Anatomy of a Back Pack

One of the most important equipment purchases a backpacker will make is the backpack itself.

When I started backpacking in the 60s there were not a lot of choices. I started out with what I could afford, which was an Army Surplus, WWII canvas sack pack. I cringe when I think how heavy all my gear weighed back then.

In High School I saved enough money to buy a pack with an Aluminum frame. It was big time stuff—a huge leap in technology. Two years later when I mustered out of the Marine Corps I had a couple bucks saved up so I decided I was going to buy the best backpack I could find. What I found was Fred Bear, the famous Archer. Fred’s archery factory was just 50 miles from my home. I stopped in at his museum one Saturday afternoon and he happened to be there. He had designed and was selling a backpack called a Himalayan. It also had a frame constructed of Aluminum but it was much lighter material and shaped to match the spine. It was another giant leap in backpack technology and that pack lasted me 30 years and many miles. I finally retired it during my 1999 Continental Divide Trail thru-hike. It was showing signs of wear that I knew would not last all the way to Canada.

I had been thinking about trying one of the new internal packs. I called Jansport in Wisconsin. I knew what I wanted and they were kind enough to sell to me direct because I was on the trail and not able to find a retailer. I bought their Alaska model. It was their monster pack. This might not square with the new light weight backpacking crowd but let me state my case for a big, solid, well-built pack.

The pack itself is 5 lbs. That is 2-3 lbs. heavier than some of the light packs on the market today. But what do you get for the extra weight?

a. A stronger pack that will take a lot more abuse.

b. A much larger load capacity.

c. Much more comfortable padding.

d. A much more sturdy hip belt.

e. More pockets for organization and easy access to water bottles and those things you need to get your hands on quickly.

I’m not saying that this is the pack option for everyone. As much as I have studied the light-weight backpacking gear and thought process, it doesn’t work for me. I’m always saying to packtoters I meet on the trail, "I can always spot a light-weight backpacker. They are always wanting to borrow stuff."

Do I really need a monster pack to carry 26 lbs. of gear? The answer is yes.

I carry only the necessities and most are light. But when I add seven to ten days worth of food to the pack, that monster is full—and I only carry a pound of food per day out.

I think the light-weight movement has put a lot of novice hikers in harms way. They have gone from bad to worse. It used to be you would see novice hikers along the trail carrying super-sized tubes of toothpaste, a whole roll of toilet paper, canned goods, and a geographic expedition amount of camera equipment. Now, we see them with a day-sized pack with nothing in it. No first aid kit, no compass and living on Snicker bars because that is what Flyin’ Brian did. Many of them end up Flyin’ out of the backcountry on a rescue chopper.

I prefer a common sense approach to packtoting and I will go the extra couple pounds to be safe, fueled, warm and dry. If I am out for 10-12 days I am still under 40 pounds and that is getting lighter each day as I eat away at the food cache. A long distance hiker in decent shape will not even feel that weight. A few hundred miles up the trail and a you hardly give a thought to a pack of 35 lbs.

I like a lot of compartments to stay organized and I wouldn’t own a pack that I couldn’t reach back and grab my water bottle. I like enough straps to cinch the back down as the load changes.
Another thing to consider is enclosure. I like to have all my gear enclosed in my pack.

If you have a pack that is too small for all your gear, you end up securing it to the outside of the pack. Many hikers have their sleeping bag, pad, tent and other assorted gear tied to their packs like sorry looking growths. That leaves them vulnerable to snags, weather and loss.

My system is all enclosed. My top closure pocket contains my rain gear (easy access). My main compartment holds the basics that I use once a day (tent, pad, bag, cooking gear) on top of that I put all of my food. Bottom compartment contains all my clothing. Two side pockets carry (Pocket 1—Kitchen, Hygiene) (Pocket—"The Garage" contains such things as rope, compass, knife, headlamp etc.) I have one more large pocket on the top of the main compartment that carries gear I want easy access—first aid, maps and snacks.
With this system I have everything secured, I’m not leaving gear strewn along the trail. I don’t have to untie or unload items to reach others, and when I throw my poncho over my pack it is all weather-proofed.

I would like to hear your thoughts and ideas. This will be a continued series of pack options and how they are used and abused. If you agree or disagree with me, let me hear from you.

--Keep Smilin, Dick E. Bird

Opossum Compass

Opossum Want to Help You Find Your Way

If you do not hike because you are afraid you may get lost I have a plan for you. All you have to do is find a opossum. I was thinking that sadly a opossum is sure to lead you to a busy highway. These North American marsupials seem to have an unfortunate propensity for becoming roadkill. I see them all the time in my travels. Unlike driving around in your SUV, hiking will give you the opportunity to see live animals.

Another hiking tip to drop your risk of skin cancer is a wrinkled hat. That’s right, if you wear a hat with an uneven, wrinkled brim it will ward off UV light more effectively than a hat with a rigid, straight brim. The wrinkles provide more reflective surface than a straight brim does. So don’t just buy a sturdy hat that shades your face and ears from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays. Wad it up and make it look like you have been mauled by a grizzly bear. Protection against the elements create fashion trends that eventually make their way to mainstream clothing shelves. The rumpled look will probably be extremely popular in the coming years. You will be leading the fashion charge on tacky looking outdoor wear.

As cold weather sets in let me give you one more warm and fuzzy outdoor tip. A fast-acting total body warmer is a heat source held in the hands and/or applied to the feet. I once boiled water for coffee on the Continental Divide in Canada in a sleet storm. At the last minute I decided to just pour the water in my boots to thaw my frozen feet. It warmed me for several hours of hiking. This heat transfer arrangement goes both ways. Just as warming your hands warms the rest of you, hands (and feet) that aren’t properly protected can make you feel cold.Covering your head, wearing waterproof mittens and keeping your feet dry is vital to staying warm.

--Happy Hiking! Keep Smilin', Dick E. Bird

Walking becomes energized by adding ski poles to workout

By Lisa BellIt seems that each month a new study is released validating the positive health benefits of walking. From improving mental function and insulin sensitivity to controlling body weight, the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other can be a powerful disease-prevention habit.When it comes to total body training, however, walking has limitations. As tremendous as it is for the heart, lungs and circulatory system, the benefits do not extend to the upper body or core. And the attempt to remedy this by adding hand weights greatly increases risk of musculoskeletal injury to the shoulders.An innovative solution was devised by Finnish cross-country skiers trying to stay in shape for their sport during the summer. By gripping the equivalent of ski poles and using them to move the body forward, they incorporated upper body strength and endurance training while walking.In 1997 Finnish sport equipment manufacturer Exel Oyj, in conjunction with U.S. sports medicine researchers, developed Nordic walking as a fitness exercise. Over the past 10 years, it has swept across Central Europe, Finland and Scandinavia. Today there are more than 8 million Europeans who Nordic walk.Studies from Finland and the Dallas-based Cooper Institute lend scientific credibility to its popularity. One of the most notable research findings shows an increased intensity over regular walking — to the tune of 5-17 more heartbeats per minute and up to 46 percent more calories burned.The lack of upper body involvement in regular walking is remedied by pushing with poles to accelerate normal stride. The poles create "four-point walking," which reduces stress on joints. According to noted orthopedist J. Richard Steadman, "Walking with poles can reduce accumulated force by about 6 tons over the course of a mile."Research has also shown that Nordic walking helps improve mobility and relieve pain in the neck and shoulders. It can improve shoulder hunching and remedy incorrect gait patterns. Withstanding good-natured jabs from others who ask, "Where's the snow?" several friends and I have been experimenting with this new form of walking over the past several months. From sedentary senior citizens to fit young adults, each Nordic walker has given an enthusiastic thumbs up. The poles increase walking speed, reduce perceived exertion, and add a dynamic shoulder, triceps and core workout.They can turn a fairly routine 5-mile hike into a fatiguing total-body workout. All agreed that the improved walking workout and lifetime warranty for poles make it worth their $100 retail price (www.nordicwalker.com).If you walk for exercise, consider giving the poles a try. They may remain a permanent part of your walking program.Just be ready for curious stares and comments from passers-by. We've considered wearing T-shirts reading "Searching for the Alps" to silence those who ask, "What in the world are you doing?"

Trekking poles enhance balance, help distribute weight -- and are becoming a trail essential

The Amazon Outdoor Store
By Allen Pierleoni
Each spring, summer and fall, my hiking partners and I see a few people on Sierra trails who motor along on what look like short ski poles. Of course, it's not wise to go into the woods without a staff of some kind, but ski poles? In our ignorance, we long wondered if those hikers had ambulatory issues or other limitations that required more assistance than a solo hiking stick could offer.If so, what were they doing at 10,000 feet? Did they know something we didn't? Curious, we asked around and discovered a whole new side of walking through nature."Trekking poles are the best-kept secret in hiking and backpacking," said Bruce Ferris. "I've used them for 12 years." Ferris is a veteran backpacker and sales specialist at the REI store in Roseville. "I don't know anybody climbing Mount Everest who doesn't use trekking poles," said Jayah Faye Paley. "Look at the top hikers in the world -- they all use them."Through her company, Adventure Buddies, Paley holds seminars that "teach people how to use poles optimally for hiking, walking, mobility and balance." Her award-winning DVD -- "Poles for Hiking, Trekking & Walking" -- should be required viewing for those about to embark on a trek with poles for the first time.So, what are trekking poles, and what advantages do they offer over a solo wood hiking stick or a metal walking staff?Essentially, they're collapsible ski pole-type shafts with handles, straps, tips and baskets designed for hiking and snowshoeing. Each pole is composed of three telescoping segments that can be twist-locked to be made shorter (for uphill) or longer (for downhill). They collapse enough to fit into small storage areas such as a backpack.Like all products made for outdoor recreation, the price goes up as amenities are added and as the materials to make the gear get lighter and more exotic. Generally, trekking poles range from around $50 to $150 a pair. Some outdoors stores rent them.They have rubber, foam or cork pistol-grip handles, adjustable wrist straps and rubber baskets to prevent "postholing," where the pole sinks into mud or snow. Some of the handles are canted to varying degrees to be more ergonomically friendly to the wrists. Many trekkers wear fingerless gloves during their hikes for better grip and to prevent chafing.A good percentage of poles feature internal on-off shock- absorbing mechanisms, which can reduce vibrations to the wrist and arm when the pole tips strike stone. Poles are made of aluminum, titanium-aluminum alloy or carbon fiber. The pole tips are sharpened carbide steel, a super-hard metal that bites into rock and earth to assure a non-slip grip. Rubber tips are sold to fit over the carbide tips for walking on sidewalks or asphalt paths.Popular brands include Black Diamond, Leki, Komperdell, REI, Gossamer, Northern Lights and Masters.Sales of trekking poles have steadily risen as word-of-mouth has spread among recreationists and those in need of assisted walking, and as the sport of Nordic walking has immigrated from Europe to the United States.In particular, the Salt Lake City-based Black Diamond is making inroads with the patented technology it continues to bring to trekking poles. For example, instead of the industry standard twist-lock length- adjustment system, its poles feature the binary "Flicklock" system."It's a non-slip mechanical lever you flick open and closed, like an on-off switch," said Thomas Laasko, the company's ski line category manager. "There's no arbitrary in-between (regarding length). Our trekking-pole sales have grown 600 percent in four years."While it's easy to wield a hiking stick or walking staff on the trail, there's some technique to master before taking off on trekking poles."People think that if they can walk, they can use poles," noted Paley of Adventure Buddies. "Well, they weren't born knowing how to walk."You never want to start any new skill doing it wrong and ending up with a problem you didn't have before. Optimal technique is so incredibly important to getting all the benefits of (using poles).

Winter hikes an exercise in contrasts

The Amazon Outdoor Store

By Craig Hill
You can make the 10 essentials list an even dozen by adding rain gear and hiking poles.
If you are a fair-weather hiker, you are missing half the fun. While you stay inside where it's warm all winter, your favorite summer trails are taking on new personalities.The deciduous trees have lost their leaves and are unveiling the views they blocked all summer. The traffic has thinned to the point where some trails can be had all to yourself."Plus, winter hikes keep you from getting depressed," said Jonathan Guzzo of the Washington Trails Association. "You are less likely to feel the burden of winter."What's so great about hiking in the rain and cold?"For me, it's all about that exercise in contrasts," Guzzo said. "It's about getting cold so you can get warm again after your hike. There's nothing better than changing into dry clothes and having a warm drink after a winter hike. It's a great feeling."Here's what you need to know to get that feeling. Call it Winter Hiking 101.Grab a lid and some gaiters: Wearing a hat is crucial to staying comfortable on a winter hike."If you cover your head, you're going a long way toward avoiding being miserable," Guzzo said.Perhaps the only thing worse than a cold head is cold feet. Gaiters boot covers that keep out mud and debris are a good way to assure comfort."In the winter, mud on trails can be 8 to 9 inches deep," Guzzo said. "If you get mud and water in your boots, it's going to be a real bummer. I always wear gaiters."Gorp: One of the best reasons for hiking is that you can justify eating things you shouldn't if you're playing couch potato all winter."Your body needs all kinds of food to stoke warmth," Guzzo said.He recommends sweet foods for fast warmth, carbohydrates for prolonged warmth and fatty foods for the most warmth.He suggests gorp (good old raisins and peanuts) or trail mix, a combination of candy, fruit and nuts."If you take a lot of gorp, it will help you keep warm," Guzzo said.The 12 essentials: No hiker should hit the trail without the 10 essentials, but especially in winter, Nos. 11 and 12 should be added to the famous outdoorsman checklist.Robert Mooers, author of "Winter Hikes in Puget Sound and the Olympic Foothills," is big on adding rain gear to the list."How rain gear didn't make it on the 10 essentials list I'll never know," Mooers said. "It's vital in winter."Mooers says to also pay special attention to packing extra clothes."If you break an ankle and have to spend the night outdoors in the summer, you probably only have to worry about temperatures in the 40s," Mooers said. "In the winter, you could freeze."Mooers also recommends taking a hiking pole for traveling over possible icy portions of the trail."It's like having a third leg," Mooers said. "It's really helpful, especially going downhill."No. 12 should be the cell phone – not to be used to chat while you hike, but in case of emergency. If you or somebody in your party needs medical attention and you can get cell phone service in your remote location, it could improve the odds of rescue.Here are the 10 essentials on the regular checklist:1. Map2. Compass and the ability to use it3. Sunglasses and sunscreen4. Extra food and water5. Extra clothes6. Flashlight7. First-aid kit8. Matches or lighter9. Fire starter10. KnifeCotton kills: In the summer, even the hard-core hiker will occasionally sneak out for a quick hike in a cotton shirt.Don't be so bold in fall and winter months."Never, ever, ever, ever wear cotton in the winter," Guzzo said.Cotton clothes don't wick sweat away from your body, don't retain body heat and don't dry very quickly.At best, this will leave you miserable if you encounter rain or snow. At worst, cotton clothes will put you on the fast track to hypothermia.Instead, read the labels and layer up with materials such as Gore-Tex, fleece, wool, polyester, spandex and nylon.You don't have to wear all the clothes at once. You'll need fewer clothes when you're moving, but you'll be happy you carried that heavier layer to keep you warm when you stop for lunch.Save yourself: It seems that every winter, a hiker or two makes news by losing the trail in the snow and getting lost. Some are rescued. Some are not.Don't be one of those people, Mooers says. "When you can no longer identify the trail because of snow, it's time to go back."
http://thenewspaperthatwalks.com/

Get Hiking Shoe Fit

The Amazon Outdoor Store
KIE RELYEATHE BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON HERALDWhen it comes to hiking shoes, there is a bewildering array of choices.High-tops, low-tops. Day-hikers vs. backpacking boots. Leather or man-made. How much shoe do you need, really? And what’s a hiker who doesn’t want to fill her closet full of shoes — but who does want the correct shoes — to do?“It just depends on how someone’s foot is shaped. That’s going to be the right shoe for them,” says Chris Gerston, owner of Backcountry Essentials in Bellingham, Washington. Here are some things to keep in mind during your search:“Comfort is king, without a doubt. And, quite often, putting in the proper footbed,” Gerston says. “Most companies don’t spend a whole lot on the footbed that they put in the shoe because they know that it’s really a footbed that’s not going to fit the majority of people.”Shoemakers know that many consumers will buy overthe-counter insoles, such as those made by Superfeet, that will fit their feet better, he explains.High-tops vs. low-tops. Your preference depends on your ankles, with Gerston saying that high-tops provide greater ankle support. “They will help prevent you rolling your foot over.”Gerston doesn’t like wearing high-tops because they take away his ankles’ ability to flex, and that ultimately hurts his knees.“I like to have all that mobility in my ankle because that allows my legs to work as they’re supposed to.”But high-top boots are valuable for those times when you’re walking through snow, water, damp grass or dirty stuff.“They’re going to keep that much more dirt or grit from entering your shoe, water too, because they’re higher up,” Gerston says.And if you’re not sold on the idea of high-tops, strap on a pair of gaiters to cover your lower legs.Leather or man-made materials? Leather is more durable but takes longer to break in, which is when they’re most comfortable. But synthetics make a boot lighter.Leather boots can be resoled while most synthetics can’t. But some higher-end — read, more expensive — synthetic boots can be resoled, Gerston says.“My leather mountaineering boots are ready for a resole, but they’re eight years old,” he says. “So I wouldn’t have to go through that whole expense and that whole break-in period for a new boot.”But, ultimately, it comes down to personal preference and the outdoor activity you’re doing.One shoe fits all. So can you get by with just one pair of shoes if you don’t feel like spending a ton of green to play in the outdoors?“You can definitely get away with one shoe for everything,” Gerston says. “For some people they want that same shoe to be able to look good in the bars after they come back from a hike, or to kick around town. Other people are going to want that same shoe to be a running shoe,” he says.Approach shoes, for example, are essentially hiking/running shoes with some climbing features to them, like stickier soles that will take users from the trail to bouldering.“You can hedge your bets and make one shoe fit just about everything that you want do,” Gerston says.One thing to keep in mind, he adds, is that camping gear has gotten lighter over time and that could affect your shoe choice.“People kind of tend to over buy, over structure their footwear,” he says. “You don’t need the big massive boots that you used to need.”SHOE FITTING TIPS Nothing can ruin a backpacking trip like a pair of ill-fitting hiking boots. Follow these tips to make sure your hiking boots fit properly:* Measure your feet to make sure you’ve got the right size. As people get older and heavier, the increased pressure (i.e. weight) causes their arches to collapse while ligaments become permanently stretched, explains Kathryne Rupley of the All Valley Podiatric Group in Fresno, Calif. So not only do feet grow larger, they also grow wider.* As you first put them on, slide your feet as far forward as possible. If you can slide one finger (but not two) between your heel and the back of the boot, you probably have the right length.* Then take a few steps. There should be very little up-and-down movement in the heel, and your toes should not slam into the front of the boot when walking downhill.* Try on your boots while wearing the same socks you intend to wear while hiking. Shop in the afternoon, when your feet are a little larger from the walking you’ve been doing during the day.* Manufacturers are making boots from light-weight material, thanks to advances in technology. Just make sure you’re not sacrificing stability in your quest to go light.

Zip Ztove (ZZ) Zip Stove

I discovered the Zip Ztove (ZZ) in the back of Backpacker Magazine just before I hiked the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail in 1999. My backpacking buddy, Steve, laughed at me. In fact, he probably never would have bought one if not for the fact that he couldn’t carry his fuel canister on our flight one summer to the Wind River Range, and he couldn’t find fuel once we arrived. I did all the cooking on that trip. He ate last.
I have debated it’s usefulness many times. A lot of people never give it the chance it needs. It takes some practice to become efficient with this mini-blacksmith’s forge. It has a few drawbacks but so do all other hiker stove options.
Let’s discuss the drawbacks first.
1. It blackens the bottom of the cooking pot. To some this is a major problem. I have never considered it a problem at all. My ZZ nests inside my cooking pot and the whole 11 ounce nest fits inside a small stuff sac. The only thing that gets sooty is the inside of my stuff sac.
2. I can’t cook inside my tent vestibule. This is true. One of the secrets to running a ZZ successfully is constantly fueling the fire. It does not take much fuel but you need to dole it out continuously to keep a nice hot pot. First of all I have used this stove in many wet conditions. I’m not talking about a rainy night in Georgia, I mean days of rain. Hiking across Ireland I had 10 days of rain in a row, on my 2001 thru-hike of the Canadian Great Divide Trail I dealt with many days of wet conditions. Usually you can find a break in the weather to quickly fire up the ZZ and make your meal. I can be boiling water in just over 3 minutes. When it is wet I do three different things. a: I carry a sandwich baggie of dry ground litter. When I find dry material I toss it in a baggie and stick it in my pocket. When I’m ready for a meal I actually have the fuel in my pocket. b: If I haven’t thought ahead that far, and find all the ground litter wet, it only costs me a few more minutes of wait time. I use a little Fire Ribbon to get the damp material started. Once the miniature fan starts shooting oxygen to the damp material and Fire Ribbon, it quickly begins drying and burning at the same time. c: I have no desire to burn holes in my Hilleberg Akto tent. When I am forced to cook inside I have a couple emergency backups. I place a small container of Alcohol inside my ZZ pot and cook a meal much slower than I am accustomed with wood, or make napalm stew using solid fuel tabs (Esbit Solid Fuel Tablets). Both methods work fine. The solid fuel tabs are much more available with the popularity of ultra-light backpacking. The tabs burn for 10-15 minutes. In my ZZ it takes the tabs that long to boil my water.
3. Using Valuable Resources. I had one backpacker tell me I was using valuable resources and harming the environment by picking up ground litter to burn. First, it takes very little fuel to cook a meal. Second, unless you are eating cold meals you are cooking with something. In most cases this would be gas, propane or alcohol. My ZZ impacts the planet no more than these other fuel types and I’m guessing much less.
The battery concerned me at first. I’m a coffee drinker and I run my ZZ longer than most people would because of my caffeine craving. Still I get a good solid week, and often more, from my AA battery. This tiny 3-way fan draws very little juice. In cold conditions you have to keep the battery warm as you would with any other device that calls for it’s power.
The ZZ is considered a contained fire and therefore allowed wherever gas powered stoves are legal.
One wet day in the White Goat Wilderness I was exposed to the wind in a constant sleet storm. I was carrying a pocket full of small sticks and they were, figuratively speaking, burning a hole in my pocket. I kept looking for a place to hide out of the wind, and heat some water for coffee. I finally found a small cave and fired up my Zip Ztove. My feet were so cold and wet they hurt. At first I thought the coffee might warm them, but on second thought I figured why not go straight to the source of the pain. Just before I dumped my coffee into the water I decided to dump the water into my boots. Oh, it was better than sex. It warmed my whole body. I packed up and started walking immediately. My foot discomfort never returned.

Jean are Back on the Trail

Backpackers are sometimes identified as a subculture of generally youthful travellers dedicated to budget travel. I think that identify comes from the fact that there were millions of us traveling on a shoestring in the 60s.
Those of us who started backpacking in the 50s and 60s more fully appreciate the major innovations in outdoor gear in the past three decades. Materials and technology continue to make gear much lighter, more weather resistant and even fashionable.
My personal gear 40 years ago was mostly canvas, wood and leather. I felt more like a pack mule than a backpacker.
They say there were some 14 million of us backpacking in the 60s. Most, if you remember, were wearing Levis. It may not have been the smartest choice for hiking but we could all afford jeans. They were as trail tough as when Levi Strauss first started sewing them for the California Gold Rush miners in 1850. They were so popular in the 1960s that Levi salespeople spent their time visiting retailers and apologizing for not being able to fill all their orders. One of the biggest drawbacks was the fact that denim took so long to dry. Wet and heavy, the pants would become uncomfortable and actually dangerous. Jeans were soon replaced in the hiking community by lighter, faster drying materials. I have been hiking for years in jungle style pants that wick moisture and dry quickly, but I have always missed the look and feel of hiking in jeans. I have searched outdoor catalogs for years thinking that surely some innovative company would sooner or later figure out how to build a blue jean pant that could wick moisture and dry as quickly as the paper thin hiking pants that are currently on the market.
From the ad above you can see that has happened. Royal Robbins® has put jeans back on the trail. The company sent me a pair and before the UPS man was out of the driveway I was testing them in the creek. Within an hour they were completely dry. Several field tests between the new jeans and my current Supplex hiking pants proved that the jeans dry as fast and wick moisture as efficiently. The bonus the jeans offer is the same toughness that denim originally guaranteed wearers.
In her book Where the Waters Divide, Karen Berger tells a story about crossing paths with a know-it-all backpacker that was wearing jeans. Her opinion was that if he knew it all he wouldn’t be in jeans. That train of thought will not hold water any longer (pun intended).
You’re going to like hiking in these pants and it won’t be just nostalgia. Nox Jeans have a vintage-wash look of broken-in jeans with the added performance benefits of wicking moisture, Coolmax®, and the shape retention and stretch of Lycra®. This is definitely NOT boring old denim.
You won’t find me on the trail any longer in paper-thin jungle-style pants that make me look like Safari Sam. I’m stylin’ in my new Nox Jeans!

10 Essentials for Multi-Day Backpacking

The Amazon Outdoor Store

10 Essentials for Multi-Day Backpacking

I have been involved in several backpacking trips all over the world and the one constant is the importance of adequate gear for the environment — regardless if we are leading a group through the Wind River Range in Wyoming or hiking the Overland Track in Tasmania, Australia.by Kevin Jackson You will often experience conditions that are both unexpected and hazardous while backpacking. It is your essential gear that will enabled you to enjoy the trip and cope with freezing weather and heavy snowfall. As a rule of thumb, you want to pack lightly and take only what you need. However, when confronted with a difficult situation there are certain items that should always be carried on any multi-day backpacking trip. Here is my list of the 10 essentials. (Of course, if you take regular backpacking trips, you should make your own list and share it with the rest of your party. A little planning means less worries and a better overall experience for everyone.)

1. Map & Compass. Prior to departure, you should understand the magnetic declination in the area you will be exploring as it will vary substantially the farther north or south you travel.

2. First-Aid & Safety Kit. Buy a pre-packaged one or build your own. Make sure it has pain relievers, bandages, disinfectant and notes on basic first-aid procedures.

3. Waterproof Lighter & Matches. Secure both of these in a Ziploc bag.

4. Water Purification. A filter works, but they clog and break so often that you should have a small bottle of tablets or other water purification as back up.

5. Extra Clothing. One of the biggest killers in the woods is hypothermia, and it often starts when you get wet. I always carry an extra fleece top and warm socks in a dry sack for this reason.

6. Shelter. Be sure to pack for the environment you will be exploring. Items to consider are a tent, Bivvy bag, 5 x 7 tarp and an emergency space blanket.

7. Cooking Essentials. Stove, pot, Lexan spoon and fuel. Know your stoves fuel requirements and bring an extra canister in case of emergencies.

8. Sleeping Bag. Down bags are the warmest for their weight and takes up less volume in your pack.

9. Sleeping Mat. Air mattresses or closed-cell foam pads provide much-needed comfort as well as an additional layer of insulation from the ground. They also double as excellent splinting devices in emergency situations.

10. Duct Tape. This item comes in handy in a pinch and can be used to seal tents or punctured air mattresses. Finally, the one thing you should never leave without is an in-depth knowledge of how to operate all the gear you are carrying. For example, take an orienteering course to get comfortable using the compass, and practice igniting your stove with both the lighter and matches (outside of course) before you embark on your adventure.

Your knowledge is more likely to save you than gadgets.

Kevin Jackson operates TST Adventures, an outdoor travel and training company in San Diego, California

BACKPACKING LIGHT

Dinosaur Sighting? Long considered a Cadillac of backpacks, the legendary Dana Design Terraplane is indeed a classic, the same way that steel-finned cruisers of the 1950s defined class and style. But for adherents of lightweight and ultralight, the Terraplane is an overstuffed weighthog. Can hikers attain the same level of durability, function and reliability from products that exude a fraction of the heft? And will lighterweight gear help bring back the minions who have given up long-distance tromps in the woods? That's one of the debates currently raging in a backcountry which, in some locales, is thinning out of people. by Todd Wilkinson, NewWest.net If ever Boomers want to show their age on the hiking trail, here's a showstopper to use when communicating with the nimble of feet and mind half as old: Drop the name "Euell Gibbons" and then ask your dumbstruck listeners to identify what food stuff ol' Euell hustled for. The answer will not be revealed here. Youngsters—this you gotta Google for. The fact is that the heyday of Gibbons' profile as a Granola-ee TV celebrity also represented something else: the late, great Golden Age of backpacking in America when millions of (largely middle class Caucasian) families hit the trails, turned over rocks in our national parks, forests, and deserts, enrolled in Outward Bound and NOLS courses to build character, and fueled the rise of the modern outdoor gear industry. In the years since, little has changed and yet everything has. Despite there being more of us earning more money and now having far greater options for leisure activities at our disposal, the trend line demographic for the number of those seeking outdoor adventure -- i.e. those willing to trek more than a mile from roadside trailheads -- is in a spiral. Some believe a death spiral. Most national parks in the country report that backcountry use is stagnant while demand on frontcountry areas in the form of developed campgrounds, fishing docks, picnic areas, and bike trails continues to surge. Although the outdoor gear industry is spending huge amounts of advertising dollars to capture larger market share in the estimated $5 billion outdoor retail industry, most manufacturers are concerned about what the future holds, members of the Outdoor Retailers Association say. The cold reality is that besides having LESS time on our hands to get out and find ourselves in a world of greater electronic distractions, most increasingly-urban Americans find the idea of trudging dozens of miles with a heavy pack toward remote campsights to be utterly unappealing. In a word, backbreaking. There is an exception to the truth above. One innovation, initially started by a group of eccentrics but now being eyed with swoon by large manufacturers, is the arrival of light and ultralight camping gear. According to recent studies, the number of regular hardcore backpackers -- once pegged at about two million -- has decreased by 20 percent since the end of the 1990s alone. During the same period, the number of those individuals who engage in lightweight backpacking -- about 360,000 -- has increased 350 percent and is rapidly growing. The movement has made a revolutionary breakthrough in paring down the weight of an average backpack and gear load from between 40 and 70 pounds to less than 10 without sacrificing safety and (not too much) comfort. Ryan Jordan of Bozeman, Montana is one of the gurus who established an online magazine devoted to reviewing new lightweight products at www.backpackinglight.com. Two other pioneers are Demetri and Kim Coupounas of Boulder, Colorado, who founded the gear company GoLite. This spring, a delegation of lightweight advocates met at the headquarters of the National Outdoor Leadership School in Lander, Wyoming which has introduced the rewards of hiking, self-reliance and survival to thousands worldwide. For generations, NOLS has not only taught the value of adventure backpacking but its instructors have emphasized redundancy to keep clients out of harm's way. A similar mantra has been preached by the Boy Scouts of America. But as adherents of lightweight say, it's true that everyone who goes into the wilderness needs to be prepared for inclement weather and other risks, but redundancy in the amount of clothing we pack, the provisions we carry, and the gear we heave on our spine can, by using common sense and better technology, be reduced. Doing this can enable us to go farther, faster, healthier and happier. It can also serve as an inducement for those who have given up on real backpacking to return. "This is a revolution that is changing peoples' lives," says Matt Colon, editor of the print edition of Backpacking Light magazine. In addition to the practicality of hiking, lightweight holds other ramifications for helping to convince more citizens to get out and care about the stewardship of public lands as the traditional profile of the conservation movement morphs in the years ahead. Recently, New West caught up with Colon. NEW WEST: Give us a short history of lightweight backpacking and how it has gained traction. MATT COLON: BACKPACKING LIGHT MAGAZINE: The short version is that lightweight backpacking, as an identifiable movement, evolved out of the needs of long distance thru-hikers—primarily the people traveling the Pacific Crest Trail and the Appalachian Trail. People regularly abandon gear along the Appalachian Trail in an attempt to peel off weight. It's virtually impossible to complete the long distance trails in a single season without consistently logging some pretty big days. And it's difficult to consistently log big days with a ton of weight on your back. So the lightweight movement developed in response to this conundrum. In 1992 a guy named Ray Jardine really got things rolling when he published a handbook outlining his approach to hiking the Pacific Crest Trail—with a packweight of eight and a half pounds. Since then, lightweight backpacking has taken off and actually represents an area of strong growth within an otherwise declining market. NEW WEST: Do you think that lightweight gear can rescue a stagnant market and reinvigorate a pastime that's been in decline? COLON: I think it can help a lot, but I'm not sure that any kind of gear, alone, can turn things around completely. The Outdoor Industry Association reported last year that backpacking has seen steep declines in participation over the past eight years. They have reported a simultaneous increase in what they call 'frontcountry' activities—the kinds of things that don't require spending a night away from a parking lot. I think that these trends are more indicative of changing values than of generalized dissatisfaction with gear. That said, I do think that lighter gear can go a long way toward making backcountry experiences more accessible and gratifying to more people. NEW WEST: You recently brought the cause of lightweight backpacking to the people at the National Outdoor Leadership School in Lander, Wyoming. What did you tell them and how was the message received initially? COLON: I think the impetus for NOLS moving in this direction actually came from within the organization itself. I know that Mike Clelland, a longtime instructor at the school, was instrumental in floating the idea up the chain of command, and there were probably others as well. I went to Lander as part of a group including Ryan Jordan, co-founder of BackpackingLight.com, and a couple of the key people at GoLite. The NOLS folks had invited us down to talk about their inaugural 'Light and Fast' backpacking course which is being offered this summer. The idea was to share information and help them think about applying the lightweight approach to an institutional setting. We spent a lot of time discussing lightweight gear options that might be suitable for NOLS. We then spent time in the field with instructors, giving them a chance to kick the tires a bit on some of the gear that we'd been discussing. We didn't really have to convince them that carrying lighter packs would make for more pleasant experiences, they've all been carrying big loads for a long time and are intimately aware of what that means. We simply tried to help them troubleshoot and think about how to reduce pack weights in order to enhance the already extraordinary quality of the NOLS experience for their students. NEW WEST: How would you describe the traditional NOLS way of backpacking? COLON: NOLS does an outstanding job of providing compelling backcountry experiences for their students. I took a course in the mid-eighties, and it was truly transformational. It was also enormously demanding from a physical standpoint. I think I read somewhere that the traditional NOLS pack weight is roughly 40 percent of a student's body weight. If my own (admittedly ancient) experience is any guide, I'd say that number is probably conservative. I think one of the ways that NOLS has traditionally ensured that students stay safe and comfortable in the backcountry is through redundancy—bring extra clothing, extra food, and use heavy-duty gear so that you're prepared do deal with unforeseen complications in the field. This is clearly a time-honored approach, but it can also result in some fairly monumental loads. From my perspective, it's important to remember that the issue of pack weight cuts both ways. An abundance of heavy-duty gear can provide a margin of safety in certain situations. But the added weight can also have a negative impact on one's safety and comfort in the backcountry. Negotiating a scree-slope or fording a river with an eighty-five pound pack is a completely different experience than attempting the same activities with only twenty-five pounds on your back. NEW WEST: What kinds of demonstrations did you do with the people at NOLS? COLON: Well, the folks at GoLite were great about bringing a bunch of equipment for people to experiment with. When we went out into the field, everybody was completely outfitted in lightweight gear. So they all got to carry 20-ounce packs, and sleep in sub-two-pound sleeping bags under 15 ounce shelters. Ryan, from Backpacking Light, brought a handful of solid-fuel stoves, and titanium sporks, cook mugs and pots so that everyone could experiment with a sub four-ounce cook kit. NEW WEST: Did it work in converting the NOLsies to the other side? COLON; It was a great weekend. I think that there was genuine enthusiasm all around. Obviously, the NOLS community has the expertise to look at the available options and begin the process of thinking critically about what will work for them and what they will need to tweak so that the approach suits their specific needs. Our role in being there was really just to make sure that they had access to the best or most suitable information, and to put the appropriate tools into their hands. From that standpoint I think it was a very productive weekend. NEW WEST; So far the marketing has been largely done by having one's ear to the rail, news of innovation spreading by word of mouth in outdoor communities and over internet chat sites, and through the ventures of Ryan Jordan. Explain a bit of how it has worked. COLON; As I mentioned earlier, Ray Jardine kind of kicked things off with the publication of his PCT Hiker's Handbook in the early nineties, but since that time there has been an enormous amount of activity on the internet dealing with lightweight backpacking. BackpackingLight.com has been a significant part of that activity since 2001. Ryan Jordan, who co-founded the site, has a PhD. in engineering and has brought an analytic approach to thinking about backcountry travel. The site has built its reputation on providing readers with in-depth analysis of gear performance, and by functioning as a repository for information about lightweight backpacking techniques. NEW WEST: Tell us about the magazine that you are currently overseeing as editor. COLON: I've just taken over editorial responsibilities for the Backpacking Light print magazine. It's a quarterly that is distinct from the BackpackingLight.com online magazine. We'll feature different content with perhaps a bit more emphasis on the aesthetic or philosophical aspects of lightweight backcountry activities. NEW WEST: What do you think of the big mainstream mags like Outside, Backpacker and National Geographic Adventure? COLON: All three of those magazines are exciting to look at, and they represent the work of an extremely talented collection of writers, photographers and editors. My primary frustration with the popular outdoor press is what appears to be an increasing eagerness to advance the extreme and the adrenaline-charged as the dominant representation of why we spend time in the outdoors. It's pretty clear that the 'extreme' spin sells magazines, which in turn sells advertising. But, for me, the most potent value of wild places has to do with their extraordinary potential for human transformation. The popular outdoor press seems to be less and less interested in wild places as anything more than dramatic backdrops for the titillating and the sensational. The end result has been a discernable shift toward a tabloid treatment of wild places that has little relevance to what I hope to experience when I head for the backcountry. So, while I still enjoy reading some of the high-gloss magazines, I'm finding fewer points of contact than I used to. NEW WEST; What were some of the seminal moments in your own evolution of backpacking that led you to embrace the light and ultralight movements? COLON; For me it was a fairly quick conversion. I was out on a solo trip in the Wind River Mountains several years ago and injured myself while carrying a gargantuan pack. I ended up bailing out about eight days into a trip that was supposed to have lasted a month, and I was really disappointed. It was pretty clear to me that I wouldn't have suffered the injury if I hadn't had over eighty pounds on my back. After that experience, I started looking for ways to reduce my packweight. It really only took me a couple of trips to realize that a lightweight approach enabled me to be much more comfortable in the backcountry. NEW WEST; What's the best way for people to become more familiar with a lightweight approach to backpacking? COLON: Probably the most efficient way to get up to speed would be to visit the BackpackingLight.com website. Full access to the site requires a subscription, but there is a ton of material available to non-members as well, so you can check things out pretty effectively for free. You can also bypass the BPL site and just do a web search for 'lightweight backpacking.' This will unearth an enormous amount of information, but as with a lot of internet research, you can spend a lot of time on sites that don't end up being particularly useful. And if you're not terribly excited about spending time online there are several books that deal specifically with lightweight backpacking. The most accessible point of entry is probably Don Ladigin's 95 page primer, 'Lighten Up!' It was just published in 2005 and is widely available. For a more comprehensive and technical text you can pick up 'Lightweight Backpacking and Camping,' which was edited by Ryan Jordan.

Big Agnes on the Scene

Sometimes ingenuity comes from the simplest of ideas. Such was the case for the breakthrough product of a Colorado backcountry gear company with Carbondale ties.A firm called Big Agnes managed in 2001 to squeeze into the camping gear industry by coming up with a revolutionary design for its sleeping bags.The product developers for the company, based in Steamboat Springs, were experienced backcountry travelers. They knew full well the frustration of thrashing around at night in a tent, slipping off a sleeping pad and paying the price by getting chilled to the bone.So they stripped the insulation from the bottom of their bags and replaced it with a sleeve that a sleeping pad slides into. That solves a couple of problems: first, sleepers don’t roll off their pads because it is integrated with their bags; second, there’s more guaranteed protection from the cold ground. The insulation on the bottom of a sleeping bag loses its warmth when a body compresses it. Their design replaces that insulation with a cushy pad. A person can go big with a 2 1/2inch pad when they are car camping or settle for a 1-inch when weight is an issue for backpacking. Pads made by other companies work with Big Agnes’ bags.Some of the insulation removed from the bottom of the sleeping bag was shifted elsewhere. But, overall, less insulation is used in Agnes bags so that means shedding weight without surrendering warmth.

Backpacking News--Colin Fletcher

Colin Fletcher, acclaimed, reclusive writer on backpacking
By Valerie J. Nelson,
LOS ANGELES — Colin Fletcher, who was considered the father of modern backpacking for his lyrical and practical writings on hiking, including "The Complete Walker" and "The Man Who Walked Through Time," died in June in Monterey, Calif. He was 85.
Mr. Fletcher died at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula of complications related to old age and injuries suffered in 2001 after he was hit by a car, said Chris Cassidy, a business associate.
"He brought this idea that you didn’t have to be a nut case to take long solitary walks in the wilderness at a time when a lot of people were really looking for ways to create holistic lives and escape from the craziness of Vietnam and the stresses of the ’60s," said Jonathan Dorn, editor in chief of Backpacker magazine.
Bruce Hamilton, deputy executive director of the Sierra Club, said that Fletcher helped start a movement by "speaking as an adventurist who would share his own exploits then tell you to lighten your load by cutting your toothbrush in half."
"He was to backpacking what Jack Kerouac had been to road trips," wrote Annette McGivney in Backpacker magazine in 2002.
Romantic conflict inadvertently inspired Mr. Fletcher’s walking-writing career.
In 1958, Mr. Fletcher decided to hike the length of California from Mexico to Oregon so that he could engage in "contemplative walking" and decide whether to get married.
Six months and 1,000 miles later, he married his girlfriend and wrote his first book, "The Thousand-Mile Summer" (published in 1964), which detailed his route across the Mojave Desert and up the Sierra Nevada range.
The marriage ended within weeks, but the man some call "the J. D. Salinger of the high country" had discovered a way to communicate.
"He found he could touch people in a grand and far-reaching way and have friends without having them in his hair all the time," said Chip Rawlins, who helped update Mr. Fletcher’s "The Complete Walker IV" (2002) and considered Fletcher one of his heroes. The first edition of "The Complete Walker," published in 1968, is an exhaustive guide to outdoor travel that is regarded as the backpacker’s bible.
"Colin was cranky, opinionated, irascible, yet I found him quite wonderful, actually," Rawlins said.
Outside Mr. Fletcher’s Carmel Valley home hung a sign that said: "Beware of the Man!" Once he touched fame, Mr. Fletcher guarded his home’s location and scratched a decoy name on his mailbox.
In 1963, beckoned by the Grand Canyon’s beauty, Mr. Fletcher became one of the first humans to walk the length of the chasm. He wrote about the two-month trek in "The Man Who Walked Through Time" (1968).
"I saw that my decision to walk through the Canyon could mean more than I knew. I saw that by going . . . deep into the space and the silence and the solitude, I might come as close as we can at present to moving back and down through the smooth and apparently impenetrable face of time," he wrote.
The "artfully worded account" "introduced an increasingly nature-hungry public to the spiritual and physical rewards of backpacking," McGivney wrote in 2002. The book remains in print.
In all, Mr. Fletcher wrote seven books in a 35-year span, providing what he termed "great, granular detail" about camping, he told the Associated Press in 1989.
At 67, Mr. Fletcher hiked and paddled solo 1,750 miles down the Green and Colorado rivers and recounted the experience in "River: One Man’s Journey Down the Colorado, Source to Sea" (1997).
Of his need for the trip, he wrote: "I needed something to pare the fat off my soul. . . . And I knew . . . there is nothing like a wilderness journey for rekindling the fires of life."
Of his works, Mr. Fletcher favored "The Man From the Cave" (1981), possibly because he related to the main character — a gold prospector who inhabited a cave in the Nevada desert, said Carl Brandt, his longtime agent.
"He had worked out a life for himself that was very, very happy," Brandt said. "The three things he loved the most were walking and writing and then, oddly enough, tennis."
Born March 14, 1922, in Cardiff, Wales, Mr. Fletcher was an only child who traced his love of walking to his mother, who enjoyed venturing out in the rain.
He first backpacked as a commando for the Royal Marines in World War II and spent five years in Africa, mainly farming. Several odd jobs followed, including prospecting and laying out roads for a mining company in Canada.
Well into his 70s, Mr. Fletcher continued to hike. He was working on an autobiography when he was struck by a car while walking near his house. He suffered severe brain trauma, many broken bones, and other injuries.
As he aged, Mr. Fletcher had admitted it was harder for him to convey a sense of wonder about the back country. "I’m not young anymore," he said in the 1989 AP story, echoing a line from "The Thousand-Mile Summer:" "I’m no longer rich with the rewards of inexperience."