Tried stretching out my shins and took 2 ibuprofin before getting out of my sleeping bag this morning. As I headed down the trail working on my power breakfast of a Lucky Charms & Honey Nut Cheerios, I could tell the shin situation was only getting worse. I hobbled along slowly with Dwight patiently behind or in front. It's no fun dinking along at a slow pace when you feel great, but Dwight has been a real sport about it. Over the past few days we've taken several breaks and he's massaged the lower part of my legs--concentrating on the calves as Anneki (Heidi's sister) suggested. Anneki played college basketball so I figured she knew what she was talking about. Massage doesn't seem to relieve much pain, but it feels good while in progress.
We ran into Hell on Wheels (Helen) and Stormin' Norman mid morning when they were taking a break. They slept at the water cache (Cache 22) last night and Norman said he woke up with a dead mouse under his sleeping bag. First I've ever heard of that happening. Since both Norman and Helen have battled shin splints, they gave me some tips for how to deal with mine: 1) take ibuprofin (check) 2) take small steps downhill (helped Helen, but didn't help Norman 3) get Super Feet inserts for shoes (helped them both) 4) wrap shin in ace bandage (helped Helen but Norman said it made it more painful. Mine already has the sensation of wearing boots that are too tight around the ankle, so I think I'll skip that.) 5) Massage (check) 6) taking a day off 7) shorter hiking days and 8) Once it starts getting better, taking breaks as soon as the pain starts to return.
It was nice hiking today; not too hot, mostly level trail through oaks and pines. The trail was still a bit wet from the previous days' rain and it really helped keep the dust down. For the past 2 days we had our first reprieve from "the pigpen effect"--no dust cloud following us down the trail. Had it not been for the shin situation it would have been an enjoyable day.
After 14+ miles of hiking, at highway 299 we started to hitch into Burney--what some described as the hardest hitch on the trail. But a woman turning onto 299 from a nearby crossroad spotted us--and give us a quick ride in. She even gave me an ice pack for my shins in spite of me trying to tell her it wasn't necessary.
We checked into a local motel--the Green Gables--where the manager gave us an on-the-fly hiker discount. We were able to do a lot of our food resupply at the nearby Rite Aid and ate dinner right across the street at the recommended Outpost Restaurant where they had a filling prime rib special.
Just before dinner we called my sister-in-law Sharyn--a physical therapist--for advise on the shins. She suggested RICE (rest, ice, compression and elevation) as well as stretching. She thought the change in shoes may have been the cause since I described the arch as more pronouced than the running shoes I'd been using which have nuetral arch support. I had been icing and elevating since we'd arrived in Burney--so I also did the stretching Sharyn described before heading off to dinner.
Tomorrow we'll take a zero here. I know the recovery won't be immediate, but maybe I'll get lucky and will push through it in a week to 10 days. It sure makes me more sympathetic toward other hikers with the problem and also wonder how folks live with constant pain.
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