[at-l] (long) 1st lightweight AT thruhike practice...

["Kurt Russell" <kurt@inct.net>]

Hi all - Some notes on a practice run I made to test lightweight
concepts for my eventual thru-hike (99 or 00). Turned out to be a
pretty easy overnighter in the Deam Wilderness, part of the
Hoosier Nat'l Forest (one of the few tracts of Indiana land now
open and visually unsullied in the absence of Felix and his
shirt... :-) Easy thanks completely to lightweight gear, which
means I have to thank all the fine folks on the lists who have
(sometimes unwittingly <g>) shared tips with me. Kudos!
Some findings...
1) *Lightweight WORKS*, and very well. Prior to this, I've been
using a 5500 ci Gregory Palisades, and filling 'er up for even
the shortest of trips. What the heck, right? Wrong! I found
out... For this trip, I took a very small North Face book sack
(approx 1800 ci), which was 18 lbs *total* weight with everything
(tent, thermarest, +40 sleeping bag, alchee-hol stove w/11oz
fuel, two dinners and breakfasts, rainjacket, etc...). This
weight includes 3 liters of water in a Platy, a book and notebook
(which added 1lb 13oz), and a couple of other incidentals (which
will be replaced by essentials on a longer hike). I could shave
some more off, but I think that this will be very close to my
eventual (and final) pack weight, adding a few more pounds for a
few more days worth of food.
2)Put the boots on before I left the house. Thought about it,
then took them off, and put on my trail running shoes - great
decision! Without the weight on my back, boots were unneccessary,
I found - just like the books, videos, and other hikers doing
this already said.
3)I only had time to hike in 2.5 to 3 miles Tues night, made it
in an hour with little effort. Wed, I covered around 11 miles in
4 - 4.5 hours of actual hiking time. I made frequent
map-consulting breaks, plant- and view- gazing stops, had a
frustrating 20 min interval while I attempted to filter water
(until I figured out that I had mounted one of the cartridge
filters backward - duh! :( ), one stop for moleskin, a chat w/a
squirrel hunter, poorly marked stream crossings, etc..., but
having started at 8:30 am, I had finished my day at 2:05 pm, was
pleased that if I were a little more in shape, and had feet used
to all day walking, much more mileage could have been
accomplished before beddy-by time. I fully attribute my pace to
the light weight of pack and gear, as the furthest I've had the
chance to walk in several months is probably a distance of under
200 yards.
4)Trekking poles (Leki Super Makalu, birthday present from the
lovely Michele) are great, and were probably the single most
beneficial piece(s) of gear that I carried, and that carried me
(This was the first time I've used them). Those little shock
absorbers work great on steep, rocky downhills, and the support
on steep climbs made a huge difference. I'd wondered about the
noise they'd make, but it didn't seem that much, and the 6-point
buck that I scared up from less than a 100 yards away hadn't
heard me coming down that hill until I was very close (too close,
judging by how fast he ran...). They may also have helped to keep
me tick-free in an area I *know* has them - I just extended both
the poles out in front of me, brushing them against grass blades
before I swung my feet through them, and didn't pick up a single
one. Coincidence? Luck? Who knows, but I'll keep doing it...
5)Homemade alcohol beer-can stove is a winner. I really liked how
easily it worked, even without much presoaking of the macaroni.
From start to eat was less than 15 minutes, probably a lot closer
to 10. My food was actually done a little quicker than I would
have liked, as I had lots of extra fuel for no reason. Air temps
were in the lower 60's, with a light wind. More practice with it
as fall commences, and I think I will make a smaller one (less
fuel capacity) for heating drink water. Used about 4oz of fuel,
probably only needed to use half of that, really. Stove design is
very similar to the Trangia, but much lighter.
6)Met an older gentleman who was fixin' to head into the woods as
I came out. He was *very* interested in an 18 lb pack, as his
weighed 65 (!). He's planning to thru hike next year, so I gave
him the email addresses of the lists, and told him that if he'd
post a list of what he's carrying, everybody'd help him pare the
weight down a bit (I know, I know, a babe among the wolves <g>,
but it's how we learn, right?). He'll be joining us in a few
days, his name is Pete Brown, and up 'til now he's been planning
on hiking 15 days between resupply, among other things. I almost
feel sorry for him once everyone here gets ahold of him :-)
Well, thats most of it. 'Scuse the Giardiasis of the keyboard (if
anyone read this far) -
Walk smartly -
Kurt


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