Re: [at-l] next round

> 1. What in the world is everyone using to weight their stuff
> with? Electronic scale? Mechanical Scale?

I used a regular scale.  I didn't weigh everything individually.  that
didn't matter to me.  I stood on the scale, saw that i was outrageously
overweight, put on my pack, stood on the scale.  broke it.  bought a new
scale, threw away some needless crap.  stepped on new scale, cried over my
fat ass, put on pack, stepped on scale, cried over my fat ass and my heavy
pack.  dealt with it.

but seriously, i was never concerned with the individual weight of each
item.  I just wanted to keep my pack under 40 pounds, which I did.  I left
Springer w/ a 40lb pack.  I climbed Katahdin w/ a 25-30lb pack.  (I also had
a much smaller, firmer, and cuter ass).


> 2. I'd also be interested in finding out what the standard pack weight
> is. I don't mean load weight. How much does your empty backpack
> weight?

My empty pack was somewhere in the 2-3lb range.  I can't remember.  I
carried a Kelty Gale, which doesn't have much in the way of a suspension
system, or a real frame, for that matter, which is why it's so light.  It's
also why it hurt my back to carry more than 35lbs.

> 3. What about your standard size? I'm definitely planning to buy my
> pack last (I'm getting a new one), but I'd still be interested in your
> average pack size.

3200 cu in. i believe.  I liked it there.  More would have made me want to
fill it up, thus causing a heavier pack.  Less would have made it difficult
to carry winter gear, thus having the bag-lady look where everything is
lashed to the outside of your pack.

>
> 4. How much of your pack load (volume, not weight) is taken up by food?

At the top of my pack were two chords (one at the top, to cynch the thing
shut, then one just above the frame, to cynch it even tighter if everything
should fit in there).  without my food, I could cynch the lower one, just
above the frame.  Towards the end of the trail, I could cynch the lower one
while carrying food, if I had about 2-3 days until town.  I don't know what
the percentage of pack volume that takes.  I never worried about it too
much.  There were times, coming out of town, when I couldn't cynch the top
string because I had so much food.  That was usually remedied after the
first dinner, when I would gorge myself to death.

>
> I know all this probably makes me sound like a cherry, but I'm really
> not. I've done lots of backpacking,

actually, i've learned that it doesn't matter how much backpacking you've
done.  you'll look green on springer, no matter what.  expect to take more
than you'll need in the beginning, and don't be afraid of sending anything
home (except winter gear in damascus, as it was still snowing when I went
through).

belch
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