|
A buddy of mine has a jetboil, which has been hugely convenient on our camping trips (mostly car and festival camping). Having easy hot water spoiled me a bit. Another buddy of mine had been taking me on backpacking trips and he had a similar stove, and waking up on a cold morning, plopping out of the hammock and drinking some hot tea was awesome. I'm starting to put together equip for overnights, and not wanting to miss out on hot water I've needed a stove. But I haven't really had the money to dump into a jet boil, been prioritizing other gear. I looked into some DIY stoves and really liked the penny stove thats out there, especially since you're joining the cans without tape or glue. I made one tonight and just finished the first test burn. It took me a little bit to figure out how to get the jets going properly, once they did I got really excited. I'm going to test it out this weekend at Pedernales Falls, which will hopefully be nice since Austin got a ton of rain earlier this month. Yiggy fucked around with this message at 09:54 on Nov 15, 2013 |
#
¿
Nov 15, 2013 09:31
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 15:30 |
|
|
B...B...brown bears...  Edit: Nice pictures, way better call than Hawaii. Yiggy fucked around with this message at 17:27 on Nov 26, 2013 |
|
#
¿
Nov 26, 2013 17:23
|
|
|
M.C. McMic posted:I made reservations for a primitive campsite in a park outside of Austin for next weekend. We're going to do a short hike, set up our stuff and make sure we're not carrying extra crap or forgetting anything obvious... kind of a dry run for Big Bend later this winter. We may go for New Years or around that time. Pedernales falls is a decent one or two night park. 2 mile hike to primitive area and 15ish miles of trails. I was there recently and it was a good spot to hike in, set up a camp and then go day hiking.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2013 03:50
|
|
|
I am incredibly restless for spring, so I stubbornly went on an overnight in Guadalupe Mountains national park earlier this week. I camped up in the Guadalupe peak back country and in the morning woke up and tried to reach the peak before heading down. This five o'clock sunset is so frustrating. I was prepared for cold wether, but the wind up on the ridge was pretty fierce and so I decided to turn back somewhere around 8,500 feet, just in sight of the summit with maybe one or two switchbacks left. It was so cold, and since it was overcast I couldn't count on any heat from the sun. I was also sweating a fair bit under my rainshell and didn't want to risk hypothermia. It was good for keeping the wind off me, but I was drenched underneath. As I was heading down it started raining too, thank goodness for trekking poles. The thick mud wreaked havoc on my traction. I'll be going back in February or March when it makes more sense. Still, I didn't mind going through the trouble, as I'm trying to prepare for longer thru hikes and if nothing else hiking and dealing with inclement weather is alright practice. And the weather was decent enough on the hike up the first day that I still got some amazing views. Can't wait to explore that park with longer days and lugging less cold weather gear.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 14, 2013 09:05
|
|
|
A buddy of mine and I are planning the JMT for mid July. I wanna go a little earlier, but he doesn't want to risk dealing with any late melting snow. If you wanna go late June you're getting real close to when you need to submit your permit application.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 7, 2014 21:03
|
|
|
Keep an eye on Steapandcheep.com, you can find some sleeping bags on there for pretty cheap, though you may need to watch for a few days to a week before one pops up. I found a mountain hardwear extra lamina 20 degree bag on there for 75% off, about $50.00 and I've been very happy with it. Tested it in the 20's and it kept me plenty warm.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 11, 2014 00:00
|
|
|
Yeah, I've read the dew point trapping body perspiration in gear is a long term trip ruiner in any sort of cold weather. I haven't tested it yet, but I've been reading a lot about Vapor Barriers, which is just a water impermeable layer you wear next to the skin when sleeping, which traps moisture next to the skin so that it doesn't leak into your gear, while at the same time trapping any heat you'd lose in the process. The worry is your skin would get all clammy, but the proponents I've found write that your skin adjusts pretty well, and that a mild dampness is the worst you experience in the morning. Its supposed to let you squeeze a few more degrees out of your gear while at the same time keeping your gear dry and drastically reducing condensation in your tent. Items which are supposed to work alright for vapor barriers 1) Wearing your rain shell next to the skin, turn it inside out. 2) a trashbag liner for your sleeping bag. 3) Some people make clothing layers out of trash bag material. 4) Mylar sweat suits, like you find in the weight lifting section at Academy, etc.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 12, 2014 03:04
|
|
|
Saint Fu posted:These all sound horrible Comfort is a common complaint, and they really only seem to be justified in severe cold conditions, which most people aren't putting up with anyways. Some people only want to deal with them in the sleeping bag, and others hike in them. A common complaint I've read is managing your level of exertion so you don't sweat too much. Your skin is supposed to regulate its moisture and sweating on its own, but that won't matter much if you're really exerting yourself. Here is brief cartoon I found that tries to explain it. 
|
|
#
¿
Jan 13, 2014 03:24
|
|
|
JAY ZERO SUM GAME posted:That cartoon is full of some random made up bullshit about your body sensing a micro-climate Nope. I did some digging and found this study, which discusses Transepidermal Water Loss, or insensible perspiration. At 2-3% relative humidity and below, as if one is in a desert, it stays low. Above this, TEWL increases 2-3x. Once you reach 73-77% relative humidity, TEWL drops back down to what it would be as if you were in extremely dry conditions. So your body works to prevent moisture loss in conditions where its really dry, and in conditions when it is really moist (ostensibly since the air is moist enough to keep the skin where it needs to be, and so that water can be used elsewhere). This seems to line up with all of the claims I see proponents of vapor barriers make that the skin prefers a relative humidity near the skin of 73% percent. (Also this would seem to jive with yours and others' anecdotes about VBLs working) Yiggy fucked around with this message at 07:10 on Jan 13, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Jan 13, 2014 07:00
|
|
|
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
|
|
|
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
|
|
|
Levitate posted:People who have applied for permits for the JMT...when the application asks for 2nd and 3rd choices, does anyone know how that works if you put down a different date? Like I'm thinking of starting August 11th...if I don't get that, starting the 12th would be fine, even starting the 13th as my third choice would be fine. Do they just put it on the top of the pile for that days reservations if your first choice isn't available or should you also throw in individual applications for those dates as well? From what I remember our team leader telling me they're fairly persnickety about the dates on your app since they have such a high volume of them to Not that it mattered as we got denied anyway and will be camping out for a permit day of. All of the other hikers we've been talking to who've done JMT have never gotten a permit approved before hand.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 11, 2014 22:28
|
|
|
Bottom Liner posted:
Their sizing chart is fairly accurate so check that. In general prana fits on the small side. I bought some pairs one size bigger than usual based off their chart and they fit fine. Based off the recommendations in the thread I kept my eyes peeled for some sale pairs and found some cheap and they are the most comfortable pants I own, also dry very quickly. You can get them in convertible style too which is handy. Steep and cheap restocked their warehouse with some prana stuff recently I think because the last few weeks the price was down around $39.00, if you keep your eyes peeled they'll probably come down that low again for larger an smaller sized pairs that don't sell as well. Yiggy fucked around with this message at 11:44 on Feb 13, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Feb 13, 2014 11:42
|
|
|
Saint Fu posted:I'm planning on trying out an Exped inflatable pillow. I feel like down pillows compress the instant I put my head on it and don't really add much support. I used an REI down pillow for awhile but wasn't very happy with it. It would always compress into a small pile of uncomfortable lumps. I picked up an exped inflatable and as long as I slip a shirt or something around it to keep it from sliding it works really well, I was pleasantly surprised. I'm a side sleeper so if I don't have good head support then I have to sleep on an arm, which is rarely comfortable throughout the night without a bunch of shifting. On the exped I was able to stay on one side and sleep comfortably.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 28, 2014 14:28
|
|
|
Fitzy Fitz posted:Anyone have some advice for taking a dog backpacking? I can take care of myself and my girlfriend just fine but I've never taken a dog out before. A buddy and I went on a 26 mile overnight and he took his dog... and it was really a huge pain in the rear end. She would keep running back and forth and getting in our way, messing up our pace. Towards the end of the day she kept getting tired and in our way and it was hard to keep her motivated. When we'd stop she'd instantly want to play and wouldn't conserve her energy. At night when trying to sleep, the high pitched noises from scraping nylon from the tents, sleeping bags and sleeping pads would always wake her up and scare her, and so she didn't get any good sleep. She had a small pack on to carry her own food which made her fart constantly, which made being downwind of her supremely unpleasant. I figured open air and a breeze might help with that, but nope. Long story short, if my buddy ever wants to go on a hiking trip again and is bringing his dog, I'll pass. And this is one of the better behaved and trained dogs in good shape I've ever been around too.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 4, 2014 23:02
|
|
|
Joe Videogames posted:Does anybody use nordic/trekking poles? Yes, as a person who likes hiking and has lovely knees, they are amazing. Also you can find tents that set up using the trekking poles and shave a lb, maybe more, off of your packed tent weight by foregoing normal tent poles.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 15, 2014 07:34
|
|
|
BaseballPCHiker posted:Am I missing something or is there some other setup you all use? Don't get me wrong I've setup plenty of Wheelens in the past and they are kind of fun, but I just don't get the tarp tent love. From my perspective, there are only so many items in your kit that you can squeeze significant weight savings out of, and the tent is a big one. I also know that I'm going to be using trekking poles, so part of the appeal to me is making that item multi-use while also shaving weight off my pack. Also, I used to use a half dome, and fitting the tent poles in my backpack with everything else was kind of a pain. Knowing that I'm going to be hiking in an area which needs a bearcan this summer, pack space has also become a concern for me. Not to mention the extra 2-3 lbs the bearcan adds, so negating that is also a concern. A tarptent allows me to fit everything in the pack for much lighter, while using the "tent poles" part for something else along the hike, outside of the pack where it isn't causing problems. This means I can go for a slightly smaller, and hence lighter, backpack. I was taking a look at the quarterdome you've had for awhile, versus the current quarterdome offered for sale, vs the tarptent I've been using (a notch). The new quarterdome model has shaved about 14 ounces off of the old weight and is retailing at 300.00 without the footprint. Though it is smaller (90 x 54 inches for the quarterdome, 84 x 32 inches for the notch), a new notch is 275.00, +12 if you buy a tyvek groundsheet with it. The weight difference is 2 lb 4 ounces from the advertised minimum pack weight, which tends to be optimistic based on my experience with the halfdome. The aforementioned contrail is only marginally heavier and about 70 bucks cheaper too if you're ok with a single wall tent. Yiggy fucked around with this message at 19:15 on Mar 19, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Mar 19, 2014 19:11
|
|
|
jb7 posted:Southeast Oklahoma is such a wonderful place. Problem identified
|
|
#
¿
Mar 21, 2014 18:31
|
|
|
Saint Fu posted:I've never used a Tarptent personally but I've heard that silnylon tends to sag when wet. Apparently a few quick pulls on the guy lines are all it takes to tighten the slack, just something to be aware of when buying non-freestanding tents. Sag is definitely noticeable. In the tent I use the ceiling comes down rather low towards your head and feet and I've woken up with the mesh right over my face with a film of frozen ice on it. Make sure its night and tight before going to sleep.
|
|
#
¿
May 15, 2014 02:05
|
|
|
Finished my JMT hike yesterday! What a rush. So many experiences with so many interesting people on that trail. Took us about 22 days and we finished one day ahead of our itinerary despite the two zero days. One was because we were at VVR and got lazy but the other one we got rained in before going over Pinchot pass. The 6,000 foot hike down the south side of whitney sucked so bad. Legs are still sore. Hats off to anyone who summits from that direction. All of those staircase switchbacks... Gross... On our second to last day of hiking I met these two older women, aged 67 and 70, who started two days after my buddy and I and still lapped us. Those women were hard core and a real inspiration. Yiggy fucked around with this message at 01:53 on Aug 11, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Aug 11, 2014 01:50
|
|
|
I was sitting around the other day watching the rain outside and I noticed that the feeling in my toes is completely back after a month or two of persistent numbness and tingling after my jmt hike. Been getting restless to go back out again but its close to winter now. I moved out to the West coast though so next year's season ought to be fun. Any tips on decent winter camping near or not too far from the bay area?
|
|
#
¿
Dec 4, 2014 01:03
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 15:30 |
|
|
Tigren posted:By winter camping, do you want snow or no snow? Because you can get both within a very short distance from the Bay. I have some cold weather camping gear but I'd like to avoid snow to the extent that I can.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 4, 2014 03:49
|
|