Any Backpackers/Campers Here?

[Togoro]

Just thought I'd make a thread about backpacking or camping.

I'm a big fan of backpacking myself. Whether it's a day hike or a 3-4 day trip.

Anyone else who likes to talk about the sport/hobby, feel free to chime in and post some stories/talk about gear/whatever you want!

[fitnessman]

JP, I camp all the time. Mostly primative. Being a former Army Airborne guy..It's the only way I know how to camp!

like the new sub forum?

[AnimalOnly]

Yeah I love camping. Ever have trouble with forest rangers walking up to your campsite with about 30 beer cans laying around?

BTW fitnessman the new forum kicks ass man good job.

[fitnessman]

Originally Posted by AnimalOnly

BTW fitnessman the new forum kicks ass man good job.

Yes I am very happy about this new addition!

Thanks to Skippy/Scott for putting this in.

[Hartski]

Originally Posted by fitnessman

Being a former Army Airborne guy..It's the only way I know how to camp!

Here's a knife. See you in a week.

[bearlydavid]

Originally Posted by AnimalOnly

BTW fitnessman the new forum kicks ass man good job.

Bump to that.. Just discovered this forum... LOL

But yeah.. I was in Boy scouts most of my life, didnt do much backpacking... Until towards the end, and I finally went to Philmont... Absolutely one of the most beautiful places i have ever seen

I would like to go again, dont really have anyone to go with... Thinking about checking out REI.. they usually have like a bulletin board about stuff like that i think



O/T
But what kind of backpacks, tents, etc. do yall use...

I have a external REI Wonderland i think.... I think they discontinued them... And also a North Face tent... Really good tent...

[fitnessman]

Originally Posted by Hartski

Here's a knife. See you in a week.

LMAO!!! True though

[Donkey Hunter]

Originally Posted by Togoro

Just thought I'd make a thread about backpacking or camping.

I'm a big fan of backpacking myself. Whether it's a day hike or a 3-4 day trip.

Anyone else who likes to talk about the sport/hobby, feel free to chime in and post some stories/talk about gear/whatever you want!

I would love to get into it, just don't know where to start. I have a nice pack but lack the other essential gear. What do you usually pack for a 4 day trip?

[AnimalOnly]

Originally Posted by bearlydavid

O/T
But what kind of backpacks, tents, etc. do yall use...

I have a external REI Wonderland i think.... I think they discontinued them... And also a North Face tent... Really good tent...

US Army issued ruc sack.

[Togoro]

Originally Posted by Donkey Hunter

I would love to get into it, just don't know where to start. I have a nice pack but lack the other essential gear. What do you usually pack for a 4 day trip?

Backpacking seems like the kind of hobby that will constantly be ridiculously expensive for all your gear.

But the great thing is, after you get your essentials, you'll never need to buy another thing unless something is damaged, or you desire something more aesthetically pleasing

Depending on where you'll be camping/hiking depends on what gear you need. If you just wanna give this a shot in the summer, i'd say a decent pack, some good boots, a tent and a sleeping bag(if that) is all you really need.

Cold weather is a totally different story.

As far as longer trips. I'd say some cookware, a few changes of clothes, some decent canned food and bars, plenty of water, and some sort of water purification device/tabs is all you need. Ultra-light is the way to go

[Togoro]

Originally Posted by bearlydavid

Bump to that.. Just discovered this forum... LOL

But yeah.. I was in Boy scouts most of my life, didnt do much backpacking... Until towards the end, and I finally went to Philmont... Absolutely one of the most beautiful places i have ever seen

I would like to go again, dont really have anyone to go with... Thinking about checking out REI.. they usually have like a bulletin board about stuff like that i think



O/T
But what kind of backpacks, tents, etc. do yall use...

I have a external REI Wonderland i think.... I think they discontinued them... And also a North Face tent... Really good tent...

REI is a great place to find more information about group hikes, etc.


I myself just got a new Kelty pack for Christmas and couldn't be happier.

My boots aren't anything special, just some $100 job from REI.

[Togoro]

Originally Posted by fitnessman

JP, I camp all the time. Mostly primative. Being a former Army Airborne guy..It's the only way I know how to camp!

like the new sub forum?

Haha, for some reason i'm not too surprised that this guy chooses the primitive way to camp.


We're talkin' about the man who wears a tank top and bermuda shorts to ice fish.


Oh, and I love the new sub-forum!

[bearlydavid]

Originally Posted by Togoro

REI is a great place to find more information about group hikes, etc.


I myself just got a new Kelty pack for Christmas and couldn't be happier.

My boots aren't anything special, just some $100 job from REI.

Yeah me too with the boots.. I got some hiking boots from their.. No complaints.. Just broke em in good

Definately going to have to check it out... There none around my College, but im going home this weekend to go pig hunting so I will probably stop by REI and see about the whole group hikes

[Donkey Hunter]

whats REI?

[bearlydavid]

Originally Posted by Donkey Hunter

whats REI?

http://www.rei.com/

There is a thing called google...

[Donkey Hunter]

thanks bro, looks like a kick ass sight.

[fitnessman]

Originally Posted by Togoro

Haha, for some reason i'm not too surprised that this guy chooses the primitive way to camp.


We're talkin' about the man who wears a tank top and bermuda shorts to ice fish.


Oh, and I love the new sub-forum!

[Togoro]

Originally Posted by bearlydavid

Yeah me too with the boots.. I got some hiking boots from their.. No complaints.. Just broke em in good

Definately going to have to check it out... There none around my College, but im going home this weekend to go pig hunting so I will probably stop by REI and see about the whole group hikes

Pig hunting, huh?

That sounds pretty bad ass.


If there isn't and REI near you, you could also try EMS(Eastern Mountain Sports)

It's not as large scale as REI, but the guys there are alot cooler.

[mntbikedude]

Yeah I've done a fair amount of backpacking have a kelty myself. When my son now 20 turned 11 he was in scouts and they asked me to be one of the scoutmasters. I ended up really enjoying it and my son and I racked up over 200 nights of backpacking. Including death valley national park and many trips in the tops of the mnts. We actually went over 3 years camping every month including the winter and we never canceled a camp because of bad weather.

My last trip was riding our bikes from canada to calif we carried all our gear on our bikes and camped the entire 17 days. Bike touring is much like backpacking although I think you get even more efficient on what you bring.

My youngest son is 13 and I'm doing many of the same trips with him. We are doing the bike trek this summer.

[AnimalOnly]

Originally Posted by mntbikedude

Yeah I've done a fair amount of backpacking have a kelty myself. When my son now 20 turned 11 he was in scouts and they asked me to be one of the scoutmasters. I ended up really enjoying it and my son and I racked up over 200 nights of backpacking. Including death valley national park and many trips in the tops of the mnts. We actually went over 3 years camping every month including the winter and we never canceled a camp because of bad weather.

My last trip was riding our bikes from canada to calif we carried all our gear on our bikes and camped the entire 17 days. Bike touring is much like backpacking although I think you get even more efficient on what you bring.

My youngest son is 13 and I'm doing many of the same trips with him. We are doing the bike trek this summer.

That's awesome that you do stuff like that with your kids.

[mntbikedude]

Originally Posted by bearlydavid

Bump to that.. Just discovered this forum... LOL

But yeah.. I was in Boy scouts most of my life, didnt do much backpacking... Until towards the end, and I finally went to Philmont... Absolutely one of the most beautiful places i have ever seen

I would like to go again, dont really have anyone to go with... Thinking about checking out REI.. they usually have like a bulletin board about stuff like that i think



O/T
But what kind of backpacks, tents, etc. do yall use...

I have a external REI Wonderland i think.... I think they discontinued them... And also a North Face tent... Really good tent...

I went to a leadership course at Phillmont and my two oldest kids did the backpacking trip while there. I just remember when we were heading home and eating at a restaurant that the two of them would like gather up all the crumbs on the table and eat them and they would like compress all garbage into tiny packages. I think you can only relate to this if you've been trained by Philmont staff



On equipment I have alot but my favorite gear is my Kelty internal pack. Backcountry II tent. Easy to set up, enough room for one but lightweight. Peak sleeping back. North Face fleece ummmm lots of North Face gear thats good stuff.

[recyfer]

Big time camper and fisher. To me nothing beats a cliff side sit in the morning before a long day of hiking watching the sunrise over the misty horizon. Ok I'll stop now, almost brought a tear to my eyes.

[McDugan]

Originally Posted by fitnessman

Yes I am very happy about this new addition!

Thanks to Skippy/Scott for putting this in.

Love the forum - work at REI and do a ton of camping in the pacific north west. I'm probably not as hard core as you but I've pretty much got my gear minimized so that I could be considered as an ultralightweight camper/hiker.

[bearlydavid]

Originally Posted by mntbikedude

I went to a leadership course at Phillmont and my two oldest kids did the backpacking trip while there. I just remember when we were heading home and eating at a restaurant that the two of them would like gather up all the crumbs on the table and eat them and they would like compress all garbage into tiny packages. I think you can only relate to this if you've been trained by Philmont staff

On equipment I have alot but my favorite gear is my Kelty internal pack. Backcountry II tent. Easy to set up, enough room for one but lightweight. Peak sleeping back. North Face fleece ummmm lots of North Face gear thats good stuff.

HAHAHAH.... I remember exactly... It like started to be a hobby of the guys... All sit around and compact trash.. I think once I got all of it in a small can of tuna...

But man, when we got back... I was hankering for something deep fried... I still rememer we ate at the hotel owned by Jesse James... Had a Reuban there LOL

The best memory though is the Pemmican Bars... Gosh you could kill a man if you threw one of those at em

[Togoro]

Bump.



Hiking is cool

[iKermit]

i'm looking for a new backpacking stove. i've read a crapload of reviews but was wondering what some of you use. this'll give me a chance to ask questions.
i'm currently using the following..


i'm leaning towards the newer version of this or something like the MSR XGK EX.
if you can tell me what you use and why, that would be great.
thanks

[max lift]

Good topic,


I have mostly used the MSR WhisperLite Internationale, its light compact easy to disassemble and repair in the field if need be , I also like that you can bring extra fuel along for longer trips and not have to refill a canister their are other perks like the ability to burn diesel or jet fuel but I have only run it with white gas The down side to this stove is that it does not simmer well so its not the best if you are going to be cooking a more technical meal,

http://www.msrcorp.com/stoves/whisper_intl.asp


I also have this stove it simmers for those times when you want to make something a little more involved than heating water,

http://www.msrcorp.com/stoves/simmerlite.asp

[max lift]

One more option, I have a bunch of friends who are ultra light fans and swear by their pop can stoves, no moving parts dirt cheep to make and easy to use, the down side is that the boil times are a bit longer that the MSR stove I recommended originally.

http://www.pcthiker.com/pages/gear/pepsistove.shtml

[iKermit]

Originally Posted by max lift

One more option, I have a bunch of friends who are ultra light fans and swear by their pop can stoves, no moving parts dirt cheep to make and easy to use, the down side is that the boil times are a bit longer that the MSR stove I recommended originally.

http://www.pcthiker.com/pages/gear/pepsistove.shtml

that pepsi stove is great! it's not what i would take backpacking though. i don't mind sacrificing a bit of weight for durability and function. i'd still like to assemble one of those and try it out though.
i've backpacked a lot with a friend of mine who uses the whisperlite int'l so i've seen that one in action quite a bit. the performance of that versus the one i have now are almost identical except for the simmering which you mentioned. do you have any experience with other MSR models? i use other products of theirs and love the name.

also, if you're into ultralight, you should look into Hennessy hammocks (http://www.hennessyhammock.com/ )as an alternative to tents. i recently picked up the Expedition ASYM; 2lbs 10oz! it makes a very noticeable difference in pack weight and compresses to the size of a football.

[muscleman420]

i was crew chief for my philmont crew so...yeah.

we would hrow rocks at each other for fun...got boring, we had nothin else to play with.