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To admit that he needs a porter and is adament that he can do this all by himself. I'm trying to reason with him that he is not all as fit as what he thinks he is and even if he does carry his pack that after about 3 -4 days he will find this very difficult, but he is not budging on the issue. Any hints on how to persuade him to hire a porter?
G'day Fluppy,
6 of us have just finished Trek 396 on Thursday. The only member of our party who carried their own pack was Nick who was also the youngest at 26. We had different levels of fitness in our group with the age range from 26 – 59. If your hubby wants to carry his own pack then all I can say is that he should not overate his fitness level and be realistic about it. The best way to see if he is ready is for him to load up his pack with everything he would be taking on the track and go for a walk for 5 – 7 hours preferably up and down some mountains…not hills.
His pack at the lightest will come in at 10 – 12 Kg. This is without food 1.8Kg and water, if you have 2 litres then 2 kilos so you are really not going get away with less than 14Kg. Nick had been training with 15Kg and still found it tough going at times. The condition of the track makes a HUGE difference. It has been raining pretty much all year in 'PNG' the track is very muddy in sections, this is totally different to a dry walk and some of the terrain is STEEP and muddy. As we were going up and over Mt. Bellamy Nick and I looked at each other and he said "This isn't trekking it's bloody climbing" At the end of the day the fitter you are the easier it will be for you whether you are carrying your pack or not.
I myself am 35 and am pretty fit and regularly with mates walk on a weekend morning 10 – 15 Km up to 1000 feet and down through creek beds/beaches and back we all live an Hamilton Island and used our walking tracks some of which are grade 5 in difficulty. We do this in under 3 hours carrying 8Kg (when we were in training for Kokoda) then go to the gym. We did not entertain the idea of carrying our own pack on advice from one of our members who did it last year as well. The track was dry at that time.
If your hubby really wants to carry his pack then good on him, but I hope he has trained hard and is quite fit if not then the walk will be not enjoyable for him but arduous. See attached pictures taken in the last 2 weeks. When is your Trek? How long have you got to prepare?Picture one. yes this is the track.
Picture two. This too.
Picture three. Just about the halfway point you can see Kagi you have to walk to the main village in the centre and then over the next ranges.Be sensible is all I can say and make sure that his fitness level is adequate.
Regards
X-Man
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Pic_3___resized.jpgFantastic Pics!
He is not as fit as he thinks he is. He also smokes, so this lessens his fitness considerably. Hoping to get him to give up before we go. Looking at going in 12 – 18 months.
I used to do Cadets (army) when I was younger and absolutely loved our treks & Bivs – which is what sparked me to do Kokoda – my respect and awe for our Defence Force and past Diggers.
I carried about a 12 kilo pack back then over a 4hr hike through an obstacle course and I think this is an incredible feat for me to do as I am only 4ft 8" (145cm). I haven't grown since then. It did look quite amusing with a pint sized thing carrying a pack that I could fit inside!
I understand Kokoda is heavy going and a lot more than 4 hrs, but I can definetly appreciate good boots lol – being so small, my GP's had to be ordered in (child's size 2) and I only got issued with one set – through mud & rough terrain wearing only one set of GP's, I ended up with foot-rot and spent a week in with the medic with very painful feet.
I do gymnastics twice a week for Special Olympics, martial arts (Jujitsu) twice a week, spend 4 hrs at the gym every second day and rollerblade. Some say I'm fit. I don't think I'm as fit as what people perceive me to be though…
I'm hoping to instill the importance of fitness into hubby well before we go…
You definitely sound a lot fitter than your hubby! Hopefully he'll see reason before going. Are you also hiring a porter/going to share the porter? Or going to carry your own pack? Maybe he doesn't want to be the only one with a porter if you're going to carry yours yourself.
Also, I can definitely imagine you carrying something that you could fit inside.
Although I'm surprised to say that I'm taller than someone for a change (153cm/5 foot exactly), I got teased a lot for my height. The occasional flabberghasted stare I'd get from carrying something larger than me is almost worth it though. 
Even if you think you are fit enough not to use a personal porter, use one. Do not rob yourself of the experience of having one of these wonderful guys help you across the track. You get to learn so much more about the country and its people if you have a porter with you all the way. I had a shocking second day and would not have made it if it was not for my porter Brendan the 17 hour man. My partner hurt his knee on the first day and the porters where great in keeping his spirits up and helping him when needed.
My advice it to pack as if you are carrying the pack, but let yourself enjoy the track and use a porter.
On our trek in April there was only one person in our group of 22 that did not have a porter. The one person in our group was a young fit 19 year old guy carried his own and did very well. Having said that there were times when like all of us he did it hard.
Part of the trek is to have a porter who not only carries your pack but shares the walk and who looks after you alyways alert at either the front or the back to point out a safer way down or simply put a steadying hand on your shoulder to stop you from slipping or falling.
Do not overestimate your fitness and if the person is a smoker then other health problems are likely to be present as well. Add to that a pack that is between 12 to 15 kg , you are then putting an enormous strain on your body.
Tell your husband to get fair dinkum and to drop " the older I get the better I was and always will be". Get him to have a rethink about using a porter and also about continuing to smoke.
But in the end, he has to realise he is a big boy and he has to make his own decisions as well as living with them. If he comes a "gutser" then thats his problem not yours.Thanks all for your comments. Almost a year on and hubby has not only relented to hiring a porter but has also quit smoking for the last 4 months!!! Yay!! What a win!
He has also agreed to be enrolled in our local gym for a program suitable for training for Kokoda.He was actually quite surprised that I kept pace with him when we went for a light 12km bushwalk (he is 6ft 2") so I am usually somewhat power-walking just to keep up with his long strides
We are booked in for 19 – 28 October 2009.
Have bought major stuff for the trek except for packs, shoes and little stuff (like first aid kit, torch, batteries, toiletries etc – which we will not purchase until 3 months before leaving due to expiry dates on medication, creams etc). Our packs will be the next thing we will purchase.
I will be taking considerable care as I have exercise-induced asthma. And while this does not usually play up unless it is very cold or I am running, I will not be taking any chances with my preparation. So…lots of steps, lots of cardio work and possibly some headache tablets to cope with it all!
Make sure you have a comprehensive check up with your GP before you trek especially in regard to your asthma. With a good management plan combining proper use of preventers as well as agonists such as salbutamol( ventolin) in measured dose inhalers with or without spacers you should be ok.Given that your asthma is initiated by diverse non immune mechanisms,some of which you may encounter whilst trekking a thorough plan is essential.
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