I sat in the Active Shooter Class at work and felt strange that I won’t have to worry about that in a few days. My run-hide-fight mentality will be reserved for yellow jackets. Granted, there are other dangers on the trail. Dehydration, heat exhaustion, snakes, bees, and snow…but no active shooters. So that’s something.
I admit I am getting a little concerned about the snow. Like, why is there still so much of it? I’m glad I am starting in Truckee because if the snow is unmanageable, it will be easy for me to come home after the first week on trail, wait it out for a week, and then head out again. I already added more weight to my pack than I’d like to admit because of the snow. More warm clothes, crampons (maybe), changing my shoes (which I feel is a bad idea but I’m doing it anyway), and bringing snow shoes (which is also probably a bad idea but I’m doing that anyway too).
Now that I’m geared up for the snow, I feel certain I will be hauling all this gear up sun-laden, sandy south-facing slopes, sweating away in my water-proof trail runners. I’ll probably want to walk barefoot through the snow on the north-facing slopes because I’ll be overheating.
So now my pack is a million pounds. And I’ll either be cold, or I’ll be too hot.
But either way I will be out in nature, breathing the fresh mountain air.
Not working.
And not worrying about active shooters.