[at-l] Re: Re Re Gear list

[krk@speakeasy.org (Kenneth Knight)]

On 12/18/01 at 11:11 PM, Amy <askowronek@mindspring.com> wrote:

> Zip-off pants tend to bind across my leg.  Chaps don't keep the butt 
> dry.  I'm thinking about maybe more weatherproof pants though.

If you're wearing a poncho I'm surprised the chaps aren't enough. Granted with a short cut rain
jacket (not coat) chaps do leave the butt exposed. I've found that that bit of exposure hasn't
really been a problem even when wearing something like a weaist length jacket like my Frogg Toggs
jacket. My big gripe with rain pants is the hassle. They're also too warm for me in most conditions.
Rain chaps do almost as wel and are much cooler not to mention a lot lighter. Since Moonbow Gear
does costum work they probably could make a set of chaps that would almost completely cover your but
if you asked them too.

> > What type of jacket is this? Is it strictly a wind protection jacket. If
> > so you can certainly get something much lighter like the Montane
> > Featherlite <http://www.montane.co.uk>. There is a very good comparison
> > article of windshirts at <http://www.backpackinglight.com/index/29/>. By
> > the way, the folks at backpackinglight.com just did an extensive article
> > on rain gear too. Worth checking out.
> 
> It's some kind of generic REI jacket.  It's mostly wind protection, a 
> little bit of rain protection.  The problem with the other options is 
> that they seem to be order only.  I really like to try gear on first. 
> Odd shape and all.

While this is true most of these places have good return policies. Talk with them and make sure. Off
the top of my head I am not sure who the US retailer is for Montane these days. I've probably got it
somewhere. The RedLedge jacket that got top honors is available, I believe, from Campmor and their
return policy is quite good.

[ re: Mt. Washington Sleeping pad ]
> Again, I'd want to try it out.  Sleeping comfort is so individual.

Ain't it the truth. Keep in mind that you will be schlepping your gear for 2,100 miles and if you
can find something substantially lighter that is as good (or almost as good - and certainly better,
vastly better, when the therm-a-rest springs a leak) you should give it serious thought. I'm not
sure what the return policy is with these people. It never came up for me. :)

> For winter I might, but my bivy has mesh which is really nice when it's 
> warmer out.  A couple of months ago I used it on a warm night when I 
> could have slept happily with no covering, were it not for the LARGE 
> UGLY MEAN TOOTHY CENTIPEDES which kept insisting on crawling over me.
> Thank god for mesh.  But I like the simple bag cover for winter, and 
> that looks like a great source for buying it.


Ah yes, the creepy-crawly factor. I understand this well.  I can say nice things about Adventure
16's bug bivy which is also available from backcountrygear.com. This thing does not cover you
completely, but it doesn't have too since most of your body is inside the sleeping bag under a bag
cover. The A16 bug bivy seals around your shoulders and though too look at it you would think it'd
be inadequate I have found it works quite well against the creepy-crawly (more important flying
menance) we all encounter on the trail.

> Esbit.  I'm not much of a cooker.  Might change on a long hike, I guess, 
> which is why I included the stove, fuel, and pot at all.  :)

Hmm, that's a light Esbit stove. Do you have a windscreen for it? 2 ounces of Esbit is not going to
go very far. My prior experience suggests that you might be able to get 3 pints of water to a boil
with that. More likely just 2 unless you are good at blowing the tabs out quickly. Consider an
alcohol stove (there are many good designs--the Photon stove by Don Johnston is among the very best
<http://members.home.net/d.h.j/>). An archive listing many other homemade designs is at
<http://wings.interfree.it/html/main.html>. The best commercial alcohol stove is Trangia's which you
can find at most stores. One huge advantage alcohol stove have is it is easier to get fuel. You'll
have to send yourself Esbit tabs along the way; denatured alcohol can be bought at hardware stores
or even gas stations (HEET, gas line antifreeze, make sure you get the alcohol based product NOT the
petrolium based product). I've found alcohol also burns better when the temerpatures dip.

> Um, cause I have it.  I dunno.  It's better than storing water in my cheeks.

This made me laugh.

> >>gaiters 
> >>      7 oz
> >>
> > 
> > Wow. Heavy gaiters. Personally I'd loose them. I find gaiters usefulness rather limited.
> > 
> 
> 
> Yeah, they're heavy.  I think the ground in years of dirt isn't helping 
> the weight any.  At least the burrs don't weigh much.

By the way, perhaps I missed it but you never said anything about water treatment. I flip-flop
between gravity-based filters and chemicals. I'm on the flop side these days which means Aqua Mira
is my primary choice these days. I also carry a small yogurt cup to retrieve water from low water
sources more easily. If I am really concenred about floaty bits I'd probably carry something like
Sweet Water's Silt Stopper to my hydration system.

  ** Ken **
  

**  Kenneth Knight    Web Design, IT Consultant, Software Engineer  **
**       krk@speakeasy.org        http://www.speakeasy.org/~krk     **