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hi im new here, i been browsing for a few weeks and decided to join. im 20 from bucks county pa, im a hunter and mountain biker but never went hiking on the AT before, i just learned some history by reading a walk in the woods. my friend has some experience on the trail and i will be doing my first over night trip to sunfish pond at the delaware water gap. i just picked up a gregory Z55 and cant wait to hit the trail. see ya around :sun
Two Speed
07-08-2008, 21:47
What he said, :welcome
envirodiver
07-08-2008, 21:50
Yeah what they said. :welcome
Sounds like you are embarking on what for many of us has become a lifelong love affair.
kayak karl
07-08-2008, 21:55
hi im new here, i been browsing for a few weeks and decided to join. im 20 from bucks county pa, im a hunter and mountain biker but never went hiking on the AT before, i just learned some history by reading a walk in the woods. my friend has some experience on the trail and i will be doing my first over night trip to sunfish pond at the delaware water gap. i just picked up a gregory Z55 and cant wait to hit the trail. see ya around :sun
Just head north to Water Gap or Hamburg and do some day hiking. Do some Blue blazing:sun
WalkingStick75
07-08-2008, 22:06
Welcome,
Nice section as I remember it. Take it easy and enjoy the trail, its about having fun. I have done my 30 mile days but enjoy my 5 mile days more because I had time to take in where I was walking so go slow and enjoy.
thanks for all the welcomes
we are either doing sunfish pond, or half of some 17 mile gap, i forget what one but its in the opposite direction of sunfish pond, but water might be a problem unless we do the full 17 miles. sunfish pond is only 4 miles up and 4 miles down so it should be easy, i heard its pretty rocky though.
also if i ever wanted to go past hamburg, how far off is cabelas from the trail?
welcome friend , captain at your service, as ive heard its not too far from the trail
i made a list so i dont forget anything, i couldnt believe how much stuff there is, i didnt think it would be so much. eventually ill add the weights if i can find a scale
gregory Z55 pack 3 pounds 5 oz 3350ci
cabelas down sleeping bag
gerber knife
gps
compass
cell phone
surefire a2 light
2 extra 123 batteries 2 extra double a batteries
small camera
32 oz nalgene
14 oz nalgene
70 oz nalgene bladder
boots
columbia waterproof jacket shell
hat
frisbee
deck of cards
bic lighter
flint stick
emergency blanket
sunglasses maybe
watch
binoculars maybe
ipod maybe
map
food
first aid
toilet paper
small note book and pen
plastic fork
socks
im also splitting up a tent and a stove with a friend
i might bring an extra shirt because ill definetly be sweaty
i know some might say leave the cell phone but id rather bring it just in case i get lucky and have service.
anything suggestions?
also i know swimming isnt allowed at the pond, i kind of understand why but at the same time i dont see how it would be a problem, can someone explain?
Bare Bear
07-09-2008, 10:08
For a short hike, make sure you have fresh batteries, ditch the spares.
Have fun, enjoy what is out there. Why the IPOD etc??? Isn't the goal to get away from the city things? I do always carry the cell phone for emergencies. I always carry my own alcohol stove, etc. so that I am completely independant if need be. Good luck and welcome to WB. Cartoons for almost grownups.
GPS and a compass? I'd suggest ditching the former. But since it's just an overnight, I guess you could carry a cast iron skillet if you want. When you start doing greater distances, however, you'll probably want to pare down your list a bit.
Enjoy!
Fork? What are you going to eat, and how will you prepare it. Just about everything I eat can be eaten with a spoon, or my fingers. Sporks are over rated IMO.
the ipod would be for when im sleeping, if i have trouble sleeping it will keep me occupied, but i wont have trouble sleeping
i bought some of those freeze dried food packages that u just pour hot water in and eat out of the bag, hopefully its good. thats what the fork is for.
the compass and gps is for emergency, but really i just enjoy maps and navigating, seeing where i am at and tells me the distance i hiked.
im probaly going to ditch the binoculars, sunglasses and ipod.
i dont have my own stove yet, but thats on my list to buy
for food i have freeze dried chicken and mashed potatos, with 500 calories and 64 grams of protein, anyone know if its tasty?
im also going to pack a couple of those tuna pouches, candy bars, granola bars, oatmeal and some other little things.
I think a spoon would be better. The spoons at Wendys work quite well. I did break one once, so I paid less than $1 and got a Lexan spoon from REI. Just like hunting, everything taste good in the woods.
Appalachian Tater
07-09-2008, 11:29
If you have trouble sleeping, take some foam earplugs. But you'll probably be tired and sleep well.
If you have the Mountain House chicken breasts with mashed potatoes, they are surprisingly good. I always carry a mixture of dried flaked garlic and onion as well as Mrs. Dash to add to things like that for a little flavor boost.
I agree about the spoon instead of a fork. And for an overnight you probably don't need a pad of paper and pen, certainly no spare batteries. Consider Gatorade bottles instead of Nalgenes.
Sunfish Pond is a beautiful area, but you guys watch out for bears and make sure you use bear boxes or hangers if provided or hang your food. http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/bear_bag_hanging_technique.html
I agree about the spoon instead of a fork. And for an overnight you probably don't need a pad of paper and pen, certainly no spare batteries. Consider Gatorade bottles instead of Nalgenes.
Let me put in a vote for keeping the pad of paper and the pen. In an emergency, you might want to leave a note for potential rescuers. If you encounter a snake den, you might want to leave a note warning others of that fact. And so on.
I rather appreciated the note that I encountered, pinned to a tree on Peters Mtn. last summer warning about the snake dens in the rocks.
All this aside from the more mundane usage of recording one's thoughts, etc.
I also like gatorade bottles,and I always have a paper and pencil with me
The hiker "Stonewall" is also from Bucks County. I hail from Delaware and Chester county Pa. You will find that there is a very stong hiker community in the Philadelphia region (though most of them are on trail this year. Keep your eye peeled on here for local events!
Hey, another local ... welcome to WB ...
Sleeps_With_Skunks
07-09-2008, 12:58
[quote=Bare Bear;661946]Why the IPOD etc??? quote]
I carry my ipod because it short circuits my clutz gene when I'm hiking. I go from 1.5 mph to around 2.5 mph when hiking because I'm not watching and worrying about where I'm stepping. no ipod...sprained ankles and knees.
i just want the pad and paper for starting a log book, the other uses are a good idea too. whats the benefits over from the gatorade bottle over the nalgene? i just wanted the nalgene so i can screw a filter on top, but i think ill ditch the 14 oz and bring a gatorade so i have some flavored drink, then reuse the bottle if i need to.
Welcome to WB
There are lots of great books on the AT. You will find that Bryson's book isn't popular here (hehehe). Bryson took lots of creative license. Be careful though, the AT is addictive somehow and eventually that is all you will think about. Again, welcome!
hi friend. goooo PA!!! i also have/use a gregory z55. it's a great pack, excellent selection imo.
since you're going to be out w/ someone who's experienced then by all means take all the stuff you want to. there's gonna be a number of people on this site that say "OMG YOU CAN'T USE THAT!!!!!!!!!" on 70% of the gear you carry. screw them - as you continue to go out you'll learn as you go what you deem necessary and what you want to leave at home. there's some great hiking down your way. be sure to check out hawk mountain in the fall
they are recommending carrying gatoraid bottles in place of nalgenes b/c they are lighter. one of the guys on here (sgt rock maybe) quoted "the more i carry the more i like camping, the less i carry the more i like hiking" or something like that. i still prefer to carry 1 nalgene in case i need a hot water bottle overnight. the gatoraid bottle was good advise by these guys - lightened me up a few ounces
-may i recommend checking the DIY forums for making your own alcohol stove. there's about 4 billion varieties, cost usually nothing more than visiting your recycling bin, cheaper fuel, less environmental impact, and are quite efficient in the woods. this was also good advise by this site - glad i checked into em before running out and buying a cannister stove
DWG to Sunfish is a beautiful walk. Take your time. Enjoy the pond. If you get to camp early and plan on setting up and chilling, expect to be inundated with bugs. The one time I stayed there I was in my tent for the duration of the night immediately after setup due to the number and voraciousness of the bugs. So, I'd enjoy the walk and take my time getting there.
Although you might be too geeked to slow down at the beginning of your walk there are a few short trails off to the right down to a creek (sorry data book not handy) not long after you start. Cool little spot.
As for the bears, there can be anywhere along the trail in NJ but they do like Sunfish Pond. In '97, Optimist woke up at Sunfish with a bear IN his tent. When I got to DWG hostel his red Whisperlite fuel cannister was pinned to the corkboard with two large holes that represented the bear's teeth.
Have fun and welcoming to hiking.
StarLyte
07-10-2008, 18:24
Hello there and welcome friend !
Attend a hiker event!
CrumbSnatcher
07-10-2008, 21:13
hi im new here, i been browsing for a few weeks and decided to join. im 20 from bucks county pa, im a hunter and mountain biker but never went hiking on the AT before, i just learned some history by reading a walk in the woods. my friend has some experience on the trail and i will be doing my first over night trip to sunfish pond at the delaware water gap. i just picked up a gregory Z55 and cant wait to hit the trail. see ya around :sun welcome to whiteblaze, i believe camping is prohibited at sunfish pond.except at designated campsites. hell your not even allowed to swim,if you play by the rules...
i just found out we are actually going the opposite way, he said dwg to wind gap, we are only doin 5 miles or so, so im assuming fox gap is where we are going. i read a guide book and it said no camping, i dont know if that meant not allowed or not neccesary since its a short hike.
my main concern is water, im not sure if there is a place to get water between these 2 points, especially in this weather, would 2 camelbacks 100 and 70 oz and 2 water bottles be overkill? i guess i can always dump some if its too heavy.
how comes no one likes a walk in the woods, and what did u mean by bryson took alot of creative license?
my friend did make one of those soda can stoves, im going to try and make one myself someday.
again thanks for all the welcomes
i liked it. gave it to one of my buddy's in iraq and he enjoyed it too
The area betwix kirkridge shelter (the first shelter south of DWG) and sunfish pond is kind of my home base on the AT. I would not suggest a first time hiker going from DWG all the way to wind gap. It sounds easy but according to my experience that would be about a 20 mi hike, 6mi from dwg to kirkridge shelter, 9mi from kirkridge to wind gap, and another 5 mi from wind gap to the next shelter (forgot the name). Even experienced hikers have trouble with this section since it is one of the rockiest of the whole AT. If you want to have fun I would suggest going north from DWG to Sunfish pond and taking it easy and enjoying the scenery. If you think you can do more miles than that then go south from DWG and see how you feel after reaching kirkridge shelter. there is a tap there that should be running that is provided by a religious retreat that is located close to the shelter. there is also a really nice bald area a couple hundred yards north of the shelter with fire rings and an excellent view. also if you love to have a fire at night (which i do) stay out of new jersey cause there are no fires allowed anywhere. the pa side has firepits galore for your use. also from my experience there is no water after kirkridge untill you hit the next shelter many tough miles down trail.
If you are heading south from DWG, you are in for a treat. You will be hiking some of the least fun trail from GA to ME. Once you get this out of the way, your next hike will seem fantastic.
...how comes no one likes a walk in the woods ...
I did like it, thought is was funny. My favorite line was when he described the scout troop as charmingly incompetent. I work with scouts, and can relate. Also reminds me of my first backpacking trips. Over weight, out of shape, pack too heavy, etc.
auburnbreeze
07-11-2008, 11:19
Another welcome to WB. Just go out and have fun!
judging by stories and guides this hike is gonna be rocky and no one seems to enjoy it, unfortunately its not my choice but ill make the best of it
just got back from my trip, went to dwg to fox gap, i didnt think 6 miles was going to be alot but for me it was a long way. seen alot of cool stuff, including a group of paragliders. i packed 180 oz of water which was 11 pounds, little did i know there was a piped water source at the shelter. it took us 4 hours to get up and 3 hours down. i didnt realize it was that much of a hike up until i hiked down it. my 2 buddies packed 43 pounds for training for a colorado hunting trip, my pack weighed about 20 pounds and on the rocky sections i couldnt keep up with them, it was really hot out, but surprisingly this morning it was cold, didnt last long though, on the way back to the truck all we were thinkin about is hot dog johnnys! it was a good trip with awesome views, next time i hope we do sunfish pond.
shelterbuilder
07-13-2008, 20:25
the ipod would be for when im sleeping, if i have trouble sleeping it will keep me occupied, but i wont have trouble sleeping
:welcome to WB. Trust me, you won't have trouble sleeping!!:D
i bought some of those freeze dried food packages that u just pour hot water in and eat out of the bag, hopefully its good. thats what the fork is for.
Take a spoon and get every drop!
the compass and gps is for emergency, but really i just enjoy maps and navigating, seeing where i am at and tells me the distance i hiked.
The compass and maps - if you know how to use them, and it sounds like you do - will be more useful than the GPS.
im probaly going to ditch the binoculars, sunglasses and ipod.
Keep the sunglasses - you need the eye protection. UV damage sneeks up on you a little at a time.
i dont have my own stove yet, but thats on my list to buy
Alky stoves are small, lightweight and don't take up much space.
for food i have freeze dried chicken and mashed potatos, with 500 calories and 64 grams of protein, anyone know if its tasty?
Figure on 3,000 to 4,000 calories per day. Try some of the freeze-dried meals at home first, just to see if you like them. Nothing worse on the trail than eating food that you don't like.
im also going to pack a couple of those tuna pouches, candy bars, granola bars, oatmeal and some other little things.
Mix up some gorp (raisins, peanuts, and M&M's) and munch on that all day.
Good luck on your trip.
sheepdog
07-13-2008, 20:30
for food i have freeze dried chicken and mashed potatos, with 500 calories and 64 grams of protein, anyone know if its tasty?
.
It's all tasty at the end of the day. If you add some stove top stuffing it's even better.
:welcome