“Lightweight & Ultralight Backpacking Foundations” Video Series by Clever Hiker

Posted on May 21, 2013 by

CHlogo

A few months ago, Dave Collins started an Indiegogo crowd funding campaign to raise support for a video series on ultralight backpacking. After talking with Dave via email, and of course watching his video, I liked what I saw, so I opted to help fund his dream by making a small monetary donation. However, it wasn’t just me that liked what Dave presented, there were enough other people that felt the same way since not only did he reach his proposed goal, but actually exceeded it! Continue reading →

About these ads
Posted in Gear, Gear Reviews | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

The Foothills Trail Hike

Posted on May 20, 2013 by

P1010422

Last Thursday, Craig & I set off to hike the Foothills Trail. We had a small window of time to complete the hike, and as daunting as hiking 77 miles in about 2.5 days is, we decided to give it a go anyway. In the end, we only ended up hiking about 48 miles of the actual Foothills Trail, plus the 5 mile Cane Brake trail which lead to the Frozen Lake parking area. From here, we caught a ride back to our car… Continue reading →

Posted in Foothills Trail, Trip Report | Tagged , , , | 20 Comments

Packing my Gear for the Foothills Trail

Posted on May 12, 2013 by

Next week, my buddy Craig & I will be attempting to hike the 77 mile long Foothills Trail from one end to the other, in 2 nights & 3 days.

“The Foothills Trail is located along the Blue Ridge Escarpment in Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina. The landscape is diverse, ranging from high rocky outcrops with views to the distant horizon, to quiet forests in deep valleys carved by bold mountain streams. Elevations along the trail range from 1,120 feet at Table Rock State Park to 3,560 feet atop Sassafras Mountain.” Continue reading →

Posted in Gear, Packing, Trip Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

TD Sidewinder Caldera Cone & the 0.9L Evernew “UL” Ti Cook Pot

Posted on May 3, 2013 by

P1010071As usual, I have been playing with more cook kit combinations. I have a number of cook pots in my arsenal, ranging from as little as 475 ml to 1.8L, made from titanium to hard anodized aluminum, and of course, a number of beer can cook pots. However, the one that I have been tinkering around with lately has been my 0.9L “UL” Evernew titanium cook pot. This is a short, squat pot which does not have a nonstick coating inside it (hence, “UL”), and obviously has a 900 ml (or ~ 31 fluid oz) capacity. The pot (w/ handles) & lid weigh in at 4 oz, sans stuff sack. Continue reading →

Posted in Cook Kits, DIY/MYOG, Stoves | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

“The Last Englishman” by Keith Foskett (AKA: Fozzie)

Posted on May 1, 2013 by
BookCoverImage2TLE

Photo courtesy of Keith Foskett

A couple of months ago I picked up the book “The Last Englishman” by Keith Foskett (Trail name: Fozzie). I actually downloaded it to my Kindle rather than buying the actual book. Then, after finishing up the book I was currently reading, I got started on “The Last Englishman” and having now finished it, have got to say that it was a very fun read for me. I fully enjoyed it from “cover-to-cover.”

I was attracted to the book for a few reasons. First off, over the last couple of months, I had come across Keith’s blog a couple of times. (I remember at one point he was giving away one of the famed Trail Designs Caldera Cones.) Another reason is because I had been reading a few other PCT thru hiking books, and had been growing more and more interested in the PCT… and it just so happens that this book is Fozzie’s PCT thru hike account. So why not? Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Give Aways | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Fizan Compact Superlight Trekking Poles

Posted on April 23, 2013 by

P1010032A while back I picked up the new Yama Mountain Gear Cirriform SW tent.  However, after getting the tent, I realized that my favorite pair of trekking poles would not collapse short enough for me to use with this tent. So, I tried a few different things… I tried just using the top portion of my LT4, I tried making a dedicated pole from a broken section of LT4 pole, and I even picked up some Easton carbon fiber poles and made a nice, 2-piece collapsible pole. While each of these options worked (somewhat), I can’t say that I was really happy with any of them.  Continue reading →

Posted in Trekking Poles | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments

Tell It On The Mountain Winners Announced!

Posted on April 21, 2013 by

P1010020

There was a grand total of 74 people that have entered the drawing I recently posted for the “Tell It On The Mountain” movie! That is awesome. Thanks so much to everyone that entered, however, there can only be 3 winners… Continue reading →

Posted in Give Aways | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

DVD Give Away: “Tell It On The Mountain”

Posted on April 17, 2013 by

Tell it on the mountainI came across “Tell It On The Mountain” earlier this year on Facebook. I cannot remember who, but someone posted a picture of a box filled with what I thought were books at the time, and said that they were finally here. After a little Google-Fu, I realized that these were not books, but instead, they were movies. At that time, I believe that the movies were available for preorder, however, I did not preorder one at that time.

Surprisingly enough, I have been reading books on the PCT lately (as opposed to books on the AT). I started out with the book “Wild” by Cheryl Strayed, but to be honest, I never finished reading it. I then started reading a book my wife got me for Christmas: “A Blistered Kind of Love“ by Angela & Duffy Ballard, which IMO, was a great book. At the moment, I am about to finish up the book “The Last Englishman” by Keith Foskett (AKA: “Fozzie”) which also, IMO, has been a great book. (I am actually looking forward to his new book coming out…. “Balancing on Blue” which is a book on the AT!) Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Give Aways | Tagged , , , , | 78 Comments

GooseFeet Gear Stuff Sack Down Pillow Case & Large Exped “UL” Air Pillow

Posted on April 14, 2013 by

P1000455I am one of those hikers that carries a pillow when backpacking. A pillow is a must in order for me to get the best nights sleep possible, so I am comfortable with taking a weight penalty in order to make this happen. In the past I have tried a number of different pillows, as well as pillow cases, and while they all pretty much worked out one way or another, they weren’t perfect for one reason or another. To be fair though, I have come to the conclusion that the only way I will get that perfect pillow like the one at home is to actually carry the one from home, but this just ain’t going to happen! Not only is it too heavy, but it is also way too bulky… Continue reading →

Posted in Gear Stores, Pillows | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

“I Came Out of the Woods by Choice…”

Posted on April 7, 2013 by

P1000366

What started out as an adventure, ended in retreat… Continue reading →

Posted in Gear, Trip Report | Tagged , , , | 62 Comments

Getting ready for a 3 Day AT Section Hike!

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

P1000263-001My pack is all packed up and ready to go… now I just gotta wait on the time to actually go…

Later this week I will be heading out to complete another section of the Appalachian Trail that I don’t quite have yet. I will be doing the 30 mile section between Deep Gap and Wayah Gap in North Carolina. Once I finish this section though, I will have completed the (approximately) 215 miles of Appalachian Trail between Amicalola Falls State Park Visitor Center (yes, I did the approach trail too) up to just past Icewater Springs Shelter in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park (save for about a 2 mile stretch between Sassafras Gap Shelter (above the NOC) and Cheoah Bald). Continue reading →

Posted in Gear, Trip Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | 23 Comments