Eight days had gone by since our last resupply point. We were out of food and in serious need of the mail drop that was waiting for us in a post office just over 20 miles further along the trail. To up the ante, it was Friday and when the post office closed at 4:15 p.m., it wouldn't open again until the following Monday.

At dawn, we took off like runners at the starter's pistol, quickly eating breakfast, breaking camp, and hitting the trail. A short stop for lunch was the only respite as we steadily marched on toward our Holy Grail-the maildrop. We cruised into the little town with 45 minutes to spare.

An hour later, as we munched on goodies and perused our mail, we saw another hiker arrive. He was too late. The postmaster had slipped out right on time. The hiker had to wait until Monday.

If your hike will last longer than 8-10 days, you will have to resupply along the trail. The two most popular methods of resupply are to buy the things you need in towns near the trail you are hiking or to send yourself maildrops. Most hikers opt for a combination of these two methods. Sending yourself most everything you need ensures that the supplies essential to your hike will be there when you need them. Purchasing some things along the way, allows for flexibility. For example, you can't send white gas, used by many backpacking stoves, through the mail. Buying the fuel as you go may allow you to pack your favorite stove.

If you intend to mail your supplies ahead, there are four steps involved in preparing the maildrops.

Planning Your Maildrops
Maildrops should be spaced 5 to 7 days apart or about every 75 to 100 miles. Guidebooks, web sites and other hikers are all good sources of information to use in selecting the location of mail drops. The package will typically be sent general delivery to a post office, but some businesses near trails will accept and hold mail for hikers. These other businesses usually have more flexible hours than a small town post office and make for good resupply points. Other factors to consider when selecting locations to send maildrops are the distance from the trail and the array of other services, such as a Laundromat, that are available in the area.

After selecting each resupply point, create a packing list for each box. Items you may want to send in the maildrop include: food, contact lens solution and/or additional disposable lenses, soap, batteries, film, stationary, stamps, travelers checks, socks, other clothing or gear not needed earlier in the hike (sending yourself an ice ax when you need it for example).

Food will go into each maildrop, while most other items will not need resupplying on a weekly basis. Depending on how many battery-powered gizmos you carry or how much film you shoot, you might need extra batteries or additional rolls of film in each drop. Resupply for items such as traveler's checks, soap and contact lens solution is needed less frequently. If the maildrop weighs more than 15 to 20 pounds, you may want to send maildrops more frequently to reduce pack weight.

Packaging Drop Supplies
Break open the packages food comes in and repackage the food for the trail. Combining, for example, the noodles and flavor packet from a dinner in one resealable plastic bag minimizes bulk in your pack as well as garbage to dispose of during the hike. Add appropriate amounts of dried milk, pepper or other spices to the bag as well as directions for preparation if needed before sealing. Double bag meals containing powder, which is prone to leaking. Use an indelible marker to write the name of the meal and the maildrop number on the outside of the bag.

Packing
Using the checklist created for each drop in step one, pack each of the maildrop boxes. If you are going on a hike with more than two maildrops, you won't want to seal all the boxes just yet. Seal and send only the first two packages. Solicit someone back home to send the other drops later. Leave the other packages open. That way if you need to change the contents of the drop, you can call the person handling the maildrops and ask them to swap out some of the contents of the later packages.

Labeling and Sending
Call to confirm with a business that it is still receiving packages before shipping your maildrop. Label the package as requested by the recipient.

For maildrops to a post office send it to:

Your name
General Delivery
Town, State Zip Code
Hold for trail hiker

General delivery mail may be sent back to the addressee before you arrive unless you mark to hold the package for a hiker. Post offices near long distance trails are usually accustomed to retaining hiker packages for longer than is otherwise customary. To ensure the maildrop is waiting on you when you arrive, the packages should be sent at least 10 working days before you will reach the resupply point. Always account for holidays when preparing your schedule. They will effect how long it takes your package to arrive as well as whether you can pick it up on a given day.

With proper planning, you can ship yourself the food and other supplies you need to simplify your resupply on the trail. Set your hike up right and you'll never find yourself looking at a closed sign in front of a post office on a Friday afternoon.

Timeline:

3 months before the hike:

• Begin dehydrating food if you plan to
• Plan where and when to send the packages

1 month before the hike:

• Create a contents list for each box

1 week before the hike:

• Pack the boxes

1 day before the hike:

• Send first box (or all boxes if you are sending them all)