addition to the day they were almost swamped by the Pacific's rising tide, they had to stuff all of their belongings into giant trash bags to protect them from the water when they swam across the Sixes River.
In California, they can expect drastically different weather. Typical weather patterns indicate they'll endure climbing temperatures and slackening winds. The trip also will become more urban as they journey across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and along the beaches of Los Angeles and San Diego.
LePage said that after completing two states in a relatively short time, the remaining 1,200 miles to hike in California can "play with you psychologically."
"Well, in two weeks, they got through Washington," LePage said. "That's one state. And at the rate they're going, it'll be 3 ½ weeks in Oregon. That's another state. There's only one to go, but it's a pretty big hunk of the trip."
CONTACT POINTS: Anyone interested in following Olive and Janes can track them on the Internet at [url="http://www.trailjournals.com/westcoast"]WWW.trailjournals.com/westcoast (http://ads3.udc.advance.net/RealMedia/ads/click_lx.ads/www.nola.com/xml/story/P/PSP/1516119318/StoryAd/default/empty.gif/64306334653830353430663534316530). For additional information on the West Coast Trail, go to www.coasttrails.org (http://www.coasttrails.org/).
. . . . . . .