[pct-l] Yee gawdz, get ahold of yourselves! Or, smallberries speaks and ...

[saskia.home@xxxxxxxxxx (Saskia Daru)]

OK, so was I offended by the diatribe on the list? Yes! It sounded to
innocent ears as a rant by someone who knows better than anyone else.

Should we make our own decisions based on our own experience? Yes!
Nobody should read Flyin' Brians diary and think that he can do the
same without testing himself on short trips first. Even when Brian may
have stopped posting long disclaimers ;-)

I still wear boots, but they are very light weight. My life and hiking
partner does not. He wore NB 804's in the Pyrenees and liked it a lot.
We take a tarp. I have a lightweight down sleeping bag made with a
pertex 627 water resistant cloth. We carried our MSR Whisperlite this
summer but have decided to go with alcohol from here on. Every year we
decide on a number of changes. Even if you don't go completely light
weight, you can reduce your pack weight a lot by not carrying
non-essentials. If I have reasonably versatile clothes, I don't need
extra clothing as I also have a sleeping bag and a tarp. We can keep
each other warm underneath the tarp, I believe. Our first aid
instructor has included good advice on a lot of hiking gear that can
double as emergency kit in a pinch. etc etc

I have enjoyed the good ideas many of the list contributors and hope
they will continue posting. Light weight hiking is a trade off, but if
you are smart about it it will be a trade-off between luxury while
hiking (aka ultralight) or luxury in camp (aka old style) and not
between safety and light-weight.

Also: with my old big pack I would often get so tired while hiking that
I'd make mistakes or lose my balance. The small pack helps me get over
difficult terrain.

Saskia
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Hike your own hike

Saskia Daru
saskiadaru@xs4all.nl