On my first attempt hiking the John Muir Trail, I got as far as Mammoth Lakes, California and was sore, tired, lonely and ready to come home. It was a humbling experience, but since I was using seven year old gear, I blamed the failure on my equipment and decided to upgrade for next year. I bought another backpacking “how to” book, all new gear, and got ready for another try. On my second attempt, I had new and improved gear, but didn’t get any further before quitting again. I bought another “how to” book and continued looking for the secret to success. After failing twice, I decided to adjust my goal and hike half of the trail in eight to ten days. I started at Florence Lake going south and encountered lots of snow as I neared Muir Pass. I didn’t have any experience hiking in snow, and again decided to bail. I turned around, hiked back to Florence lake and hitchhiked back home to Fresno. At this point I was discouraged and thought about quitting...