What's the silliest, most useless thing you've hiked with?

**Panzer1** · 03-07-2010, 12:20

Quote:
Originally Posted by Manwich

Flint/Steel Firestarter.

Originally Posted by Jonnycat

lol I carried one of those things for *years*! Deluxe version, too, with the elk horn handle.

I saw one of those things just yesterday at a flee market. My wife wanted me to buy it but I resisted. His demo was very compelling. He could set almost anything on fire with it.

Panzer

**Jonnycat** · 03-07-2010, 12:41

lol that's why I bought mine, too; the guy who made/sold the thing could give Ron Poppeil a run for his money.

**IceAge** · 03-07-2010, 12:44

Originally Posted by trailangelbronco

Ended up carrying alot of stupid crap in the Army.

Same thing in the Navy. The most useless thing I ever carried is a tie between the Frankfurter MRE and the Omelet MRE.

**Furlough** · 03-07-2010, 14:09

A fellow assitant scout master, who just never really "got" the backpacking concept.

**DocHolliday** · 03-07-2010, 15:31

Originally Posted by IceAge

Same thing in the Navy. The most useless thing I ever carried is a tie between the Frankfurter MRE and the Omelet MRE.

Yeah, those Veggie Omelet MRE are insurmountably terrible.

K2 · 03-07-2010, 17:04

Originally Posted by IceAge

Same thing in the Navy. The most useless thing I ever carried is a tie between the Frankfurter MRE and the Omelet MRE.

Originally Posted by DocHolliday

Yeah, those Veggie Omelet MRE are insurmountably terrible.

So, did you have the tie to hang yourself before you had to eat the Omelet?

I found these dinky solar lights, that weight mere ounces, that I'm thinking about carrying on my trip just for the heck of it; if they work, fewer batteries.

**DocHolliday** · 03-07-2010, 17:15

haha Nope, but I had a pistol belt! Would have worked in a pinch.

**Tin Man** · 03-07-2010, 18:42

Originally Posted by Furlough

A fellow assitant scout master, who just never really "got" the backpacking concept.

i know a couple of those... the mothers are the worst... they always seem to think we need a cooler and a case or two of bottled drinks. oi

**SGT Rock** · 03-07-2010, 18:51

a dog.....

**Blue Jay** · 03-07-2010, 19:51

That's easy hiking poles.

**botanista** · 03-08-2010, 02:40

Great responses. I love the garden knome and MIL in heels. And WHAT/WHO is Lumpy?! Good to know I'm not the only one who finds a stuffed animal nice to have in camp.

I've eaten MREs, just to find out. Yikes, way to make a bad thing worse!

So the MIL story reminds me of a college adventure out in the Mt. Hood area. A friend hijacked me into going to a hotsprings with a bunch of friends after a formal. I was wearing a thin polyester dress, a wool coat, and four inch spike strappy heels. It was mid-December, 1AM.

When we got to the trail head, I found out that this was not a park and jump in the tub situation. There was a mile of slushy trail to navigate. When my lovely friends' flashlight batteries gave out five minutes into the walk, I volunteered to lead, since I was able to tell where the trail was because I was BAREFOOT. Crunchy ice and mud underfoot is pretty easy to track, even on an overcast night under the canopy. On the way back (dawn), the friend who talked me into this gave me his shoes to wear. By the time we got back to the car, he claimed to be cured of chivalry. Um, maybe if he'd suggested I bring some walking shoes when he insisted I join them...

**double d** · 03-08-2010, 03:01

I hiked with a "portable" tv with me once. It wasn't real big, but huhhh, kinda stupid none the less because it got zero reception.

**tuswm** · 03-08-2010, 03:41

I was in the grand canyon over Halloween. All the kids hiked in full Halloween costumes and parents were passing out candy from the different tents.