New Year's Resolution - A Blog Series
Part 2: How to go the distance? What is the distance?
By Retta Witter, Senior Consultant, J. Geiger Consulting, Inc.
Last time I decided my new year's resolution was to lose weight, the weight of my backpack that is. When I started looking at how to reduce the weight, I realized that every type of hike had different requirements. So, in order to know how to reduce my backpack weight, it really needed to be goal specific. My goal is to be able to hike the Eleven Lake segment of the Ice Age trail in May. The reason I picked May was because I would like to be prepared for my BIG hike planned on Isle Royale in August. I also wanted to avoid heavy mosquito season if possible. The average temperature in Wisconsin in early May is between 47 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit, and the average low is between 37 and 44 degrees. mosquitos come start coming out in the 50s, so I am crossing my fingers.
Let's see if I made a SMART Goal:
S = Specific – walk the Lake Eleven Segment of the Ice Age Trail
M = Measurable - I can track the weight of the pack and my ability to hike distances with my pack.
A = Attainable – I am pretty stubborn and believe this is very possible.
R = Relevant – If I want to hike around Isle Royale in August with all my gear on, this goal is very relevant.
T = Time Based – Last weekend in April or first weekend in May.
SMART Goal was created. Now to understand the MVP for this trip and how to go the distance.
“Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. ”
A little info on the Lake Eleven segment:
The Lake Eleven Segment of the Ice Age Trail is a 15.5 mile point-to-point footpath that covers the backcountry of the Chequamegon (she-wan-me-gone) National Forest in Wisconsin. This segment is not usually considered a one-day hike. Its length, difficulty, and isolation demand a more intensive approach and it is more common to see backpackers along this trail than day hikers. A little piece of knowledge that I learned is that the name Chequamegon is derived from an Ojibway word meaning, "place of shallow water," and refers to Lake Superior's Chequamegon Bay. The Ojibway are one of the Native American Tribes that were in Wisconsin when the European’s came to the region.
There were several questions I posed in the last blog that would decide on what gear I would need, then I can figure out how to reduce to lose the weight.
How long will I be gone? 2 Nights, I think unless we get up really early on Saturday.
Where will I be sleeping? 2-man tent or a hammock, I must have something other than the beautiful sky.
Who is coming with me? Hopefully my partners in hiking crime Sasha and Dan.
What will the weather be? Early May in Wisconsin, we will need to figure that out a bit closer to the time, I have had track meets cancelled due to snow storms, in April.
Now that I have some answers, I need to figure out what to pack and what the options are for each of my key areas. My camping companions Sasha, Dan and I will do some brainstorming in each of the sub-categories to decide what gear I need.
MVP
I have started weighing my gear. It is kind of depressing; Do I really need a first aid kit? Mine weighs 1.5 lbs. I will have to do a risk analysis on that topic in a few weeks.
What I think I need as MVP:
That, with my current gear, is 16 lbs. If I am shooting for the lightweight backpacker that is 20 lbs. and I, then have 3.9 lbs. left.
While I am figuring out what gear is needed, I still need to figure out how to hike 15.5 miles with 30 pounds on my back, with an abundance of elevation changes. The difficult rating in the description has me glad I have 5 months to get in shape to do that.
I am planning on doing the 52-hike challenge. That is to hike 52 times on different days. I am doing the original challenge and will be building up my stamina with longer hikes with heavier gear. My plan is to post pictures along the way. You too can sign up if you are up for the adventure by going to: https://www.52hikechallenge.com
When you are working on a project understanding what your goal is can be challenging to get precise but if you don’t take the time set a specific goal you may never really be able to carry out it.
Remember SMART goals are important. From your SMART goal you can then better understand what will fit in that time frame get to a true minimum viable product. Many times, MVP can be up for discussion depending on your point of view. If you don’t love to take photos a camera may not be an MVP for you, however it is an outlet for me, so it really is MVP, and I am willing to go without in other areas to cover the 1.5 lbs. This is a waterfall called Fonferek’s Glen.
What do you think? Should I pack my camera or not? What struggles do you have with defining MVP? Comment below to share your thoughts. Come back next week to find out what I have learned.