[pct-l] NeoAir

Fri Dec 4 22:43:49 CST 2009

From: pct-l-request at backcountry.net
Subject: Pct-l Digest, Vol 23, Issue 80
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 11:03:36 -0600

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--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: reddirt2 at earthlink.net
CC: pct-l at backcountry.net; brianle8 at gmail.com
To: ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com
Date: Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:34:57 -0800
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Sierras twice

It's all good.  I've been exploring the Sierra range for quite a while now and have even skied and snow shoed some.  I think it depends on what a person likes, but you don't have a whole lot of choices for a border to border thru.  You get there when you get there and the conditions are what they are.  As far as the high country, there wont be the beautiful grasses, green meadows, and fields of shooting stars like there is by the second week of July.  Sky Pilot on the high passes like Forester and Pinchot for example was really good right before the alpine hulsea came in, and sometimes both pop at the same time, and forester pass can have so much skypilot blooming there is a pungent musky aroma that can be a little overwhelming.  But of course peak season for high country flowers and green meadows coincides with peak skeeter season.  ALso by July it is starting to get crowded along the JMT.  August gets out of control.  But mid elevation flora and ease of hiking and stream fording by August is getting pretty good, and the bugs are starting to wane.  By Sept things are browning up, the crowds are thinning, and the days are getting a little shorter.  Oct is another animal entirely, but I just had one of the best hikes ever in mid-Oct but you bet I was keeping an eye on the weather.  The days are much shorter, and it gets cold like below freezing every night, especially up high.  It was in the teens all but one night I was out.  Not like summer at all.  I saw a lot more bear tracks than human boot prints, and most of those had been overprinted with bear tracks.  I saw one person in 6-1/2 days when I junctioned with the JMT at Palisade Creek ford coming up from the Middle Fork Kings.  But along with the cold and shorter days, the light in the Sierra in the fall is spectacular. I didn't have even one mosquitoe to bother me, and crossing creeks I would normally have to ford were dry crossings on rocks though there was plenty of water flowing everywhere.  The cold is a problem.  Water bottle lids and the water inside freeze, water filters freeze up, shoes or boots freeze up over night, canister fuel doesn't burn very efficiently, and depending where you camp, it can be a long wait for sunshine in the morning, and along those lines, you can be in the shade long before sunset especially if in a canyon or behind a big ridge or peak.  Any wind makes it all the more cold.  But like I said, I just had one of the best hikes ever.  I carried a bit warmer clothing, zip off pants etc, and an extra pair of socks and wool gloves, a warmer sleeping bag, and used a gortex bivy, a lexan bottle to make hot water bottles, extra fuel, food, and a good headlamp.  Lets just say I was quite comfortable so long as I could keep my feet and hands warm.  But it was beautiful, beautiful , and more beautiful everyday I was out, and I'll be looking forward to doing it again.     

On Nov 29, 2009, at 8:24 PM, <ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com> wrote:

> Obviously, I love the sierras covered in Spring snow as we teach how to be 
> safe in it. However, when I hiked the Crest, I went through in the months of 
> April and May, although I enjoyed it immensely, I wanted to see what it 
> looked like under "summer" conditions, so I returned from Manning to Tioga 
> to head southbound to Whitney. Both are incredible, never forgotten, and 
> worth a return visit!
> 
> Mtnned
> 

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com
To: wandering_bob at comcast.net; pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Sun, 29 Nov 2009 22:24:19 -0800
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Gettin' out of the rain

Hey, Bob!

Once again, good advice from Mr. Bankhead!

Some of my favorite memories of the trail centered around all those times I 
had the pleasure to find a nice campsite with a killer view of a lake or 
valley, escape the rain and cold inside my tent, light the stove, and cook a 
tasty dinner from the warmth of my sleeping bag.

For me, I hike the high trails to find these moments. Others are spent 
sitting for long periods on just the right rock or up against a shady tree 
enjoying the view, taking in all the smells and sounds of the mountains, and 
listening to what the area had to teach me. Everyone goes for their own 
reasons. We're thrilled that they go!

Mtnned & Lady J

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bob Bankhead" <wandering_bob at comcast.net>
To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Thursday, November 26, 2009 10:15 PM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Why Hike Wet at all?

> IMO, if I am going on a LONG hike, I know am eventually going to get 
> rained on. If it rains for more than a few hours while I'm hiking, I WILL 
> get wet, no matter what I wear. So why not just accept this fact and plan 
> for it?
>
> If I knew I was very likely to get a lot of rain (WA state is famous for 
> this), I'd use Gortex boots, overlapped by short eVent gaiters, overlapped 
> by WP/B rain pants, overlapped by a full-on WP/B rain jacket with a hood. 
> This non-UL system would allow most of the rain to run off me rather than 
> into my boots and then wick upwards. I'd still have to deal with the 
> wind-blown stuff that comes straight at me and runs down my face and under 
> my WP/B layer. Even with this system, if the rain continues long enough, I 
> will still get wet.
>
> As strange as it sounds, one is actually warmer if naked in the rain than 
> encapsulated in wet clothing. Our skin is the ultimate WP/B fabric. 
> Granted, the ambient temperature and wind chill need to be factored into 
> this equation, but if it's really cold, windy, and wet, I'm not hiking 
> anyway; I'm holed up in my sleeping bag inside my shelter. I've seen what 
> hypothermia can do, and while I may be foolish, I'm not stupid!
>
> Wandering Bob
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-l mailing list
> Pct-l at backcountry.net
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
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> The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.
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> 

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Sun, 29 Nov 2009 22:48:04 -0800
Subject: [pct-l] Snow Course Dates on Postholer

We recently received a request for our Snow Course dates that may be typical of many readers. It went like this,

"I know you posted your schedule a few weeks ago, but like others, I saw it, and didn't write it down or save it."

So, if you want to know when the Snow Skills Training Weekends will be, but you deleted the post, it is at our Forum at Postholer.com http://postholer.com/SnowTravel

Enjoy the Fourth Season!

Ned Tibbits
Mountain Education
South Lake Tahoe 

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: mistermountaingoat at gmail.com
CC: pct-l at mailman.backcountry.net
To: dsaufley at sprynet.com
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:02:36 +1000
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Very Cool Site

Very cool, thanks L-Rod. It's getting even harder to drag oneself away from
this infernal machine at night. Oh to be walking...

On Mon, Nov 30, 2009 at 7:30 AM, dsaufley <dsaufley at sprynet.com> wrote:

> Maybe some of you are already familiar, but I enjoyed the hiking-related
> reading at:  www.wiki-walk.net/walking/
>
>
>
> Enjoy.
>
>
>
> L-Rod
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-l mailing list
> Pct-l at backcountry.net
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>

-- 
And That's All the Goat Wrote

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: igellen at comcast.net
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 06:20:57 -0600
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Have had a hard time convincing my hiking partner...

I know we're into the boring winter months, but this problem feels to me 
like it's a result of over-planning.

Here's where I'm coming from...who knows how either one of you will feel 
when you reach KM?  Maybe one or the other will have had an injury at some 
point.  Maybe someone will already have dropped a trail section for some 
reason (an emergency at home, inability to adapt to the heat, etc).  Maybe 
motivations will change as you hike.  You might reach KM and want to jump 
ahead, and she'll be suddenly curious about the trail thru the Sierras. 
Maybe this year there will be 200% of the usual snowpack and no one will be 
getting thru!

You should be honest with each other about how you might deal with issues as 
they come up.  Will you both be OK with splitting for awhile on the trail? 
If one drops completely, what will the other partner do?  I agree with 
others' comments that it's not a matter of convincing the partner to do what 
you wish, but of coming to an agreement that respects both individuals' 
decisions.  It sounds like you have different hiking philosophies from the 
get-go, and may want to plan your packs for the times when you will likely 
split on the trail (ie, 2 shelters/bivies, cook sets, whatever).

Re: the food drops.  I read recently in some nutrition journal that females 
are engineered to think about food more than males; our senses of 
taste/smell, our focus on food availability, etc are part of a survival 
program genetically coded.  Don't know if it's true or not.  I do know that 
I'm spending a bunch of time 'fussing' over our resupply process for next 
year, while my husband 'goes with the flow' (which means he lets me fuss!). 
While I know we can do some buying as we go, I'm not willing to totally 
junk-out--I want some degree of balanced nutrition, if only to help our 
aging bodies with the daily recovery process.  Let her figure it out; 
planning can be part of the fun!

Elderly Ellen

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Marcello Cerniglia" <marccerniglia at gmail.com>
To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Sunday, November 29, 2009 6:34 PM
Subject: [pct-l] Have had a hard time convincing my hiking partner...

> Hey everyone...
>
> We are planning a northbound trip for 2010....and I have had a hard time
> convincing my hiking partner about how to go about a thruhike on the PCT.
> She has one trail under her belt, the Colorado Trail, which she did this
> past summer.  She loves the high country, wildflowers, and lush green 
> alpine
> tundra.  She has been very weary of entering the Sierra's when it is not 
> the
> best time to be there.  To her, the best time to be there is when its 
> fully
> melted, with the flowers and bunnies and butterflies.
>
> She thinks entering the Sierra's anytime before mid July is doing a
> dis-service to it.  She wants to hike the Sierras in late July-August 
> after
> the snow melt.  Her plan would be to hike to Kennedy Meadows from Campo, 
> and
> then skip around past the Sierra's (she is not sure where to, Sierra City
> maybe?) and hike north to Canada.  Then return to do the Sierras last in
> September.  Or, skip the Sierras in mid June and hike to Ashland.  The
> return to hike the Sierras.  Then get back to Ashland and hike north to
> Canada.
>
> I cant say she is wrong, because everyone should hike their own hike. 
> But,
> when I even mention beginning with the intention of doing a straight thru
> northbound hike I can see the tension fill the room.  It spells disaster. 
> I
> am all for adjusting as you go, with the circumstances presented to you at
> the time.  I am not the speculative type, who plans around unknowns.  If I
> get to KM, and its June 10, and it was a high snow year, I am either 
> taking
> some time off or skipping ahead.  But, I cant justify trying to piece the
> trail together in one year based on the optimal time to be in each 
> different
> section.
>
> To make the matters worse, she is a vegan and needs to plan all her
> maildrops up till Ashland.  I am not worried about it, but she sure is.
>
> Another complication is the perceived section D closures, which put hikers
> at KM even earlier.  Without wanting to start in mid-May, she thinks there
> is no way for us to slow down enough to leave KM by June 20-25, which is 
> my
> preference....
>
> I know thats a lot, so sorry about that....but any talking points or
> opinions of how to convice her that the Sierra's are beautiful from the 
> end
> of June through July, would help out immensely!
>
> Catch Up
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-l mailing list
> Pct-l at backcountry.net
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l 

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: jeff.singewald at comcast.net
CC: pct-l at backcountry.net
To: jdjohnson at accesscomm.ca
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:28:52 +0000
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Neo Air

I haven't had the chance to use the neoair yet, however, it does look like a sweet pad.  In 2006, I used a BigAgnes inflatable (much like the neoair design) and slept very well.  I did not have a single problem or puncture on the entire hike.  I did use a bit more precaution in the desert and ALWAYS used a ground cloth (tyvek) and was careful to check the ground before I setup camp. 

The only downside I see with inflatables is the inability to use them has rest pads during breaks, but for me the comfort factor on my 48 year old body was definitely worth the additional weight of the inflatable. 

I personally think the neoair is a workable solution for a PCT hike. 

Elevator 

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jim & Brenda Johnson" <jdjohnson at accesscomm.ca> 
To: pct-l at backcountry.net 
Sent: Sunday, November 29, 2009 8:04:43 PM GMT -08:00 US/Canada Pacific 
Subject: [pct-l] Neo Air 

Haven't thruhiked the PCT (yet), but I spent 7 days on Glacier National 
Park's "North Circle" trail this past September, using the Neo Air for 
the first time. It was the best sleep I've had in 25 years of 
backpacking. I tend to be a fall-asleep-while-laying-on-my-back type of 
sleeper, but have found in the past that it was almost uncomfortable to 
lay like that for any great length of time on an inflatable pad. The Neo 
Air changed all that. 

It does seem more fragile than my older Thermarest pads, but I think if 
one takes care while packing and handling it, there shouldn't be any 
problems. Puncture wounds could present a problem in the desert 
sections, from what I've read online, so extra care should be taken care 
there. 

Jiffypop 
_______________________________________________ 
Pct-l mailing list 
Pct-l at backcountry.net 
http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l 

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: diane at santabarbarahikes.com
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 07:32:18 -0800
Subject: Re: [pct-l] How you hiked your hike

About the costs. I only put the costs from last summer, not for both  
summers that it took for me to hike the whole trail. I didn't include  
the cost of gear. All I did was think how much money was in the bank  
when I started and how much was there when I got home. So I guess I  
skewed the curve a bit. Sorry for that. Maybe you can take my vote  
out and push it up a notch.

I did the hike half as cheaply last summer as the year before. I  
think if I hiked the trail again and did it in its entirety, I would  
be able to do it even cheaper still. I think I could do a third hike  
on close to what I spent last summer. That, again, does not include  
gear.

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: timothyakin at mac.com
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 08:34:51 -0800
Subject: [pct-l] Neds snow course

Here is another unsolicited pitch for Ned's snow trekking course - in the form of photos from the March '09 gathering in Desolation Wilderness.
Great program!  Thanks Ned.

http://web.me.com/timothyakin/PCT2009/Snow_Trekking_Course.html

Tim Akin
aka "Clockwise"
Placerville, CA

--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: hetchhetchyman at aol.com
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 09:03:28 -0800
Subject: [pct-l] Fwd: 6 Pairs of shoes

Sent from a Peek email device
-------------------------------------
From: Matthew Edwards<hetchhetchyman at aol.com>
To: pct-l at backcountry.net,
Subject: 6 Pairs of shoes
Date: Nov 26, 11:25 PM

I just got home from having Thanksgiving dinner with my parents. Wow! I sure have a lot to be thankful for this year! The Trail Angels,Fellow Hikers,Strangers, The People of the PCT-l,Postholer, my health, MY FEET!.. You all made me SO welcome! I had a blast this year. Thanks to YOU!
In fact, All I can think about is how much I would like to be dirty,hungry,sore, and Hiking a long trail again!
Anyhow, I am making myself cry so.. THANKS!!!
Tonight at dinner my Dad told me what everyone wanted to know at his work was :"How many pairs of shoes?"
I went through 6 pairs in 2663 miles.
5 Pairs of New Balance 570 I bought before the hike at a Big Five(Cali outdoor store) sale $35/pair.
And 1 pair of Vasque Blurs I picked up in Big Bear and pretty much totalled out in 100 miles.
As far as socks:
I destroyed 6 pair of Injinji Toe socks
8 pairs of cheap mens dress socks(Kmart)
12 pairs of Smartwool medium weight socks
4 pairs of Smartwool Lightweight socks
2 Pairs of IceBreaker ankle length wool socks
And 1 Pair of medium weight wool Wigwams
I never used gaiters so that might account for the high attrition rate amongst my socks.
The single pair of Superfeet insoles went the entire distance. I could have replaced them, infact had spares in occasional resupply boxes. I kept them cause I did not want to wreck my "Mojo"!
I am NOT suggesting anyone buy all their shoes ahead of time or use the same brand as me.
I just thought it was kinda interesting.. And it made for a really funny dinner conversation! 
Lot of Love to Y'all!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanks Again for helping me fulfill my dream!
Cheers-Iceaxe PCT'09
Sent from a Peek email device

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