Zero Days. Barbara Egbert
“Although Egbert makes it clear that nobody but a long-distance hiker can truly understand what it’s like to tackle a thru-hike, her book provides an overarching picture of a hike that comes as close to conveying understanding as any second-hand account can. Her 10-year-old daughter Scrambler’s enthusiasm for the trail is apparent and contagious. That Scrambler is the youngest person on record as having completed the PCT is an extraordinary feat in itself, but what is truly inspirational about ‘the Blighs’ is their ability to take on this adventure as a family, and stay together through sun and snow, blisters and mosquitoes, and even too much togetherness. This is a great read for anyone who has ever thought of hiking the PCT, or of introducing a child to backpacking.”
—Liz Bergeron,
Executive Director,
Pacific Crest Trail Association
“Zero Days is a fascinating account of the thrills and challenges of long-distance hiking, but the true joy of the book comes from watching a family grow closer to each other while spending six months together on the trail. Ten-year-old Scrambler’s ceaseless optimism is especially inspiring to parents like myself who dream of long backpacking trips with their children.”
—Tim Hauserman,
author,Monsters in the Woods:
Backpacking with Children
“This is the story of an epic adventure by uncommon and wonderful people. It is a peek into the world of long-distance hiking along the Pacific Crest Trail. It inspires, educates, and entertains. For families or individuals who aspire to attempt such a hike, it provides a reality check and many insights.”
—Donna Saufley,
owner of the PCT hostel Hiker Heaven
Zero Days: The Real-Life Adventure of Captain Bligh, Nellie Bly, and 10-Year-Old Scrambler on the Pacific Crest Trail
1st EDITION January 2008
Copyright © 2008 by Barbara Egbert
Front and back cover photos copyright © 2008 by Barbara Egbert and Gary Chambers
Interior photos by Barbara Egbert and Gary Chambers. Some of the photos in this book originally appeared in the San Jose Mercury News.
Illustrations and journal entries copyright © 2008 Mary Chambers
Book, cover, and map design: Larry B. Van Dyke
Book editor: Eva Dienel
ISBN: 978-0-89997-458-3 (cloth)
UPC: 7-19609-97458-1 (cloth)
ISBN: 978-0-89997-438-5 (paper)
UPC: 7-19609-97438-3 (paper)
Manufactured in the United States of America
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Cover photos: Scrambler on the PCT in southern California (front, main photo); Captain Bligh, Scrambler, and Nellie Bly on top of Mt. Whitney (front, inset); Scrambler celebrates her successful PCT thru-hike at the U.S.-Canada border (back, main photo); View from Packwood Glacier in southern Washington state (back, banner photo)
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any means electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher, except for brief quotations used in reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Egbert, Barbara, 1951-
Zero days: the real-life adventure of Captain Bligh, Nellie Bly, and 10-year-old Scrambler on the Pacific Crest Trail / by Barbara Egbert. — 1st ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-89997-458-3 (hardcover) — ISBN 978-0-89997-438-5 (pbk.)
1. Backpacking--Pacific Crest Trail. 2. Egbert, Barbara, 1951—Travel—Pacific Crest Trail. 3. Pacific Crest Trail—Description and travel. I. Title.
GV199.44.U82P333 2008
917.94’9—dc22
[B]
2007036438
FOR SCRAMBLER AND CAPTAIN BLIGH
ZERO DAYS is the story of my family’s backpacking trip along the Pacific Crest Trail. My family—my husband, Gary, our 10-year-old daughter, Mary, and I—started hiking the trail on April 8, 2004, and finished on October 25, 2004. I named my book Zero Days after the phrase long-distance backpackers use to describe a short break from hiking. It’s a “zero day” because a backpacker racks up zero mileage on the trail itself that day. For weary, footsore, and half-starved backpackers, a Zero Day is a Very Big Deal.
NOTE ABOUT JOURNAL ENTRIES: Throughout our PCT trek, Mary kept a daily journal with illustrations and thoughts about our journey. Several of her illustrations and journal entries are included in this book.
TRAIL SONG
(Sung to the melody of “Git Along, Little Dogies”)
One morning as I was out driving for pleasure,
I saw a thru-hiker come walking along.
I pulled my car over and opened my window,
And as she drew closer I sang her this song:
Chorus:
Yippee ti yi yo, get along little hiker,
It’s your misfortune and none of my own.
Yippee ti yi yo, get along little hiker,
For onward to Canada is where you must roam.
It all started out way back down south in Campo,
Where the cactus grow and the yucca bloom.
She wanted to fatten on ice cream and pizza,
Yet before Jeff and Donna’s, she was just skin and bones.
Chorus
At Kennedy Meadows she climbed the Sierra,
With lightning and thunder and mountains that loom.
She finally got to Vermilion Valley,
Where she could get burgers and a motel room.
Chorus
Into Yosemite her PCT took her,
Where the streams and rivers are deep, cold, and wide.
She fooled the bears and the backcountry rangers,
But from the mosquitoes there was no place to hide.
Chorus
She sweated and swore through Section O’s bushes
In the miserable heat of the Hat Creek Rim.
Then Oregon came with cold nights and downpours,
And she thought she would never have dry feet again.
Chorus