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Someone who has actually done the PCT is going to be more qualified to give feedback, but at the very least you probably want some more water bottles or a way to do longer water carries in the desert, a bug headnet for the PNW, and trekking poles for the tent + yourself. If you haven't bought the SOS GPS already maybe the smaller mini model and use your phone for navigation? Especially since you have a 20MAh battery. A wall plug to charge it would be good too. Bear can is good but not necessary everywhere so you should have an alternative planned out as well for food storage so you can cut 3 lbs when you don't need it. There's definitely some clothes you're missing too but those are biome dependent so someone else can chime in on that.
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Aug 4, 2021 02:44
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Speaking of bags I'm returning mine to get a smaller one. I'm short but I've been using a full-length bag (an REI Magma 15) since it was on sale, and I was feeling colder than I should have been feeling on this last weekend trip I went on, when the air temps went to <40F for once. Right now I have a bunch of room at the bottom of the bag, so my feet were feeling a little cold. When I tried to fill up more of the bottom by sliding down, my head went completely below the draft collar lol. It's nice to have room in a sleeping bag but I think I might have a little too much room.Ornery and Hornery posted:Anybody have a good resource for “how to take good photos” while being in nature? You should probably pop by the Dorkroom as a good resource to get started, but honestly you should just start by taking more photos, in general. For a lot of basic landscape pictures just try taking more shots, tilting the camera either up or down a little and changing how much sky is in the picture, and seeing what looks nicer. That's one of the things I notice a lot with people newer to photography is that they put the horizon straight in the middle of the picture, when you could really tilt your camera down a little and get some more foreground and have a much nicer looking image. Rule of thirds helps a little but sticking to it can be stifling. You can take a million pictures with digital, so why not just try a few different things and revisit it later and see which one looks nicest? That way you can figure out what works for you and go from there. Also, your phone camera's digital zoom sucks, don't use it. Just walk closer if you can.
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Aug 23, 2021 21:00
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PoorHobo posted:Can I get some goons to assist with a pack shakedown on my PCT Gearlist? Everything with a star I've purchased, and whatever has a gram weight, I have weighed on my scale. Otherwise, its manufacturers claimed weight. I will be traveling with another person, so things like the tent are technically shared weight and luxuries of dedicated nail clippers vs scissors makes it make more sense IMO. If you're going with another person maybe consider a bigger pot, if you are sharing the cooking set. 750mL makes a lot of sense for just one person, but trying to cook for two would suck. When I've gone backpacking with another person I usually just have them bring a bowl and I boil all water in my 900mL pot. It's nice to have a bigger pot if you want to make bigger servings and to avoid boil-over. I really like those CNOC vecto bags instead of using the water bottles directly to fill. It's a lot faster. Otherwise looks pretty good. Except the spork but that's personal preference.
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Jan 4, 2022 06:44
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The CNOC Vecto bags have the slider openings on one end with a threaded cap on the other, so it's very fast to fill and you can set it up to gravity filter with the Sawyer Squeeze. I drink a ton of water so I stop frequently and the time saved was noticeable compared to the old sawyer bags I was using. That directly translated into more time hiking, it'll add up over the entire length of the PCT. Plus you can use it as a water bladder in the desert, I've used mine like that for dry stretches. Basically anything that speeds you up will help out, besides just cutting weight. That's also why I like cold soaking if I need to do more miles, it's faster to make food and it lets me get more out of daylight hours to go hiking. Oh and one more thing, look into ordering Permethrin sprays at your resupplies and applying to your clothes once you get into OR/WA or any bug heavy areas. That stuff really works, and unlike DEET you don't have to worry about it ruining your gear, or running out. It's entirely passive resistance and I've never had issues here in Oregon with bugs biting me through my clothes with it applied. You just spray it on your clothes, let them dry out, and they'll be good for a couple of weeks, then at your next resupply you just apply some more.
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Jan 5, 2022 05:39
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Head Bee Guy posted:With recent events at REI, what are some more “cottage” manufacturers I should check out? Garage Grown Gear is a good way to shop for stuff from cottage manufacturers in a central location.
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Feb 23, 2022 06:58
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Their return policy is nice though. I bought a bear can and it went on sale shortly after, so I returned it and bought it again on sale. I went hiking with a friend later and turns out he bought that same bear can from their garage sale section for even cheaper. I suppose that was an abusive example but I have made other returns for things I had real cause to replace and I didn't have any hassles. If I buy an uberlite pad I'm going to buy it from REI just in case the thing ever pops. Half the pads I see in the return section always have complaints about deflations but I'm pretty sure those are just people who don't realize that they needed to top up their pads before they went to bed.
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Mar 1, 2022 07:30
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Brother Tadger posted:I have a BearVault 450 that we use in bear country. I’ve heard that the some of the black bears are smart enough to work them open, but they are otherwise a pretty good option for 3 -4 day trips. The BearVault 500 is twice the size, which is a double edged sword if you have to fit it in your backpack and carry it w you. My friend has the Garcia, which is heavier and has less storage space, but is pretty much impregnable for bears (since it basically requires you to use a coin to turn the latches). I use an odorproof liner bag (opsak) for my Ursack in order to keep odors down so bears/wildlife don't pay attention to it. As for the shredding part, that's kind of the point with an Ursack, it's not meant to protect your food from the bear, it's to prevent the bear from getting a reward from your food. If you want actual bearproofing then the canister is just about the only consistent way to go.
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Apr 5, 2022 04:08
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I like my Prana Zions too but I recently picked up a pair of OR Astro pants and they're even better. They've got a very breathable softshell fabric on the front and a more durable fabric on the back for when you sit or slide down stuff. The Zions feel really thick in comparison, probably warmer but my legs heat up plenty quick anyways.
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Apr 28, 2022 06:37
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post hole digger posted:40% off friends and family coupons for outdoorresearch.com. expires at midnight tonight. Used this one to get me some astro shorts and sun hoodie. Shame the astro pants are OOS, I would've bought another pair. Thanks a bunch dude.
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May 16, 2022 19:07
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I'll bring it on trips where I'm going to have a lot of downtime, usually that's on trips with friends and they've got chairs too. You don't want to be the only one without a chair. Otherwise I just cut the weight. I like to keep hiking past sunset and once it's dark there's no point setting up a chair instead of my tent.
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Feb 15, 2023 05:19
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The OR ferrosi hybrid gaiters are actually pretty nice, I don't really know why the reviews are all dumping on them but they've been holding up just fine for me over 100+ miles by now.
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Aug 12, 2023 05:31
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yoohoo posted:For any Oregon goons, REI opened a new “resupply” store just outside of Portland. It’s 100% used gear and is a proper full sized store. Lots of good deals to be had. I'm bummed out that all of the stores are now redirecting their returns to that store instead though. Now if I want to look through used deals its going to be a 35min drive instead of a 5min drive.
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Sep 8, 2023 04:58
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Verman posted:I may have to look into more of these gourmet backpacker meals as I've really stepped away from mountainhouse/backpacker pantry as they're pricey, generally huge portions, and not the best in terms of taste and texture. I've heard nothing but great things about packit gourmet. My retired dad has been doing this stuff for years. A lot of it is junk but sometimes you can get some alright stuff. I got a really nice air fryer oven out of it and a bunch of batteries and charger bricks. Not really much that I'd use for backpacking but definitely some stuff you could get for car camping.
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Sep 22, 2023 03:17
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Anachronist posted:Montbell makes some nice Houdini-likes that have two hand pockets and some similar nice features. They come in a few different weights too from light to extremely light. If you find one for 10 bucks at the used gear store that’s ideal (humblebrag). Houdini is totally adequate otherwise and packs just a little smaller than the Montbell I have. Are you talking about the montbell tachyon jacket? I have the EX light parka which is the JP version of that without hand pockets, it's really nice and weighs/packs down to nothing. The lower denier you go with windbreakers the more trashbag-like the fabric will look and feel though, it's very much active-use only
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Nov 5, 2023 16:16
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Lhet posted:Been looking at doing some light mountaineering this summer (Muir, St. Helens, maaaybe Baker if things line up), and currently looking at outer layers - where there seems to be the least consensus on what's needed. I have all the basic layers multiple times over, but am a bit confused on hardshell needs - some of these seem to easily reach $500+ and it's hard to find consensus on what I'm even shopping for. Am I just looking for something heavy-duty-ish and waterproof with ventilation options? Something more specific? Over the summer I don't think you'll need anything like a hardshell. You really want to focus on just packing light since Mt St Helens and Adams are just long hikes. So I would recommend a properly sized lightweight ice axe, trekking poles, and microspikes. The main technical challenge on those mountains is just traversing snow safely, but there should be a very solid bootpack wherever you go. The ice axe and spikes will help you out on those sections, and the ice axe is great for glissading, which you should definitely do. For layers, your normal hiking clothes are fine, but throw in a wind jacket and a down jacket for keeping warm on the move and at the summit respectively. Fleece liner gloves are very nice too. Most of your pack weight on the hike up should be 3L of water. Also bring lots of sunscreen, and wear sunglasses and long sleeves, it is easy to get sunburned above treeline. If you can go early enough for an alpine start (and you should try) then bring a headlamp too. Also take a look at South Sister. That is also one of the hikeable volcanoes, the views there are spectacular with the other volcanoes in close proximity. I need to get out there again this year since it was quite smoky when I went up last summer.
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Jan 15, 2024 18:40
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incogneato posted:This is very timely, because I am also looking to try some easy mountains for the first time, such as Helens and Adams. Microspikes are fine for the lower angle snowpack you will see on those mountains. There will be a very solid bootpack by the time you go, the main routes are heavily trafficked. Just check trip reports before you go on somewhere like Alltrails and there will be plenty of people reporting if the bootpack is there or not. You mostly just need some traction within those bootpack holes and on moderate snow, and the ice axe helps you stay planted and is a precaution against sliding. Crampons would be useful if you were going up higher angle stuff and having to kick in steps, but you won't really be doing that over the summer on those mountains.
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Jan 15, 2024 23:47
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I picked up some astro binoculars on a whim for a stargazing trip next month and I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to bring it on all of my car camping trips going forward. It's pretty easy to get to dark skies out here in OR so I grabbed a nice 7x50 pair for scanning starfields. I gave it a whirl last night at a coworker's place further out from the suburban area and it was very impressive how many more stars were visible even with nearby urban light pollution and a bunch of lit clouds. The only downside is going to be having to share it and not have them all for myself!
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Apr 27, 2024 18:21
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Arkhamina posted:Could you link what you got? I am heading to Dark Sky land soon. It's these Nikon Prostar 7x50s, from all my reading on other astro forums these came highly recommended specifically for dark skies. I got it used off eBay from Japan, I don't think you can get them new any more. They were not cheap, but I had some bonus cash on a debit recognition card from work and I figured why not. You absolutely do not need to spend like I did, you can get other 7x50s or 10x50s from Nikon or another brand for under $200 and they will get you there as well. Something like these looked like they were highly recommended.These particular Nikons just have a slightly wider field of view compared to most 7x50s, and have a field flattener that promises consistent image quality edge to edge. They weigh a ton and focus individually through each eyepiece, so slow to use and hefty to hold. I did compare them against my coworker's Nikon Monarch 7 8x42 binoculars, which are also high quality but are geared more towards birding and terrestrial subjects. Those ones are more for everyday use because they have center focusing and are much lighter and more compact. They still offered up great views of the stars, but with a little coma and softening on the edges. The Prostars by comparison just looked plain brighter and had 0 coma or fuzziness on the edges of the frame. It doesn't sound like much, but it was very apparent when we were doing our A/B comparisons. They also have a classic, timeless look to them.  We are still going to take both binoculars on the trip, because those Monarchs were not bad, and then we can have more people looking through binoculars instead of waiting to share. I didn't even realize some of the stars in the bigger constellations were actually doubles, or at least I've never been able to tell with naked eye - but it was just immediately obvious with the binoculars. We can't wait to see what we'll find with a proper dark sky. Next up is I need one of those hammock recliners from Costco! My coworker had one of the Rio hammock chairs, and that felt perfect for lounging back and supporting the binoculars while looking straight up. Handholding binoculars to stargaze is kind of tough unless you have a nice support, otherwise the stars just bounce back and forth a ton. Shakiness is much more noticeable with looking at the stars instead of terrestrial subjects. cerious fucked around with this message at 22:05 on Apr 27, 2024 |
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Apr 27, 2024 21:50
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Mederlock posted:Pick up a good camera tripod at a secondhand store for cheap and get an adapter mount for the binos and you'll boost your comfort a lot, not having to hold your arms up the whole time. Plus the image will be more stable and thus you'll probably resolve even more Oh yeah I got a tripod mount on the way already too. I only have ballheads though but I've got one that should be rock solid for viewing. I do have to bring one of my other tripods on this next trip though since I'm going to try to do some star trail pics on film.
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Apr 28, 2024 03:29
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