cathieandrandy

For you gear heads out there, let it be known that we have completed extensive research, both academic and practical, and for our Big Three selected the following.

Shelter: MSR Hubba Hubba, a freestanding light weight two person tent, with homemade modifications adding less than 3 ounces, to secure against high winds and to enhance shade in the desert (purchased 2005).

Backpacks: Randy - Osprey Aether 70, and Cathie - Gregory Deva 60 (purchased 2006).

Sleeping Bags: Western Mountaineering 20 degree down bags (purchased 2004).

More Gear:

We have given up our beloved thermarests for closed cell foam sleeping pads in the Southern California desert, where cacti are likely to puncture the thermarests. We conducted a comparison study of the Z–rest and the Ridge Rest on a three-day Appalachian Trail trip in November. The Z-rest “won” as it offered a barely discernable fraction more comfort, and we like the way it folds. We will truly miss our ¾ length ultalight thermarests until we can have them back at the base of the High Sierras, about 600 miles into the Pacific Crest Trail hike.

In early January we hiked 77 miles over five days on the AT in Shenandoah National Park – from Rockfish Gap to Thornton Gap near Sperryville. Our zero degree sleeping bags were HOT at 28 degrees. We are confident that our 20 degree Western Mountaineering bags will be perfect for the PCT. Two more insights from the January trip:

• Boots: We gained confidence in our decision to move away from the traditional hiking boot, and use light weight trail shoes. We discovered that those with a flexible forefoot, but a stiffly structured midfoot (supporting the arch of the foot) are comfortable and adequate for support, even with a full backpack.
• Flashlights: Our super-light Princeton Tec Scout headlamps didn’t have lasting battery power. Each required a battery change on this five night trek. Of course, it was dark for 13 out of 24 hours in the day, but we went to sleep at 6:30 pm each night. Additional comparison studies at home have placed the Petzl Tikka Plus in the front line position for inclusion on our gear list. Even on low this headlamp is brighter than the Scout (a plus for spotting rattlesnakes while night hiking). It’s supposed to last 100 hours at the highest setting. Also in in it’s favor – it has no funky hard to find batteries - just the basic AAA’s found almost anywhere. Even though it weighs one ounce more (with batteries) we decided it was one extra ounce worth carrying.

Other items of interest include our homemade alcohol stove, used with titanium pot and homemade pot cozy. (In use since 2002).

Black bears and not grizzlies (brown bears) are an issue on the PCT. We hate bear canisters, as do most long distance hikers. They don’t fit in your pack and they don’t hold enough. Furthermore, Fruitcake has about as much difficulty getting them open as the bear is supposed to have. Nonetheless, we whole heartedly agree with the principle: Don’t feed the bears! Cute as they may be, bears very quickly become aggressive when they learn to associate an easy meal with people.

We were hoping to use the Spectra Ursack, now back in production after being offline since 2004 (the military got all the Spectra fabric). But, although it was approved for use in earlier years, it is going through trials again and is not yet approved for the High Sierra and Yosemite. That means we will be using our Bear Vault Canister along with another brand, The Garcia when we are in these areas. Storage at night will be on the ground, a number of yards away from us. The rest of the time we will use the Spectra Ursack with odor proof Aloksaks, and our food will stay with us in our tent.

In the long distance hiking community, there is a HUGE discussion about the pros and cons of various items of gear, and an assumption that ultra light is best. We feel that this is not always true, and there are many successful PCT hikers who would agree. We have the advantage of being a couple, and can share gear, making each of our loads somewhat lighter. Our packs and the tent are not ultra light, but light enough, and we feel the advantages they offer are more valuable than the weight we would otherwise save. Our sleeping bags, pads, and cooking gear are generally in the ultra light category.