[pct-l] Boring Gear Question

[Eric Lee]

Paint wrote:
>
I know your line of questioning was aimed at an answer from someone that had carried a hatchet, preferably a light weight one. 
Instead, you got the pile on treatment. That’s pretty common around here. IMHO You were viewed as a heretic. 
>

There's a fine line between educating and berating - I'll give you that.  I try to stay on the educating side of the fence myself.  But I stand by my answer.

One, a sub-16 oz hatchet (which is what the original poster asked for) doesn't exist.  Or at least no one's come up with a link to one yet.  There are several sub-2 lb hatchets but no sub-1 lb hatchets.

Two, this was apparently the first time Jeff had ever posted to pct-l, so I don't know his background or experience level.  In my experience, when newcomers ask questions about gear or techniques that virtually no experienced long-distance hikers use, it's usually because their idea of the wilderness experience is based on watching reality TV shows or is otherwise misinformed.  Based on the number of hacked-up trees I always see around any front-country campsites, those kinds of people don't have much clue about the line between appropriate and inappropriate use of a hatchet, either.  Also in my experience, virtually no experienced long-distance hikers carry hatchets.  Your example of Tombstone is the only one I've *ever* heard of.  In that case I think it's quite reasonable to say, "Um, your question doesn't make sense.  In actuality you don't need or want a hatchet on the PCT and whatever you were planning to do with it, you probably shouldn't be doing in the first place."

If Jeff is actually very experienced and dutifully practices Leave No Trace and was just curious about a hatchet for his own good reasons, then hopefully he won't take offense at our assuming that he's clueless.  If he is in fact clueless, then I think educating him leaves him better off than he was.

I do wish that some of us would use less sarcasm and more facts in our answers to newcomers, though.  That I definitely agree with.

Eric