Blogging is a self-indulgent activity to some extent. This probably goes beyond the norm. However, i do get what i find to be a surprising number of hair questions and comments, so here it is in pictures rather than my usual long-winded narrative (mostly).
1.Homecoming.19892.Homecoming1989
I have used these either on here or on Facebook before. Sunshine is not a big fan of the photos. I still think what i thought then. She is beautiful and looks lovely in these pics. Check out that hair. I was so very envious.
3.Prom1992
I got a haircut in the fall of 1991. It was just a little trim to make my ponytail look ok for a stage performance. Only me and my cousin Kim cut my hair from then until 2004, when i got another trim before heading out on my first business trip to the Mid East.
bigbeard.1995
Ah the sweet carefree days of college – the Metal Years.
nobeard.6:24:98
I have shaved less than 30 times in my life. This was the last time. Who knows, it may remain the final time…
Wakra.12.17.2004
Glorious long hair living! (Swimming in December is awesome.)
Hurt1.3:17:2010
And then there is this. I can’t be certain what exactly happened because a whole lot of whiskey and not a few beers were damaged in the making of this incident. I know i fell down – hard. There was no fight. There was no car or bicycle. I was alone in the basement, or possibly out back of my house. Broken arm (just barely not a broken shoulder), three broken ribs, and a nice shiner. Drinking is bad – at least the way i did it.
Hurt2:3:27:2010
Haircut1.4:8:2010
I had to wear that sling for a really long time and many things were simply not manageable.
Haircut2.4:8:2010
The locks had to go.
Haircut3.4:8:2010
This was given to Locks of Love.
Haircut4.4:8:2010
Haircut5.4:8:2010
Jennifer prettied me up!
JMTBeard.7:15:2012
The last time i came close to having Big Beard was when i got off the John Muir Trail two years ago.
Pre-trim 4/8/2014
Hikin’ Hair
4/8/2014 12:30 am. Thus commences a period of (mostly) unrestrained hair action. Will my eyebrow and hairline finally meet? (Probably). Will my sideburns finally grow in? (Odds are not good.). Will my ear hair reach epically scary dimensions? (You bet!)
Note – I am now operating via iPhone only. Bear with me folks.
A few people have asked me about physical conditioning. Some who have seen my daily itinerary have asked about my fitness to do an average of 25 miles a day over and over.
I feel good about my physical readiness for this trip. While I am a pretty active guy in general, I did some specific training to prepare for the PCT. I started in earnest in the spring of 2013. I began taking more and longer walks.
I live in a small town in Lancaster County, PA. This is farm country with nothing but rolling hills in every direction. We don’t have a ton of elevation change on any one hill. 300 feet is not a bad estimate of the average change. But there are generally at least 2 of these rolling hills in every mile. Several US cycling teams train in the area.
It did take me a while to get used to walking without having a canine companion, but I adjusted. I found a few circuits that I enjoy that do not require any driving. These are my favorite kind of hikes. Just walk out your door and go. I started doing a 13 mile loop with a 20 pound pack at least once a week and more often when I had the time. I would finish the circuit in about 4 hours including several short rest stops and usually a 15-30 minute stop to read and reflect in a beautiful gazebo.
I used these walks not just for conditioning but for gear tests. I tried out several pairs of pants, shirts, hats, and socks until I found the gear that really works for me.
I started running again after I quit smoking last November. Once December hit and the cold really set in, I joined a gym and kept running inside. From December 7th to early March, I only skipped three days. I ran (or hit the elliptical) for at least 1 mile every day. Most days it was 3-6 miles, and I kept an 8 minute mile pace on average.
In January, I started with a weight training program as well. Nothing too intense or extensive but the 30 minute machine circuit at my gym hits all/most major muscle groups and is a great place to start for anyone who has never done weights before. I did that every other day.
Despite the wicked cold and lots of snow, I still went hiking on some of my favorite woodsy trails at least twice a month through the winter. I hiked when it was 12 degrees, old snowpack in the woods, and fresh snow falling. I would take a 20 pound pack and hike 6-12 miles depending on the conditions.
The past few weeks I left the elliptical behind and went back to the treadmill to get my feet used to the pounding again and my body to walking instead of running or elliptical-ing. I set the incline for maximum, and the pace at 4 mph and rocked out for a solid hour. Sometimes I would do another 15 or 20 minutes but most days I would begin my cool down after the hour.
When I combine the past 12 months of physical conditioning and gear testing with my prior experience hiking big days in the Grand Canyon or Mt Humphreys in Flagstaff and completing the John Muir Trail through the Sierras – I feel confident.
None of this is to say that everything will be rosy. Some days will be hard. I just mean that I am really comfortable and confident with the capabilities of my body, my gear, and my mind.
I am ready. Let’s do this!
The magical manzanita forest at Casa de Luna. It will be interesting to see how much greenery is here when I am back in a few weeks…
Fair Warning for new readers – this is only PCT adjacent. If you just came for hikin’ talk, this probably isn’t for you. Feel free to hit the categories or the search options to find some hikey goodness! – Disclaimer Ends.
After about a month of staying up until 3 ish working on plans and general preparations and getting up between 5 and 9, I am almost back onto a hiker’s sleep cycle. In bed between 8 and 10. Up about 5. The next two nights, who knows. My brain is in a bit of a revolt the past week and i have not been able to muster the fortitude to keep it on track. I am even having trouble listening to my audiobook because there are too many thoughts in there and i don’t stay settled. I know this is temporary, and it has been nice for me listening to more music! Though it may be freaking the other folks at my gym out a little bit. When i am in the moment with the tunes, it is all i can do not to sing – but the dancing, air guitar, and head banging cannot be stopped m/. I actually have Rock Neck today from yesterday’s workout.
Casa de Luna (Joe’s House) July 2012
I expect that my time in LA at Joe’s house will be a further aid to getting back onto a hiker’s schedule as well as finally giving me more hands-on time with my gear. I have only pitched my new tent twice and have never slept in it. I know this is less than ideal, and it was definitely not the plan. But it is a good reminder that our plans seldom stand up to actual life for very long. I can’t wait to see Joe and Terrie and be in Green Valley again sleeping in the Magical Manzanita Forest! I plan to do a little hiking and might check out the path up to the aqueduct. I will probably hike out to the oasis as well. I expect that there could be some disc golf in my near future!!
Terrie, slightly confused Korean Girl, Joe
My head is so very full of stuff to write about that it is difficult to pick a starting place. I may need to resort to the old outline and bullet point system for a bit to track the very divergent tales. One recurring issue that i have never figured out how to address is dealing with stories that are an integral part of my life but that may not really be mine to tell – or at least not in sufficient detail. Aside from the ownership of events, an admittedly not insurmountable obstacle, there is the impact on others to consider as well. In that regard i am more concerned about the business implications of full disclosure – which is why you have heard very few stories about my time in Doha and Thiruvananthapuram.
Me and Emily Campbell (oldest niece)
Business and matters of the heart – how do you write about stuff without really writing about it? I have no idea. Maybe i am no good at writing that way because i am also no good at all at living that way. With everyone in my life, i always want to get to the point past all the surface crap, where you can be the real you without your defenses up.* Where you don’t have to worry about being misunderstood or causing offense because you have and trust the good feeling you share and because you know that you can work through miscommunications. I am an “all-in” kind of guy and i prefer to spend my time with people who are also “all-in”. If you are not already nodding your head and saying “yes brother man, i get you”, i offer these simple examples. For me, the best example is the behavior of dogs. Dogs and their bipeds, dogs and each other, dogs and other animals. You always know where you stand with a dog. You know if they want to do what you want to do or if they are just going along because they like to be with you. You know when they miss you. You know when they would rather just nap by the fire. You know when they don’t like you and to what degree. You know when they do like you and to what degree. The other example i offer for those of you who are not well versed in dog is children. I don’t know kids as well as dogs, but i have spent a goodly time with many a youngster and there are some similarities. In that magical time before the conscious brain takes over, maybe it is before self-consciousness (not self-awareness now, that is something else), they leave it all right out in front of you. I like this. I don’t like that. I like you. That guy is scary. Let’s cuddle up and take a nap. I need a hug. I wish she/he would play with me. All of it just right out there in the open. I think that is a great way to live and i deeply mourn that so many of us lose this ability as we age.
Rachel and Emily
Is there a line between boldness and stupidity? Evidence indicates that there is. I am finally pretty clear that such a thing exists. I am even getting better at locating it and abiding by it in business. But for other aspects of life, i am still not very good at these distinctions. I wanna live bravely, boldly, and in the open. I do manage that most of the time, the rough spots generally occur with “new” folks. I don’t know how much of this is normal and how much may be related to having a natural bias towards addiction – If one is good, more must be better. If once was good, all the time has to be the best, right? I am getting pretty good about controlling my relationship to substances, but i can get hooked on people too. How do you know what is really your heart and what is just some crazy expletive that the really freaky diseased part of you is excited about? Stupid heart never checks in with brain anyway. I don’t know what that guy is up to half the time. But i do recognize him as one of mine because of how he goes about loving what he loves and that he wants to do it all Super Size!
Now that this post is firmly lost in the tall grass, it is probably time to stop.
I should have a more PCT related post coming in the next day or so about physical preparation!
Rock On Peeps. Be Bold. Live fully. Try not to hide!
n
* I am not saying that i always get to this magical place with everyone, but it is my goal, and i tend to spend more time and have longer relationships with folks when we DO get to the point where we are free to be ourselves without any worries or psychic baggage.
Howdy folks. It is getting pretty exciting round these parts. I am leaving in a week. I am thrilled and anxious and a little nervous and really jazzed up and a little scared. One of my new hiking friends and i were talking a bit about fear/anxiety. I shared a thought with her. This is not my original concept, just something i have heard from many sources and that i draw strength from at times. Bravery and courage do not imply an absence of fear. To be brave, to act with courage, is to be afraid and to carry on despite your fear.
I am practicing with a few acts of bravery here in PA 🙂
G+L+N 2003
The previously endless task list is no longer endless and all the big chunks are done. There are still a few things to tend to. If you are as “particular” as i am, there are always more things to do. All the resupply boxes are packed, addressed, and ready to ship out. I have a stockpile of backup food prepared in case i need to have my mail drop angel Liz adjust my portion sizes. I have two boxes of backup gear packaged and labeled for easy identification in case stuff breaks, wears out, or i want something else once i am out there doin’ it.
I filed and paid my taxes. I enrolled in a health insurance program. I got my booster shots both for regular USA life and for almost definite international business travel that will commence as soon as i return to everyday life after the hike (Tetanus and a Typhoid booster). My car is at the doctor’s office getting a new lung so that it will be ready for my folks to use in my absence.
I got some great tent repair tools from the maker of my new tent and have patched the hole i inadvertently made in the rainfly the second time i ever set up the tent. This kit includes a very lightweight device that will preclude the same kind of incident occurring again.
My desktop since 2006
All of that necessary surface stuff aside – there have been some interesting emotional shifts and other reflections during this time of preparation. I look back at the years of drinking and smoking and continue to wonder how and why i lived that way at all, and for so long. There are so many great benefits for me in being sober and an ex-smoker. (I can never be a non-smoker. Even if i thought that it was possible for that title to apply to a former smoker, which i do not, Bill Hicks would crawl out of his grave, join Facebook, and become my friend – just so that he could unfriend me for applying that label to myself. No one wants that.) I will be 5 months smoke free on Friday, but i don’t really feel any different. That does not make me want to smoke again. I love not smelling terrible (or at least not terrible in THAT way). Many people have commented that it should be much easier to hike now. I don’t feel that. I don’t know if not enough time has passed, or if it has more to with me just having a very large lung capacity and staying active even when i was about 40 pounds overweight. I like not smoking. I like not spending the money i used to spend on cigarettes!
The not drinking has many more tangible, immediate, and longer term effects. One of the biggest things for me is that i am not depressed anymore. After living in a constant state of at least mild depression with several rather severe swings into deeper dark places – i have not even really been sad since i quit drinking, and it feels great. Aside from an initial few weeks of changing body chemistry, i sleep so well now. I fall asleep easier and actually sleep all through the night. What a great change that is. Having good sleep alone has probably helped reshape my attitude into the happy sunny guy you all know and love those days 😉 (Yes, i used to be even grumpier. Don’t you wish you knew me then?) I am still me, still have my own ticks, and tendencies, but i let more stuff go now. I am hanging on to less. I do still bottle things inside and am far more likely to channel emotions inside to try to understand and control them rather than just letting them run free – but i am doing it less.
A final thought to keep this “brief” and not spiral into a super lengthy introspective ramble – an unexpected correlation between long distance hiking and sober time. Many guide books offer the advice that if your goal is to thru hike a long distance trail like the PCT, you have to expect some changes out there due to fires, floods, landslides, mudslides, endangered species, and other factors. However you do choose to surmount these difficulties, the key is to walk a continuous foot path from start to finish. You don’t want to have to say, “i hiked the whole PCT, except for that bit near Idyllwild because of the …”. I understood this immediately, both what they were trying to say and why it might be important, particularly in your own memory and in talking with other hikers.
Me and Lucas at Mickey and Max’s House – 2011
I quit drinking (this time) in January of 2013, just a few days after finding out that one of my dear friends and mentors who also struggled with depression and addiction killed himself by hanging. But on April 14th, 2014, the day i will start my thru hike attempt, i will be 6 months sober. That is because i chose to drink last October. It was something of an experiment. I didn’t go crazy or shirk my duties or anything – but i did drink for several days. I am glad i did it. If only to know that i don’t need to ever run that test again. I hated it. I was so very disappointed in myself for doing it. I had to make sure that i made a few public statements about it so that i would not have a bunch of my supportive friends trying to wish me a “happy one year sober” in January of 2014 that i did not earn. I don’t declare that i have been sober for a little over a year except for that little incident in October. That would sound and feel false and wrong to me. I don’t want to have a similar thing with my thru hike. I am not a purist in the sense of “every possible mile of the PCT must be walked”. There are several alternate routes that are not mandatory, they just take you to different sites and i am really excited about hiking those paths. For me, those alternates do not break my chain of thru hiking the PCT. Skipping sections in a car or something like that – something that does break the concept of walking a path all the way from Mexico to Canada – that would violate my personal goal. So, i get what they are saying and i am on board!
I am not judging the choices others make. That is their decision and their lives. You go out have the hike that you want to have. This one is mine.
PS – i keep meaning to write about music and m/ METAL m/ but i just have not had the time. And yes, those issues are timely and hike related! My new buddy Minda and i have a lot of common musical tastes, though as of yet, she has not found any Metal that works for her and we have been talking about metal. I wanted to write a bit about it and explain what it is about Metal that appeals to me. It may not be what you think…
Anywho – be well folks.
Rock On!
PPS – i have written about my dogs throughout this blog and i am sure i will again. With the anniversary of both of them passing – Guthrey at the end of March in 2004 and Lucas 03/30/2012 – my company getting really active in the MidEast again (which happened right after Guthrey died), and me going to hike in California again (i hiked the JMT a few months after Lucas passed) it has been on my mind. I miss my buddies every single day. No day is really harder than any other. But i am feeling it quite a bit right now.
Hi Folks! It has been awhile. I hope you are well. Aww thanks, me too! How is the family? The kids? Great, great, good to hear.
Holtwood Dam 3/22
I have been super duper ultra busy the past few months getting ready for this hike – working on the plans, buying the last minute gear, figuring out my resupply strategy and buying food, packing boxes, testing gear and replacing a few items, and doing my real job, and working with my favorite volunteer group Lancaster Young Professionals. I have been the acting event chair for a gubernatorial debate to be held this October and had many tasks to finish up as well as finding and briefing/training my replacement. Work at RAI has exploded with opportunities, which is good, but the timing is problematic. My dad and I have gamed out as many scenarios as we can, done lots of contract work, and created plans for many different possible futures. Yesterday and today we have been doing all the last minute stuff before he gets on a jet to the MidEast. Normally, i would be going with him, but we both decided it made sense for me to continue on with my plan and let him run with the ball solo for a bit. Potentially missing some of the early stages of the pending business development just means i lose the right to complain about how things are set-up when i get back 🙂 I have also had to wear my tech hat quite a bit getting my dad up to speed on a new computer, introducing an iPad into our workflow, and preparing my mom to be as tech savvy as possible during the research portion of her sabbatical. That’s my paragraph long update and excuse – now to business!
If you research lightweight hiking, or ultra lightweight hiking, you will find loads of information and many, many gear lists. I get frustrated reading some gear lists. How one approaches hiking and gear selection can be deeply personal and i am not trying to change anyone’s mind about their process. But it does irk me to see so very many gear lists trumpeting Base Pack Weights (all gear and supplies except food and water) at or under 12 pounds that are about 15-20 items long. Any hiker can read those and know, there is tons of small stuff left off of those lists. Small stuff adds up. If you are taking the time to weigh your stuff and make and publish lists, just be real about it. That is my feeling. With that said, here is my actual, no expletive around, gear list.
Base Pack Weight without Bear Canister = 16.17 pounds
Base pack Weight with Bear Canister = 18.73 pounds
The Big Three
Description
Weight Oz.
Pack
Gossamer Gear Mariposa
28.00
Sleeping Bag
Z Packs 20 Wide XL with sack
22.70
Sleeping Pad
Neo Air X Lite
12.70
Liner
Homemade Silk
6.40
Tent, stakes, Stuff sack
Tarptent Contrail
29.30
Totals – Ounces
99.10
Totals – Pounds
6.19
Kitchen
Description
Weight Oz.
Stove
Pocket Rocket w/case
3.95
Lighter
Bic Mini
0.40
Fuel Can Large Full
MSR 227 g canister – 13.2 oz
13.20
Pot
SP TI 600 w/lid
3.50
Spoon
Yogi Orange
0.20
Cup
Sea to Summit X Mug
2.20
Drying Cloth
Cut Micro Towel
0.20
* Bear Can
BV 500
40.95
Totals – Ounces
64.60
Totals – Pounds
4.04
Water
Description
Weight Oz.
Bladder/Hose
Platypus Hoser 1L
3.15
Bottles
1L powerade
1.70
Reservoir
Platypus 2 L
1.75
Reservoir
MSR 4L
4.30
* Filter – Sawyer Squeeze Mini
16 oz Bag, filter, and Backflush tool
4.15
Purification
Aquamira full
3.10
Water gear bag
StoS XXS
0.40
Totals – Ounces
18.55
Totals – Pounds
1.16
Clothes in Pack
Description
Weight Oz.
Socks – Hiking second pair
Smartwool PHD Run Mini Light Cushion M
1.65
Long Underwear tops
Cap 2 Large
5.65
Long Underwear Bottoms
Patagonia Cap 2 Medium
4.90
shorts
Nike black with white stripe
4.00
Rain Jacket
Marmot
13.55
* Rain Pants
EMS (11.6 oz)
Balaclava
Army
1.50
Down Jacket
Golite 6.75
6.75
Hat
Army Watchcap
1.25
Gloves
Cheap cotton garden gloves
1.60
Camp Shoes
Crocs – size 10
14.00
Bag for clothes
gossamer gear poly sack
1.35
Totals – Ounces
56.20
Totals – Pounds
3.51
Incidentals/Emergency
Description
Weight Oz.
Whistle
Fox 40 Sharx
0.45
Compass
Burton Classic
1.25
Headlamp/main light
Photon Light w/necklace
0.25
Kindling
Sol Tinder Quik
0.05
Emergency fire starter
Matches in Waterproof case
0.90
Skin Repair
Super Glue x 2
0.45
repair kit/q-tips/earplugs
sewing/gear tape/qtips/ear plugs
0.60
Tick Key
Tick Key
0.15
Soap
Dr Bronners
0.55
nail clippers
toe
1.55
Microcloth – personal towel
Cut up
0.55
Rope
2 mm 30 ft plus cord wrap
0.50
Headnet
Sea to summit
0.90
Bandanna
Lucas and PCT Class
2.20
Notebook/Pencil/Zip
From Marie
1.70
iPhone
5S with lifeproof
5.35
charge cords
1 Lightning 1 mico usb
0.90
usb charge block
Anker 5 port
8.45
Camera
lumix DMC-ZS20
7.40
external battery
Anker 6000
4.70
more cords
camera
1.30
Headphones
Sony DREX61IP
0.45
Tooth Kit
brush/paste/floss/zip
2.00
Sunblock
Sport 1 OZ
1.30
Watch
Small w/band
0.60
Lip Stuff
Bert’s Bees
0.25
Knife
Swiss Army small
0.75
Maps
HalfMile Sections per food drop
3.00
Summit Backpack Stuff Sack
Sea to Summit
2.60
bags/Zips
camera zip
0.25
bags/Zips
anker hub/bat/cords zip
0.25
bags/Zips
StoS XXS drawstring emergency
0.45
Totals – Ounces
52.05
Totals – Pounds
3.25
Toilet Kit
Description
Weight Oz.
Trowel
GSI
2.95
Hand Sani
2 oz container
2.35
Triple Antibac-cream
Equate hydro
1.00
Wipes
MYO 10-pack from bulk pack
2.15
Trash bag
1 quart freezer zip
0.20
Toilet Gear Bag
StoS XXS Drawstring
0.45
Totals – Ounces
9.10
Totals – Pounds
0.57
* items: Bear Can – only need for around 300 miles through the Sierras
Water filter – may send home after the desert, may keep whole hike
Rain Pants – i will not carry these for the ~1,700 miles of California. Might mail them to myself in OR or WA, might not. Never seen or heard of comfortable rain pants. Mine certainly are not. I kinda figure that i am planning to walk outside for 4-5 months, sometimes i might get wet.
Not part of Base Pack Weight Calculations, but important gear none-the-less:
Not in Pack
Description
Weight Oz.
Hike Pants
EcoMesh pants w/belt
12.00
Hike Shirt
Patagonia Cap 1 Large
6.75
Hike Socks
Smartwool PHD Run Mini Light Cushion M
1.70
Hike Hat
Tilley
3.80
Sunglasses
Ironman Triatholon
1.10
Poles w/duct tape
Leki Khumbu
21.00
Shoes
Merrel Moad Vent (10 W)
34.50
Gaiters
Dirty Girl Large
1.10
Insoles
Super feet green E
3.90
Totals – Ounces
85.85
Totals – Pounds
5.37
There may be some other gear write-ups later, but there may not. Let me know if you have any questions or if there is anything you would like to know more about.
My dad has been interested in my preparations for the PCT, and told me that he would like to go on some more hikes together. After we hiked Kelly’s Run to The Pinnacle (pics here) he was excited to do more trips. When i have time for overnight or gear shakedown hikes i head out to the AT and hike south. It is great to hike anywhere outside of rocky PA, and my last AT hike stopped just about ten miles outside of Shenandoah National Park. My family spent a lot of time in SNP when i was just a wee lad. I can remember park rangers teaching us how to walk like “indians” through Big Meadows, and many other trips. My dad told me that he wanted to do some overnight hiking with me and was very excited about the opportunity for us to return to SNP together, and to do it in the winter when the crowds would be quite thin and the views would be unlike anything you would see in the Park at any other time of year.
From “P” blue loop clockwise to orange to first camera to white to second black to orange to blue clockwise back to “P”. Gotta love PA!!
To facilitate that, we have to outfit him with some gear. That meant that he got his own section in my incredibly dorky but highly useful gear spreadsheet. We loaded a pack for him, using much of the actual gear he would need to carry on an overnight, and headed out to Holtwood Dam for a 12 mile shakedown hike. Including 3 liters of water, Vance was carrying 25.3 pounds when we left the car. I like the area near Holtwood, on the west side of the Susquehanna. There are lots of rhododendrons and streams and very very few other hikers – even during peak times. I have hiked around here many times, but there are three trips that stand out and i have made movies for you from the pics and video shot on those hikes.
Hike 1 = Green to Green, Hike 2 = Red to Red, Hike 3 = Blue to Blue
It was a cold day, but it is such a beautiful hike and we had fun. Vance handled the weight and the mileage very well. After that hike, he had a new appreciation for my anal approach to tracking weight and was eager to lose some pack pounds wherever possible. We have since changed things up, pulling or swapping out some gear and clothes. I also have a few more pieces of gear on order and a few yet to buy. We are looking at our first SNP hike to begin in late February and are both really excited about it!
The short story: i have been converted and now cook with denatured alcohol. I got a titanium Caldera Cone (plus titanium floor insert) matched to my Snow Peak 600 Titanium mug and now my stove and pot weigh 5.95 ounces! A fuel bottle, filled with enough to boil 2 cups of water eight times, adds 4.75 ounces. This is a big weight and bulk savings compared to all my old kits. I can boil two cups of water, all i ever need for both rehydrating food (2/3-1 cup) and having a hot beverage (the remainder), in about 5 minutes on 1/2 ounce of fuel. (Tests performed at low altitude ~ 2,000 ft, but low temps ~ 15 F.) And it is super duper quiet!
Snow Peak no lidSnow Peak with lid
I had to make two adjustments to the Snow Peak. I ordered an aftermarket titanium lid, and i added some silicone tubing to the handles so that they can be easily held while the pot is hot. I got both ideas from Jason Klass.
The Caldera Cone (CC) is really neat. It comes with an alcohol stove and a combo unit windscreen/pot-stand. All the elements of this design work together to maximize efficiency. Each CC is sized specifically for an individual cooking pot so that the pot is held the best distance from the flame created by the stove, and so that the windscreen/pot-holder channels heat to the right places. I ordered the optional “floor” for the stove and am so pleased with that choice. I cannot believe that these are optional instead of mandatory! Not only does the addition of the floor help to reflect heat into the cooking process instead of it being lost into the earth, it is much safer.
Caldera Cone ComponentsCaldera Cone assembled with Snow Peak
The main reason it took me so long to try an alcohol stove system was a concern about safety. Denatured alcohol is clear and invisible, even the flames are nearly impossible to see. Some forest fires have been started by people using denatured alcohol stoves. Like any system, it can be used properly or improperly and there are a few things one can do to make it safer. Adding a drop or three of food coloring to your fuel makes it easy to see the fuel in liquid form (though the flames are still tough to see). I chose green because it reminds me of the Mr Yuck poison stickers of my youth. Using a floor is also a fantastic safety aid. Even being very careful, it is difficult not to spill a few drops of the fuel when you are going for the primer pan, as one does in cold weather. If you have your stove centered on a metal floor before you add the fuel, any excess will burn on the metal and not the forest floor.
The caldera cone and floor easily fit against the walls inside my bear canister. The stove fits inside my cook pot. This protects both items and provides a kitchen with a minimal footprint inside my pack. A full kitchen kit with fuel for at least 4 days at 10.7 ounces! Incredible!!
Old MSR PotPot/Stove/Fuel Canister ready for use
Here are some pics and stats on my previous kitchen kits. For the John Muir Trail in 2012, i carried an old MSR pot, the MSR pocket rocket, and used canister fuel. This pot alone weighs 15.7 ounces. The pocket rocket weighs 4 ounces. And an almost empty fuel canister weighs 6.9 ounces. A full canister weighs 12.6 ounces. One of the many problems with the fuel canister system is that there is no way to accurately gauge how much fuel is left in a canister. At re-supply points, you have to decide: do i go to the next resupply point hoping that this canister has enough fuel to get me there, do i buy a new canister, do i carry both the old canister and the new canister, or do i leave a used canister with an unknown amount of fuel here for someone else? Another problem is that you are really not supposed to use a windscreen with a fuel canister stove. Makes sense. Do not trap and aim heat at your compressed gas canister that has a light torch on top. But that does make it take far longer to boil water in the field with these systems. This system weighs 19.6 ounces, or 1 1/4 pounds – without any fuel!! OH – and they are REALLY LOUD!
GSI Pinnacle SoloistSoloist with fuel can
I got this pot, the GSI Pinnacle Soloist because it is smaller, lighter, and a fuel canister fits inside of the pot! Pretty cool feature and not a bad system. The soloist weighs 8.4 ounces and it does still have way more capacity than i need on solo hikes, so i looked for another solution. I found another GSI pot, the Haulite Minimalist. This is a nice little pot. Weighing in at 6.45 ounces with all its accessories, it is not as light as Snow Peak, but it has a few cool features. The pot cozy is very convenient. It also comes with a pot gripper thingy so you can pick it up when it is hot. The pot gripper has a magnet inside it which is great if one cooks with fuel canisters because the pot gripper will stick to your fuel can and you will not lose it nor set it down in the dirt. The lid is pretty much trash. It is much heavier than it needs to be and it has a thick rubbery seal that extends past the edge of the pot, so that when you are cooking, it is difficult to not burn/melt the lid.
GSI MinimalistGSI Minimalist assembled
This is my primary backup pot and the one i will use when taking other folks (who do not have their own gear) out backpacking with me. My dad and i are planning to hike the AT through Shenandoah National Park in January and this will probably be his pot for that trip. Given that it is still a very useful pot, i am going to order a new lid for it from the good folks at four dog stoves!
If any of this is unclear or you would like more information, do feel free to ask questions! I have made my first official youtube video, and may begin adding some video components to future blogs and gear reviews. Ideally, i will wait until i have moved this blog to its new hosting place and can directly embed video, but if my multitude of readers have burning questions that only a video can answer, things could go another way…
I have been a gatorade guy for many years. It was the first hydration supplement and it is very inexpensive. Gatorade powder while messy, is transportable. I learned as a young boy that i sweat a lot, and that i must take care to avoid dehydration. I had a few bad spells with this before i learned my lesson.
Newport 1984
I aim for two quarts of electrolyte replacement per day when backpacking*. That can get bulky, heavy, and turn into a bit of a sticky mess when dealing with Gatorade powder. On my quest to lighten my pack and re-think old systems, i decided it was high time to investigate the modern world of electrolyte replacements. A little research brought these five products to the front. I read about each of them and created a chart to compare costs. Hydration Supplement Cost
With the results from the cost comparison in hand, i decided that i wanted to try the Nuun tablets. The tablet concept sounds great. No messing about with powder or figuring out how to get it from a ziplock into your water vessel. The Nuun tabs are also approved for use in hydration bladders. I have not tried this yet and am not sure if i will, but it is nice to know that is a viable option. The Camelbak tabs seem very similar to the Nuun on paper, and may even be marginally cheaper, but i operate by quarts or liters in the woods and wanted a supplement that would lend itself well to that system. Nuun formulated their product so that one tab dissolves in 16 oz of water, two tabs for one quart. Camelbak designed their system so that one tab dissolves in 24 oz of water. This does not work well for me. If you operate on more of a base 12 water system, that may be the product for you.
My local EMS had a tube of the Active Hydration lemon lime tabs and i tried them out. The taste was a little more like mineral water than i prefer, but the ease of use and the savings in weight made up for that. After that initial test, i ordered a variety pack of U Natural Hydration. Not only do these have fewer ingredients and additives, they are smaller and lighter. They taste better than the original Nuun lemon lime tabs i tried as well. Check out these comparisons to Gatorade powder:
3 Quarts Nuun U Natural Hydration = .7 oz3 Quarts Gatorade Powder = 7.55 oz
Though Gatorade powder is still the reigning champ when it comes to cost, the savings in weight and bulk, and the added convenience of the Nuun tabs has made these my new electrolyte replacement solution.
Next time: Cooking systems
Rock On!
* I tend to both drink and sweat more than many folks. The amount of water i consume is one of the things other backpackers and fitness people tend to argue about with me. You hydrate your way. I’ll carry my own water. I drink 5 liters of water a day minimum – and that is just a normal day at home. Other folks argue with me that “you don’t need electrolyte replacements”. I say again, you hydrate your way. I have been near dehydration several times and it is no fun. I have seen other trained and fit athletes stopped in their tracks, and in serious pain and some danger, due to dehydration. The first aid techniques i have studied all agree that water alone is not the best way to fight dehydration. In addition to all that, it is really nice to have something besides water to drink 🙂
I am going to rock through Hydration Bladders and Base Layers quickly today, paving the way for two more posts in this series: Hydration/Electrolyte Supplements and Cooking Systems.
I tested Patagonia’s Capeline 1 and 2 upper body base layers on this trip, hiking in the Cap 1 and sleeping in the Cap 2. I liked both of these items better than my old system using Under Armour Heat Gear as a base layer. The fabric on the Cap 1 feels great and looks super high-tech. The Cap 2 also feels very good. The weave looks a little weird though. You can sort of see through the weave almost like on a wide wale corduroy.
Cap 1 is supposed to be the lightest series they make. Cap 2 should be a little bit heavier and a little bit warmer. I noticed no difference in the warmth of the two garments (on this hike and in subsequent use). My Cap 1 weighs 6.75 ounces and my Cap 2 weighs 5.60 ounces. My Cap 1 dries noticeably faster than the Cap 2. The Cap 2 costs $14 more than Cap 1. I am going to continue testing and observing through the winter, but so far, i think that the Cap 1 is my new long sleeve base layer.
I also tested the Cap 1 base layer bottoms and really enjoyed them. I do not like to have a lot of material in the groinal zone while moving about, so i hike commando style. But it was great to pull these on when i got to camp. They felt nice, kept me warm, and did not bunch or pull. At 5.55 ounces, they are even lighter than the old traditional red long johns.
The first hydration bladder i ever had was a Camelbak 3 liter model. I wanted a way to easily carry and drink water while dog walking and this was a great system. I have been using that bladder for backpacking as well. Only during my recent campaign to lose pack weight did i stop to think about my water systems. The Camelbak has some nice features, but it is also quite heavy for a bladder. I have switched to a Platypus Hoser 3 Liter. This is lighter and worked just fine. It does not come with a shutoff valve which is a drawback. One of the first things my buddy Jake taught me about having a hydration bladder is this: always engage the shutoff valve before you set your pack down. If you are in town, your house, someone’s car – setting your pack down on the bite valve can cause you to drain water all over someone’s property. If you are in the woods, worse than getting your stuff wet, you can LOSE ALL YOUR WATER. I was very careful on this trip to always set my pack down with the bladder side up and free of encumbrances.
I did order a shutoff valve but this had some issues upon arrival. A shutoff valve should have one piece that can “easily” be moved by a thumb or finger and a second stationary piece that acts as a stop. On the Camelbak, this system is simple and works well.
Camelbak Open
* Looking at these two Camelbak photos, you can see that the yellow piece moves and that there is decent access to the yellow tab when in the open position. *
Camelbak Closed
On the Platypus, the piece that moves to activate the shutoff and the backstop are exactly the same size, so that you have to use a finger nail or other thin object to separate the two halves before you can activate the shutoff. This fails the simple and easy to do with a thumb or finger test, or even one hand test. However, a few careful cuts made with a tiny saw from a leatherman, and i was able to chop the stationary stopping piece down to size so that the moving piece is now easily accessible and easy to activate with just a thumb or finger.
Platypus OpenPlatypus Closed
* Looking at the Platypus pics, you can see that the clear plastic piece moves. The blue plastic was the exact same size as that clear plastic tab. Now that i have cut away some of the excess blue plastic, this Platypus valve is easier to work than the Camelbak. It is difficult to understand how the shutoff valve cleared product testing “as-is”. *
Despite the minor inconveniences faced in getting a working shutoff valve, i like the switch to Platypus. Camelbak has changed their design since my last purchase years ago, moving all their bladders and hoses to a “quick disconnect” system. I do not like these. For me they are trying to fix a problem that does not exist and adding in more parts that can and will fail.My old Camelbak 3 liter weighs 7.55 ounces and my new Platypus 3 liter weighs 3.7 ounces. Platypus wins!
**UPDATE: the Camelbak shutoff valves DO fit the Platypus tubes. These are cheaper, available off the shelf at your local hiking store, and work much better with no modifications. My current set-up: Playtpus Hoser 1 Liter bladder with Camelbak shutoff valve as my drinky bladder. 2 liter platy closed with platy cap to re-fill. The 1 liter size makes it much easier to monitor your intake and not drink more than you intend. The smaller 1 L size is also super easy to flip up out of a backpack and re-fill without having to remove all your gear.
A final anecdote from the last hike. After all of my careful planning and thinking about gear, all the time spent going through my gear again and again, and all the time weighing gear – i forgot to pack a spoon. I ended up using the handle of my toothbrush to stir my food (oatmeal breakfasts – custom dehydrated bean mix dinners) and just made the meals thinner and drank them. Perhaps i need to make a checklist? My dad was ribbing me about it and saying “maybe you need to get another spoon!” The saddest part may be this, i have 4 hiking spoons…
I ain’t perfect. Live and learn. Adapt and evolve!
Critter Conclusion:
In addition to the many deer i mentioned, i also saw a gang of turkeys towards the end of Day 2! It was getting dark and they were across a little valley, but i saw them take off from the ground and fly into some trees. There were maybe 12 of them. Again – no pics. I wasn’t worried about spooking them. But with the light and the distance, i did not think the odds of a clear pic were very good. And i was really tired and hoping to make it to camp before dark.
Pack Weight:
Things have changed in Backpacking since my youth. It is scary to think back on the things we learned when i was in the scouts. We carried hatchets, raw potatoes, canned goods, all kinds of weird heavy stuff. We would carry fresh fruits – lots of apples – and chuck the remains into the forest to decay naturally. None of that stuff matches up with today’s principles, and in many cases, rules and laws. We will have to come back to Leave No Trace principles later, because that it is important, but it is not gear review or Pack Weight.
Big Pack 1
My buddy Poppa Joe shared a quote that sums the whole thing up nicely: “The fun goes up as the weight goes down.” Warner Springs Monte
The lighter your pack, the easier it is on your body. The lighter your pack, the less crap you have with you in the woods – hopefully lending to a simpler experience with more time spent in the moment than fussing over gear. I have been gear obsessed for the least few years. I have two scales for weighing gear and several spreadsheets with products and weights and links to reviews and comparisons. In addition to simply enjoying good gear, i do all this now so that i won’t have to think about it in the woods.
Big Pack 2 (slightly smaller/lighter)
Once i wanted to get beyond weekend trips, i started like most other beginners (experience not age), with about a 60 pound pack. You get in the woods a little bit, talk with some other hikers, buy a few different things and get your weight down below 40 pounds. This is still way too heavy. I did make a few changes, mostly buying a new pack, and got my Base Pack Weight (BPW)* near 30 pounds before i hiked the John Muir Trail in 2012. Things were better, but i discovered that this was still way too heavy. Almost everyone I met on that hike was thru-hiking the PCT and they ALL had these tiny packs.
* There is not a truly consistent standard for calculating BPW. The concept is that your BPW should be the weight of everything NON-Consumable in your pack. But how that gets interpreted varies. Do you include or exclude your water treatment drops, or vitamins, or toilet paper/wipes/hand sanitizer, or sunscreen, or stove fuel, or, or… Many folks, me included, tend to use BPW for everything but food and water. I like this system. It is easy to understand, replicate, and provides a useful standard for comparison.
From my talks with experienced long-distance hikers and other research, my goal is to get my BPW as close to 15 pounds as possible. It can be easy for someone new to backpacking to get set-up with a lightweight kit. It can be more difficult for experienced hikers to drop pack weight. There are many things that you can buy, but you really need to learn how to challenge ALL of your preconceptions. This has been a fun and enlightening process. Why do i have so many zip locks? Why are these things in this bag? How you keep your gear and spare gear organized at home does not have to be the same way you organize your gear in your pack. Without making very many new purchases, but focusing on analyzing my behaviors, i got my BPW for this hike to about 22 pounds! That is over 8 pounds lighter than my JMT kit, and included some winter specific gear that will not be in my PCT pack!
Check out how small Joe’s pack is.
My master gear spreadsheet, where i am tracking my PCT gear, includes gear that i do not yet have but which i have decided to purchase for sure, and has very few holes which represent items still under debate: will i take this or not, will i get this brand or that brand, etc. This spreadsheet is tracking two BPW numbers: with and without a Bear Canister. Many sections of the PCT require hikers to use a bear canister. I am thinking about carrying one the whole trip. Most people only carry one where it is strictly required. I like the bear canister. It is simple and effective, and it works against every critter, not just bears.
Very few people actually know how to effectively hang food out of the reach of bears. Even if you do know how, there are not many places that present the correct configuration of trees to oblige you. If you do have the knowledge, and nature does provide the correct availability and spacing of trees, this system does nothing to prevent squirrels, mice, possums, and any other kind of critter that can climb or fly from getting your food. Given all that, why wouldn’t people carry a bear canister all the time? They weigh about 2.5 pounds.
Joe is sitting on a Bear Can
My heavy number, BPW with bear canister, is down to 17.9 pounds. I am at 15.4 without the bear can. We will see as i continue to fill the few holes in my list. I project that when the list is complete, i will be at about 19 pounds BPW w/Bear can. And that is why i think i am going to replace the tent i just replaced. I can lose about 2 pounds switching from my current free-standing tent to an ultralight single-wall tent that uses one or both of my hiking poles as the support structure. More on tents another time.
That is a quick look at pack weight. There will probably be more later. As i get closer, i am sure i will do a complete inventory series as well.
Feel free to let me know if there is anything specific you would like to learn about.
