[at-l] Trail Food, How do you carry 7 days

[ellen at clinic.net (Bob C.)]

>"...My point is that the differences between modern gear are slight.  If you
>make rational decisions, it's all fairly equal.  Yes, there's a difference, but
>in the long run if you're making moderately educated guesses, you'll do OK."

A clarification for those who haven't been listening. When I say gear is
important, I mean enough gear for the likely conditions, especially for winter
hiking above timberline. I don't necessarily mean modern.

None of my gear is state of the art. A lot of it is decades old. Earl Shaffer
hiked successfully at age 79 with mostly WW II era gear -- as did all the AT
pioneers.

I could shave two or three pounds from my pack by buying new stuff. I choose not
to for a variety of reasons. I also carry another extra pound because I like to
sit and read in the evening as opposed to crowding into a sleeping bag.

My message is simple. These are personal choices. And for a few prospective thru
hikers at least, those on a tight budget, it's better to carry a few extra
pounds than not to hike at all. I am confident that I could do a thru hike,
carrying only stuff readily available in a few weeks of diligent searching at
Good Will and Salvation Army Stores.

And though I dislike the very concept of Walmarts, I'm equally certain I could
use them to adequately equip myself for a thru hike, albeit, at a penalty of a
few pounds of pack weight.

I don't advise doing so, unless it is that, or not attempting a thru hike at
all.

Why am I confident these things are so. Because during the first quarter century
of thru hiking these would have been luxury choices compared to what the
pioneers carried.

Bump Smith and his wife from Bucksport Maine hiked SOBO in 1970 carrying three
pound+ sleeping bags, an eight pound tent, a three pound axe and a road map for
guidance. His two hour slide show when they returned was easily the best and
funniest I've ever been to.

It happened at the University of Maine in Orono. The room was packed. But the
kids attending were disappointed. I heard the mutterings afterwards, "they don't
know anything about backpacking," one said. His friends agreed.  Bump and
Margaret had neglected to attend to whatever in 1970 version was the equivalent
of this list. But they managed to be the second and third south bounders in
history.

Weary