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MistressMeeps posted:How do you manage to stay so light? I always seem to have 35+ lbs and we have pretty light gear... I am 5'3" and have relatively light gear. I invested in a light one person tent, pack, and sleeping bag (I can use the "teen" ones at REI). Then I also do try to trim as much as possible. On this hike I'll only have to carry three days of food (even though the trip is 9 days) because of cache points and there's good water everywhere. When I had to carry 5L of water in Joshua Tree my pack was 32#.
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Jul 11, 2020 05:27
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| # ? May 25, 2024 22:58 |
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ShaneB posted:How much of this is food? My 1 person stuff base weight is heckin low. ...none of it. My husband carries the food because I only have a 36L pack and the bear cannister doesn't fit. I carry the tent and some other shared gear to compensate.
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Jul 11, 2020 06:54
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testifeye posted:I am 5'3" and have relatively light gear. I invested in a light one person tent, pack, and sleeping bag (I can use the "teen" ones at REI). Then I also do try to trim as much as possible. On this hike I'll only have to carry three days of food (even though the trip is 9 days) because of cache points and there's good water everywhere. When I had to carry 5L of water in Joshua Tree my pack was 32#. Still sounds like you've done a good job.  Enjoy your trip!
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Jul 11, 2020 06:58
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xzzy posted:Originally it was a text file of gps coordinates, then I tried doing with google "My Maps." After a while the list got too big so I forced myself to learn enough of qgis to do it there. See a neat photo of a place, find it, and drop a pin. Did you ever make it to New Zealand?
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Jul 11, 2020 10:12
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Levitate posted:Hah oh yeah it's not a trail at all. We also did Junction Pass on that trip and holy hell is that thing terrible, no wonder they re-routed the JMT. Then Shephard Pass was half covered in snow as well. This was 2017 I think. Yeah Junction is awful, never again. I’m also going to second the advise on packing light. I was right under 40# on the long leg from trailhead to MTR. I had too much food, even though I was limited by the size of the bear can. I’d read about people needing 4-5,000 kcal a day at the speed we were going to go, and I could barely eat more than 3,000. I had oatmeal for breakfasts that I never had time to make, and I never really stopped for a full lunch; just snacked while walking. Make sure you pack stuff that’s at least 100 kcal/oz or 4 kcal/g. One other thing to keep in mind is where you cut weight. My cousin had one of the lightest packs. He brought an ultralight tent that used a trekking pole as it’s only pole. He also decided to bring only one trekking pole. 3 days in he fell and snapped that trekking pole in half. He was fortunate that someone was there to lend him their second.
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Jul 11, 2020 14:56
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Piss Meridian posted:Did you ever make it to New Zealand? Not been yet! It seems like a pretty incredible place for hiking. And pictures.
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Jul 11, 2020 17:10
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How do you backpacking types deal with water? It seems impossible to haul with you, so I assume local sources (mostly surface water?) with a healthy dose of purification tablets or something?
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Jul 11, 2020 20:13
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Yes, it's like a lava lamp.
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PittTheElder posted:How do you backpacking types deal with water? It seems impossible to haul with you, so I assume local sources (mostly surface water?) with a healthy dose of purification tablets or something? Typically you plan ahead so you know where water sources will be, and you carry a filter and/or tablets, or you boil water (but then you are carrying extra fuel). In the winter you melt snow.
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Jul 11, 2020 20:17
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I'm guessing I'm like most of you and completely forgot we had a Take a Hike! subforum buried under DIY. Anyway there's a discussion to move the forum or just the more active threads.
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Jul 11, 2020 23:16
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lmao i had no idea that was there. move there or move here? cuz like five threads down in that forum and the latest posts are from 2017
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Jul 12, 2020 00:01
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Seems like a hiking/backpacking thread should live under YLLS edit: That is, move “Take a Hike!” under YLLS, and move this thread into it. Also why are there, like, eight fishing threads strewn across the forum? Oh, and gear I can’t live without: My LL Bean field watch that just died after a decade. I’m currently searching for a solid replacement watch because I’m a person who believes that one should carry a proper timepiece in the backcountry. waffle enthusiast fucked around with this message at 00:29 on Jul 12, 2020 |
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Jul 12, 2020 00:25
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wuffles posted:Yeah Junction is awful, never again. To further expand on this...stuff like clothes, I take 1 pair that I wear hiking (shirt, pants/shorts), 2 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of underwear, some real lightweight long underwear for sleeping in or if I need more warmth, a head covering, lightweight down jacket, gloves, and some wind pants that weigh like 2 oz or something stupid to change into at camp when I wash my hiking pants. And that's still more than a lot of people would wear but it's basically not carrying anything I'm not going to use and not weighing myself down with a second outfit. Simplifying cooking stuff, no extra devices or utensils for a meal I'd do once, etc. Basically trying not to pack anything that I'm not going to use (with the exception of like a rain jacket because you might not use it but you never know when a thunderstorm might roll through)
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Jul 12, 2020 05:07
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I just use a cheap Casio digital watch. I know what my pace feels like at 2mph and 3mph, so I just use that to ballpark how far I’ve gone or how far I still need to go to get to a landmark. Keeps me from looking at the phone/gps as often. Also on the water thing: I used to pump water and it was incredibly tedious and time consuming. Putting a sawyer filter in line on my 2L camelbak and just filling that up at the water source was a game changer for me—I mean, it’s so simple I feel kinda dumb not doing it earlier. I bring an empty disposable 1L water bottle for mixing in electrolytes—just add the powder and squeeze the water through the filter into the bottle. Top off the camelbak real quick and keep going.
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Jul 12, 2020 05:16
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I bring a Vecto bag, screw the Sawyer on to that and then hook it inline to the bladder. I like how easy the Vecto is to fill up and prefer to keep the bladder as a clean source.
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Jul 12, 2020 05:23
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I have one of those platypus gravity filters and I have no idea how I lived without it. So fast, and so effortless. If it’s far (like all day) to the next water spot I’ll fill my 2L bottle with the filter and then store another 2L in the dirty bag ready to filter when I run out.
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Jul 12, 2020 06:03
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FCKGW posted:I bring a Vecto bag, screw the Sawyer on to that and then hook it inline to the bladder. I like how easy the Vecto is to fill up and prefer to keep the bladder as a clean source. I keep meaning to get a vecto bag for my sawyer. You've been happy with yours I take it?
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Jul 12, 2020 13:55
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armorer posted:I keep meaning to get a vecto bag for my sawyer. You've been happy with yours I take it? Yes. I had the first version and got tree sap all over it on my first use so I upgraded to the second revision. They made the opening easier to use one-handed and added attachments to the cap and slider so they don't get lost. It's also super durable so if for whatever reason my bladder springs a leak I have a spare. No brainer for me at only $20 I also bought one of these disconnect adapters for my bladder: https://sawyersafetravel.com/sp115 I screw the Sawyer onto the Vecto, connect it to the bladder tube and hang it up in a tree to gravity feed while I set up camp. Don't even need to take the bladder out of the pack. FCKGW fucked around with this message at 15:11 on Jul 12, 2020 |
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Jul 12, 2020 15:07
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FCKGW posted:Yes. I had the first version and got tree sap all over it on my first use so I upgraded to the second revision. They made the opening easier to use one-handed and added attachments to the cap and slider so they don't get lost. It's also super durable so if for whatever reason my bladder springs a leak I have a spare. No brainer for me at only $20 Oh nice, I didn't know that quick disconnect existed!
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Jul 12, 2020 17:33
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I made the mistake of trying to spend two nights at a State Park Campground in a tent. Spent most of the time exploring and day hiking which was great, saw the comet over Lake Superior too. But man, being surrounded by aluminum boxes sporting Christmas lights and the constant hum of AC was kind of lovely. I should have known better, next time I'm going to either stay in a Federal Campground of just do the dispersed thing. Wish there was more of a "tents" only area. They designate certain sites as camper only, no reason they shouldn't do the same with tents.
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Jul 12, 2020 22:25
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My buddy and I did vesper peak yesterday. 8 miles and 4k+ feet of gain with a few steep snowy sections. It was brutal. The trail is rough and there are lots of rocks before you even get to the steep sections. Was beautiful though.  My buddy is training for Rainier and this is his last hike before his trip so he wanted something difficult. He doesn't have any mountaineering experience but he's in great shape which was an issue at times. I stopped to take a duke off trail near some rocks and found an MRE and a metal cup tucked away under a big rock. The date code is from June 8, either 1999, 2009 or 2019. The odd part is that this hike is where a young female hiker went missing two years ago, triggering the largest search and rescue efforts in Washington history. Thousands of hours of volunteers on foot, scent dogs, drone and helicopter pilots, climbers etc and nothing. She's never been found and I don't think they've found anything of hers. The last report is a holler cm saw her on the summit. I took a photo, will likely send it and gps location to the local ranger station just in case it's if any use. My guess is it was probably just some hunter/ s&r volunteer who stashed some stuff and forgot about it. The cup had some char on bottom showing it has been used in a fire.  Up the valley and into the snow.      This section was crazy steep, felt like 45-55°. The gravel/loose rocks were actually harder to walk in than the snow. Crampons and ice axe definitely in use. The snow was pretty slick. You could plunge into it but I avoided previous tracks as they started getting compacted and slick, and angling downhill. Got to headley pass and I was exhausted, especially seeing that we were only half way to the peak both distance and vertical gain.  Vesper lake still frozen over.   The slog uphill was tough. The snow was soft enough to feel like you were climbing sand dunes. Would have been nice earlier in the morning so it was crunchier. We started at 12pm, had a turnaround time of 5pm meaning we would likely take 3-4 hours getting back to the truck. We got to the peak at 4:59. A cloud rolled in and fogged our views and started to rain so we didn't hang out long.  We were able to glissade quite a bit, probably cut an hour or more off our return. My rear end was numb the rest of the day. Also pissed I forgot to pack my gaiters. My feet ended up getting snow in the top of my boots and my pants kept getting snagged in my crampon.  On the way back down the steep snowy pass, I realized my buddy didn't have his leash around his wrist on his ice axe. I started to worry if he knew how to self arrest so I gave him a demo. No joke, 5 minutes later he slipped and started sliding. He arrested and stopped about 4 feet short of a bunch of rocks that would have been catastrophic. A few minutes later I took a plunge step, the snow gave out beneath my foot and I slid about 30 feet before I could arrest to a stop.  We got back to the truck around 9pm just as it was getting dark and starting to rain. It was a brutal day and due to the snow getting in my boots I developed a few blisters. My hips and knees were sore from all the high stepping. Glad we pushed to the top despite not having a view. I'll be resting hard for a few days.
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Jul 12, 2020 23:26
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Yooper posted:I made the mistake of trying to spend two nights at a State Park Campground in a tent. Spent most of the time exploring and day hiking which was great, saw the comet over Lake Superior too. But man, being surrounded by aluminum boxes sporting Christmas lights and the constant hum of AC was kind of lovely. I should have known better, next time I'm going to either stay in a Federal Campground of just do the dispersed thing. Wish there was more of a "tents" only area. They designate certain sites as camper only, no reason they shouldn't do the same with tents. I grew up camping in North Carolina and Maryland and the state parks that I visited in that time were predominantly tent camping, so I just assumed that all state parks were like that. Then I went camping in New Mexico and booked a campsite in a state park and realized I’d had it good on the east coast. The “tent pad” was filled with sharp rocks and every single site except ours was occupied by an RV. Now I make sure to do my research before committing. The real gems are the parks that have tent camping where you have to walk in 200-300 yds to your site - then you don’t have to deal with the annoyance of your site neighbors going in and out of their car all night.
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Jul 13, 2020 00:21
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The last time I went car camping I woke up in the morning to the guy in the campsite across from me no joke washing his car with the site spigot and a towel he brought from home. Never again.
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Jul 13, 2020 00:37
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You don't car camp for solitude or peace, you car camp because it's a cheap place to get some sleep that's in proximity to your real destination. It's better if there's a turnout or a parking lot you can squat in for the night but if it's actively patrolled by rangers it's less stressful to give in and pay for the night.
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Jul 13, 2020 00:57
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Yeah even when car camping, I avoid the parking lot type campgrounds where you pull into a specific site number and anywhere motorhomes can fit. It's just not my idea of camping. Too many people too close by, nobody gives a poo poo about noise and people are generally disrespectful. Trying to sleep in a tent to the hum of generators, Toby Keith, and rednecks, chads & ashleys screaming over beer pong until 2am isn't my idea of relaxation. This was a big part of my Michigan childhood. That's the hard part though, some places just don't have much more than that to offer.
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Jul 13, 2020 01:08
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I did like 6 miles with 1400 ft elevation (9200 to 10600) yesterday and hated most of it. I really don't like rocky trails where I'm watching my feet for 90% of the hike vs the nature around me. And I just get loving tired, which is embarrassing. I go enough and do enough that I feel I shouldn't get gassed, yet here I am.
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Jul 13, 2020 01:25
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Can I ask how old you are? In my 30s I notice when I try to exercise without my food, sleep and water being on good levels. In my 20s I could run a 10k hung over, now I have to plan a day ahead. Also could just be an off day. Do you feel ill? That’s some pretty good elevation regardless.
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Jul 13, 2020 01:41
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Rolo posted:Can I ask how old you are? In my 30s I notice when I try to exercise without my food, sleep and water being on good levels. In my 20s I could run a 10k hung over, now I have to plan a day ahead. I'm 40, baby! And yeah I need to get everything dialed in better. My fueling and hydration especially. The main thing is my heart rate gets elevated because my cardio health is apparently not that great, who knows?
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Jul 13, 2020 01:59
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I don't know if the science backs needing a hot meal to function over 40, but anecdotally it feels true. I'm now in an unending battle to stop my gut from growing, and whenever I eat less to deal with it my energy is completely gone. Eat a giant meal with no fucks given? I feel like I'm 20 again.
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Jul 13, 2020 02:09
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I absolutely notice if I have more than one cheat meal in like a 48 hour period. I have the metabolism of a Lamborghini so I’m not watching weight as much as trying to keep my heart and brain happy. But that Cookout or Taco Bell after a good long hike or overnight? Bless.
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Jul 13, 2020 02:26
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I did a dumb hike today up to the tallest mountain in the cottonwoods of the Wasatch where I elected not to take a tram back down. In some spots it was downright knifey
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Jul 13, 2020 02:28
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Verman posted:Yeah even when car camping, I avoid the parking lot type campgrounds where you pull into a specific site number and anywhere motorhomes can fit. It's just not my idea of camping. Too many people too close by, nobody gives a poo poo about noise and people are generally disrespectful. Trying to sleep in a tent to the hum of generators, Toby Keith, and rednecks, chads & ashleys screaming over beer pong until 2am isn't my idea of relaxation. This was a big part of my Michigan childhood. I feel seen. Last two camping trips to established campgrounds ended with me wanting to murder the two groups of party kids we were setup next to. Both were up past midnight, and the second one was playing “Werewolf” complete with the guy running the game yelling “Cock-a-doodle doo!!!!!” to get everyone to open their eyes. Over. and. over. The only real positive is you can have fires during bans.
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Jul 13, 2020 02:43
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Oh that reminds me of the time I went on a trip to Moab at the end of October. I went during the week thinking that it would be no problem finding a spot to camp because school was in session, but apparently there’s some yearly break right around then and everything was full. There are tons of official BLM sites near town, but no vacancies. We should have cut our losses and just found a place to dispersed camp, but by that time it was way too dark to try. We wound up paying more than 40 bucks for a place that was basically a gravel parking lot right off of the main strip through town with groups partying around us all night long. Fortunately we had reservations in the Canyonlands backcountry the next two nights, but that one night was rough. I’ve gotten better at planning my trips out, I swear.
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Jul 13, 2020 02:55
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That reminded me of how my girlfriend's brother and his partner got stir crazy the other day and tried to convince us to drive out to Shenandoah National Park and hope there was room on the wait list for a campsite. On the July 4th weekend. Probably a bit busy friends.
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Jul 13, 2020 03:02
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Anything with "National Park" in the name is going to be 100% full from May 1 to September 31. And probably 90% full the rest of the year. It's good that people want to get outside but goddamn the unruined areas we got left can't handle it. It's amazing the NPS does as well as they do with the poo poo budget they're given.
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Jul 13, 2020 03:07
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Kaal posted:That reminded me of how my girlfriend's brother and his partner got stir crazy the other day and tried to convince us to drive out to Shenandoah National Park and hope there was room on the wait list for a campsite. On the July 4th weekend. Eh you probably could have snuck a spot by the AT shelters. Requires a bit of a hike though
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Jul 13, 2020 03:26
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George H.W. oval office posted:Eh you probably could have snuck a spot by the AT shelters. Requires a bit of a hike though Possibly, though hiking of any sort was probably not on the menu for the partner. I was more concerned about the fact that they had closed every other campsite for Covid, and every well-known park has been slammed with people looking for things to do. Not really a recipe for enjoying the outdoors like I used to in Oregon. It's great that there's been so much interest in nature, hopefully that translates into a revitalized budget for the National Park Service next year.
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Jul 13, 2020 03:37
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Dangerllama posted:I feel seen. Yeah you just have to set realistic expectations for that kind of trip. I can do it, I just have to go with the flow and turn it into a drinking weekend in the woods, less of "camping". I just don't like doing that stuff often as Im 35 and heavy partying is behind me for the most part. In the same vein, I tend to shy away from large group camping trips. They get too big, mix too many personalities and get out of hand very quickly. I've got specific friends that I do certain things with, people I trust to help share the responsibilities around camp and that won't trash the place or do dumb poo poo like throw aerosols into the fire. I love shooting guns and I love drinking but never both at the same time, never around camp. Always pack up my targets and my shells. I'm a pretty low key person and I try to leave a place better than when I showed up. Also, gently caress people for ever shooting glass ... ever. ShaneB posted:I did like 6 miles with 1400 ft elevation (9200 to 10600) yesterday and hated most of it. I really don't like rocky trails where I'm watching my feet for 90% of the hike vs the nature around me. And I just get loving tired, which is embarrassing. I go enough and do enough that I feel I shouldn't get gassed, yet here I am. I'm kind of the same. I don't like trails where I have to stare at your feet the entire time because I tend to miss the surroundings plus those trails are usually hard on your feet/knees. We all find the things we enjoy and eventually keep doing more of those things. As for the fitness stuff, that elevation is no joke, not sure if you live somewhere up high or if you're just going up there for hikes. The older you get the more you'll likely feel it. I'm more in tune with my body at 35 (the good and bad) than I ever have been. My body has changed a lot since my 20s even though it mostly looks the same, it feels very different. I know what makes my knees hurt, if I don't stretch my hip flexors before, during and after I won't be able to walk the next day, and how much I can push it. My lower back always hurts. I know that breakfast is crucial for a hike, and to bring additional food to avoid bonking. My cardio has dropped significantly since covid killed my hockey league but I've hiked a lot more frequently. I used to be able to play hockey for four hours non stop while hungover with nothing in my stomach, cycle 100 miles with a gut full of fast food and a banana. That's all changed. I make sure to eat something for breakfast before hikes or I won't have any energy but it can't be too big and heavy or I'll feel sluggish. I used to eat better post hike meals at sit down places and what not when things were normal but now it's mostly fast food. God I've eaten a lot of dairy queen blizzards and fried cheese curds. Lastly, sometimes it's just not your day. The hike I went on yesterday, I wanted to call it quits probably three times. I like to think I'm a pretty decent hiker and I had zero faith in making it to the top. I was sweating and breathing so hard in the first mile and a half. I felt bad, unmotivated. Eventually I got into my mentality of stop trying to keep up with my friend and just went my own pace, one foot in front of the other. Smaller steps. Take breaks when your body needs it. Refuel often. Eventually we got up to the top despite knowing there would be no payoff. Your body changes all the time so one thing one day might be incredible, the next might suck. Just try to find a way to enjoy every trip. They don't all have to be suffer fests.
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Jul 13, 2020 05:29
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Verman posted:
A good post.
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Jul 13, 2020 05:42
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I haven't had problems car camping yet, but I usually go off-season when it's cold and not many people are about. The only NP I've been to in-season is Death Valley and it was mostly older people with their RVs.
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Jul 13, 2020 05:47
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I can't really see an equitable short term solution to overcrowding of wilderness without making more of it. Europe is starting to see some previously worked land becoming wild through neglect (the reasons for this are sad on the small scale, but also offer huge opportunities), and there is a growing movement to make this an explicit part of our environmental policy. I always come back to this graphic: The dumbest is probably the ethanol section (or golf lol), but any reduction in beef production could be such a huge win for the environment and for the amount of outdoors space available (even if not always near population centers).
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Jul 13, 2020 14:34
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