Does anyone here really rough it?

[rocketsocks]

food is over rated. its water we need.
a friend of mine did 3 days 2 nites with a bed roll, water and a bible as a fast. but if your talking about throwing down a ground cloth putting your head on your pack for the night. yes.
hey, i was married. i did it in the backyard one too many nites

Yep, they use to call it "being in the dog house" now we have "Man Caves" complete with TV and a full frig, at least that where my buddy goes.

But as to the OP and the original 5 year old question, sure why not....then again why.

[bfayer]

I've hiked with just a space blanket, raw food, a windshirt, and a backpack. I didn't even have a shirt.... I won't do it again. Quilts and tarps add a lot of comfort for very little weight.

Its not just comfort, it safety. Like I have said on other threads, just because you can do something, does not mean you should.

[daddytwosticks]

This may be a fun adventure to try this summer down south here on the AT. Just grab a small fanny pack and fill with the minimum: extra fleece, poncho, lighter, swiss army knife, water bottle, etc. I always hike solo, but this experiment may be best tried with a partner. Kind of like Dual Survival. I'm just a crotchety old fart with some extra weight around my middle. Who would be a good partner for me?

[Odd Man Out]

"Throw a loaf of bread and a pound of tea in an old sack and jump over the back fence"
John Muir

[Just Jack]

I always thought that roughing-it meant having to call room service a second time.

[Franco]

On one walk I had to eat up my Belgian chocolate the first day (it was melting) and on the second the batteries in my MP3 player died.
So i did the third day without chocolate AND music.
It was hell.

[JAK]

Yeah, but Chuck Norris doesn't need a shelter. Rain won't fall on him without permission.

When Chuck Norris goes for a hike in the Wilderness, he isn't Roughing It, the Wilderness is.

[Wise Old Owl]

I cannot top this my head hurts.....

[Sarcasm the elf]

When Chuck Norris goes for a hike in the Wilderness, he isn't Roughing It, the Wilderness is.

Well played sir!

[Sarcasm the elf]

I cannot top this my head hurts.....

It's probably because you've been swiveling your head too hard...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21279609

[Papa D]

i've spent some wilderness time that is nearly un-beliveable - - 2 and 3 day alpine mountain ascents - eating nothing for 2 or three days - - sleeping in super cold sub zero conditions (shivering all night) and so forth:

Univ Peak, AK.jpg

this is me on University Peak in Alaska - this ascent involved sleeping on a port-a-ledge (sort of a hanging tent), snowfall, wind, super cold, all sorts of problems and so forth so this is a pretty good example of "roughing it" - - yeah - - roughing it happens!

[Old Boots]

Considering the fact that everything you wear,sleep in and on, drink and eat, you carry on a hike on the AT (unless you are supported) you take only what you need. In any age that is roughing it. Having done long distance hiking and wilderness canoeing my entire life, it is my opinion that to intentionally go into the wilderness as the OP suggests is silly.p if not foolish.

[Old Hiker]

i've spent some wilderness time that is nearly un-beliveable - - 2 and 3 day alpine mountain ascents - eating nothing for 2 or three days - - sleeping in super cold sub zero conditions (shivering all night) and so forth:

Univ Peak, AK.jpg

this is me on University Peak in Alaska - this ascent involved sleeping on a port-a-ledge (sort of a hanging tent), snowfall, wind, super cold, all sorts of problems and so forth so this is a pretty good example of "roughing it" - - yeah - - roughing it happens!

Oh,please. At least try something HARD !!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U0tDU37q2M

[Papa D]

Oh,please. At least try something HARD !!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U0tDU37q2M

yes- thanks for putting this in perspective

[Wolf - 23000]

When I did my thru-hiking of the AT/PCT/LT I was traveling with 4 pounds. That was back in the 90s. Now things are even lighter. In 2006, I did the JMT with just over 1 pound total gear weight.

The question of "Why?" was asked. Well every time you add something inside your backpack that you that much farther from having a natural hike.

Wolf

[JAK]

I like how you think Wolf - 23000. What about clothing? What sort of clothing choices make for a more natural hike?

[surfnturk]

I think some people define roughing it as how much work is involved, some may think it's what you can live without.
Here's a scenario;
60-65 miles from anywhere, no cell phone, etc. Windy, very cold, snow still on the ground in most places. Then loading up snow sleds with everything you need to be comfy,. like a military woodstove, tents, cots, booze, etc. Pack it in about 3-4 miles in extreme grizzly country.

Is this roughing it or just hard work?

[Pedaling Fool]

No one roughs it any more, thanks to technology.

[surfnturk]

Depends on how you define roughing it, which is why I posed that question.

[Pedaling Fool]

No one roughs it any more, thanks to technology.

Depends on how you define roughing it, which is why I posed that question.

True, everything is always in need of defining. You could say my lifestyle as compared to someone, say Al Gore is a lifestyle of roughing it, especially since I as a cyclist uses a bike as my primary form of transportation. And some wouldn't accept that definition, fine, not really interested in arguing it.

However, I was (and I probably should have said so) was speaking specifically in the way everyone hikes the AT, including the most ultralite of the ultras. They have a very nice lightweight sleeping bag and warm clothes and visit a town for resupply every 3-5 days. They ain't roughing it, maybe a little less comfortable than most, but they're on a very predictable schedule, so nothing really is in doubt, so they are just another hiker on vacation, nothing special.