|
Bikepacking is great cause you can be a little sloppy about weight. That extra pound that makes a backpack way harder to hike 10 miles, only makes a bike marginally harder to ride. Yay bikepacking. If anyone lives in Pittsburgh, I have a few recommended overnights and 3-dayers. FreakerByTheSpeaker posted:Beer takes up way too much space. Get some high proof whiskey (or your spirit of choice) and put it in one of those collapsable bags. If you don't want to drink it neat, add some crisp, refreshing mountain water to it, or pour your whatever into your instant coffee or electrolyte powder like gatorade. imho. I just empty out a cheap plastic half-liter soda bottle and fill it. Roughly the same weight, and once it's empty, you can fill it with water so it's not wasting volume.
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2014 20:40
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 25, 2024 11:43 |
|
|
Ok, I'm glad everyone else thinks guns are as weird/useless as I did, because I'm not really comfortable with the idea of hauling one around (plus, weight.) So I'll just stick to my blowgun.
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2014 23:38
|
|
|
FreakerByTheSpeaker posted:So I'll just stick to my blowgun. If you wanna go ultralight you can carry a sling and grab some rocks on the trail.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 01:10
|
|
|
FreakerByTheSpeaker posted:Speaking of defense, does anyone hike with a gun? Some people I talk to about hiking (esp solo backwoods stuff) say that they do/I should carry a gun for bears and/or meth producers, but that seems loving silly. I ran into some mountain lion tracks on a hike once and posted a pic on Facebook. My aunt got all  and bought me a .45 and a drop holster. Which sat in a drawer at home, unused.In other news, Loch Vale today at RMNP:  IMG_3548 by WestslopeBruin, on Flickr It was slightly breezy.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 01:56
|
|
FreakerByTheSpeaker posted:Speaking of defense, does anyone hike with a gun? Some people I talk to about hiking (esp solo backwoods stuff) say that they do/I should carry a gun for bears and/or meth producers, but that seems loving silly. Guns don't always work like people think they do. Pepper spray almost always does, and I think it's way, way more useful for us. Still, it's a personal choice, so w/e. Guns need a bunch of ancillary poo poo and accessories. I'm anti-gun, but I wouldn't fault someone alone in the backcountry for having one. agarjogger fucked around with this message at 02:22 on Jan 18, 2014 |
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 02:20
|
|
|
Guns have a place in the backcountry. I probably wouldn't bring one to a well-populated park like Yosemite. But if I'm going to BLM land in central California or the Willamette Valley, I would consider bringing something. I'm not sure how it is now, but in Oregon in the 1980s, random pot farms on BLM land weren't uncommon. My best friend's dad was a game warden and would occasionally tell us the spooky poo poo he ran into in the forests of Oregon. But that's just me.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 02:29
|
|
|
Oxford Comma posted:I'm not sure how it is now, but in Oregon in the 1980s, random pot farms on BLM land weren't uncommon. My best friend's dad was a game warden and would occasionally tell us the spooky poo poo he ran into in the forests of Oregon. But that's just me. They're still around, particularly in Southern Oregon, only they're loving massive now and run by the Mexican cartels. They have guys who will trek out all sorts of agricultural water piping and set up a semi-permanent camp, and if they see you heading in their direction then they'll send some guy out to meet you and tell you to turn around. Trimming season has become a relatively common source of high-school income for local kids of the suitable disposition. It's loving dangerous really, and it really makes me wish that marijuana was legalized, but they also know that few of the folks who are wandering around out there really pose much of a threat to their organization.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 03:13
|
|
|
Kaal posted:They're still around, particularly in Southern Oregon, only they're loving massive now and run by the Mexican cartels. They have guys who will trek out all sorts of agricultural water piping and set up a semi-permanent camp, and if they see you heading in their direction then they'll send some guy out to meet you and tell you to turn around. Trimming season has become a relatively common source of high-school income for local kids of the suitable disposition. It's loving dangerous really, and it really makes me wish that marijuana was legalized, but they also know that few of the folks who are wandering around out there really pose much of a threat to their organization. When I worked for the USGS a few summers ago, we ran into some sketchy irrigation lines and a bunch of trash in the Malheur National Forest. We immediately turned around and reported it to the ranger's office. It was spooky.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 04:14
|
|
|
Guns are illegal in nearly any area where you would go backcountry up here. I imagine some people do carry in non-park regions of BC, northern Alberta, and the southern Territories. But most of those regions don't have any trails and are commonly private properties (except for crown land, which is technically owned by the Queen but is open to the public to travel through), so they're not ideal for fun trips anyway. Plus you might get shot by a landowner before you could shoot them. I've been threatened in the past by getting too close to my in-laws neighbour's property in rural Alberta.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 07:24
|
|
|
Picnic Princess posted:Guns are illegal in nearly any area where you would go backcountry up here. I imagine some people do carry in non-park regions of BC, northern Alberta, and the southern Territories. But most of those regions don't have any trails and are commonly private properties (except for crown land, which is technically owned by the Queen but is open to the public to travel through), so they're not ideal for fun trips anyway. Plus you might get shot by a landowner before you could shoot them. I've been threatened in the past by getting too close to my in-laws neighbour's property in rural Alberta. Those Friendly Canadians!
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 08:30
|
|
|
You need a 12 gauge with slugs to even approach the effectiveness of bear spray. Most guns can kill a best eventually, but maybe not before it mauls you to death.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 08:32
|
|
|
I've known some people who carry a pistol/rifle in the backcountry of Angeles National Forest when camping alone. It's not for the animals, it's for the crazy homeless and meth head enclaves that pop up in there. Honestly I understand bringing a gun when you're camping backcountry alone, you're in an incredibly vulnerable position like that. I've been back in the forest where you're bushwhacking trying to find the trail camp at night and all of a sudden come across a couple gnarly lean-to's with ratty sleeping bags and dirty clothes everywhere. Not only that, but ANF is a hot bed for crazy gold panners that just live up there like crazy dudes for months on end. What happens when they come back while you're sleeping? Would a gun have given me peace of mind when pitching my tent all alone? hell yes it would have. I feel like it's more about the threatening nature of the gun then the actual gun itself. People are obviously less likely to start a confrontation with you if you have a gun.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 09:59
|
|
|
Eugenics posted:crazy gold panners that just live up there like crazy dudes for months on end Potentially the best A/T thread ever.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 10:29
|
|
|
I own guns, but the thought of wearing a pack, possibly carrying trekking poles, and being out of breath much of the time, and then on top of that wearing an accessible sidearm somewhere on all that seems silly to me. Alone in the backcountry, I can see where it might make sense, but not on the trails I hike.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 14:07
|
|
|
Yeah, the gun won't really do much to kill a grizzly, but they are apparently effective at scaring them away.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 17:09
|
|
|
I was backpacking in the middle of the Idaho wilderness when we came across an older guy and his wife and they started to talk to us. Said they just saw a bear a bit ago (black bear) and was going on about it like it was a big scary thing. Then he pull out this tiny little hand sized pistol and says "I sure am glad I have this with me!" Honestly a random guy pulling out his gun to show you is a lot more scary than a bear. On the other hand you do run into hunters sometimes with their rifles slung over their shoulders but you also kinda realize those people know where they are and aren't going to be shooting near the places people populate. One guy apparently got a bighorn sheep permit (which supposedly are hard to get with a long rear end waiting list) and got all the way up into the wilderness before coming down with a bad flu virus or something and was laid up in his camp for days until he had the strength to pack out. Not only is it pretty drat scary to think about getting that sick when you're up in the backcountry alone, he blew his hunting permit and probably would have to wait years for the chance at another
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 18:41
|
|
|
Got back this morning from two days in the George Washington National Forest of Virginia at Duncan Knob Hollow. We did an easy three mile hike to a great campsite with a rock-sofa, a great fire pit, plenty of space and a stream a few steps away. My friend had gone to the same site about a month earlier and we found it just as they had left it on the previous trip. Not a person had camped there in a month and not five minutes after we were there, a group of five backpackers came down a hill toward our camp. They stopped at the intersection near us, obviously deliberating what to do, and likely pretty disappointed that we had beat them to the spot. It was a good jump back into backpacking, having not gone in over twenty years. I was worried about the cold January nights but I had plenty of layers and we built a nice fire. An old Jeep trail, now unused, leading off from the campsite:  All set up. This was the second day after the snow had melted.  The stone sofa made posh made up with a tarp, wool blanket, sleeping pads and sleeping bags    Living well 
|
|
#
?
Jan 20, 2014 20:47
|
|
Levitate posted:Honestly a random guy pulling out his gun to show you is a lot more scary than a bear. There's definitely a right and wrong way to let it be known that you are packing. I guess I'd rather know than not know, but it's damned tricky to show a stranger your weapon without leaving the residue of a threat all over the exchange. That's the whole point of showing someone your weapon. Probably better to draw absolutely no attention to the dangerous bit of machinery. Sometimes I pop over to the large BLM sites and make friends, two times there have been pistols laying around their pop-up campers. Certainly hijacks your attention, but I calm myself and accept the hospitality. Travelers got to play it cool all the time.
|
|
|
#
?
Jan 20, 2014 21:00
|
|
|
Don't worry about bears. If it's a black bear, you can probably kick its rear end. If it's a grizzly bear, no gun not made for hunting bears will kill it. I have never had trouble with drug addicts etc in the woods. The only time I ever came close to danger was getting lost, hiking out via Google Maps, and ending up in a gated community, where I was stopped by some dudes in a pickup, and they gave me a ride out when I explained what had happened. I think that it's just retarded to carry a weapon into the woods if killing something is not the main focus of your trip, just like I think it's silly to carry an axe into the woods if woodworking is not the main focus of your trip. You can make an argument that a gun is worthwhile on very long trips in areas where you are allowed to hunt, but even then I think that for the 4-6 lbs of the gun + ammo, you're better off carrying food and just arranging for someone to give you supplies. Another angle on this problem: How will you carry it? You can't put it on a belt holster if your backpack has a hip belt, and there's no way to conceal it with drop belt/ chest rigs. The only option would be something like  . It's just not very practical (If the carry method is uncomfortable, you'll end up putting the gun in your bag, and it's no good in there). I think the main reason people carry guns, both in the woods and in daily life, is to make themselves feel safer. And if you want to do that, bear spray weighs less and is easier to get into national parks 
|
|
#
?
Jan 20, 2014 23:51
|
|
|
And no one wants to look like that guy
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 01:59
|
|
|
But bear spray won't compensate for hiking micropenis. Murica hat, flaccid circle beard. I only wish the picture went down further to see the dadjeans and cell phone hanging from a belt clip. PRADA SLUT fucked around with this message at 04:59 on Jan 21, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 04:56
|
|
|
Is a 25 lb pack considered light or heavy? I'm planning a lot more hiking trips this year along with bike touring and man, all of this gear is a lot harder to carry on my feet compared to wheels.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 05:37
|
|
|
Moderate, accounting for consumables.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 05:57
|
|
|
Bottom Liner posted:Is a 25 lb pack considered light or heavy? I'm planning a lot more hiking trips this year along with bike touring and man, all of this gear is a lot harder to carry on my feet compared to wheels. Base weight without any food or water weight? I think that is in the moderate, bordering on heavier range. With about a week's worth of food (at ~2ish lbs a day) and half a gallon of water at any time and thats going to be in the neighborhood of 45+ lbs with a full resupply. Based off of limited reading, 15ish base pack weight is supposed to be light. 10 lbs and less is ultralight territory.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 06:01
|
|
|
I think weight also depends heavily on what kind of weather you're expecting, what kind of terrain/environment you're expecting, what kind of group you're with, and so on. Sometimes you just have to carry more gear, like if you need an ice ax or rope or warmer clothes or more food or a bear can or whatever.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 06:32
|
|
|
You should really consider that as a percentage of your body weight. A 25lb pack is a lot less for a 200lb dude than a 110lb chick.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 07:02
|
|
|
Bottom Liner posted:Is a 25 lb pack considered light or heavy? I'm planning a lot more hiking trips this year along with bike touring and man, all of this gear is a lot harder to carry on my feet compared to wheels. It's all dependant on your trip length, time of year, location and number of people. If you're doing a 1-2 night trip then that's pretty heavy, if you're doing 4-5 night that's fairly light. My pack usually averages about 30 lb (I'm a155 lb dude) on a 4-5 day trip with food water and fuel. Water is an easy area to lose weight if you're hiking along a water source or you know there's one coming up. Just because you have a three liter bladder doesn't mean you have to fill it if water is readily available. The number of people is also going to change things. It's easier to share things and distribute the weight while backpacking. Cookware, tents, bear bins, water filters and other shareable items amongst 3-4 people is much easier to carry than with just 1-2. Excess clothes can really weigh you down but by all means bring enough to keep you comfortable for assumably 10° lower than the forecasted lows. Plan your clothing in layers versus a bunch of big pieces. Wear your clothes for the entire trip rather than changing your clothes every day. Wool and synthetics are great for not sinking over time especially if you can air them out in camp.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 07:27
|
|
|
Is a Zippo a good or bad idea to carry backpacking (2.7oz)? I have a firesteel (and a Jetboil), but was looking for an easy way to light up some campfires, especially if the tinder is suboptimal. I'm not a smoker, so I'm not sure if the cheap disposable lighters are a better deal or what.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 10:45
|
|
|
I've been meaning to do a bit of a writeup on my recent hike along Tasmania's Overland Track so without further ado... The Overland Track or I Walked Through a Stream for Four Days and My Feet Stayed Dry, Ask Me How!  What is the Overland Track? The track is an extremely highly managed walking trail in Tasmania that runs from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair. Distance varies depending on whether you walk out alongside the lake at the end or take a boat. I was pressed for time so we took the boat to save a day, and walked about 75km in 4 days. Bookings are required during the peak walking season (summer) with departures capped at 36 people a day, and a $200 fee per person, which sounds like a lot but it pays for a lot of infrastructure along the track, including the huts, bridges, duckboard, toilets (with helicopter slung tanks that are flown in/flown out). All of this has risen out of the tracks status as a "bucket list" style track that sees thousands hiking it each year, including people who might not usually hike (more on this later). In the peak season, each hut has a resident ranger, and the distance between the huts is usually about 8-10km so help is never far away. That doesn't stop it being a "Wilderness" hike though. Huts are extremely basic (wooden bunks, small heater, tank of water, nothing else) and you can't rely on a spot so a tent is required (to pitch on a wooden tent platform, no backcountry camping). Weather is also pretty nuts . Weather So last week any tennis fans would have seen all the suspensions of play and commentary at the Australian Open related to the fact Melbourne was 44 degrees Celsius. The week prior to that I was 300km south of Melbourne getting snowed on. I just checked my GPS logs and the temperature on my first day of walking was about 1-2c. It rained every day, worst on the 3rd. All that said, my gear held up and the huts meant there was somewhere dry to dry off and get into dry clothes. It was easy enough to keep walking and stay warm, so I felt fine the whole time. The Track The walking I feel was pretty easy. A lot of bogs and puddles, but before long you just get used to walking straight through. A large portion of the track is raised platform with chicken wire on it to protect the grassland underneath. It was easy to get a pace of about 5.5km/h along here these bits. The rest is what my dad kept calling "Hobbit Country", lots of mossy exposed tree trunks that slowed us down a bit, but all easily navigable. The huts are spaced at about 10k, which to be honest is a pretty drat easy day if you've done any sort of walking before. Plenty of people haven't done a multi day hike before and choose this as their first, so it makes for a pretty low impact trek if you choose to stop at each hut. Skipping a hut and doing 20ish km days was fine. You can only camp where the huts are unless it is an emergency.     Pademelon, marsupial similar to a kangaroo or wallaby, but smaller. Freaking cute.  View from one of the huts   Bunk in one of the huts with my gear on it. Single bunks were rare, they were mostly long platforms sleeping up to 6 in close proximity. I think the guy next to me was trying to spoon one night.  View from New Pelion hut  Family of wild boots seeking warmth and dryness in the hut  Another trail shot  Lake St Clair at the end. First proper blue sky. Gear How did your feet stay dry?? - Leather boots slathered with sno-seal - Goretex pants that I picked up in the Boxing Day Sales (Marmot), they rocked seriously. - Canvas gaiters that fitted tightly around my boots, so no water was getting in over the top. Other than that, sleeping bag was plenty warm (-3c MEC down bag from Canada), all other clothing was fine. If I did it again, I'd take dry shorts and thermals for the huts. I took a 38L Osprey Kestrel pack which I nicknamed "Notorious S.M.A.L.L". Everything I needed fitted, including emergency clothes etc, but a few people we came across were pretty critical. Most people take 6 or so days to do the trail. We met people taking 11. With those times, you need to carry more food and that was the only limiting factor of my pack. We planned for 4 days, so Dad & I each took 2 days food for 2 in our packs, plus some emergency. Any more and I would have gone up to my bigger pack. Pulled my DSLR our at the last minute and just took my little waterproof P&S. Good move, wouldn't used it once in that weather. Summary Totally worth it, shame we couldn't do any of the side trips but all the summits are scrambles only to be attempted in clear dry weather. The huts are great, met some good people, although conversation tends to lean towards the merits of liquid vs. canister stoves. My head torch (Zebralight) attracted attention because it was a model you never see in the main gear stores here. Lots of people with roof-high yellow flames when priming their stoves they bought the day before as well. One day ahead of us was a legendary English hiker who was wearing jeans, a long sleeved t-shirt and a pack full of baked beans, and not much else. The hut logs were full of his tale, whereby he would arrive at the hut soaking and freezing and be set upon by people offering tea, dry clothes etc. The last hut we stopped at confirmed he had made it out and was extremely grateful to everyone that helped him. Read more about the track here Just wanted to finish the post with this. Not my photo and this wasn't on the hike, in fact the advantage of the weather was no snakes or insects. However, this was in the paper today here in Canberra. Yay hiking here over summer! Snake #2 on the most venomous list eating #21 or so. That said, the Red Bellied Black probably wouldn't be up for it, and the Eastern Brown has his mouth full, so no one nearby is getting bitten. 
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 11:19
|
|
|
PRADA SLUT posted:Is a Zippo a good or bad idea to carry backpacking (2.7oz)? I have a firesteel (and a Jetboil), but was looking for an easy way to light up some campfires, especially if the tinder is suboptimal. I'm not a smoker, so I'm not sure if the cheap disposable lighters are a better deal or what. Just get a mini bic (cheap disposable lighter), it will last you forever.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 16:50
|
|
|
Also, get one that is clear, so you can see how much fuel is in it. And by get one, I mean bring 2. They weigh nothing, and alternate fire sources are critical in the event of failure. One time I was lighting up a victory smoke at the end of a hike, and my lighter chose to sproing out the flint, spring, and wheel. Thank God I was already out, but from then on, I brought 2 lighters on top of my flint and glasses lens.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 17:15
|
|
|
A zippo is pretty great until it gets wet from an accident. You can often get a cheap disposable lighter wet and be able to light it back up 30 minutes later.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 17:51
|
|
|
Zippos are utterly useless poo poo. I get that there's a massive marketing machine behind them making people think they are hip and there's some rich history there but they are just garbage in terms of actually making fire. Get literally any cheap plastic lighter, they are much better.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 18:42
|
|
|
 I always bring one of these. It works when it's wet and no matter how windy it is. But I always bring a normal lighter as backup, you never know.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 18:47
|
|
|
Pryor on Fire posted:Zippos are utterly useless poo poo. I get that there's a massive marketing machine behind them making people think they are hip and there's some rich history there but they are just garbage in terms of actually making fire. Get literally any cheap plastic lighter, they are much better.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 20:45
|
|
|
I've been trying to find a good knot for lashing a thing to another thing. Some kind of knot that cinches a loop down, and then holds. Like for example: -tying a stick to another stick -tying some compressible things down and holding them compressed -tying some upright things to a pole, and pulling it tight until you are satisfied that they are held in nice and snug When the thing I'm lashing is big enough, I'll use two facing adjustable grip hitches (or tautline hitches, similar deal) to tie a loop around the things, and use those to cinch it down. But what about like lashing two sticks or poles tightly together? Plus tying two adjustable grip hitches is a little cumbersome sometimes, so does anyone know an alternative? There's also the square knot, but it's hard to get it real tight with those, even with someone else's finger holding down the first tie.
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 20:58
|
|
|
So here's my updated/complete kit (minus food and water). Anything I'm missing? Also, does my pack look like it fits correctly? Total weight comes to 23lbs, but that's including the completely unnecessary Ka-bar knife, Nook, pillow, and 3lb DSLR camera/lens. I could easily get it down to about 18 lbs if I didn't take those. I can also take the hammock instead of the tent and save about 6-7 more lbs if I want to go lighter in warmer weather.      
Bottom Liner fucked around with this message at 21:27 on Jan 21, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 21:19
|
|
|
Is one of those things a sleeping pad? Is that ziplock bag a custom-built first aid kit? If so, good. Do you at least somewhat know how to use everything in it? Looks pretty good to me. If it were my pack, I'd add various lengths of rope (I usually bring something like ~6, ~10, and ~35 feet of accessory cord), and subtract both knives and just use a multi-tool that has its own knife. But you already said you know it's unnecessary, so whatev. I'd also subtract the existential weight of Poe. I don't know how you project such a blinding white aura with such dark, gothic tales burdening your pack. edit: also, compass also, two (2) large black plastic garbage bags - useful in many ways, can cover your bag against rain, and can even make an emergency shelter, note the name "emergency" because you would have a miserable night in it but you might stay alive  also, vvvvvvvvv layers and rain gear for your bod and head alnilam fucked around with this message at 22:04 on Jan 21, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 21:51
|
|
|
Ditch at least the folding knife, take a second bic. Invert your scabbard. Where are you layers, what kind of weahther is forecast?
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 21:57
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 25, 2024 11:43 |
|
|
why do you have 3 different knives? 23 lbs seems kinda heavy for baseweight but I"m honestly not sure what all I'm looking at so I can't really make any recommendations (other than you don't need 3 knives...and is that an extra flashlight as well?)
|
|
#
?
Jan 21, 2014 22:03
|
|