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Zzzzdyd
01-22-2006, 20:28
Is it to much, to little, or just right ? Jump off date is Feb 11th 0r 12th '06

Lunar Solo e' tent
Tyvek footprint
6 titanium 6" tent stakes & 1 aluminum 7"

FF Lark Down 10 degree bag
in FF and Sil bag

Ridgerest Pad 3/4

Golite Breeze w/homemade sil cover

Red Ledge Thunderlight rain jkt.
homemade rain kilt
OR rain mitts

Kitchen
MSR titanium pot
Esbit Wing Stove w/ homemade windscreen
mini-bic & waterproof matches
5 fuel tabs, this will vary as needed
Insulated cook bag
Lexan spoon
6" x 4" pack towel
Polypro stuff bag, just big enough for the Stove, PT, fuel & windscreen.
I put it all inside the pot.

Clothes

Will probably be wearing:
Patagonia nylon shorts with liner
Cool-max underwear
Smartwool T-shirt
Golite hat
Smartwool Racer Socks
TRS Comp shoes
1 pr OR low gaiters, I know some say one doesn't need them, but with my
Type II Diabetes I can't risk getting to much scree in my shoes.
1 Wenger Esquire Knife in one pocket, pebble from Springer in the other.


In the pack:
Montane wind-shirt & pants
2 pr Racers Socks
1 pr sock liners
2 pr Cool-max underwear
1 cool-max t-shirt
1 Smartwool ltg wgt bottom
I use 3 one gal freezer zip-locks for my clothes


Water
2 Platypus 1 ltr.
1 small drinking btl.
1 collapsable Peeee btl.
( don't want to get these mixed up, now do I ?, lol)
I will have Aqua Mira water treatment in my Leap-frog box and
carry in pack when I hear about particularly bad water ahead.
I have drank untreated water from most of the water holes in GA.
and had no ill effects thus far. I am sure there will be places I will need
to treat the water. Just trusting to learn about it before I get there !!
I grew up drinking untreated well water and I don't want to think
about what was in the water I drank in Vietnam....I am counting on having
a good immune system for the water, and be real careful where I get it
from too. I got a little experience with this, but no expert either.


Possibles Bag:
Black Diamond Headlight
Dr. Bonner's Peppermint Soap, 1 film canister full
Compass, Silva sm.
Ear plugs
4 Compead blister patches
3 bandaids
6" x 4" moleskin
TP, just enough I hope..
1oz Rubbing Alcohol ( I have type II diabetes and this is to keep my feet in
better shape, I hope !! )
10 Glucosimine Sufate 1000mg
5 One-a-day vitimins
5 ibuprofin 600mg
2 One Gal freezer bags
2 one Qt freezer bags
1 Packtowel 10" x 20"
3 fire starter tabs, very sm & lgt
Need a diarrhea treatment maybe ?

Inside a film canister
1 med safety pin
1 sewing machine needle with heavyweight thread
waterproof matches
P-38 can opener

All the possibles fit inside a small fine mesh bag from SD

Camera w/film and shoulder strap pouch. I will keep the camera in a 1qt
freezer zip-lock.

Food Bag will vary as needed. I really like Mac & cheese, gorp, small WW pitas, peanut butter, jelly,Parkay,etc.
Thinking I may add some kind of oatmeal & ovaltine combo for breakfast
as my appetite picks up.

Glasses(transitions) & sm wipe cloth
Homemade camp shoes
3 Rubberbands
Accu-chek Glucose checker, I will probably transfer this to my Leap-frog
box as I see how my blood sugar levels do.

Extra film, camera batts, etc. will be in my Leap-frog box

I custom made 47" wood hiking stick ( only 8 oz. by the way )

And last but not least AT Data book '04 version w/ a few small sheets of paper and golfers pencil.

I will switch out sleeping bags ( got a good 40 degree down) when needed and probably change to
my ultralite air mat too, when it warms up enough.

Can't make up my mind if I should throw in the pack the Space brand emergency bag( 3 oz) or not.
I was okay thinking I didn't need it, but Ridge as got me nervous with his rant about hypothermia.
I have never had a wet SB, but I guess it can happen huh ?

Also seriously considering leaving my watch at home to save weight
in my mind maybe. Try to get in tune with me and mother nature.
I was remembering having a fancy watch I ordered while in Vietnam today,
and I don't ever remember looking at it unless someone else ask the time.
berry berry interesting me thinks....

Well tell me what ya thinks folks and thanks in advance.....

Lone Wolf
01-22-2006, 20:32
Take it all. Add and subtract as you go. It's a learning thing. You're gonna get a hundred folks telling you what to bring and what to leave.

Frosty
01-22-2006, 20:44
Is it to much, to little, or just right ? Jump off date is Feb 11th 0r 12th '06

5 fuel tabs, this will vary as needed.In February, an Esbit tab might not bring more than a cup of water to a boil. You might want to carry more, especially as they are only about 1/2 ounce each.


I will have Aqua Mira water treatment in my Leap-frog box and
carry in pack when I hear about particularly bad water ahead.Similar to above, AM only weighs about three ounces, and won't exactly hold you back on the trail. It won't do much good in the bounce box when you come across a water source that doesn't look too appetizing. Not sure how you would hear about bad water in time to retrieve your bounce box in order to treat it.

Alligator
01-22-2006, 20:47
I think that it is an excellent choice to take the gaiters given your Diabetes. You definitely want to avoid foot problems. I would be concerned about hiking in a cold rain without shell pants in Feb, even with the "rain kilt" or the wind pants. If your Diabetes is at a stage where you need to be careful about circulatory issues, I would suggest you play it safe and have a full rain shell for your legs.

Wolfclan
01-23-2006, 19:45
What is your base weight? I use that to help me make up my mind.

Smooth
01-23-2006, 20:01
Well, my pack started out with WAY too much also.

You have way too much.

Do you think that the liquid soap will stay in a film canister?

I found the watch with arms helped me to figure out where I was to someplace I wanted to be at. I walk at 2 3/4 miles per hour on flait trail......as you can see soon you can tell things like it is only one more mile to town. It got to be that I could plot my posistion on the map just by how long I had been hiking since the last landmark. Thats just a me thing, the sun works good too, however, if walking into town near Post office closing time...........

Zzzzdyd
01-23-2006, 20:51
Well, my pack started out with WAY too much also.

You have way too much.

Do you think that the liquid soap will stay in a film canister?

I found the watch with arms helped me to figure out where I was to someplace I wanted to be at. I walk at 2 3/4 miles per hour on flait trail......as you can see soon you can tell things like it is only one more mile to town. It got to be that I could plot my posistion on the map just by how long I had been hiking since the last landmark. Thats just a me thing, the sun works good too, however, if walking into town near Post office closing time...........


"You have way too much."

Would you mind being specific ? I have been paring my gear down since I
switched over from military gear back in 1997.
Remember I am starting in Feb. and I have been in GA. a lot in Feb. and I
don't BS myself about how cold it can get sometimes.
My total pack weight is less than 20 lbs with four days food, but no water
on board. I do the camel thing mostly.

"Do you think that the liquid soap will stay in a film canister?"

Yes I should have noted that I keep it inside a small zip lock that is inside
a larger zip lock that has stuff in it that the soap would make messy, but
not ruin.


"I found the watch with arms helped me to figure out where I was to someplace I wanted to be at."

I will probably take my Timex Camper watch, but I am going to do my
best not to use it.

Thank for the input, but I fail to see WAY to much for a Feb. jump off from
Springer, and considering I have Type II Diabetes.

Sheese 40 years back I didn't need socks or underwear, and made do lots
of times with just a Poncho, poncho liner and a can of beanie weenies. Lots
of alcohol helped to. :o

Smooth
01-24-2006, 13:24
Z,

I found that I was walking (therefore warm) or getting into my sleeping bag.

I started the train trip on March 13th, arriving at Blood Mtn on the 17th. I started out with long johns, 2 jackets, ect. But when I arrived to the first camping store (I forget the name of that highly priced place) I mailed all that home. I really thought that I would be hiking in long pants with long johns, but I found myself in shorts! (I don't even like shorts). But the work of walking with a pack made me warm, and in camp I found my out-of-shape-self not wanting to set up a tent or hammock or even cook. By the time I was in shape it was warm.

Yes, you are 10 years older than I and you will be starting earlier in the year, I may well of miss-spoke.

However, I saw lots of people 10 years older than you starting the trail. They did well, real well. On my Thru-Hike I saw the 'younger' guys sleep in late, get up and run down the trail to the next place, collaspe and do it agion in the morning. The 'retired' guys got up early, walked all day, and set up camp later. They also had the funds to eat at the many resturants, sleep at any local motels, and buy replacement gear as needed. I was of the later type.

If your winter pack weighs 20 lbs, well...........O.K., I sure am not much lower than that!

I carried the Timex Hiker also, The first one died in about Penn., I knocked it aganist a rock and cracked the face.

Z, Your list is long, and it is daunting to me. I trimed my pack weight by only taking every day 'need to haves' along with, rain protection, change of soc/undies, and a small repair kit of needle, floss and Neosporum. The rest was used every day (no back up) or sent home.

When cold I wore a tee shirt, fleece jacket (now a puffy fill jacket), Nylon shirt and the rain jacket on top with shorts, long nylon pants and rain pants on the bottom. Once I put my spare socks on my hands. My light fleece hat, with rain hat on top, and I became good friends (I don't like hats). I wore these items in this order.

I could go on and on about things like why a pack towel? Just multi task your bandana! But better would be to say the above parragraph where I only carried 'must haves' and rain gear.

There was a 70 year old man Thru-Hiking the year I Thru-Hiked (Mr. Green?), it was a real ego blow as that man walked on past and kept getting further and further ahead. But, by the slow and little stuff in the pack method, I made it!

Zzzzdyd
01-24-2006, 14:33
I do appreciate your suggestions. I was already considering some changes
and will probably make small changes right up to the time I start hiking ,
and I am sure as I go along too.


This will be my fourth attempt and I am determined to do two things:


1) Enjoy each day as much as possible.
2) Only quit because I 'want' to, not because I have to.

Sheese now I got to con one of my grandkids out of one the bandanas I
gave them !! :>))

good hiking to ya

sparky2000
01-24-2006, 14:56
Just cut the towel in half... it makes a good filter for all that stuff flowing with the water. Also, when summer comes around, it makes a good face wipe. Just another opinion.

SalParadise
01-28-2006, 16:52
I agree, a good face-size towel was great to have to wipe your face and as a quick wash-up in a cold stream, especially when it gets hot.

You may not have enough moleskin. The stuff slips off a lot. Carry some duct tape (I didn't see it on your list) with you, which will help keep the moleskin in place.

You will probably want as many pairs of sock liners as you have regular socks, and if blisters and such are a concern you may want a third pair of socks so you can switch out more frequently to help avoid your feet getting damaged from sweat-salt.

Having a second hiking stick should help you take some pressure off your feet if you've got the time to make another one.

You shouldn't need your compass. I did like my watch to gauge my speed and distance. Eventually a watch and your own judgement gets more accurate then the DataBook. You could always hook it to the back of your pack to avoid looking at it, but at the same time a watch isn't too much needed.

And a warning, sometimes people can get a little annoyed by a space blanket in the shelters, plus they tear easily. I carried a thin liner with me and was very happy with it.

Obviously it's hard, but the more weight you can get out of your pack the happier your feet will be with you. How much does your diabetes equipment add to your pack weight? just curious.

Oh, I didn't treat my water too often, either, and the streams in Georgia all looked good, but treat your Georgia water, more to the extent that new hikers can mistreat the sources before you get there.

good luck on your hike.