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Mittens
� Your spare socks will double as mittens. A super-light windproof nylon shell mitt and liner gloves will suffice in most situations. You can add the socks if it gets colder than you are prepared for or for when you are less active around camp.
Bear Bag
At night, hang your food in a mesh bag lined with a plastic garbage bag. This will give it strength and waterproofness, while still being lightweight.
During her 1999 JMT hike, Martha Montague enjoyed success hanging her food in the plastic bags that you get from the grocery store. Those bags are tougher than they look, and easy to replace.
If small rodents are a problem, use half of a soda can or tin can with a hole poked through the bottom. Run this through the cord and set it a couple feet above the bag with a stopper knot (butterfly knot will untie easily). This will prevent most rodents from reaching your food (common trick on the AT). A second option is hanging your food in the Ursack, a bear-resistant bag that should be able to keep out rodents as effectively.
Rain Strings
� To prevent water from running down tarp lines or hammock lines in the rain, take 2 to 4 inches of a small thread/line and tie it to your main line out side of your tarp/hammock. When the water runs down the line it will hit the string first and drip off.� � -Mark Harrison
Dermatone�
� Dermatone� is a waterfree skin and lip protector that "doubles the time you can spend in the cold before your face and lips begin to freeze". It is a very popular mountaineering item. I have a 1oz. tin that is SPF 23. They also make a transparent zinc-oxide tin that is SPF 15 (non-allergenic) but it does not make the same claim about protecting your face from freezing.
� There is also a lip only Dermatone� that is not waterfree. This works fine as an all season lip balm, but is not the same as the round tins.
Gaitor straps
� To prevent your gaitors straps from wearing out (especially non-replaceable ones) put �" or 1" tubular webbing (runners) around them.
Fannypack
� Wear a small fanny pack facing forward when you backpack that contains small items you need to access while hiking and any survival items you need if you lose your pack. This goes on when I get up, and comes off when I go to sleep. Mine might typically contain:
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Sun protection Bug protection Whistle Light Knife Matches/Lighter Firestarter |
Iodine Tablets Compass Spoon Toilet paper Emergency Shelter Small plastic bags Basic first aid |
Map Journal Pen Camera GPS Toothbrush/paste Snacks |
Journal
� Remember to keep a daily journal of your activities. It is inspiring to read your words months or years later and relive the experience. Include reference to pictures you take. It can be hard to put your memories in order later. Always include the date and time of each entry. If you have to leave mid-entry, include the new date/time when you restart.
� Make a list of all the things that work well and those that don't. You are sure at the time that you would never forget again, but you might. With all the beauty bombarding you in the outdoors, it is easy for the details to fall away.
� Keeping a journal has really changed my backpacking style. I see each trip as an improvement of skills, and I can get a great feel for the trip as I read through it more objectively later.
Weigh Everything
� The key to getting light is weighing your gear. You'll surprise yourself when you realize how heavy some of the stuff is that you are carrying.
� Start with the big stuff: Pack, Shelter, Sleeping Bag. Try to spend your time cutting weight where the most difference can be made. If you are cutting the handle off of your toothbrush and researching the lightest pocketknife when your pack weighs 7lbs and your 2-person tent/ground cloth weighs in at 8 (says 6lb. on the box), then you might be starting from the wrong end.
Breakfast/Lunch
� Use minimal or no-cook recipies for breakfast and no-cook for lunch. It takes enough time already to get going in the morning besides having to spend time sitting still (when you should be moving around and warming up) and cleaning up dishes. You can pack everything else up in the meantime and put your lunch food in the most accessable spot. Your breakfast need not be huge. It will be supplemented by trail-snacks.
I pack a small closable bowl (ziploc 'disposable' containers) and put granola-type cereal, freeze dried berries, and powdered milk in it the night before. I snack on a clif bar while I break down camp and hike until I warm up. I pull out the bowl, spoon, and water and I am ready to sit down and enjoy breakfast. I have been getting faster starts in the morning and it keeps me warmer on cold mornings.
� Lunch is a break. Don't make it too complicated. You usually don't want to spend too much time making it and you want to be able to sit back while you prepare/eat it. Keep it simple.
See the Recipes page.
Storing crackers
�Crackers are a great lunch item, but crackers get crushed easily. Put them in a Pringles� can or cut up the box and make cardboard tubes for them w/ a little tape. Recently I found wrapping paper tubes that fit the crackers perfectly!
Meal Weight
� Weigh your meals. Eat heavy meals first. You don't want to carry that gnocchi and canned chicken for four days do you? Eat the heavy/fresh stuff early and spend less time haulin' it.
� Keep your meal weight under 2 pounds per person per day.
� "The number of calories you need per day depends on your metabolism and the activity at hand, but as a general guide a demanding day on trail can require twice as many calories (say 3,800 calories for a 100-pound person and 5,600 calories for a 200-pound person) as would a sedentary day back home.
� Recommendations for the source of those calories vary, but the bulk - 50-60 percent - should come from carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates (bread, grains, pasta, and other grain-based foods) should be the main source, with simple carbohydrates (fruit, sugar, honey) providing the balance. Proteins (meat, milk, and cheese as well as grains and beans to a lesser degree) are used to build tissue and should make up about 10 to 15 percent of the calories. Fats have more than twice as many calories per gram as carbohydrates and proteins, so they are an efficient way of carrying calories, but they should contribute only 20 to 25 percent (some authorities go as high as 30 percent for challenging outdoor activities)."
��� -Dorcas S. Miller Backcountry Cooking
While I would not try to argue with the experience of Dorcas Miller, I calculated that the food I have been taking on my own trips has probably totalled around 2800 - 3200 calories per day. This has seemed plenty filling during my trips. According to Dorcas's figures, however, if planning a multi-month hike I would expect a big appetite when stopping in towns.
I usually strive for high-fat foods to gain a longer-lasting burn from the food (especially in the winter) and more calories per ounce. I also look for high protein to supply all those working muscles. Bodybuilders trying to gain muscle recommend as many grams of protein per day as you weigh in pounds. With that in mind, it would be very difficult to get too much protein in your backpacking menu. See an example for an idea on food, or this list of foods to see how "efficient" each is.
Trail Mix
�Keep the ingredients of your trail mix in separate slide-lock freezer bags and mix according to taste. This is especially important on long trips where the same trail mix can get pretty old.
Finding ingredients
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Here are a few places to find ingredients:
| King Arthur Flour | Blue cheese, Cheddar cheese, or Vermont cheese powder Cinnamon, Garlic, Lemon, Lime, and Orange Oils Buttermilk powder Super-rich butter powder Dried Egg (Whole, Whites or Yolks) Dried Whole Milk Clarified Butter Lemon, Lime, Tomato, Spinach, or Orange Powder Dried Chives, Diced onions, carrots, tomatoes, blueberries, cranberries, currants, pineapples, sour & sweet cherries, apple Vital Wheat Gluten Potato flour |
| Custom Dried Foods | Butter, margarine, shortening, sour cream, soy sauce, whole egg, tomato powder Instant Non-fat milk |
| SoybeanStore.com | Textured Vegetable Protein |
| Rocky Mountain Spice | Textured Vegetable Protein (lots of flavors) Butter, margarine powder Parmesan, White Cheddar, Yellow Cheddar Powder Powdered egg whites, yolk, whole refried beans Freeze-dried beef and chicken |
Nighttime Footwarmer
Right before you go to bed, boil water, pour it into your water bottle, and put it in the bottom of your sleeping bag. The difference is AMAZING!
WARNING: Do NOT pour boiling water into the 1-liter soda bottles. As I found out, they quickly become .5-liter soda bottles (they melt and shrink). The platypus bottles will easily carry boiling water, but you should construct a small funnel out of foil, a hole in a bottom of a food bag, or something creative
The other secret to warm feet are fleece socks! They are extremely lightweight and while not very efficient in backpacking boots (not as durable and insulation gets crushed while in the boot), they are excellent while sleeping. They will wick moisture from your cold, clammy feet and dry extremely fast if they get wet.
Heat reflector
� String up an emergency space blanket (mylar sheet) behind your fire for excellent warmth. place it upwind so that it blocks wind and doesn't have sparks blown into it. If possible, angle it like a lean-to a bit above your heads. Sit on your foam pad sleeping pad, and put your feet on your foam sit pad. The mylar reflects the heat that got past you onto your back so you don't have the sweat/freeze dilemna going on. We did this on a very cold winter night and were comfortable sitting around barefoot as our socks/boots dried.
� Despite the temptation - do not place your boots anywhere near the fire since the soles WILL start to delaminate and the leather will crack.
� If you don't have anything to string the mylar sheet on, you can wrap it around one or two people and put your arms out like wings. The amount of reflected heat is incredible for such a lightweight accessory.
Frozen Stuff
Don't forget to sleep with your liquid items in sub-freezing tempertures. This includes water bottles, water filter, contact case/solution, and water hoses from drinking systems. Sleeping with your fuel will increase the performance in the morning. Keep it in your jacket after you are up until you are ready to use it. This is especially important for cartridge fuels which perform well only above 15� F/-7� C.
Moon Phase
Try to plan your trips near a full moon. It makes life alot easier if you find it necessary to do anything (especially navigation) at night. The short days of winter could definitely use a little extra light. Try to catch the full moon and the days before. It gives you a bit more evening light. If you are attempting early morning summits, you can try to schedule for moonlit mornings instead.
� Check out this calendar or this astronimical schedule for full/new moon dates (as well as what time of day/night the moon will be shining.
How Much Fuel?
In summer, the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) issues 2.7 ounces of fuel per one per person per day on the trail; in winter, the school allots 2/5 quart 6.4 ounces per person per day. NOLS students cook with basic foods, however, not freeze-dried or instant meals.
In Aconcagua: A Climbing Guide, R.J. Secor recommends 80 grams (142ml) of butane per day or .125 liters (4.2 fluid oz) of white gas or kerosene per day (both numbers include a 25% reserve). He also recommends bringing enough priming fuel (such as denatured alcohol) equal to 10% of the fuel if you bring kerosene.
MSR recommends: "Generally, melting snow for water requires 8oz/237ml of fuel, per person, per day. Boiling water requires about 4oz/118ml per person, per day. If you plan an extremely cold trip, like trekking in Antarctica, bring about 15oz/444ml of fuel, per person, per day."
Personally, I haven't been very good about measuring fuel in the past and have always brought way too much. My best guess is that I have been using approximately 10-15 grams of butane/propane per person per day on spring-summer-fall trips. Please take much more fuel than that until you are comfortable with what you need.
Side note: White gas weighs 22oz/qt.
Containers at Altitude
Before hiking or driving to a higher altitude or anytime your gear flies, check your containers for two things:
Squeeze the containers and listen for any air escaping (if they do, tighten or get new ones).
Do not completely fill the containers. Squeeze the remaining air out of the bottle before you screw the cap back on so that the bottle looks a bit deformed.
This will prevent you from having a peanut butter/honey/soap/saline/toothpaste explosion in your pack.
Wide-mouth Containers
Peanut-butter, mustard, and mayonaisse are often sold in wide-mouth platic jars (same plastic as soda bottles). These lightweight, leakproof jars can be used for storing food, rehydrating pasta sauce, or as cold weather pee bottles. The only thing they cannot hold is boiling water - the plastic will melt and shrink.
UPDATE: I was washing out a PB jar and pressure testing it when I realized it leaks! Not much, but enough to leak if you were gaining altitude and its definitely not what you want as a pee bottle!! :) I'm looking into putting an o-ring, thin rubber disk, or "Goo" brand adhesive inside the lid.
Cord length for knots
When making slings, ascenders, or other climbing accessories, it is helpful to know how many inches a particular knot will take up. This way you can approximate how much initial cord you will require to get a final length.
These lengths do not include tails, loops, or backups.
| Knot | 3mm Maxim Tech Cord | 5.5mm Spectra | 8mm |
| Prussik: 3 wraps on 8mm | X | 13.5in | X |
| Prussik: 4 wraps on 8mm | 9.25in | X | X |
| Double fishermans (w/o tails) | 5.25in | X | 16.625in |
| Triple Fishermans (w/o tails) | X | 14in | X |
| Double Figure-Eight (knot only) | 4.75in | 9.5in | 14in |
| Double Bowline (knot only) | 12.25in | ||
| Butterfly pulled from ends (knot only) | 6.5in | 10.25in | |
| Butterfly pulled from loop (knot only) | 5.5in | ||
| Stopper knot - 3 wraps | 5.25in | ||
| Stopper knot - 4 wraps | 4.375in | 7.125in | |
Elastic cord for glacier travel
One piece of elastic cord (bungee) can be used to assist in crevasse rescue and keep your gear organized while hiking.
Cut a 36" piece of 1/8" elastic cord and tie with double overhand knots on both ends. When hiking with ascenders and other gear pre-clipped into your climbing rope, the elastic can be secured past the last piece of gear to prevent ascenders from sliding down the rope. If the ascenders slide down the rope the force from a fall would be on the ascender, possibly tearing the sheath.
The same piece of elastic cord can aid in a ZxC rescue of a climber from the top of a crevasse. When using a ZxC rescue system, the "C" needs to be reset very often. The elastic cord can be tied into place between the "C" ascender and the pulley from the "Z" ascender closest to the victim. If using an ascender that slides easily (such as the Petzl Basic or Tibloc), the elastic will reset the system after each pull. After a series of such pulls, you will still need to reset the ascender closest to the victim. This can greatly increase the speed of this slow but extremely effective system.
Multiple use for crevasse rescue tools
When carrying items for crevasse rescue, plan multiple uses for your different tools. Each item can be used during a self rescue inside the crevasse or a team rescue from above. For example:
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