Odd Man Out, I'm with them. I don't think I want to worry about water or food either. Sure, I can carry 3 pounds of cold weather gear as well but I want to be sure my iPOD, six cups/bowls, Kindle, and AC adapters fit first.
Odd Man Out, I'm with them. I don't think I want to worry about water or food either. Sure, I can carry 3 pounds of cold weather gear as well but I want to be sure my iPOD, six cups/bowls, Kindle, and AC adapters fit first.
The Post Office "Sherpas" deliver in both directions.
I just got thru pulling a 20 day Mt Rogers trip from the NRA south to Thomas Knob and all thru the Crest Zone and returned on a backtrack to the NRA ranger station. April 4-23.
Knowing what I know about the mountains of NC and VA, I took my near full winter kit including my Exped downmat and WM Puma sleeping bag and two sets of gloves and my Icebreaker merino tops and the balaclava with a turtle fur hat. Even a down jacket and down pants, and I used all these items during the course of the trip.
I saw many ultralight type thruhikers carrying inadequate gear with too little clothing and so they slept cold and suffered. Most of them refused to carry tents and so had to endure the open side of a shelter for sleeping. Why not carry more clothing and warmer bags? Cuz they were on a mission to cover 25-35 miles a day and couldn't be slowed down. Crazy.
Anyway, in the Mt Rogers area it's not only the cold which gets you it's the WIND. Anyone who has camped on Wilburn Ridge or Stone Mt knows what the wind can do in the winter or even in April. On the last day of my trip yes I did finally see snow, as shown below.
April 23, 2012---Partnership shelter in a light dusting of snow.
There's a little lake below the shelter and on my last day of the trip to Mt Rogers I got some snow with wind. Didn't lose any digits or my nose, though.
I ran into Whiteblazer Allegheny with his hammock in the snow and we watched thruhikers come thru and immediately bail to Marion for motel rooms. Weird.
Those UL thru-hikers are making a conscious decision.. They are choosing speed over comfort. Their objective is mileage. And they pay the price in cold nights and occasionally having to bail out to trail towns. So be it. Doesn't bother me at all. Just not how I envision my thru.
Some of them are probably still trying to figure out this "expected conditions" thing. I discovered the hard way that packing for the forecasted low is not always the best choice, and I ended up hiking through the night because I was worried about hypothermia. Hopefully I've learned my lesson and won't do that again, but only time will tell.
I'm tired of seeing the words UL and inadequate gear in the same sentence. If a person isn't carrying enough gear to be self sufficient for any likely conditions, that isn't ultralight, its just not having adequate gear. Not having a shelter or raingear is just stupid. Calling those people Ultralighters is insulting to those who truely are.
The Fast and Light hysteria is behind the UL fanaticism. Together these two current trends have become corporate logos seen by a big percentage of entry-level newbs. Ergo, these initiates pull trips with deplorable kits fit only for a narrow range of weather conditions---the word "optimum" comes to mind. The testosterone-induced race then revolves around who goes the lightest and the furthest. To you, not having adequate gear is just stupid but to the newb ultralighter it's part of his new-found philosophy and condones carrying next to nothing---the minimal kit. And so we talk about AT backpackers dropping out with inadequate gear due to the cold.
Clearly you have not read White Blaze very often. It's almost constant, unrelenting LOWER YOUR
WEIGHT. This is the first thread I can remember that even mentioned taking care about temperature. Go back and read any one of hundreds of gear list reviews. I was out there the night the rain turned to snow after we had hiked in the heat for weeks. UL and inadequate gear often belong in the same sentence. Balance should be advised NOT UL, like that's going to happen.
Very good advice here. I know that I sleep very cold (something like 10 degrees colder than the EN "comfort rating") so I would rather carry a bit of extra gear and be comfortable than have a slightly lighter pack and shiver all night. I try to keep all my gear as light as possible, but cutting pack weight at the expense of comfort isn't for me.
38 degrees in Berlin NH this AM and about the same on Mt Washington. It can still get cold overnight. On the other hand it can be 80 degrees 8 hours later.
I agree with Minor. leaving things you need is not ultralight.
You can be safe, comfortable and prepared and be ultralight. it takes planning, skill and correct gear. PLAN to use all of your layers at night if need be. Skill/knowledge to camp in areas not exposed and in a bad area. GEAR can be warm and light, multi use gear also saves weight.
There is a thread on BPL of a SUL guy Jamie who did sub 5lb baseweight and had rain and snow.
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-...hread_id=55270
just because you can't, doesn't mean it can't be done. I have an amazing respect for folks who put a lot of work into getting super light and still smart.