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Things I need to fix/change/tweak for 2015

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    • TrafficJam wrote:

      The only thing I really need are new shoes. I haven't worn the Brooks Cascadias since I hiked to Erwin, I decided they were too big and the traction isn't as good as my running shoes. I've been wearing my Sauconys but they are worn out.

      I'd like some Dirty Girl gaiters to keep the dirt out of my shoes.
      I'd like a warmer sleeping bag but I'm still thinking about that.
      I'd like new pants, mine are too big and they stretch out even more after wearing them for a day. Why do they do that?
      I'd like that altimeter thingy of Llhikers, that is pretty cool.

      Typical woman....always wanting new shoes.
      BB, based on the comments in the sleeping bag thread, it sounds like you need a BA Ranger.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.

    • Drybones wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      The only thing I really need are new shoes. I haven't worn the Brooks Cascadias since I hiked to Erwin, I decided they were too big and the traction isn't as good as my running shoes. I've been wearing my Sauconys but they are worn out.

      I'd like some Dirty Girl gaiters to keep the dirt out of my shoes.
      I'd like a warmer sleeping bag but I'm still thinking about that.
      I'd like new pants, mine are too big and they stretch out even more after wearing them for a day. Why do they do that?
      I'd like that altimeter thingy of Llhikers, that is pretty cool.

      Typical woman....always wanting new shoes.
      quote]


      You're funny...I'm not into shoes. But I have spent all morning trying to decide which combination of trail runners and dirty girls will match my pack the best :). I need a BirdBrain intervention. I'm thinking about buying a heavier shoe because I like how well the colors match. :D
      Lost in the right direction.

    • LIhikers wrote:

      AnotherKevin wrote:

      ..........All elevation profiles lie........

      If you folks are like me, you pull out your map, look at the elevation profile, figure it can't be right, and then go on your way.
      I almost never stop to consider that the vertical and horizontal components of that profile are different so the "picture" it presents isn't the same as the ground I'm going to walk over. I do much better when using plain topo maps where you have to consider the spacing of the contour lines.


      All elevation profiles lie, including the ones you deduce yourself from the contour map. Lots happens between those roughly estimated contour lines.
      I'm not lost. I know where I am. I'm right here.

    • the first time i hiked into the nantahala outdoor center (this was last century) the elevation profile for my maps showed a constant downhill. the trail was anything but. numerous small ups and downs. i found this particularly annoying as i was expecting to let gravity take me to the river. thats when i learned about elevation profiles. :)
      2,000 miler

    • hikerboy wrote:

      it all has to get walked, so i really dont pay much attention to the profiles.even maps dont show you the whole pciture. with 50 ft contour ines 20up/20downs look flat. or a 30 ft brush filled ravine to cross.


      I don't either. I just set a general goal of say 12 miles to where I think there might be a good stopping point. When I get there I may feel good enough that I hike another 6 or so or not. I usually snack on the downhills cause they are surely followed by an uphill that I will need energy for.
      "Dazed and Confused"
      Recycle, re-use, re-purpose
      Plant a tree
      Take a kid hiking
      Make a difference

    • max.patch wrote:

      the first time i hiked into the nantahala outdoor center (this was last century) the elevation profile for my maps showed a constant downhill. the trail was anything but. numerous small ups and downs. i found this particularly annoying as i was expecting to let gravity take me to the river. thats when i learned about elevation profiles. :)


      That descent off Wesser Bald was one of the most infuriating experiences of my AT hike in '90. It didn't help that I ran out of water halfway down. But it was such an insane tease -- drop 100 feet, climb 75, rinse and repeat... like, how many times??? Grrrr.

    • max.patch wrote:

      the first time i hiked into the nantahala outdoor center (this was last century) the elevation profile for my maps showed a constant downhill. the trail was anything but. numerous small ups and downs. i found this particularly annoying as i was expecting to let gravity take me to the river. thats when i learned about elevation profiles. :)


      The big picture was downhill, but reality is in the details of lots of ups and downs.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • hikerboy wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      milkman wrote:

      hikerboy wrote:



      im not a capitalist

      You're not a punctuationist either!


      Yeah but we need capital to make the world work effectively we could survive without punctuation


      No we don't. We need love


      Great HB, I want a brand new fully loaded Chevy. I don't have the money for it, but if I say I love you can I have it for free?
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • Astro wrote:

      hikerboy wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      milkman wrote:

      hikerboy wrote:



      im not a capitalist

      You're not a punctuationist either!


      Yeah but we need capital to make the world work effectively we could survive without punctuation


      No we don't. We need love


      Great HB, I want a brand new fully loaded Chevy. I don't have the money for it, but if I say I love you can I have it for free?


      money is only one form of capital
      its all good

    • hikerboy wrote:

      it all has to get walked, so i really dont pay much attention to the profiles.even maps dont show you the whole pciture. with 50 ft contour ines 20up/20downs look flat. or a 30 ft brush filled ravine to cross.


      Neither do I if I'm alone. However bringing along an inexperienced companion or a BS troop changes the picture. That's when I closely examine trail elevations/conditions to ensure all have a positive experience.

      Lest we forget.....


      SSgt Ray Rangel - USAF
      SrA Elizabeth Loncki - USAF
      PFC Adam Harris - USA
      MSgt Eden Pearl - USMC

    • Dan76 wrote:

      hikerboy wrote:

      it all has to get walked, so i really dont pay much attention to the profiles.even maps dont show you the whole pciture. with 50 ft contour ines 20up/20downs look flat. or a 30 ft brush filled ravine to cross.


      Neither do I if I'm alone. However bringing along an inexperienced companion or a BS troop changes the picture. That's when I closely examine trail elevations/conditions to ensure all have a positive experience.

      if im planning a hike with someone with limited experience, i would hike a trail i already knew fairly well.
      its all good

    • hikerboy wrote:

      Dan76 wrote:

      hikerboy wrote:

      it all has to get walked, so i really dont pay much attention to the profiles.even maps dont show you the whole pciture. with 50 ft contour ines 20up/20downs look flat. or a 30 ft brush filled ravine to cross.


      Neither do I if I'm alone. However bringing along an inexperienced companion or a BS troop changes the picture. That's when I closely examine trail elevations/conditions to ensure all have a positive experience.

      if im planning a hike with someone with limited experience, i would hike a trail i already knew fairly well.


      Good point. However as both the scoutmaster and myself are new to this area I've had to research via map several unfamiliar trails.

      Lest we forget.....


      SSgt Ray Rangel - USAF
      SrA Elizabeth Loncki - USAF
      PFC Adam Harris - USA
      MSgt Eden Pearl - USMC

    • I look at my maps often. It is not so much a matter of being familiar with the area or not. I am constantly comparing my progress to my plan. I evaluate the success of my plan so I may learn from it and plan better next time. I check them for the next water source at each fill up as well. I have no intentions of going thirsty or carrying excess water.

      I am a planner. I plan to do my shakedown hike from the Maine Junction to New Hampshire with no plan just to see how the rest of you guys do it. The thought is giving me hives. How do you know how much food to carry if you have no plan? Do you carry the upper limit just in case? I just can't see myself carrying extra stuff in the name of winging it. Where is the up side of carrying extra food just because you are unwilling to calculate the time and distance and thus knowing how much stuff to carry? Do you just go hungry if your non plan has you run out of food? Do you arrive at the next town carrying excess food and fuel and say "oh well". I honestly don't get it.
      Non hikers are about a psi shy of a legal ball.

      The post was edited 1 time, last by BirdBrain ().

    • BirdBrain wrote:

      I look at my maps often. It is not so much a matter of being familiar with the area or not. I am constantly comparing my progress to my plan. I evaluate the success of my plan so I may learn from it and plan better next time. I check them for the next water source at each fill up as well. I have no intentions of going thirsty or carrying excess water.

      I am a planner. I plan to do my shakedown hike from the Maine Junction to New Hampshire with no plan just to see how the rest of you guys do it. The thought is giving me hives. How do you know how much food to carry if you have no plan? Do you carry the upper limit just in case? I just can't see myself carrying extra stuff in the name of winging it. Where is the up side of carrying extra food just because you are unwilling to calculate the time and distance and thus knowing how much stuff to carry? Do you just go hungry if your non plan has you run out of food? Do you arrive at the next town carrying excess food and fuel and say "oh well". I honestly don't get it.


      I just pack a snickers bar and steal food from chipmunks.
      Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
      Dr. Seuss Cof123

    • hikerboy wrote:

      Worse case you go a little hungry for a day or two. You won't starve.


      Why not plan and carry the right amount of stuff? Fd=W. Carrying extra food and/or water equals unnecessary work. When I show up at a resupply, I have zero extra food every single time. I am asking a real question. I am not worried about starving. I have actually fasted many times more than a week. Anyone else want to take a stab at it.

      Editing this post to state that the above is an exaggeration. I have come into resupply points eating gorp.
      Non hikers are about a psi shy of a legal ball.

      The post was edited 1 time, last by BirdBrain ().

    • I would think a real answer would go something like this: "For the most part I can straight face the amounts. Once in a while I am off by a bit. Being short of food for a day or carrying an extra days food is less painful to me than 100's of hours planning out an exact plan that makes it so that does not happen." Am I close?
      Non hikers are about a psi shy of a legal ball.

    • Rasty wrote:



      I just pack a snickers ....


      How do you know it is extra if there is no plan? I honestly am not trying to prove my side. I know for a fact that I am the oddball. I don't see anyone doing what I do. I just cannot grasp why people wing it when it is easy to take the right amount.

      Okay... moving on. Sorry for the freak show guys.

      Back to the regular silliness.
      Non hikers are about a psi shy of a legal ball.

    • I can't really plan for food. It's always, at best, an estimate. Evening meals usually "work out" inasmuch as there is almost always one per day. But as for everything else -- who knows. I have no idea what my appetite will be like. I have only a mild idea whether I'll actually want to eat the stuff I brought along, since I often get creative and try new foodstuffs. Last few years I've always seemed to pack too much food, so lately I've pared my daily estimate from 2 lbs/day to about half that.

    • Re: Things I need to fix/change/tweak for 2015

      I have a hard time just fasting the 12 hours to get my cholesterol checked. And I am sleeping for 7 or 8 of those. I have a high rate of metabolism. My mom used say "you must have a tapeworm" when i was a kid.
      "Dazed and Confused"
      Recycle, re-use, re-purpose
      Plant a tree
      Take a kid hiking
      Make a difference

    • jimmyjam wrote:

      I have a hard time just fasting the 12 hours to get my cholesterol checked. And I am sleeping for 7 or 8 of those. I have a high rate of metabolism. My mom used say "you must have a tapeworm" when i was a kid.


      Consider yourself lucky!
      My metabolism really changed in my 20s. I really miss the old days when I could eat anything I wanted.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • BirdBrain wrote:

      Rasty wrote:



      I just pack a snickers ....


      How do you know it is extra if there is no plan? I honestly am not trying to prove my side. I know for a fact that I am the oddball. I don't see anyone doing what I do. I just cannot grasp why people wing it when it is easy to take the right amount.

      Okay... moving on. Sorry for the freak show guys.

      Back to the regular silliness.


      You just need to plan how big a snickers bar your taking with you.
      Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
      Dr. Seuss Cof123

    • WiseOldOwl wrote:

      He is afraid of winging it... bad little bird....


      Hey Rasty when do we get a button for fixing our "whatever" words of wisdom at the bottom of the posts? 2015?

      [IMG:http://www.photographyblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/2-flying-bird.jpg]


      Click on your avatar and go to your settings. Signature is one of the settings.
      Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
      Dr. Seuss Cof123

    • BirdBrain wrote:

      Rasty wrote:



      I just pack a snickers ....


      How do you know it is extra if there is no plan? I honestly am not trying to prove my side. I know for a fact that I am the oddball. I don't see anyone doing what I do. I just cannot grasp why people wing it when it is easy to take the right amount.

      Okay... moving on. Sorry for the freak show guys.

      Back to the regular silliness.


      rafe wrote:

      I can't really plan for food. It's always, at best, an estimate. Evening meals usually "work out" inasmuch as there is almost always one per day. But as for everything else -- who knows. I have no idea what my appetite will be like. I have only a mild idea whether I'll actually want to eat the stuff I brought along, since I often get creative and try new foodstuffs. Last few years I've always seemed to pack too much food, so lately I've pared my daily estimate from 2 lbs/day to about half that.


      i agree. i can't plan my appetite. i usually get into town close to empty, and a few times ive gotten it just right, getting into town empty and just slightly more hungry than usual.
      if im just taking a week section, i usually plan my mileage very conservatively, and bring food based on that schedule, and i always have come off trail with too much food.on longer sections, after a few weeks, my appetite stabilizes a bit more, and its easier to plan my resupply. i always have enough for dinners, but usually fall short on snacks.it usually works out to about 1.5 lbs/day.
      the only time ive run into trouble was 3 yrs ago when i got hurt in maine and took a zero at chairback.my ankle was screwed, and i knew it would take me 3 days to get to monson, with only about 1-2 days of food left, i decided to push on and hope for the best, figuring if i actually ran out of food, i could yogi some from a nobo just leaving monson . it ended up working out when i blue blazed to the gorman chairback lodge, but i really had no idea how i was going to be able to make it to monson.
      its all good

    • BirdBrain wrote:

      I would think a real answer would go something like this: "For the most part I can straight face the amounts. Once in a while I am off by a bit. Being short of food for a day or carrying an extra days food is less painful to me than 100's of hours planning out an exact plan that makes it so that does not happen." Am I close?


      i had to plan 2 food drops for the bmt, and both times i had waaaay too much food.next time around i will do it without food drops. like rafe said, very hard to plan my appetite.
      its all good

    • WiseOldOwl wrote:

      hikerboy wrote:

      WiseOldOwl wrote:

      HB perhaps you are forgetting the psychology others and their fear. people pack far more of what they are afraid of.


      i get pissed off if i come off the trail with a days worth of food uneaten.


      Thats fine - I think we all do that.


      Not me. :D Plan better and you won't be pissed too. :whistling:
      Non hikers are about a psi shy of a legal ball.