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  1. #1

    Question Flying with backpack

    class of 08... for those of you who flew to springer to start your thru, did you check your packs or mail(fedex/ups) them to GA? Did anyone have any problems that they encountered. I don't really want the TSA tearing my pack apart. Comments or suggestions?

  2. #2
    Registered User lonehiker's Avatar
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    Default duffel bag

    I packed mine in a duffle bag (military style) and checked it. Had no problems.
    Lonehiker (MRT '22)

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    Registered User Egads's Avatar
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    I would not trust the airlines to fly my checked gear. It's too expensive and lost luggage will ruin a hike.

    I carried my pack & down with me on board. I used Fed-X Ground to ship the rest of my gear out west this summer for my CDT / Glacier hike. You could probably work something out with one of the hostels or shuttles to send your gear to them.
    The trail was here before we arrived, and it will still be here when we are gone...enjoy it now, and preserve it for others that come after us

  4. #4

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    My dad hikes with an external frame and boxes it up for the airplane.

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    Registered User jafrost's Avatar
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    I did the military duffel bag thing to keep the straps from getting caught-up in the baggage equipment. No problem to Atlanta. Coming back from Portland I found a TSA inspection slip. They didn't even try to unpack everything; just rummaged around the top a little. I had packed my stove and empty fuel bottle on top just in case some over zealous inspector wanted to make an issue of it. Again, no problem.

    I did learn a valuable lesson though. On the way home I had to use two different airlines, and the bag didn't make the same connection to the second carrier that I did. I spent several hours sweating over the fact that I had foolishly left one of my full photo memory sticks in the duffel/pack. It finally showed-up.

    --Jack Frost

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    LT '79; AT '73-'14 in sections; Donating Member Kerosene's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by lonehiker View Post
    I packed mine in a duffle bag (military style) and checked it. Had no problems.
    I do the same for my section hikes. The hard part is where to store the duffle bag for the return trip home, as most airports no longer have lockers.
    GA←↕→ME: 1973 to 2014

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    jersey joe jersey joe's Avatar
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    I flew with my backpack once and also put it in a large duffle bag. I made sure to empty my fuel bottle and left the cap off, taped to the bottle. I also printed out the TSA guidelines that stated that transporting empty fuel containers was OK and taped that to the fuel bottle too...just in case!

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    Donating Member/AT Class of 2003 - The WET year
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    Quote Originally Posted by bigboots View Post
    class of 08... for those of you who flew to springer to start your thru, did you check your packs or mail(fedex/ups) them to GA? Did anyone have any problems that they encountered. I don't really want the TSA tearing my pack apart. Comments or suggestions?
    ==================================

    I sent my stove, fuel bottle, tent stakes, personal kit (fingernail clipper, tweezer etc) and initial foodbag ahead via UPS. I carried my backpack on the plane. It fit overhead and never had an issue.

    'Slogger
    The more I learn ...the more I realize I don't know.

  9. #9

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    awesome, thanks for your tips and experiences!

  10. #10
    Garlic
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    I carried mine on, too. I was surprised TSA let me do it. I had to throw away my only cutting tool, a single edged razor blade, easy to replace in Atlanta for a few cents. I don't use a stove, so no fuel or residue to worry about. They let on my tent stakes, trekking poles, etc. The pack fit the airline's maximum size requirements, too.
    "Throw a loaf of bread and a pound of tea in an old sack and jump over the back fence." John Muir on expedition planning

  11. #11
    Getting out as much as I can..which is never enough. :) Mags's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by garlic08 View Post
    They let on my tent stakes, trekking poles, etc.

    Wow. That is definitely hit or miss depending upon the TSA agent or airport it seems.

    I've known people who had tent stakes, trekking poles and even tent poles taken away (though I've flown with tent poles in 2006 for the ADZPCTKO) as carry-on luggage.

    Seems so much inconsistency with airport security now-a-days for not just gear, but anything!

    But, that is another topic.

    More and more people are mailing items ahead, esp now with the luggage fees airlines are starting to charge.
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  12. #12

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    Simple, just got a cardboard box slightly bigger then my pack. Packed my pack inside and taped it up. At the airline counter they ask what is inside the box, I tell them camping gear, and they ask if there is fuel. I say no, they put a special sticker on my box and off I go.

    I've done this 3 or 4 times never w/ a problem. Never paid extra $$ either but I try to keep the box as small as possible.

  13. #13

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    I should add, that I like my system because when I get to my destination I can discard the cardboard and go about my business.

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    Registered User KG4FAM's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by RITBlake View Post
    I should add, that I like my system because when I get to my destination I can discard the cardboard and go about my business.
    Doing it this way just sucks when coming home and you have to go hunting a big cardboard box.

  15. #15
    Getting out as much as I can..which is never enough. :) Mags's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by RITBlake View Post

    I've done this 3 or 4 times never w/ a problem. Never paid extra $$ either but I try to keep the box as small as possible.

    Alas, more airlines are charging for each piece of luggage period. United, as a quick example, charges $15 for the FIRST piece of checked luggage.

    http://www.airfarewatchdog.com/Airfa...y-airline.aspx

    Not a huge deal, but using UPS may be worth it for the less hassle for some people.

    Also, dug this up from the TSA site:
    http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtrav...ted-items.shtm
    PDF: http://www.tsa.gov/assets/pdf/prohib...s_10-24-07.pdf

    And for us:
    http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtrav...rial_1187.shtm


    As I said, poles could be hit or miss depending upon the agent/airport...




    I hate getting to the airport from up until the time the plane leaves the ground. Flying is the easy part! Blech..Post 9/11 air travel is rather...more difficult.
    Last edited by Mags; 11-05-2008 at 23:01.
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    I flew mine in a duffel out west. I have done this twice. No problems. All but the cookstove which I ended up renting at the Grand Canyon gear store, since that was not negotiable. Poles, knife, etc. went thru with no problem. I was a little worried about my pole, but I put it on the bottom wrapped in a carboard tube. My other friends who flew in from out west could bring everything but a cookstove. Forget gas, no way. None of us has anything torn up or broken. We thought they were pretty unfazed by our stuff. Even when we flew home from Vegas and everything was filthy.

  17. #17
    Getting out as much as I can..which is never enough. :) Mags's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Erin View Post
    I flew mine in a duffel out west. I have done this twice. No problems.
    Just to clarify, it wasn't carry-on


    Carryon vs. checked luggage changes the equation. I should have clarified that in my postings. My bad for not being clear.
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    I would suggest a hang glider, but it would probably get hung up on the trail.

    Sorry, couldn't resist, I had a mental picture of it reading the thread title.
    It has been said that a journey begins with a single step. I say hogwash! It starts with a dream.

  19. #19
    Registered User whitelightning's Avatar
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    I usually use a duffel bag and check my bag. I recently flew home from New Hampshire after my thruhike. I used heavy duty trashbags and duct tape to wrap up my pack so the straps weren't exposed. I left a small hole for the carry handle on the pack. I checked it without any problems. I flew with Southwest who currently does not charge for the first two checked bags.

  20. #20
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    Sorry, Mags, I shoud have clarified my post. The forbidden stuff was not carry on. The funny thing about the jet boil was that so many people told me I could fly it but the airlines said no because of the self ignition switch (even without the gas). I can easily give up a corkscrew to confiscation, but I did not want to risk a $$ item like my jetboil.

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