a couple of recomendations plz........

[jettjames]

water filter/purifier - looking at the new steripen or a MSR sweet water

trekking poles - i have NO idea about these

rain pants - i am hoping these might work for both rain pants and regular pants

i have these http://tinyurl.com/38f9pc but they might be a bit heavy

i thoguht these might work http://tinyurl.com/3aev86

or am i still looking at over kill here. i can of course go lighter like these

http://tinyurl.com/37ffhf

or maybe the marmot precip pants?

. i have some smart wool and under armour long johns.

sorry i am a bit confused here as this is the longest i will be out. mostly about the pants.

pt

[rafe]

Trekking poles: Get the $50 Lekis from Campmor.
Rain Pants: They all suck, but they can be useful in cold rain. The lightest ones are around 6-7 oz. You don't really want anything heavier than that. In summer, you can probably do without them.
Water Filter: Hugely debatable. MSR's are the heaviest. Lots of folks use chemicals instead (eg AquaMira.) Or consider one of the filter squeeze bottles (eg. Katadyn Micro or Exstream.)

[hammock engineer]

I use aquamira for my watertreatment. Haven't gotten sick yet. Even used it a couple places in OH and KY.

I have the Leki's can't remember the type off hand. They do have the cork grips, antishock, and positive angle grips. The antishock is not a big deal, but the positive angle and ccork grip are great. Just go some searching online for deals.

I have a cheap campmor pair of rain pants. I only use when in the cold or in heavy cold rain. Otherwise I am in gaiters and long underwear with nylon shorts.

[DrewNC2005]

For rain pants, it's unlikely you'll find something that will work as all-purpose hiking pants. This is because rain pants are typically not breathable and therefore not suitable for rigorous activities - i.e., hiking. That said, you may want to look into a lightweight pair of rain chaps.

Poles - this is where you can save a lot of money by not going with something incredibly fancy. Cheap ones will pretty much do the same thing as the expensive ones. But, it is nice to buy something like Lekis with the lifetime warranty.

Filter - check out the ULA Amigo Pro. I do not have one of these but hopefully that will change soon. I have a Miox which I've used very little but for some reason just feel more comfortable with a filter. The Amigo Pro is light, requires no pumping, and is extremely light.

[jettjames]

so HE, no long pants other than the rain pants, which only get worn in rain?

is this normal? the shorts/gaiters combo sounds ok to me.

pt

[Lyle]

Although you will get several answers on WB regarding treking poles, most saying to go with light, cheap options like ski poles or bamboo, unless you are on a really tight budget, I will disagree. I've used REI treking poles and had no complaints. However, in speaking with Brian Frankel at ULA and listening to his praise of Pacerpoles, I decided to try them out.

The hand grip is completely different than anything else on the market, and I find them exceedingly comfortable for all day use. I'm sold on them now. Just to be clear, Brian is the sole distributor for Pacerpoles in the USA as far as I know. I on the other hand have no connection to either company.

My guess is that if someone tells you they aren't worth the extra money, chances are they haven't ever tried them. If anyone else out there has used both straight grip poles and Pacerpoles, what is your opinion?

At least take a look at them:

http://www.pacerpole.com/order-usa.php

Lyle

[TurkeyBacon]

The pants... Wind proof pants (nylon/supplex/taslan/poly blend but NOT coated) are great. Layer them with long underwear for hiking and fleece at camp or alone in cool weather. Convertibles work great. The wind pants will breath and can get worn while hiking with you not getting wet from sweat. For most rain showers wind pants can be enough. Even if they are soaked, they will still dry out quickly at camp. Rain pants are generally only used for a spring/cold downpour or camp, so the waterproof breathable is not realy needed, so if you go with rain pants, get the cheapest you can find. I have some campmor brand with full side zips that do the job well. Shorts/gaitors work fine, but I would not thru-hike with long gators and that combo will leave your valuble knees exposed. Convertibles/gators would work better IMO.
Filters... They all work, I have no issues with my Pur/Katadyn.
Poles, I use cheap ones (REI by Komperdell). I'm curious how the walmart/target branded poles work.
TB

[TN_Hiker]

Rain pants, poles, and water filters boils down to a personal preference. I will throw my 2 cents on the trekking poles. For 20+ years I have used a hickory staff and thought it was nuts to spend the money on commercial "sticks"; however the ability to collapse when desired would be nice. I did check out the Wally World poles in the store and bent 2 of them before I even purchased them. Definitely wasn't going to work for me. I was in REI a few weeks ago and found a pair of Black Diamond Contour poles regularly $100 marked 1/2 off on their clearance table. I decided to give them a whirl. Tried them out this past weekend and WOW....it's like having 4 wheel drive. Thought I would never say it......I'm convinced the poles make the descents and climbs so much easier.

[hopefulhiker]

I used Aqua Mira, Leki Poles and the full zip rain pants as my long pants.

Definetely use the poles whatever kind you choose.. A lot of people say the shock absorber is a gimmick...

[toddhiker]

I, personally, don't care for chemicals so I recently switched to the Steripen Adventurer.

I used various "pump" filters for years and they work well, but tend to clog over time (usually at inconvenient times) and require $$ for new cartridges.

For a prefilter I use a coffee filter (Although the pantyhose sounds more durable). Here's how I deal with the prefilter issue:

I create a "funnel" shape w/the coffee filter and set it into the zippered opening of a 2L Platypus zip w/handles. I prefilter one liter into the platy using a cutoff worn-out Platy which I cut the top off of (makes scooping from shallow streams a breeze), then zap it w/my Steripen. I can then fill my gatorade bottles via the pour spout of the Platy. Works great and the whole setup weighs a good bit less than a Miniworks or similar. I hope all that makes sense!! Yet another plus is I can fill my bottles and still store 2L in the Platy for cooking, etc.

Assuming the UV actually works, I'm pleased:)

As for the poles, I've been pleased w/my Komperdell anti-shock poles from Campmor - Like someone else said, it's like 4WD! They've lasted for five years. I think Leki's may be better (as far as the anti-shock system), but more expensive. On a long downhill, after a day of hiking and I'm tired, they save my twice-reconstructed knee!

[dloome]

The Steripen is garbage for a thru hike. Don't get it. Use Aqua Mira. Strain through a bandana or something if you don't like floaties. AT water is generally REALLY nice quality and abundant. You don't need a filter. I never appreciated how good the East coast water is until I moved to AZ.

The Precip pants are very popular and people seem happy with them though I haven't used them myself. Frogg Toggs makes good rain pants too. Moontrail.com has the pants available seperately from the jacket for only about $25 I think. Weigh 7 oz. You can't go bushwacking in the Frogg Toggs but my one pair easily lasted my entire thru. The Golite Whim pants are great too, and only 4 oz. They aren't really rain pants, but are windproof and have a pretty good DWR. They'd suffice.

Poles- Sierratradingpost.com, just get some ski poles for $30, same thing. Don't get anything with shocks. Shocks are for yuppies.

[soulrebel]

F all three and keep the money for cheeseburgers and beer.

[freefall]

The Steripen is garbage for a thru hike. Don't get it.

Could you please elaborate?:-? Everyone that I have met that uses the Steripen is happy with it.

[little bear]

Hey man just my 2 cents, I had a MSR Sweet Water and it clogged up on me about 5 days into a 15 day trip. By clogg up I mean the peice that goes into the water got clogged up with silt. If I would have used a coffee filter it might not have happened, but still the same it was a problem. That peice is one peice that does not come a part so it can not be cleaned. When I returned it to REI they said I was not the first to have that problem with the sweet water.

I exchanged it for the MSR Miniworks EX. I love that filter it is so easy to feild clean and I have filtered tons with it and have not had a problem.

Just my 2 cents

Hope this helps


LB

[Blissful]

I've used my Komperdell $29.99 two section poles from Sierra Trading post for four years now, and they are going with me on my hike. Have worked great.

My rain pants are $25 North Face ones from the outlet in Freeport, ME (before North Face turned popular by the media outlets, that is. It used to be a cheap place to buy. No more, sniff).

And aqua mira, supplemented by a filter squeeze bottle when we need water fast. We got the bottle with 2 extra filters on sale at a sporting goods store in a mall.

Never pay retail for anything. Take your time and look and save $$ for that cheeseburger. We bought for our hike for several years, but recently got stuff at good deals. Like my son's fleece pants at Jc Penny for a few bucks, of all places, just sitting there on a table. The tent is another fun story...

[Outlaw]

Just my observations on hiking poles: First, I love them and will always hike with them. A good description was given above using the 4-wheel drive metaphor. My one caveat is that I will never buy poles (if I ever need to again) with the anti-shock mechanism again. I have a pair of Leki's and believe it or not, the noise from the springs can drive you a bit wacky. There is enough noise from the tips striking against rocks, but the springs seem to exacerbate the noise to an annoying level.