PDA

View Full Version : There are camp stools -- and then there are Camp Stools.



searust
12-17-2011, 02:20
As I was tying my boots this morning I realized I had one item in the house that might actually be something I would want to carry hiking with me that I had never considered... and that was a step stool. I have several around the house and I find that I use them to sit on and to tie my boots on.
14643
or
14644
Rather than a "camp stool" or some sort of folding stool that honestly I would be more apt to sit on and crush--- (I am 6ft and a very solid 230# ) Why shouldn't I just strap one of these to the top of my pack... They are a few ounces over one pound, solid--- rainproof--- incredibly useful--- :-?

Someone give me a good reason not to carry this on my next hike...

Feral Bill
12-17-2011, 03:15
Quote my wife "don't they have rocks in the back country?"

searust
12-17-2011, 04:05
I just think it would be one of the more useful and used pieces of gear to have--- make my knees happy. I think I can drill enough holes in it to keep the structure and strength and maybe get it well under a pound.

Rocks huh... how old fashioned...

Bronk
12-17-2011, 07:32
Someone give me a good reason not to carry this on my next hike...

Because I felt really stupid for carrying one of these for 30 miles and never using it. I got rid of 15 or 20 pounds of just plain useless stuff when I got to Neels gap. Those first 30 miles were miserable. The problem with doing a long distance hike is you usually plan it very far in advance...so you have plenty of time to say "this only weighs X number of ounces, I think I'll take that too." And pretty soon you have 25 or 30 pounds worth of stuff that "doesn't weigh much." My pack weighed 55 pounds without water when I started my hike and under 30 pounds fully loaded with a week's worth of food by the time I ended...I was cutting parts off my pack to save weight. Near the end I went through my pack every week and every time I found something I hadn't used that week I got rid of it.

Besides that, there are plenty of logs and rocks in the woods that you don't have to carry.

mountain squid
12-17-2011, 10:08
Just reading the title of this thread makes me say "Don't carry one." . . . and then seeing the picture . . . :eek:

As Feral Bill already noted, there are rocks . . . there are also fallen trees . . . if you are hiking on the AT there are shelters and most have picnic tables. And, if all else fails, you can always just sit on the ground. Lugging that thing around would be cumbersome and add dead weight.

If this is just for overnighters or weekends and if you absolutely must have a camp chair, get one of those that can convert a sleeping pad into one. If it is for a long-distance hike abandon this idea entirely . . .

See you on the trail,
mt squid

how to hike (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?73587-how-to-hike)
some observations
(http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?14493-observations-from-fs42-(advice-for-first-week-on-trail)/page4)

bamboo bob
12-17-2011, 11:39
A joke right? I met a guy once who carried a mallet to drive in his tent stakes. I guess there really are no rocks on the AT. It's fun to look in the hiker box in Neels Gap. One trip someone had put in a machete! also a flare gun. That was the funniest because there were no flares so he must have used them up !!

Mike2012
12-17-2011, 12:05
It could be useful as a head shelter if you're gonna bivy without a tarp. If you had two they might double as snowshoes or even low stilts for those not so deep stream crossings.

Freedom Walker
12-17-2011, 12:24
As someone who has sore stiff knees I find it difficult to squat and bend , so I may take my 16 oz folding stool on a weekend hike. But for a long hike every oz counts, plus if you have bad knees maybe hiking a long AT hike is a not good idea.

bigcranky
12-17-2011, 12:35
If you want to carry it, go for it. For the same weight you could probably get an aluminum framed beach chair. (Yes, I've seen those on the trail.)

Just realize that there are a LOT of things that you could carry that don't weigh very much, and would be nice to have. For a weekend hike, not a big deal. For a long hike, that's a different story.

Kookork
12-17-2011, 12:48
I think all of us carry one or two items that are not routine and we might call them personall luxury. Pillows, Fishing tackles, Camcorder, some electroncs are some examples. Here OP feels that the stools may help his bad knees. I think you can find a solid foldable stool much lighter than one pound. If you found it useless on the trail ,you may get rid of it along tha way sooner or later.

Sly
12-17-2011, 13:39
Pricey but some like the SlingLight

http://www.slinglight.com/

Slo-go'en
12-17-2011, 14:00
Actually, I could see where one of those plastic stools could be nice to have. So long as you don't go crazy packing other stuff and keep the pack weight reasonable, no reason not to include it. Certianly for short trips, but you probably would get tired of carrying it pretty quick on a thru or a long section hike.

bamboo bob
12-17-2011, 14:10
Madness. This insanity should not be encouraged. Backpacking is not car camping. You should not use Coleman as your outfitter. Verily 100 pounds of ultrlight gear is possible.

Rasty
12-17-2011, 14:31
I saw that thermarest has a stuff bag for a couple of different pads that also doubles as a stool. It was around 7 ounces. Saw it at backcountrygear.com

Sailing_Faith
12-17-2011, 14:38
Oh sure, the other kids will point and they will laugh.... they may even throw stones at you.

http://myshoebag.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/mean-kids-shoebag.jpg

BUT!

For those cherished 1.5 minutes twice a day when you take your boots off and put them on... you will have the thrill of watching the visceral envy they will experience when they pretend not to notice just how comfortable you are.




Hike your own Hike man... hike it.

darkage
12-17-2011, 15:00
mini hammock chairs, end of struggle ...

atmilkman
12-17-2011, 15:43
As someone who has sore stiff knees I find it difficult to squat and bend , so I may take my 16 oz folding stool on a weekend hike. But for a long hike every oz counts, plus if you have bad knees maybe hiking a long AT hike is a not good idea.
I've seen your folding camping stool Freedom Walker. It's a nice little luxury. I think it's nice to have a little luxury on a weekend or short hike, heck you really ain't going anywhere anyhow, why not bring a little luxury. I carry the 25" Therma-a-Rest Trekker Chair Kit. At 14oz. it's worth it. But, if I'm going any real distance or time it's one of the first things to go. I got a confession to make to everybody. When I first started to respond to this post I started it out as I've seen your stool before Freedom Walker and it didn't take me 5 seconds to realize here on WhiteBlaze I was only setting myself up for some humorous slamming. I could hear it right then. What are you doing looking at Freedom Walker's stool? Give the man some privacy! Did you at least give him a chance to pull his pants up. I heard right then. (lol)

Tinker
12-17-2011, 15:44
A hammock (basic, without netting) can be hung in a high/low fashion to make a very comfortable chair for lounging. You can make your own out of cheap nylon fabric and some nylon "climber's accessory cord" (5-6mm). Come to think of it, you can usually turn a hammock with bug netting over (if you make the ridge line removeable - Hennessy Hammock, at least), and do the same thing.
A "bare" hammock and cord (or strap, if you prefer - I do) weighs just a hair over a pound and a half with straps, less with cord, and conforms to your backside like no chunk of plastic ever could. :)

max patch
12-17-2011, 16:12
Almost everybody carries something that everyone else thinks is stupid (mine was the 3 books i always had with me. Your camp stool is just your stupid item.

rocketsocks
12-17-2011, 18:34
what about them fold up pocket stools"As seen on TV"?supports 250# they say.

darkage
12-17-2011, 19:05
A hammock (basic, without netting) can be hung in a high/low fashion to make a very comfortable chair for lounging. You can make your own out of cheap nylon fabric and some nylon "climber's accessory cord" (5-6mm). Come to think of it, you can usually turn a hammock with bug netting over (if you make the ridge line removeable - Hennessy Hammock, at least), and do the same thing.
A "bare" hammock and cord (or strap, if you prefer - I do) weighs just a hair over a pound and a half with straps, less with cord, and conforms to your backside like no chunk of plastic ever could. :)

Yup yup, i've made two so far ... there are company's who sell mini hammock versions for gear lofts, chairs etc ... here is one that is only 7oz, holds 450 lbs and could be used as a pillow when not in use ... DUAL purpose = win win.

http://www.treklightgear.com/catalog/pc/VersaTrek-5p689.htm

Distracted By Stone
12-17-2011, 19:06
HYOH

Trade off weight.

If easily reached off the pack for very brief rest just when you wanted, that would be a value / weight benefit alone.

At a campfire it would be wonderful to easily move as close or as far as wanted.

( I backpack almost ultra-light.)

When car camping : As you might imagine, we use EZ fold stools at the campfire .
13" for me, 17" for my husband.

kolokolo
12-17-2011, 19:32
there are plenty of logs and rocks in the woods that you don't have to carry.

My thinking exactly.

It will also be difficult to secure that item so that it doesn't either flap around or poke you, not to mention getting caught on low hanging limbs.

Freedom Walker
12-17-2011, 22:57
As someone who has sore stiff knees I find it difficult to squat and bend , so I may take my 16 oz folding stool on a weekend hike. But for a long hike every oz counts, plus if you have bad knees maybe hiking a long AT hike is a not good idea.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31H2JZbWU%2BL._SL500_AA300_.jpg (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images/B001RVKWE0/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=3375251&s=sporting-goods)
Mine looks like this one and weighs 16oz. Folds and fits on the side of my pack. On My two AT section hikes I left it at home and did fine. Each hiker has to decide if the luxury of an item is worth the work to carry it. I think that is called hiking your own hike.

atraildreamer
12-18-2011, 15:14
From Instructables.com, (free to join) ...for the more flexible among us! :-?

Sandy of PA
12-19-2011, 13:01
My bearicade cannister makes a great stool, drum, and protects my food from everything. 1 lb. 15ozs.

waasj
12-19-2011, 14:17
Dude, if it makes you happy, I say bring it. But realize 50 1 pound objects still weigh 50 pounds (a fact my students seem to have trouble with), as do 100 half pound objects. What you gain in stool weight might need to be offset somewhere else.

Tinker
12-19-2011, 16:38
Get one of these: http://www.camptime.net/roll-a-stool.htm
..............just for the name. Sounds like an odd sport in some far away impoverished land.:rolleyes:

searust
12-19-2011, 23:48
My bearicade cannister makes a great stool, drum, and protects my food from everything. 1 lb. 15ozs.

This is exactly the kind of thing I would like to hike with, but all my hiking so far has been bear free-- plenty of Rattlesnakes and plenty of coyotes but no bear--- What else is there that one would regularly carry that you can use for a stool. -- the fold up ones are just puny to me and the one from the instructibles there looks like some sort of torture device-- I wonder if there is some sort of lighter canister type thing I could maybe stuff food/stove in or maybe stuff sleeping bag in to be able to carry it.

mykl
12-21-2011, 11:37
If its something you are willing to carry/use, go for it! Power to you. Not a bad idea, an extra pound is worth the weight for comfort. Besides, I've carried a lot worse in/on my pack. Bet the person sitting on that cold, damp, uneven rock would be jealous of your chair....and stamina and will....

sbhikes
12-21-2011, 13:38
Jeez, just carry a bear canister. You can use it to do laundry. It'll protect your food from rodents. It makes a nice chair. You can float on it across a river. Keep your gear dry in a rain storm. So many uses that have nothing to do with bears.

Tinker
12-22-2011, 14:14
If you hammock and carry trekking poles you can make one like this:
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/files/2/5/0/2/dscn0576_thumb.jpg[/URL ([URL]http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=49380)]

Tinker
12-22-2011, 14:14
duplicate post - what???

4Bears
12-22-2011, 14:53
http://c.adventurerv.net/a/thumbs/images/EZ-Foldz-Step-Stool-Black.jpg.thumb_popupprod_info_190x190_d84157d35b4 29dc1c00cfcafac997a44.jpg
http://www.adventurerv.net/ezfoldz-folding-step-stepping-stool-black-camper-p-718.html?action=edit_calc&source=cashbackShopping&osCsid=litiuttdgekkqcc8qhmj3353j5
You can try one of these they hold up 300lbs and they do work, weigh less than a pound, I keep one in my pick-up. I wouldn't take one on a hike, as I use a piece of 1/2" HDF to sit on and at night curl it up a bit in a stuff sack with my fleece, makes a great pillow and stiffens up the pack when hiking.

Sly
12-22-2011, 14:58
Since there's lots of available options such as logs, your pack etc., I don't see the point of carrying anything without back support.

dla
12-23-2011, 19:28
I for one am tired of finding camp stools. I wish people would bury them or pack them out.

:)