[pct-l] Hiking in 2008: rain gear, pacerpoles and Roper's High Route, Food

[Steel-Eye]

Good afternoon, David,

Welcome to The List.  You may be amazed by how great some of the discussions
are and by how really crummy others end up.

Rain Gear:
I don't use any GoreTex except occasionally a broad-brimmed hat in the
Northwest.  I find GoreTex is just too heavy, and I stay dry only when it
isn't raining.  I have several sets of Frogg Toggs, and I use them quite a
bit locally in the winter here near Mt. Hood, but I find them too
heavy for PCT Oregon & California, and not to my liking for Washington later
in the season.  My objections to Frogg Toggs are 1) their weight at 15.2 oz.
per set, and 2) the fact that the top won't cover my pack.  The Togg top can
be used as a windbreaker, but other windbreakers weigh less than half as
much.  My shelter tarp has a hood in its center so I can use it as a poncho
in the rare instance it rains south or central.

For more serious late-season rain I use a Bigley Parcho which is a hooded,
poncho-type thing that covers both me and my pack, and is baggy enough to
ventilate well without being as monumentally floppy as a poncho.  It weighs
about the same as a Togg top at 8.8 oz.  It covers to approximately knee
or mid thigh, so I wear easy-ventilating 1.9 oz SilNylon rain chaps below
that.  They are a good windbreaker and keep the water from running down my
bare legs and into my shoes.  A skirt wouldn't do that for me.

I can rely on the Parcho hood, but I really prefer the GoreTex hat at 3.5
oz. because of its improved freedom, visibility, and ventilation.  Whatever
I wear on my hands is easily protected by the arms of the Parcho.

Food:
To save weight and clean-up aggravation I don't cook on the trail.  I've
made pemmican, but I didn't use serviceberries.  It works fine, but it was
developed to use the jerky and fat in a way that keeps both from spoiling.
Nowadays, plastic bags keep jerky dry and there are many easily portable
fats .. like vegetable oil .. so pemmican looses much of its traditional
appeal.  If you want pemmican I suggest you use lean ground beef rather than
regular cuts that you have to slice.  Ground beef doesn't have to be sliced,
it dries more quickly, and it doesn't have to be cut up before being pounded
or chopped in a food processor.  I use patties of ground beef for all my
jerky.  They are easy to eat, and if I do cook, they crumble easily into the
stew.

Steel-Eye

^^^^^^^^^^  Serious hikers gather at:  http://www.aldhawest.org/  ^^^^^^^^^^


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Huck" <david.huck at gmail.com>
To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 2:35 PM
Subject: [pct-l] Hiking in 2008: rain gear, pacerpoles and Roper's High
Route,Food


> I've been lurking for a couple weeks now so I guess its time to speak
> up. First, I was surprised by what issues seem to get people going on
> this list. The questions I have will hopefully not be too
> controversial though.
>
> Rain Gear:
> I currently have an Arcteryx lightweight goretext jacket that I got on
> sale from REI years ago. It works ok, but has the usual problem of
> body moisture condensing and the fact that after extended exposure to
> rain in the backcountry the DWR coating stops working and the jacket
> is even less effective. Around town I use a cheap Helly  Hansen jacket
> which works at least as well as the arcteryx one for biking and even
> (as I discovered yesterday) hiking in the rain. However, I was
> thinking that a poncho that covers pack and hiker might work better,
> allowing more air flow. I'd still be using liner bags, but after
> backpacking in Georgia during the hurricane fallout in 2004 (a week of
> straight downpour, three times that summer), I'd like to really try
> and be "dry." So opinions on poncho's vs. frogg toggs (look really
> sweet) vs. expensive jacket. I will be bringing a rain skirt instead
> of pants. I love skirts.
>
> Pacerpoles:
> Anyone tried them? I like the idea behind regular poles but have never
> found them really comfortable, thought maybe science might have made a
> breakthrough with these.
>
> Steve Roper's Sierra High Route:
> I hiked parts of this when I did the JMT with some friends last
> summer. It was by far the best part of the trip. Has anyone ever heard
> of PCT hikers doing parts of this as an alternate route? The specific
> part I'd consider would be leaving from Red's Meadow/Devil's Postpile,
> up to Minaret Lake (on trail), and then hiking on the Western side of
> 1000 island lake (off trail) over N. Glacier Pass (Mt. Ritter) and
> over the other Forester pass above lake merced to bring me into the
> valley. It took us 5 days without any acclimation carrying packs that
> weighed way too much (probably close to 45 lbs). My only concern would
> be if the snow in those high passes would be impassable, it is all off
> trail between Minaret Lake and the other side of Forester Pass (not
> the one near Whitney!).
>
> Food:
> I love eating and cooking, especially while backpacking. I'm trying to
> find a way of doing some "simmering" using an alcohol stove, any
> specific design that works better? I am thinking about ways to still
> manage to cook grains that take 5 mins of simmer / rest in hot water /
> final 5 mins of simmer. Any ideas? Also, on a side note, I'm presently
> attempting to make pemmican (the real kind, not the brand of jerky).
> If it works, and keeps well, I may take it on the trail. I intend on
> doing some resupply drops for socal and then think twice when I go
> home after KM for my bro's graduation if I want to keep mailing food
> at all.
>
> Thanks for any help rendered while I get back to rendering (fat),
>
> David
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