Who is doing or has done the Grand Traverse

Viking wrote: Is AndrewP giving you a 10 day headstart?
You carrying 13 days supplies from the get-go?

I think he will be doing an abnormally high amount of sightseeing

Indeed we are carrying all our supplies from day 1. Its mid summer, so our packs will be about 1kg lighter due to not needing down jackets etc. We are discussing shortening the first few days to compensate for extra weight. Also the reason I want to do at least 3 hikes before the GT (not that I need an excuse).

I am preparing for my first DGT with a start date between 28th Dec 2014 and 4th Jan 2014

It will be trailrun attempt and best case 4 days but I will pack food for 6 days. Escape routes will be important if I have bitten off more than I can chew.

I am busy finalizing my check list but the two big purchases I am looking at now are

Sat phone Isatphone pro . I have been informed it performs well in Drakensberg. Anyone have any experience good,bad or indifferent?

Osprey Talon 44. I have no experience with this backpack. I cant see any mention to people using it to run in some I am not sure if it is suitable or not. I like the 44l but maybe there are better options for running the DGT

Any advice would be welcome

cheers Andrew

4-6 days for a first GT - that is, um, brave

Myself and AndrewP might bump into you along the way. We should finish on 5 Jan, so if you finish on 4 Jan we will probably miss you (we are finishing via Tarn Cave - a longer variation).

cheers ghaznavid I'll keep a close tabs on your trip with AndrewP

I am very flexible on the dates.

Regarding the Osprey Talon 44: obviously you need the space if you're going to be out there for 4-6 days, but I'm not sure how feasible it will be to actually run with that size pack. I have the Talon 22 which I find I can run with quite easily. It is a fantastic pack, but space would be a concern for an extended trip.
Hope this helps.

I found a 30l pack to be spot on for a 4-day traverse, as long as you leave things like stove and pots behind. Minimalist is the way to go as you will know.

And for that target, I would keep the running to a minimum too. Just the odd shuffle here and there to work different muscles and keep things interesting. Kind of like the post-Wall Skyrun shuffle

I am leaning more somewhere in 30l range, the talon 44 looks like a great backpack but just worries me that I can not find any reference to running in it

Running wise I have perfected my shuffle this year

Stijn wrote: Kind of like the post-Wall Skyrun shuffle

haha. You referring to Balloch?

Yes indeed! Hero to zero in just a few km..