Fun Day at REI

This is what $400+ at REI looks like...

Pretty sad...but oh, so exciting!  Front center is SmartWool long underwear--on sale!  Above that is a pair of Leki trekking poles.  Trekking Poles are a new entry to the world of hiking gear, at least since my last hike as a kid.  I remember seeing a walking stick here and there, but almost everyone uses trekking poles now, and I need one as a pole for my tent.  Dual purpose equipment--awesome!  Left and top is a pkg of 3 stuff sacks to help organize stuff in the backpack.  Then is the Sawyer Squeeze water filtration system.  This thing is only 3 oz which is much lighter than any other filtration system on the market.  It gets good reviews with the exception of the included bags which apparently are very prone to splitting open.  The next package in the picture is a Platypus water bladder.  I am hoping it will fit on the Sawyer Squeeze and be a more reliable way to squeeze it through the filter.  Come to think of it...if it works, I'm going to need one (or more) for treated water and one for untreated water.  Guess I'm going to get to go to REI again...  Three pairs of SmartWool/REI socks round out the top row.  Just below the socks is a strap to hold my glasses on.  I can hardly keep my sunglasses on when I'm "hiking" in the neighborhood because it's so hot and humid that the sweat makes them slide down my nose.

I'm getting close to having everything I need for the hike in September.  Still need a sleeping bag and pad.  And, I'm really hoping for a cool morning so I can set up my tent and seal the seams.

Happy Labor Day weekend!

I'm Baaaaaaack!

I enjoyed 6 days in Washington DC and Richmond VA with my family.  LOTS of walking, albeit without anything on my back.  This week I'm back on schedule with trips to the gym for weight lifting and walking on alternate days.  The dogs hadn't been out in over a week, but they didn't lose any endurance.  Bella pulled me all 4 miles this morning.  While it was frustrating to constantly have tension in the leash, I couldn't help but think that I will remember this morning at some point on the trail and wish I had her with me to pull me along.

New purchase!  I've been researching stoves for a few weeks now.  There are basically 2 options--a stove that runs on pressurized fuel, and an alcohol stove that uses liquid fuel.  As I see it, the pressurized fuel is faster, but I have concerns about finding fuel canisters along the way.  The alcohol stove is silent and runs on HEET or denatured alcohol (isopropyl in a pinch), which is readily available at grocery stores or gas stations.  It's a little slower, but hey, I'm walking from Mexico to Canada--it's not about speed!  So, I reversed my original inclination and bought an alcohol stove.  Another plus to the one I purchased (Evernew Titanium DX Appalachian Set) is that it can run on fuel tablets (Esbit) or a small fire in the included stand.  All the parts nestle together in a small package that weighs less than 6 oz!  woohoo!  Fuel will add some weight to that.  Still, I'm a happy camper...or at least I hope to be :)

Stuff keeps popping into my head that I need to accumulate before my hike in September.  I have started a list.  I realized it takes about the same amount of stuff for 4 days as it does for 4 months.  I have 2 weeks.  Let the countdown begin.

Walking and more Walking

Tried a new route in the neighborhood for our walk yesterday.  It was a good one.  I'm guessing around 4 miles with almost no cars and no dogs.  The pooches did very well--no need for water or shade breaks.  We did have a short scary moment when I noticed a coral snake at the same moment that Mojo decided to hop over it.  Whew.  Both dog and snake went their merry ways as if nothing happened, which was indeed what happened, but I was nervous for a split second.  I plan on repeating the walk this weekend with my watch so I know the distance.

I was feeling tired in the afternoon, so when Tom came home from work with plans to go to the gym, I decided to join him.  I hoped it would wake me up a little.  I didn't really feel like exercising and getting sweaty again, so I thought I'd just do a little walking on the treadmill.  Well, it didn't take long for me to decide to mix it up a bit.  I remembered reading that the incline on the PCT doesn't go over 15%.  I believe the reason is that the trail is horse-friendly and I guess horses don't like steep climbs.  So, I decided to try out 15% to see what it felt like.  I set the speed at 3 mph.  It didn't take long to feel like exercise!  And, this was on a smooth surface, in an air-conditioned room, and practically at sea level!  Houston doesn't have much to offer in the way of hills, so I will probably repeat that exercise a few times in the next few months.

Maiden Voyage

Went for a walk this morning with the dogs.  Nothing unusual about that.  However this walk included a new backpack!  I loaded it up to a total weight of approximately 14 pounds and headed out into the heat for a 2-1/2 mile walk.  A very short distance by thru-hiking standards, but with the degree of difficulty increased by the heat and the dogs, I figure I should get credit for at least 4 or 5 miles :)

I like the pack, but it's not perfect.  The hip pockets are small and made smaller by the fact that the inner frame and shoulder straps lay over them.  Also, I cannot access the side entrance of the side pockets with the pack on.  Maybe I just need to do some stretching exercises!  Small things that I'm sure I'll figure out.

It's a Good Week to be a Backpacker

I got news this week that my backpack has shipped!  Woohoo!  And...as if that isn't exciting enough...my tent arrived today!  It's shocking light and small.  It fit in the mailbox with room to spare.  If the tent didn't need to be staked, I would have set it up in the living room already.  Way too hot to set it up outside.  Maybe tonight when it "cools down" into the high 80s.  Just realized that I should have purchased the optional tent pole.  A trekking pole can be used in place of this tent pole, which is my plan when on the PCT, however, I hadn't planned on purchasing trekking poles until after my hike in September.  So, I'm going to need a tent pole soon, or will need to purchase trekking poles ahead of schedule.  It would have been so much easier to just order the pole with the tent.  Oh well.  Me and my crazy attempts to save a little money.

New Backpack...Almost

Soooooo, I pull the trigger this morning on a new backpack, only to discover it is unavailable.  Noooooo!!!!!  REI says it is backordered and they have no idea when it will be available.  The online receipt said most backordered items ship in 2-3 weeks.  No stores in the area had any inventory, so I am not optimistic.  My guess is that my backpack is not going to be like most items.  Grrrr.....

Trial Trail Lunch

I made some recipes from the Freezer Bag Cooking book a few weeks ago.  They are rolled up neatly in quart freezer ziploc bags in my pantry.  The one I tried for lunch yesterday was Cranberry Chicken Rice.  It has instant rice, some seasonings, dried onions, dried vegetables, cranberries, and chicken.  Bring water to a boil and pour it right into the bag.  "Smush" it around, and put the bag in something insulating (I've been using a big beach towel--obviously won't do that hiking but it works for testing at home).  The Fozzil Bowl worked great for supporting the bag while pouring the water in.  That's not an easy thing because once the hot water hits the bag, the bag loses its rigidity.  After the bag spent 10 minutes "cooking" in the towel, I put it back in the fozzil bowl to eat.  Yes, I could have dumped it in the bowl...but then I would have had to clean the bowl!  Once again, not a problem at home but a little more of a chore when practicing "no trace" hiking.

Here's a shot of the meal.  It was pretty good.  I've tried a few couscous ones and an oatmeal recipe.

I did some research yesterday on stoves.  The big debate is fuel--do I want a stove that requires fuel canisters, or an alcohol stove that requires liquid fuel.  Both have merit.

I Love FedEx!

Today's delivery included Fozzil Bowls.  These ingenius little "bowls" start flat and fold & snap into bowls that hold over 16 oz.  They are slippery on the inside so cleaning is easy, and kind of tacky on the outside so they don't slip out of your hand.  These bowls will pair nicely with my freezer bag meals.  I'm going to try them out for lunch today :)

These next two items don't go together.  Just want to make that perfectly clear.  The coconut cream powder is for some of my freezer bag recipes.  I can't figure out the ratios to reconstitute it, but the powder itself tastes delicious.  The Repel 100 is DEET bug repellent for the legendary mosquitoes on the trail.

Slowly but surely things are coming together.  I feel a little silly accumulating things so early, but many of the things I will need for the PCT hike next year I will need for my hike in September.  My plan is to use the September hike to test products, and in order to do that, I need to have things to try.

One Year From Today...

The dogs and I went for a walk this morning.  I did a little calculating and realized that one year from today, if all goes according to plan, I will have hiked through California and will be somewhere in Oregon on my way to Canada.  Wow.

Great 5 mile walk with the dogs this morning.  We didn't get started until around 8, so already very warm.  Thankfully there was a bit of a breeze in spots, and some cloud cover to help with the heat.  The dogs did great.  This was their longest walk to date.  At about the 3-mile mark, Mojo started his grass diving.  He moves from the sidewalk to the grass, builds up some speed, puts his head down and to the side, and slides across the grass.  Wet grass seems to be preferable.  I don't know if it is because it is slippery or cooler.  Either way, it's funny to watch.  I think Bella would have been content with 4-3/4 miles as she was noticeably slower the last quarter mile.  However, about 50 yds from home she caught the scent of something on the sidewalk and was full-speed ahead with her nose to the ground, like a hunting dog.  Both dogs are resting now, enjoying the air conditioning as much as me.