View Full Version : Music on the trail
TouchofGrey
03-18-2008, 17:09
Just wondering how many people bring some sort of music player along with them and listen to it on the trail. Also wondering what sort of music people listen to. Obviously from my name, I'm a Deadhead.
buff_jeff
03-18-2008, 17:52
I'd love to listen to some tunes while I hike but my MP3 sucks right now. I get maybe an hour per charge.
vonfrick
03-18-2008, 17:58
i have the 1MG creative player, like $50 bucks at evil walmart. plays about 15 hours at least on 1 AAA (same as my headlamp). holds a bit, and since i'm old (?), i don't mind, or recall that i listen to the same favorite things over and over.
Jason of the Woods
03-18-2008, 18:00
I wanna hike with you. I like Deadheads!;) I have an Ipod. Some people will tell you not to hike with them but I say that it helps sometimes.
Just wondering how many people bring some sort of music player along with them and listen to it on the trail. Also wondering what sort of music people listen to. Obviously from my name, I'm a Deadhead.
Jason of the Woods
03-18-2008, 18:01
Nevermind. You are only 16. How can you be a Deadhead???
Undershaft
03-18-2008, 18:36
I rarely listen to music while hiking, but I really enjoy listening to my radio in camp at night. I bought a small AM/FM/TV/WX radio and a set of earbud headphones and consider it one of the best gear purchases I've ever made. It clips to the ridge line in my hammock and gets pretty good reception. I could always find something interesting to listen to, and almost always had up to date weather forecasts. The only bad part is that the TV reception is analog only, so it won't work for much longer.
LIhikers
03-18-2008, 18:47
A music player?
You mean like my wife's Tin Whistle?
She asked me to put all-terrain wheels on her piano but I'm still workin on that :D
I sectioned this fall and as I was walking north towards Cold Springs Shelter in North Carolina I heard this recorder playing the last couple of hundred yards approaching the shelter…very sweet sound as it echoed off the trees and through the valley…it turns out it was this guy called The Professor who was quite good and he played several other songs while we were settling in for the night…mostly old gospel stuff…not exactly the Grateful Dead, but it seem to fit the otherwise very peaceful woods. ;)
Hi there!! I have a Samsung MP3 player... or something like that. It was a $5 special the day after Thanksgiving one year. It has AM/FM Radio AND a Stopwatch (not that I use the Stopwatch). I only listen to music when I'm trail running, or doing a day hike by myself when I just want to go outside and chill...and at night at camp. I'd love to get something that I can load some audio books on though.
The following are among my picks: Jack Johnson, String Cheese, Phish, OAR, Coldplay, Neil Young, Neil Diamond, Eagles, Dave Mathews, Green Day, Bob Marley... I'll stop there for now 'cause I think you get the idea.
johnnyblisters
03-18-2008, 19:37
I like to hike with music sometimes. I use a Sansa Sandisk 2 gig. mp3 player. 1 AAA and 19 hrs. of playback, eat that IPOD! Also has AM/FM, good for loosing your mind for a while. Best hiking mp3 player there is, hands down.
Now what I listen to goes from mild to wild and everything in between...
Mild - G. Dead, Phish, Moe, Keller williams, Yonder mtn string band, beatles, etc...
Wild- operation ivy, nofx, leftover crack, ac/dc, zepplin, Umphreys mcgee..etc..
I dont care, its all good!
Mrs Baggins
03-18-2008, 19:38
I have a SanDisk MP3 1 mg. Holds 15 CDs but burns through the AA battery pretty fast - and that includes the all holy lithium batteries. :mad: In any case I only listen to it on the really steep ups so I don't listen to myself gasping for breath and I don't focus on how hard it is. I listen to an assortment - Enya, all of the Lord of the Rings soundtracks (well DUH, look at my trail name!), Tom Petty, Andrew Webber Broadway soundtracks, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton, Celtic music. I'd like to listen at night but I'm just too exhausted to bother.
Hey... that's the kind I have. A Sansa Sandisk.
iPod shuffle, 1 GB. Battery lasts a long time.
Heard a Townes Van Zandt song the other day I wasn't familiar with, can't get it out of my head, very appropriate for AT. From "Snowing on Raton:"
"Tomorrow I'll be through them hills and gone."
Jaybird62
03-18-2008, 21:04
I-pod 30 gig with all sorts of different styles and sounds. Usually I just put it on shuffle and let the tunes roll. There is something cool about hiking and listening to some alison kraus or some other kind of bluegrass. Clarence Ashley is one of my favorite old, old school artists. Lots of great music out there!
Stick to solid state or flash memory players. Avoid hard drive players and ones with big LCD displays. They use batteries faster or need to be recharged more often.
As flash memory capacity grows you should be abe to find a player that holds enough to keep you from getting tired of what you are listening.
In this case the fewer features a player has may be better since you won't be wasting battery life on features you don't need or rarely use.
Jaybird62
03-18-2008, 21:08
.......
Jail Break
03-18-2008, 21:17
...And I've been from Tuscon to Tucumcari, Tehachapi to Tonapah... Driven every kind of rig that's ever been made... Driven the back roads so I wouldn't get weighed... And if you give me Weed, Whites, and wine... And you show me a sign... I'll be willin' to be movin'!
For long distance, go with the AAA powered ones... but for shorter hikes, I like variety so I take my 20G Creative with me... never know what I wanna listen too.
Steve Kimock is pretty much a constant... or instrumental stuff mostly.
PS>
Jail Break.... I agree something must be done about manbearpig!
dessertrat
03-19-2008, 11:06
I never take a music player. I hike to get away from stuff like that and think.
I remember when I was in the smokies a guy that brought a backpacking banjo it was so awesome . We built a nice little fire and then he just played and I sipped on some southern comfort and hot coco. It was a great time.
Guitar and mp3 player, Living in harmony with technology.
I have a great little sangean radio that uses one aaa battery. One battery will last about 75 hours straight. Weighs 3 oz with the battery. I found out that music is the one thing that i don't want to do without.
Guitar and mp3 player, Living in harmony with technology.
I gotta get one of those Martin backpacker guitars.... ever try one?
I remember when I was in the smokies a guy that brought a backpacking banjo it was so awesome . We built a nice little fire and then he just played and I sipped on some southern comfort and hot coco. It was a great time.
I hope it wasn't this guy. :eek:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esl2NNOtHQE
BTW, banjos are really cool, any Bela Fleck fans out there?
Banjo music in the woods makes me nervous.... ;) yeah, I saw Bela at Penn's landing in Philly very interesting music.
here is my MP3 player and portable speakers that I take along sometimes. No, I'm not an ass who blares it, I turn it off if people come along. Unless I want them to keep walking...
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=23256&catid=member&imageuser=11403
I gotta get one of those Martin backpacker guitars.... ever try one?
My friend has one. IMO they don't sound very good. Plus they're expensive! I use a ukulele, it's shorter than a Martin, weighs only 14oz and it still sounds nice because it's supposed to be small! :D
Yeah, I imagine you don't get much definition from that little body on them. I saw a pic on here once of a teardrop shaped guitar that someone had, looked like a lute or something. That probably sounds pretty passable.
twentybelow
03-19-2008, 12:33
...I'd love to get something that I can load some audio books on though...
most audio books are available in mp3 format. you should be able to play them on your sansa. i've got a sansa myself and while i don't use it for audiobooks, i often load it with hours of talk radio shows that i have downloaded in mp3 and it works fine for that. i can fit about 80 hours of talk programming on my little 2GB player so i am guessing that a book or two would fit. also, if you already have audiobooks that are not mp3, you can download a free program that will convert them.
for those of you in the market for a new player, newegg was selling the 2GB sansa (w/FM radio) for $30 recently, but i see that they are currently "out of stock". buy.com has it for $28 but it is refurbished.
FYI..... free audio books
http://librivox.org/
The martin backpacker kinda sucks. I caried a 3/4 scale ovation aplause (on loan) in 04 I got one of these (http://www.go-guitars.com/) in 2006 and have hiked with is ever since. Amazing sound and hand made in the US by hippies.
...hand made in the US by hippies.
made by hippies.... for hippies! I gotta check that out.
TouchofGrey
03-21-2008, 15:41
Nevermind. You are only 16. How can you be a Deadhead???
I wasn't aware of an age restriction.
And now I'm 17.
warraghiyagey
03-21-2008, 15:49
You are correct, there is no age restriction.:sun:sun:sun
envirodiver
03-21-2008, 16:35
Casey Jones you better watch your speed
warraghiyagey
03-21-2008, 16:38
Before the hippies take it all.
http://www.freesmileys.org/smileys/laughing021.gif
I wasn't aware of an age restriction.
And now I'm 17.
I think he was refering to the fact that Jerry passed when you were five. I didn't get into the Dead until about a year before he went, and narrowly missed the opportunity to see them live. That being said, The Grateful Dead is an awesome band to be enjoyed by everyone, including you. What is your favorite song? (can't sat Touch of Grey, that's too easy. Mine is Peggy-O, followed closely by Me and My Uncle.
Whitey9457
03-22-2008, 19:06
I'm going to bring my iPod and a harmonica when I hike (and hopefully by the end I'll be able to actually play the harmonica)
I'm going to bring my iPod and a harmonica when I hike (and hopefully by the end I'll be able to actually play the harmonica)
When and where are you going.
FFTorched
03-22-2008, 20:09
I have an iPod 80 gig that I use when I'm running or working out, and would most likely take it hiking.
I have quite and eclectic taste in music but right now seem to be favoring the bands: Bad Religion, NoFX, The Bouncing Souls, The Subways, The Misfits, Alkaline Trio, The Alfie Soundtrack, Into the Wild Soundtrack, A random assortment of blues, JJ Grey and Mofro, The Black Keys, Son Seals, Tinsley Ellis, Muddy Waters.
Jail Break
03-23-2008, 08:42
That being said, The Grateful Dead is an awesome band to be enjoyed by everyone, including you. What is your favorite song?
Sugar Magnolia is one of my favorite songs... maybe I'll find MY Sugar Magnolia out on the trail this year.
Nearly Normal
03-23-2008, 10:51
I wasn't aware of an age restriction.
And now I'm 17.
Well..............
Deadheads were those that pretty much followed the tours festival style.
..............usetabee.
I love the dead. I saw them July of '90 in Raleigh. Bruce Hornsby opened for them. I knew all of their music and that concert was still one of the best I have ever seen. I went to 3 Futher Festivals in Charlotte and the last one I saw all the guys got on stage together and did a few GD originals. It was so amazing.
I'll always have Grateful Dead on my MP3. I also listen to Phish, Norah Jones, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, John Mayer, etc. I even have a little old school hip hop on the MP3. :)
By the way, keep the tradition going, Touch of Grey.;)
Jail Break
03-23-2008, 13:19
Well..............
Deadheads were those that pretty much followed the tours festival style.
..............usetabee.
I disagree... Being a full-fledged Ledhead at 31, I've never seen Led Zeppelin before Bonzo died, I saw two Page & Plant gigs, but I've never seen a Zeppelin show. I'm pretty sure all you have to do to be a Deadhead (or any other "---"head for that matter) is to be fully immersed in the appreciation of the music of whatever band it is you like most. I've got every Zeppelin song, whether studio or live, on my MP3, and can listen to it constantly, hearing something new everytime.
Just wondering how many people bring some sort of music player along with them and listen to it on the trail. Also wondering what sort of music people listen to. Obviously from my name, I'm a Deadhead.
I go to the wilderness to get away from man-made music and to better hear God's music... YMMV.
I disagree... Being a full-fledged Ledhead at 31, I've never seen Led Zeppelin before Bonzo died, I saw two Page & Plant gigs, but I've never seen a Zeppelin show. I'm pretty sure all you have to do to be a Deadhead (or any other "---"head for that matter) is to be fully immersed in the appreciation of the music of whatever band it is you like most. I've got every Zeppelin song, whether studio or live, on my MP3, and can listen to it constantly, hearing something new everytime.
It's funny, virtually everyone I associate with likes the Dead to one degree or another. That being said, I don't know anyone that calls themself a deadhead. Labels, along with dreadlocks and other such "hippie" fashions are not a pre-requisite for enjoying good music.
I too like to rediscover songs that I have listened to hundreds of times. It's interesting how the lyrics to songs can have profound meaning at different points in your life. I feel this way about the Dead, and by listening to a song that I haven't listened to in a long time, I can recall old memories and reflect on them and occasionally put things into perspective.
Sometimes we live no particular way but our own,
And sometimes we visit your country and live in your home,
sometimes we ride on your horses, sometimes we walk alone,
sometimes the songs that we hear are just songs of our own.
Almost There
03-24-2008, 13:54
Well..............
Deadheads were those that pretty much followed the tours festival style.
..............usetabee.
I agree, my wife, she followed them the summer of 95, was at the last concert before Jerry died....she was a deadhead....I am a dead fan, never saw them live...I've been to Furtherfests but it ain't the same thing....of course I carry music on the trail...my IPOD with a battery attachment gives me over twenty hours and allows me to chage with a wall plug. I like to carry a book to read though.
Music: The Dead, Pink Floyd, Cary Brothers, Joshua Radin, Jay Nash to name a few, nice to chill out to at the end of logn day. Old Metal like Metallica, GNR, Motley Crue, Zeppelin, etc. for up hills and tough climbing.
Lone Wolf
03-24-2008, 13:55
i ain't no fan of the dead.
Almost There
03-24-2008, 13:56
Oh yeah, can't forget JohnSmith either....Ryan Adams is also a favorite!
warraghiyagey
03-24-2008, 13:56
Better to love the living
Almost There
03-24-2008, 13:57
i ain't no fan of the dead.
You aren't:-?....I woulda pegged you as a freelovin' hippie!:D
warraghiyagey
03-24-2008, 13:58
You aren't:-?....I woulda pegged you as a freelovin' hippie!:D
He just won't admit it
Lone Wolf
03-24-2008, 14:00
"jerry's dead and phish sucks. get a life" my water bottle sticker
warraghiyagey
03-24-2008, 14:01
"jerry's dead and phish sucks. get a life" my water bottle sticker
That's funny stuff LW
:D
i ain't no fan of the dead.
I never woulda guessed..... ;)
take-a-knee
03-24-2008, 14:43
"jerry's dead and phish sucks. get a life" my water bottle sticker
Jerry Garcia is dead but the question is, does he know it yet?
warraghiyagey
03-24-2008, 14:48
Jerry Garcia is dead but the question is, does he know it yet?
"He's not dead, he just went home"
I saw Jerry's face in the clouds the other day
it was so glorious
Lone Wolf
03-24-2008, 17:50
I saw Jerry's face in the clouds the other day
it was so glorious
aw, no way dude! totally awesome!
aw, no way dude! totally awesome!
it looked something like this ....
http://www.carverdoug.com/guitars/images/jerry_garcia.jpg
take-a-knee
03-24-2008, 18:16
I saw Jerry's face in the clouds the other day
it was so glorious
Yeah, and Creedence was playing, "Looking Out My Backdoor" I'll bet.
warraghiyagey
03-24-2008, 18:42
aw, no way dude! totally awesome!
:D:D
. . . .
I was inspired to create some artwork!! :D ;)
http://photos-035.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v112/143/27/1379910035/n1379910035_3080_1526.jpg
Lone Wolf
03-24-2008, 18:56
Jery's dead and Ted is still Ted. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYOV8uu17t0 Jerry shoulda laid off the cocaine and burgers
Nearly Normal
03-25-2008, 09:17
Frank Zappa's (') makes an interesting hiking tune selection.
Anyone who can work the xylophone into rock and roll is hip.
Shepherd
03-25-2008, 10:10
Definately some Acoustic Alchemy and Craig Chaquico. Might add some Tony Rice to the mix.