I've had a lot of people asking me how I'm preparing for my upcoming thru. And honestly, I'm not doing much in terms of hiking for it. I have the trail proper to do that... right? I've gotten my gear list pretty much nailed down (might switch out my penny stove for something else, though... jury's still out on that).
What I have been doing with my time is mentally preparing. Reminding myself why I'm doing it, that it's something I can accomplish and finish, and also getting myself in the mindset that at some point, the trail will become tedious and at least on the surface, seem to have lost its appeal. But I know that that only marks that I've hit my stride, and that I'll truly be fitting in, when the day as a whole seems uneventful. It also helps to know that even sitting in a rundown shelter in some national park in the pouring rain is still better than anything I'd likely be doing off the trail.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not avoiding hiking completely right now, I'm just doing about a day hike a week or so. Nothing crazy, but I'm also not adhered to a couch.
Am I in the wrong in preparing this way, or is it how I should be approaching all of this? Please, WB, I'd like your feedback, whether you've completed 0, 1, 2, or 30 thru-hikes.