[pct-l] (no subject)

[Kevin Cook]

I've never had a problem with the bag warming my water unless I wanted it
too, and I use it often in the warm southwest. It rarely sits out, and it's
easy enough to set it out of the sun.

I only use my wire mesh bag in the canyon where places to hang food bags are
often not available. I agree with Paul. Don't carry the bear canister unless
you have to. Just use a stuff sack and hang it to keep the rodents out.

I'm not ultra light by most standards, but there is definitely a benefit to
trying to reduce your pack weight as much as possible. A thru hike is a
race. Not against other hikers, but against the changing of seasons. You're
under the gun from the start, so you need to make good time. The lighter
your load, the further you can go in a day. The further you can go, the less
food you need, so the lighter your pack is, the further you can go, the less
food you need, etc etc See how that works? Obviously there is a limit, or I
could hit the trail naked and hike forever! ;)

If this is your first review of your gear aimed at reducing weight, start
with the big three. Pack, sleeping bag, and shelter. Reducing your pack
weight is a process. Newer hikers can jump into ultra light because they
know no different. For those of us that have backpacked for a couple
decades, we have to learn to change our ways. I've been working on mine for
many years. My thru hike this year has finally got me counting grams. I
can't afford to replace everything, but I'm estimating I'll drop ~5 lbs for
this trip. That's just in gear. I started using my dehydrator that I bought
20 years ago, so my food weight will go down significantly too.

Good luck with your planning. There are a lot of knowledgeable and helpful
folks on this list. And as you can see, some of us like to ramble on about
gear. :P

On Tue, Jan 11, 2011 at 8:00 PM, Benjamin Grunbaum <bengrunbaum at gmail.com>wrote:

> Thank You for the responses.  I have not seen or heard of the Dromedary bag
> before.  I live in the redwoods in Northern California and have never had to
> be concerned about water.  I like the weight and apparent durability of
> these bags, however I do not know about the black shell.  I would imagine
> the water gets very hot on a sunny day.
>
> I like the idea of a wire mesh bag.  I grew up in the desert (never really
> did any packing at that time) and recall all the mice and rats.  I have
> unfortunately lost some food to some ambitious animals on Mount Shasta and
> use a bear canister wherever I go now so that never happens again. I
> understand that dropping that weight can only help your chances of making
> it.
>
> As far as how much my base backpack weight is, I do not know.  I have never
> really worried about that before; In my defense I have never backpacked so
> many consecutive days so I am figuring this stuff out.  Some of my gear such
> as my sleeping bag is neither the lightest or smallest so I may even need to
> replace some essentials.
>
> Thank you for the responses.
>
>
>
>
>
> On Tue, Jan 11, 2011 at 8:25 AM, Kevin Cook <hikelite at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> For water, I'm a fan of MSR Dromedary or Hydromedary water bags.
>> There are a couple 20+ mile waterless stretches in socal, so you need to
>> carry an entire day's water. That's at least a gallon. When I backpack in
>> areas with no water, like parts of The Grand Canyon, I'll often carry as
>> much 6 liters, occassionaly more, but that's only when I need to go 2 days
>> without access to water. You will see water everyday on the PCT.
>>
>> I use a big stuff sack for my food usually. In The Canyon, I have a wire
>> mesh bag to protect from rodents. I'll use a bear can in the Sierras.
>>
>> On Mon, Jan 10, 2011 at 9:03 PM, Benjamin Grunbaum <bengrunbaum at gmail.com
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> Rather than skim through the database of forum entries longer than I
>>> already
>>> have I thought I would ask some questions which I am sure have been asked
>>> many times before.  I am curious as to what those who have done the PCT
>>> recommend for those parts of the trail where one may need to carry a
>>> little
>>> extra water or lots of food.  What kind of container and how much water
>>> does
>>> one need to carry on the longer stretches without a source? What is the
>>> most
>>> food that one must carry? I have a Bearvault 500 bear canister and was
>>> wondering if anyone carries them the whole time?  I carry mine whenever I
>>> go
>>> backpacking know but have never done anything nearly as long as the PCT.
>>> Any knowledge and suggestions would be appreciated.
>>>
>>> Ben
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>>
>>
>