I keep PMing him and telling him he is doing it all wrong.Originally Posted by brancher
In the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years. - Abraham Lincoln
Just flipflopping back and forth on my insulation system: fleece pullover with synthetic vest and windshirt or base layer with synthetic vest and wind shirt or half zip synthetic jacket.
My vote: Wind shirt, base layer, lightweight puffy jacket or fleece. I live in my windshirt, changing in and out throughout the day and night. Base layer to add in or sleep in if its chilly and a warm outer layer for camp at night or chilly morning. Do you have rain gear also?
I do. I have a "parcho" from Questoutfitters that I made- it's very similar to the Packa that cedartree sells. It's a waterproof parka that has an enlarged back area that your backpack fits into.
Possible Hiker Feed Sunday the 3rd
Slack (or "freedom") packing is often a great choice, although consider just hiking with a pared down pack until Duncannon or so, and then move to a bigger pack when the resupplies get further apart. If all goes well, I will be "fastpacking" HF to Pen-Mar carrying about 15-20 lbs (except for the 7 miles north of the canal, where I may be carrying a 7-year old part of the way...).
Any food would be either at Gathland State Park and/or Crampton Gap Shelter (which is 0.4 miles past Gathland) on Sunday night. That is 10+ miles from Harpers Ferry, but only 7 from Weaverton Road if you decide to slack pack the canal miles on Saturday. Try to give me a sense of whether you will make it to Crampton Gap, so that I can lug in the appropriate amount of food. Since I am continuing on down the trail, I can't carry too many perishables.
I might be able to do some limited trail magic at Pen-Mar on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning as well (e.g., some cold drinks, maybe a shuttle to town or even DC). I'm going to be pretty trashed then, since this is my first time out since I finished the trail last August...
Good luck on your preparations!
AT 2000 miler: 2011-2014 (via section hikes)
Camino de Santiago -- April/May 2016 (Camino Frances from Saint Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela)
CDT New Mexico sections next???
Will the half zip work as well as the wind shirt? Which of your layers also blocks rain?
I like a base layer (long sleeve wicking t shirt) and a reg wicking t shirt, with a 900 fp down hooded anorak and ul rain/wind jacket. Lots of combinations there. But that's just me. I have used fleece and it works fine, but it is a little bit heavy and bulky for me. YMMV.
The half zip jacket is the Kinsman from Thru-Hiker, I'm afraid it may be overklill for the NOBO leg of the flipflop as it is a really warm jacket. Yeah the fleece is about as bulky as the Kinsman, but allows me more flexibility in layering. If it's cold I can put on my fleece over my wool LS and my vest over that and then my hooded windshirt over it all.
Too many choices! Too many decisions! Where to camp? Where to resupply? What to pack and what not to pack? Reading all the data and impressive details of everybody else's in-depth research is making me feel like an idiot for thinking I can simply put my camping stuff and three or four days of food in a pack and head north, hoping things will magically fall into place. Maybe my new trail name should be "Serendipity." While I do have a map, I do not have a plan. This fact is beginning to worry me as I see that most of my fellow travelers have spent a lot of time on logistics. Eek.
If there is a place on the Appalachian Trail that you can "simply put [your] camping stuff and three or four days of food in a pack and head north, hoping things will magically fall into place" Maryland/SoPA is it. You can fix things in Frederick or Carlyle/Harrisburg if needed. Hills are relatively insignificant compared to Georgia, and the rocks are not too bad yet. You can shower every other day if you want, and tap water is available almost every day. It's nothing like the 100 mile "wilderness" for the SOBOs, or the 38 miles of ups and downs that most NOBOs travel before seeing a store. This is metropolitan Washington DC, and the trails are well maintained by the many PATC members. It's a great warm-up for more difficult parts of the Trail, so go out there and have fun!
AT 2000 miler: 2011-2014 (via section hikes)
Camino de Santiago -- April/May 2016 (Camino Frances from Saint Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela)
CDT New Mexico sections next???
I'm with you Humminbard. At times I wish I could just turn off my brain. We will make mistakes but we'll learn and move on.
Simple is good.
I'm pretty much with you, too, on this, Hummingbird. There is so much more we will learn while actually hiking the trail than we can learn reading blogs and forums. For my part, I really do not have a plan, either. I am going to hike as far and as fast each day as I want, and camp where I want. As far as I can tell, the only logistics that are necessary are for the White Mountains and the 100-Mile Wilderness - I am sending food to hostels for me to pick up for these areas. I'm also leaving Harper's Ferry with 4-5 days food. Other than that - I'm wingin' it and will resupply from the trail when I need to.
I am still undecided about maps, though. I figure I'll need to invest in some sort of map set before I leave home.
No worries, luckily I have a plan (but no map). Kind of like how Reese Cups got started...
Mine shut down when John Lennon passed. You'll be fine.
Bingo. And we'll learn it together, within a week or two.
Flip Flop Song
Hey guys, check out the official Flip Flop Theme Song for the Flip Flop Kickoff Weekend!
https://youtu.be/cpzQWKFOH80
We hope you like it! It was written by Todd Coyle, who has been on ATC's staff for many years in our shipping department. He's also the lead musician for the Flip Flop Kick Off on Saturday (May 2).
Laurie
Flip Flop Class of 2015 Unite!
Great song !
Our own theme song?! Really?! That is just amazing! And I love the bluesy riff! Todd is a talented man.
WARNING: For those of you still questioning clothing and sleeping bag levels, take note. The extended forecast for Harpers Ferry shows lows in the upper thirties and low forties (F) through next Tuesday. The growing season doesn't start at this latitude until after May 15th because of the risk of frost. And this forecast does not take altitude into account. Nights will be cool for our fist month, and could get down right cold. Your sleep will be very important throughout your hike for both physical and mental reasons. Don't get caught off guard. I have done it, and a night (or two) shivering in your inadequate bag will wreak havoc on your determination.
AKA "DANGER" AT Thru-Hiker Class of 2015
Hello fellow flip flippers, I've enjoyed following this thread. Thanks to all who have shared so much great info. Last week I did a four day shakedown hike. I'm at 18.2 lbs. Base weight.
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1429448481.015173.jpg
Also, I'm using FB to share my journey with friends and family. Here's the link.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Trave...79290288793997
I'm looking forward to seeing you on the trail. Good luck y'all!
-Tejas
Good info DD. I have been watching the temps in the HF area closely and I agree, we aren't finished with the cold weather just yet. It's always best to be prepared. See you down the path.
I like the song! I'm sure I'll be playing it over in my head as I'm crossing the footbridge and along the C&O towpath.
Simple is good.
Cool song!!!!
What I learned from my several section hikes is to never count your miles from your couch at home. It's a ridiculous exercise. After the first week, we will all get an education. I recall a failed launch for a section hike I did in Vermont. I had a hard short hike up to the first shelter. I hiked back to town the next morning, got a hotel room and dumped like ten pounds from my pack. I won't have to do that this time thanks to multiple shakedowns. But worse comes to worse we can always turn back to HF for a pack makeover. It's not a big deal. I wanted to tell everyone that it happens.
Also, it's not just about physical pack weight. It's about your MENTAL pack weight. As we hike and adjust to trail life, many of the thoughts and concerns of our non-trail life will fade, but it can take time. Most things will simply no apply to our current reality of life on the trail, which centers on a few things (Gear, food, FOOD, FOOD, or body, and the trail and walking...)
Before I go on any distance hike, I try to think about things to NOT think about on my hike to lesson my mental pack weight.
This is tricky for me because I'm a writer and artist. As a writer I'm always writing (or thinking stories). It's something I take with me. I've been trying to crunch the numbers to justify bringing a draw tablet with me to get a jump on drawing more panels for my graphic novel while on the trail. I still think I can take it with me. I can't. I'm still in home mode. That will change I'm sure while on the trail.
As for writing. I'll bring a notebook with me. I can see me writing 1-2 full feature film scripts while hiking, or take a lot of notes. It's hard to think I won't given all that free head time on the trail. But there again is more home mode stuff.
Eventually home stuff will fade, but I like to do a MENTAL pack lightening too.
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