Some of you may be wondering what exactly 'Glamping' is. Well, it's a condescending phrase when used by my little bother (no that's not a typo) when we get into discussions on backpacking gear. So, in a way only a sister can, I have made it my mission to be the most obnoxiously comfortable backpacking companion ever, hence the photo of me ready to go out in the woods with red lipstick on. Although our sibling camping trip has been postponed indefinitely at this point - I'm still hoping someday we'll be on the same mountain at the same time and I can take that opportunity to annoy the crap out of him.
This discussion of necessary gear has been an ongoing one,
and so now that I have truly gotten into the thick of it – I’m finding the
things I really love about my equipment and the things that are perhaps
lacking. So to begin with, here are my lessons from my first adult backpacking
trip. (As a kid we went hiking, but I most likely didn’t pack or select my own
equipment)
- Remember to bring your bandana.
- Learn how to tie a whole bunch of useful knots. Practice these until you are sure you will remember.
- Familiarize yourself with your gear at home.
- Don’t overestimate the number of miles you can hike.
- Bring duct tape.
My bedroom was in a state of disarray leading up to the
trip, and as such I looked and looked and could not find my bandana. It is now
tied to the top of my pack, and there it shall stay unless it is in the washing
machine. I watched the video several times of how to hang my rain fly, and when
it came time to set up camp, I couldn’t remember a single thing I’d learned.
Luckily the knots I remembered held well enough in our calm weather. I have since downloaded the video to my desktop to I can review it frequently and load it on my phone just in case I need a refresher in the woods. My
roommate and trail partner was ever so grateful that I had the duct tape when
the soles of her brand new shoes fell off at mile 9 of our 12 mile first day.
After a 23 mile round trip, we were both feeling as though we had exerted every
last bit of energy we had – and thus treated ourselves to ice cream.
So – these are all of the things I packed for my first
overnight backpacking trip. The total weight was right around 30 lbs, which is
a bit heavy for an overnight, however I am also hiking for exercise and so it’s
an okay weight.
I’m sleeping in a Warbonnet hammock with whoopie sling
suspensions. Tried out the figure 8 shaped Nemo 40 bag, although my toes were
cold in the early morning, and so I’ve returned that and next weekend will be
headed out with a 32 degree Mountain Hardwear bag. I’m borrowing the MSR
miniworks water filter from my very generous uncle. I bought a little Primus
gas stove that screws right on to a fuel canister, it works great and for $20 it’s
perfect for short trips. Carried some warm clothes and rain clothes that I
happen to have laying around. The Helinox chair is lovely, and the salesman at
HTO was right when he told me “after a whole day of hiking you won’t want to
sit on rocks.” And the last little gem of my packing gear is the ThermaRest
pillow I bought, 7oz of heaven at night! You wouldn’t believe how much this
pillow fluffs up.
This upcoming Labor Day weekend we’re headed out again, this
time I have a stuff sack for the clothes, so they’ll pack a bit smaller. I have
a little square pack from REI for my toiletries, which will keep them all in
one place and easily grab-able to hang with my bear bag. I have also splurged
on trekking poles, which we’ll see whether they’re worth the $$ and lbs. My
roommate swears that once you get the swing of them, it’s wonderful. Hopefully there
will be something nice to look at along the way!
Happy to hear anyone's suggestions and opinions on gear or tips for being out in the woods. My biggest challenge for this upcoming trip is planning enough calories per day.
