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Cheesemaster200 posted:Likewise, any hike with scree or lots of loose pebbles make trail runners a liability.  Pebbles, cobbles, scree, talus, boulders, roots, snow, mud, rain, ice... excitement.Boots delaminate.  If you clean and watch your shoes and boots you can usually see it before it becomes a major problem. Hooks, eyes, sewing all come loose, particularly if you're rubbing up against rock. Also remember your spare laces!Verman posted:If you get to camp and the weather is nice and sunny, wash your dirty socks and let them dry so that you have clean socks for the whole trip instead of having to bring a clean pair for every day. Don't underestimate the power of goretex, event, and others. I wear leather gloves while hiking. Always. They collect a ton of sweat. When it drops below 40F, you have to stuff them inside a tauntaun when you take a food break; if you don't, you get spot frostbite because you can't warm them back up fast enough with all the heat capacity in the glove+sweat. I picked up a pair of large event noninsulated mittens/shells, and I put them on when my gloves have gotten wet and the temperature starts to drop. I can give no other description except that it sucks the water out, more efficiently than in good evaporative wind. Now I'm good down to 20--25F before I need snow gloves. In boots, water tends to enter at the top. I wore Asolo Fugitive (goretex) for at least 2x750mi and those things were absolute scoops. I'd have a cup of pine needles at the end of a hike. Snow? Yeap there would be ice all around the inside top of the boot. I'd sometimes stop and scoop out the snow before it melted. I've even gone through shrubs, ferns, completely soaked my socks, and only then noticed my feet getting wet. Rarely do I see pruned toes or feet. My outer sock will doubtless be damp, but the inner thin sock means my feet rarely feel wet. My new boots are the biggest clunkiest, definitely not light hikers, a bunch of hard leather (mountaineering, but not plastic things). Other than some heel rubbing, they were broken in immediately. Definitely wear your boots on a few practice hikes, but most aren't going to need 100mi to break in anymore.
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Jun 4, 2020 06:50
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At this point it's understandable that trail runners are widely recommended -- they've gotten really good and versatile -- but it's serious YMMV territory. I love my trail runners for light hiking, but if I used them for a multi-night trip over challenging terrain, my ankles would be in agony. I'm not wearing mountaineering boots or anything but I'm quite partial to my Vasque hiking boots. also: God dammit I miss hiking! In the Portland area I can forget about weekend hikes unless I want to run into a ton of people or go for a long drive, both of which seem a bit irresponsible. Maybe I'll break down and go anyway on Sunday. Vivian Darkbloom fucked around with this message at 08:21 on Jun 4, 2020 |
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Jun 4, 2020 08:18
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I took a few days off of work since they told me my PTO was maxed out at a month and not accruing any longer. I'm super slow right now anyway so a perfect time to get out. Spent one of the days hiking a peak/ridgeline that I've wanted to do for a long time. I've been feeling pretty out of shape and didn't get out as much this winter as I thought I would so I needed the hike. I wore my mountaineering boots and left my gaitors in the car by mistake. The hike was awesome and views better than I thought they would be.   
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Jun 4, 2020 08:46
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I think a lot of the trailrunner recommendations, like a lot of things hiking related now, comes from long distance through hikers and people out west. I like my trail runners, but here in the midwest my La Sportiva wildcats will not dry out completely on a hot humid midwest day. When I hiked Zion West to East in its entirety they were awesome though!
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Jun 4, 2020 13:55
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PhantomOfTheCopier posted:Basically all my hikes. Don't forget a bit of duct tape too! Seriously, new folks should check out backpackers hear repair and maintenance book. Not the most comprehensive, but good for thinking how gear might fail. And, I always just wear boots around my house for a few days to get them broken in  .
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Jun 4, 2020 15:22
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Let us see why I wear boots... I realize that branding isn't as rugged as other materials, and there aren't any obvious marks on the toes, etc., but after 160mi miles and 17000m of ascent 
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Jun 8, 2020 22:32
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Since we're still on footwear chat: I wear trail runners with gaiters to keep rocks/sand out pretty much all Spring/Summer/Fall with microspikes when necessary. I've enjoyed the Altra Lone Peaks and the Altra Timps so far. I wear a size 14 and have wide feet. For most of my easy class 3/4 Winter/mountaineering, I have some B1 boots (a little bit of flex) to pair with my strap-on crampons (with flex bars installed so they don't pop off). Lowa Renegade GTX Mid hiking boots are my choice since they come in wide models. Almost no break-in period on these either. For anything more difficult or sustained class 4/5, rigid B2/B3 boots with crampons. La Sportiva Nepal Cube GTX. khysanth fucked around with this message at 21:30 on Jun 9, 2020 |
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Jun 9, 2020 21:26
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I have a Kuhl Spyfire hoodie that’s my go-to for hiking when it’s cold or grey out. It has a DWR coating that has kept me dry in short downpours but tomorrow I’m planning a day hike where there may be steady rain for a couple hours straight. Is DWR ok in constant, not torrential rain? I do test the coating to make sure it still beads and shakes off in the shower. My secondary plan is to stop by REI on the way and pick up a Rainier jacket.
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Jun 16, 2020 02:11
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Rolo posted:I have a Kuhl Spyfire hoodie that’s my go-to for hiking when it’s cold or grey out. It has a DWR coating that has kept me dry in short downpours but tomorrow I’m planning a day hike where there may be steady rain for a couple hours straight. Is DWR ok in constant, not torrential rain? I do test the coating to make sure it still beads and shakes off in the shower. I can tell you from experience that DWR doesn’t really hold up after a few hours of constant rain, especially if there is wind. A ranier jacket (or marmot precip or whatever) will do exactly what you need it to and more, and will keep doing it for years of use without having to worry about it. Well worth the money, and you won’t have to spend $$$ on DWR any more.
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Jun 16, 2020 05:18
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Sounds good, I think I’ll go pick one up today. I’ve needed a dedicated rain shell for awhile now anyways, definitely by the time I do longer backpacking trips this fall.
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Jun 16, 2020 14:30
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I got out hiking this weekend: climbed Bierstadt, the Sawtooth, and Evans. Pretty nice day out. Bierstadt was jam packed as expected. Didn't see anyone while doing the sawtooth but saw a few people who had done it on the way back from Evans. The road's closed up Evans so it was much more sedate there than usual.  Looking back along the Sawtooth to Bierstadt  More Sawtooth  Across the vallley towards Guanella pass from the deproach gully  Summit lake from the top of Evans
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Jun 16, 2020 15:30
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Anachronist posted:I got out hiking this weekend: climbed Bierstadt, the Sawtooth, and Evans. Pretty nice day out. Bierstadt was jam packed as expected. Didn't see anyone while doing the sawtooth but saw a few people who had done it on the way back from Evans. The road's closed up Evans so it was much more sedate there than usual. I set out to do that a few years ago when I was out there, but after crossing the sawtooth I saw storms rolling in so I bailed. Made it back to the car just as the skies opened up. Still a good time
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Jun 16, 2020 15:48
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Good stuff. I’ve done Evans from Guanella pass via the gully to the north. I imagine the experience is far better with no summit traffic.
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Jun 16, 2020 16:44
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Dangerllama posted:Good stuff. I’ve done Evans from Guanella pass via the gully to the north. I imagine the experience is far better with no summit traffic. I've never done Evans before so hard to compare, but it was pretty darn empty. Two hikers, a guy who ran up the road, and I were sharing the summit. Saw two cyclists who didn't climb the last little bit and maybe a dozen people on the ridge while coming and going.
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Jun 16, 2020 19:21
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Levitate posted:What? Actually my point was that sometimes on the Internet people laud thru-hikers as some kind of ur-hiker, when in my anecdotal experience that's only half true. The other half are college kids who get hosed up on the trail, are loud as poo poo, trash my favorite camping spots and are generally dumb as hell (this is in NH), so using them as a metric why trail runners are objectively better holds no water for me personally. Boots work for me in the context of the rough terrain I hike regularly. I don't care either way what someone wears, if trail runners work for you then great. But gj putting words in my mouth and refuting a bunch of points I never made, not sure if you glossed over the "I'm not disagreeing with this post" part.
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Jun 16, 2020 19:55
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Anachronist posted:I got out hiking this weekend: climbed Bierstadt, the Sawtooth, and Evans. Pretty nice day out. Bierstadt was jam packed as expected. Didn't see anyone while doing the sawtooth but saw a few people who had done it on the way back from Evans. The road's closed up Evans so it was much more sedate there than usual. Hold on you did multiple 14ers? Gah.
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Jun 17, 2020 02:33
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ShaneB posted:Hold on you did multiple 14ers? Gah. Yeah it was a big day. 11.4 miles / 6 hours. Slept pretty hard that night.
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Jun 17, 2020 03:33
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Anachronist posted:Yeah it was a big day. 11.4 miles / 6 hours. Slept pretty hard that night. How did you find the exposure on the ledge? The photos from 14ers.com make it look pretty sketchy, and you’re pretty much committed at that point. ShaneB posted:Hold on you did multiple 14ers? Gah. There are a number of 14ers that are often done as a set, such as Shavano and Tabeguache; Grays and Torreys; Belford and Oxford; Harvard and Columbia; Little Bear to Blanca; Democrat, Lincoln, Cameron*, and Bross. Bierstadt-sawtooth-Evans is one of the more iconic routes in the front range. And a big day indeed.
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Jun 17, 2020 04:05
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Dangerllama posted:How did you find the exposure on the ledge? The photos from 14ers.com make it look pretty sketchy, and you’re pretty much committed at that point. My wife and I tried Bier last year and gave up 2/3 through. It was freezing and tiring (AND PACKED). And we're not exactly couch potatoes... I was pretty turned off 14ers. I've heard just do tons of beautiful empty 13ers instead?
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Jun 17, 2020 05:00
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ShaneB posted:My wife and I tried Bier last year and gave up 2/3 through. It was freezing and tiring (AND PACKED). And we're not exactly couch potatoes... I was pretty turned off 14ers. I've heard just do tons of beautiful empty 13ers instead? This is the way. Belford was fun because we hit it at the perfect time (below), but all the others I've done were just packed with people to the point where it got frustrating, even starting as early as 4am. poo poo, when I did elbert it was on wednesday starting at 4am and I was sharing the summit with a ton of people.  To contrast it, I hit Grizzly Peak off the loveland pass (one of my favorites and deceptively tough) at like 11am on a saturday in June, I ran into one other person. Caught a storm on the way back but it was absolutely gorgeous. 
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Jun 17, 2020 05:38
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Elbert, Bierstadt, Grays, Torreys, Evans, Quandary, and Longs are super popular and are never not packed. If you want to get a 14er but not do the conga, you can also try an alternate route. It usually adds mileage or difficulty, but is often worth it* if you just want to get away from other humans.
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Jun 17, 2020 05:54
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Dangerllama posted:How did you find the exposure on the ledge? The photos from 14ers.com make it look pretty sketchy, and you’re pretty much committed at that point. The exposure on the ledge was significant but there’s no hard moves there. Just lots of loose gravel and some slight route finding challenges. I guess I’d be pretty unhappy doing it in the wet or with snow though. The worst part for me was the snowfield on the face of Bierstadt towards the sawtooth. Steep, pretty firm while I was crossing, and a gross runout.
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Jun 17, 2020 06:23
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Anachronist posted:The exposure on the ledge was significant but there’s no hard moves there. Just lots of loose gravel and some slight route finding challenges. I guess I’d be pretty unhappy doing it in the wet or with snow though. Yeah the worst part of the sawtooth is still pretty easily navigable, provided you're okay with exposure (it's very exposed). There's loose crap all over the place but you can largely avoid it. When I did it there was no snowpack remaining between the peak of Bierstadt and the sawtooth. It was just a really chossy, short descent. If that were all snowpack still it wouldn't be great, depending on your footwear.
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Jun 17, 2020 13:44
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Didn’t get any decent scenery today with the weather and all but I did get some plant and critter pics!        And my favorite! A giant stag beetle. First time finding one of these. 
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Jun 17, 2020 22:24
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It snowed hard in the Bear River range the last couple nights. This was the scene at 8600 feet I'm hoping things aren't bad in the Uintas. I was gonna do a bunch of the 13000 foot mountains. But 30+ miles roundtrip for some of them is gonna make for some rough days
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Jun 19, 2020 04:24
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Gonna do a couple of nights in the Hoover Wilderness in a week and realize it'll be the first time I've actually backpacked totally solo. Gonna be interesting. I think I'll like it but you never know. Just hope I don't get swept away in a creek...
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Jun 19, 2020 04:46
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Some friends and I have back country permits for the Teton Crest Trail last week in July and I've been praying the country can hold it together long enough that we can get out there and back.
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Jun 25, 2020 01:17
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Levitate posted:Gonna do a couple of nights in the Hoover Wilderness in a week and realize it'll be the first time I've actually backpacked totally solo. Gonna be interesting. I think I'll like it but you never know. Just hope I don't get swept away in a creek... its the absolute best thing in the world
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Jun 25, 2020 18:06
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Being solo at night makes you feel really drat small though. Familiarity with the area helps but even with that the first few times are spooky. Aim for a full moon and clear skies at first. 
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Jun 25, 2020 18:17
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xzzy posted:Being solo at night makes you feel really drat small though. Familiarity with the area helps but even with that the first few times are spooky. I mostly backpack solo. Everything that makes noise after 10pm is a bear.
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Jun 25, 2020 18:22
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Did 10.5 miles today in my new ExOfficio undies and wow. Totally dry, barely smell like my butt. I will treasure these.
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Jun 25, 2020 21:32
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Rolo posted:Did 10.5 miles today in my new ExOfficio undies and wow. Totally dry, barely smell like my butt.
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Jun 26, 2020 01:10
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i have plastic clothing from like 2006 I still wear. Stuff is dumb.
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Jun 26, 2020 01:18
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Don't put them in the dryer. They stay softer if you line dry. I've tried done of their "sport" versions and I don't like them at all. Their standard are perfect.
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Jun 26, 2020 04:43
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I also got a book on identifying mushrooms, something I’ve been wanting to get into for like a year now. I’m like 10 minutes into it and I’m certain I am going to die in the woods foaming at the mouth.
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Jun 26, 2020 19:09
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Rolo posted:I also got a book on identifying mushrooms, something I’ve been wanting to get into for like a year now. Which one? I got All That The Rain Promises and More and it seems like if you steer clear of the amanita family, at worst you'll eat something that makes you feel bad. I'm definitely keeping my eyes out for morels whenever I'm in the woods, because even the "false morels" look really goddamn different than real ones... seems like false morels shouldn't really have been a concern since the invention of photography. I also hope to find some puffballs, because while they're apparently a little boring I don't think there are any non-edible puffballs in the US.
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Jun 26, 2020 19:14
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I got Mushrooms of the Southeast, specifically the Timber Press guide. It’s just funny because while flipping around the very first section I looked through was the amanitas. I really want All the Rain Promises and More, if only for the cover that cracks me up.
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Jun 26, 2020 19:21
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Which ExOfficio undies did you get? REI has them on sale and I'm thinking of picking up a pair or two
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Jun 26, 2020 19:22
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I like their sport mesh personally
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Jun 26, 2020 19:29
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Rolo posted:I got Mushrooms of the Southeast, specifically the Timber Press guide. It’s just funny because while flipping around the very first section I looked through was the amanitas. I first encountered that book at a visitor center in Redwood National Park and wish I had just picked it up that day. It’s been almost a decade since I saw it and I can still vividly recall that goofy cover.
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Jun 26, 2020 19:47
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