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[at-l] REI trekking poles, other gear

Does anyone out there in AT-L land own a set of REI trekking poles?

I've seen them , but can't remember what type of locking mechanism is on
them. Is it the screw lock type like the Leki's or the flip lock type like
the Black Diamond's?

I finally treated my Zamberlan boots late last week to prepare for my
climbing trip over the weekend. In the process i learned this: My boots
were constructed of completely untreated leather, just tanned, and
appeared a very light tannish almost green tinged color. i treated them
With Nikwax (in the shoe polish type container) and now they are dark
brown and almost match the trim leather on the boot. Well it turned out to
be a very good thing that I treated them, on the first day of the trip the
bottom dropped out of the skies while I was just finishing our last route
of the day. So I had to pull the gear (had set up a 110 foot toprope with
static line) and rap off this burly overhanging face in a downpour. I only
had the clothes I was wearing with me (the others were in the truck about
a mile away, off trail, over very rocky terrain). I did have my
REI polartec ear-flap hat though. Needless to say I wasn't really happy
being soaked with a t-shirt and shorts on while my climbing companions
were lounging out under the overhang and completely dry. We decided to
wait out the rain (forecast said an hour) and after an hour it wasn't
letting up at all. "Let's get going" I said donning my hat and strapping
on my pack. We hiked the mile out in heavy rain and my feet stayed
completely dry, could have been the g-tex in the boots, or the nikwax or
both, but I was warm (due to the hat) and happy. i did take two spills on
the way out on splippery rocks, but no damage was done luckily. Dumb-ass
move of weekend: Left my g-tex shell at home. Lessons learned: Always
carry a synthetic or waterproof hat, if you're wearing cotton carry spare
clothes, Zamberlan boots rock!

I also "broke in" my Whisperlite. i didn't have much problem getting it to
simmer, it just required constant attention, no big deal. The little cone
shaped fuel filter deal popped off the plastic line on the pump and fell
into my fuel bottle while I was inserting the pump. I didn't bother with
fishing it out (would have meant dumping my fuel somehow) I had filtered
the fuel when filling the bottle so I didn't worry too much. I think I'm
going to like this stove much better than the Peak 1 I used to have.


It looks like i got the pack and bag I was trying to sell sold, so I
called up Feathered Friends today and told them to make me a bag! I opted
for the Swallow model in a dryloft shell with 1.6 oz tafetta lining. It's
a +20 down mummy bag with 700+ fill down and it weighs (here's the best
part) 2lbs 1oz. Woooo hoooo! I may be down to 27 lbs without
food/water/fuel.

i also received in the mail today my ATC packcover. It looks like it will
definitely keep the water out if I can secure it properly. The thing kind
of looks like it was intended for external frame packs since the top is
kind of blocky, but I didn't have anything in my pack when I tried it on
either. I'll report back if anyone is interested.


That is all, carry on.......

Will Strickland -ANTELOPE- ME->GA '97
"May the four winds blow you safely home..."
  -- Grateful Dead--
Internet: gt0556d@prism.gatech.edu

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