backpacking

[jeff351]

Just returned from our annual backpacking trip; a couple of friends and I did a section of the "100 Mile Wilderness" on the Appalachian Trail in Maine. Due to time constraints we dropped in at Gulf Hagas and hiked the 70 miles back to Abol Bridge which is at the base of Mt Katahdin. Planned on 6 days out but with bad weather coming in we hauled @$$ and pushed through to finish up at 10pm on the 5th day. Beautiful scenery and good times. Its so nice to take a break from normal life and just be in the middle of nowhere. I remember getting up one night and looking around, but it was absolutely pitch black with no moonlight and dead silent. Some might find it creepy, but man it was so peaceful. 

 

 

[Jeep_Rat]

Totally envious. Wish I could still do more than a few miles a day..

[87MJTIM]

The AT is on my “bucket list”

[fiatslug87]

1 hour ago, 87MJTIM said:

The AT is on my “bucket list”

Do it before you get close to the bucket!

[gogmorgo]

I’m always curious about peoples’ setups. 
I’ve always had a mind where I don’t mind carrying a little extra weight for at least a semblance of luxury. Like I carry coffee beans and a grinder instead of going instant or grinding the beans ahead of time, and I’ll try to bring some “real” food as a treat instead of just everything dehydrated. But in my local area, the trend is towards super minimalism to avoid bringing any weight that isn’t strictly necessary.

[jeff351]

3 hours ago, gogmorgo said:

I’m always curious about peoples’ setups. 
I’ve always had a mind where I don’t mind carrying a little extra weight for at least a semblance of luxury. Like I carry coffee beans and a grinder instead of going instant or grinding the beans ahead of time, and I’ll try to bring some “real” food as a treat instead of just everything dehydrated. But in my local area, the trend is towards super minimalism to avoid bringing any weight that isn’t strictly necessary.

Yeah I tried the super-minimal packing once and hated it. My happy medium is going for pack and sleep comfort; I used my Gregory Baltoro 75L pack, a Big Agnes Lost Dog 15 sleeping bag with an inflatable insulated sleep pad, and Marmot Tungsten UL tent. Everything else is just food. The food weighed the most since we were on our own for the duration. I vacuumed packed breakfast in the form of oatmeal mixes, and a variety "add hot water and enjoy meals" from various hiking food vendors like Mountain House Meals or Packit Gourmet. And a LOT of on the go snack stuff. Folgers instant coffee is good enough for me on the trail.

I also prefer to hike in trail running shoes vs hiking shoes, personal preference. 

 

When we stepped of each of our packs weighed in in the low 40 lb range.  

[gogmorgo]

Most of my gear is MEC, similar to REI but Canadian. Fairly similar setup I think. The sleeping pad used to be self-inflating but after rolling it up a few times well below freezing it doesn't do that any more, and insulation from the ground is starting to get not so good so it's probably time for another one soon. I've also got an inflatable pillow, beats the crap out of stuffing the rest of your clothes into a shirt. I went for an Osprey pack due to the airflow for my back, sweat is a BIG deal for me.

On a longer trip I'll definitely end up going to the dehydrated meals by the end, but I'll usually haul in a decent steak and potato sort of meal for the first night, bacon and eggs for the first breakfast. I've tried using frozen full meals for second or third days but they need a pretty specific weather window to work properly, otherwise they thaw way too quickly or they're still solid by the time you get to camp. I also target 40ish pounds. Hiking boots over shoes if I'm carrying a pack, but I'll go for a lighter shoe if I'm travelling light.
I've got an isobutane pocket stove that sits on the ground instead of on top of the gas bottle. Seems to help in terms of shelter from wind and stability, although I prefer cooking over a fire if that's an option. Anodized aluminum cookware, bamboo utensil set.

[Pete M]

last big hike I did was a 50 miler in the mountains of NM with my old scout troop (as an adult leader) and I brought some comforts with me, including an lightweight aluminum beach chair and an umbrella for the sun.  the boys poked fun of me for being an "old man" until about day 3 when the scorching sun finally showed itself and the campsite areas became far more primitive, and then they started asking if they could borrow them. 

 

I'm not here to suffer, I'm here to have fun.   

 

 

[gogmorgo]

Nice. There’s some pretty decent pack chairs out there now, seriously lightweight and very comfortable, but the ones I’ve tried all feel pretty flimsy when someone 200+ lbs sits in one. 

[Manche757]

On 10/2/2022 at 4:13 PM, jeff351 said:

Just returned from our annual backpacking trip; a couple of friends and I did a section of the "100 Mile Wilderness" on the Appalachian Trail in Maine.

Thanks for sharing the pictures and your enthusiasm for the great outdoors.  There is a good book for anyone that has hiked the AT, hiked many other places or never hiked at all.  Well written. Will have you laughing.  Will have you pondering how you fit in the world and relate to family and friends.  "A Walk in the Woods"  by Bill Bryson is easily available on Amazon.  A word of caution when ordering books:  I did not know that we do NOT have copyright laws regarding book titles in the US  until a couple of months ago.  I ordered "Grapes of Wrath" and had it sent to a couple of friends who had never read it.  When I asked how they liked the book, they made comments about the plot that were not right.  Long story short: I had intended to send the great American work by John Steinbeck written in 1939 following migrant workers during the Great Depression.  Another lesser known work by Boyd Cable, was written using the same name in 1917 about WWI in France.  So now, when I look for a book title, I also look for the author.

 

On a return trip to Baxter state park, you might check out Wassatauquoik Lake and trail. Make sure to see Green Falls.  You will need to use one of the canoes there to paddle to the falls.  Make reservations months early; they limit the number of people that can enter because of a wilderness covenant that was set up when Governor Baxter gave the land for the park to the state of Maine. 

 

[Manche757]

I am curious about choices of backpacks chosen by those that enjoy going out in the wild and being self reliant.  I have an ARC'TERYX that I bought 20 years ago and like it. It is stable on my back and does not sway on uneven terrain. A major benefit I think.  It has an internal frame (a boring topic) and lacks external pockets on the sides but has a large pouch on the bottom with side pouches so you can get to a few things without having to open the whole pack.  The top has a large detachable pouch that can be used as a fanny pack for a short hike after setting camp.

 

Others have packs they like and willing to offer a few words about them?

 

Any comments of water filters is also appreciated.

[gogmorgo]

I’ve got an MSR auto flow gravity filter. I prefer filtering over boiling or tabs/drops just to get the particulate out of the water. The gravity flow system is convenient because you just fill the bladder, point the hose into your clean water container, and let it go. And you can do something else while it’s filtering. It also packs pretty compact and light. The one downside is you do need to get the bladder up in the air, so if there aren’t convenient trees or anything around you’ve got to stand there holding it, or squeeze the bladder or something. The filter also plugs up, but it’s easy enough to reverse the flow through it to clear it. 

I don’t know if I would necessarily buy the MSR again, given there’s other very similar systems available at slightly better prices. The Nalgene bottle adapter it comes with is annoying to use because you need to leave it unscrewed or else the bottle airlocks and stops filling, making it easier just to use the hose, so don’t get too excited about that.

You can also just get replacement filter elements separately, so I’m pretty sure you could just pop one into the middle of a line for whatever water bladder you already owned, and call it good. I haven’t tried it yet, but I do have an older bladder kicking around that I don’t use much anymore and eventually the temptation will get the better of me. 

[Pete M]

My backpack is also like 20 years old now.  I went with the Kelty Comanche 5600 (because of course I did. )  got no complaints about it. 

 

 

[jeff351]

Packs are a personal preference, I like the newer Gregory packs while my friend swears by Osprey. If you are still using a 20 year old pack, you should go to an REI or outdoor store and check out the new stuff. Lightweight, comfortable, and very well thought out. 

We all carried Sawyer water filters. The go-to method is just carry two 1-liter water bottles; one for 'dirty' water that you just screw the filter onto and squeeze it into the clean bottle. But for the 2nd year in a row I tried using the Sawyer bags but after having 4 spring a leak I've learned my lesson and will use the water bottle method next time. 

Each of us also had hydration bladders in our packs. On this trail though we were never very far from a water source so I didn't bother topping off much to save weight. 

We make a point of one of us bringing a pack of water purification tablets for emergency use only. 

 

Here are a couple more pics. On the back of my pack you can see my water shoes which are lightweight mesh shoes for water crossings (we had a couple crossings which were knee deep) and the section of orange sleep pad I cut into a square to sit on in wet areas. Also the Garmin inReach GPS on the shoulder strap; I got this primarily for emergency use but it came in handy for weather updates.

 

Tomorrow at this time I'll be in Times Square in NYC for something for the wife. Within a couple weeks I've gone from being in a very remote part of the country to one of the busiest parts of the country. 

 

 

[Jeep_Rat]