Half Gallon Challenge on the Appalachian Trail

Thanks to Disco (PCT 2004, 2008, CDT 2006) for posting this little nugget, an NPR report on the half-gallon challenge at Pine Grove Furnace State Park. The story is from 2008, but it will take you down memory lane, especially if you have done the Appalachian Trail. Enjoy!

Desert Protection Act of 2010

Senator Diane Feinstein has introduced the Desert Protection Act of 2010, which will set aside 90,000 acres of wilderness and establish two new national monuments that would encompass more than a million acres (a good image of the proposed national monuments is here). This sweeping legislation would also help protect wildlife corridor and provide a larger buffer zone for the Pacific Crest Trail in southern California.

After an initial reading, I am excited by this legislation, since it is setting aside large portions of land for zero development. However, it looks like there are provisions for easing the permit process for wind and solar developers, but it looks like their access to wild, lands is off-limits. As California seeks to develop renewable energy (which I think is great!), this legislation will establish parameters, which we need. Unplanned, unfettered projects need to work within guidelines. Hike a National Scenic Trail, and one will notice places where unplanned development has spoiled wild lands for everyone (i.e. Sugar Top in North Carolina, which is painfully visible on the Appalachian Trail, and a lot of the Front Range along the Continental Divide Trail in Colorado). The proposed Sand to Snow National Monument in the San Gorgonio Mountains will provide a greater buffer from development for the Pacific Crest Trail.

I look forward to hearing and reading more about this bill. I am sure that it will be argued (as it has already on the blogoshphere), but I think this congress and administration will pass it. I will keep my fingers crossed.

NIDO is the Way to Go!

After hiking the Continental Divide Trail, I am convinced that Nido powdered milk, which is made by Nestle, is the preferred powdered milk to buy. I first heard about Nido from Dicentra, who is a trail food guru, but I had trouble finding it. I was reminded that Nido is usually buried in the Mexican foods aisle in the grocery store, and it is nowhere near the baked goods aisle, where one will find the usual Carnation or store brand powdered milk. Although I am not a big fan of Wal-Mart, I did find it there for about $5.00 for a 14 ounce can.

Nido tastes like real milk. Forget Carnation or the store brand version of powdered milk. Even the now defunct Milkman Instant Lowfat Dry Milk (with "the kiss of cream"), which I used to enjoy on the trail, does not hold a candle to this stuff. Nido is dry whole milk, which has real milk fat in it. Apparently, one has to be conscious about keeping the stuff really dry, because if Nido get damp or wet, it can get rancid in storage. Yes, that's how true and awesome the stuff is, so keep it dry hikers, and enjoy Nido for your powdered milk on your next long-distance hike!

ULA Sold!!

I recently learned that ULA Packs has been sold to a new owner, named Chris McMaster. Check out this article to learn more. As a satisfied owner of a Conduit pack, it will be interesting to see how the sale changes the character of the packs. My guess is that they will make more packs for climbers and skiers to expand their client base.  I think all of us in the lightweight hiking community are holding our breath over the next few years to see how things will turn out.

On the Continental Divide Trail

I am hiking the Continental Divide Trail! I am publishing posts at my CDT blog at hikethecdt.blogspot.com. I will resume publishing posts at this site when i am finished in November.

Freefall

Flextrek 37-Trillion

I just had to post this. Enjoy!

Documenting Your Hike via a Geo-Diary

In preparation for my hike on the Continental Divide Trail (CDT), I have been trying to figure out how to put together a geo-diary of my hike. Ultimately what I would like to do is put something together in Google Earth (everyone should have Google Earth downloaded on their computers!) that would have the path I followed for my CDT hike. I want to post pictures and notes on this map, and make it an interactive experience for friends and family who will be following me on my hike. However, I have had a hard time trying to figure out how to remotely upload GPS information when I find myself in town taking a zero day.

Today, I discovered EveryTrail.com, which has the answer to my problem. EveryTrail allows one to upload GPS information to their site, which can be imported into Google Maps and Google Earth. BINGO! They also provide capability for one to plug a map widget into a blog, which will display an interactive map of one's journey along with pictures and notes. One can also go to EveryTrail's site to check out a trip. Here's a link to see what it looks like. Cool eh?

Before I get too excited, I certainly need to try all this out before I do this blindly on the CDT. First things first: get a cable that I can pug into my Garmin eTrex Vista GPS. I have an older serial port cable that's not going to work on my Mac - I need to check and see if I can get a cable that has a USB connection. Second, I have to relearn how to use my GPS. It's been so long (2003) since I've used it. I have a VHS tape that teaches one to use a GPS, but the last time I tried running it, I could not get the VCR player I unearthed working right. By the way, check out this video before throwing out that old VCR.

I may try out the widget on this site before I throw it on my soon-to-be-built CDT blog - yes, I will be doing a separate blog for the CDT. Anyway, look for the EveryTrail widget on this site, perhaps starting today. Perhaps I can record my hike to Best Buy to see if they have the cable I need for my GPS. I think I can still remember to enter waypoints!

PCT Monument at Southern Terminus Restored

Props to Brian "Panama" Gill for restoring the weathered PCT monument at the southern terminus.  In an e-mail sent to Greg "Strider" Hummel , Panama wrote:

"I Brian Gill 'Panama' dedicate the restoration of the pacific crest trail monument to all hikers and lovers of this trail. On 2-2-09 at 8:30 am I attempted to bring back to life our beloved so cal pct monument with great success in spite of the fact it looked close to being replaced. I scraped all loose and peeling paint. Patched all cracks, holes and damaged areas. Primed all exposed and patched areas then applying two full coats of paint. Had one or two large patches I had to short cut with expandable foam as I ran out patch and caulking. Will return on kick off to remove a few temp patches then touch up. Monument will then receive one full coat of water proofing, angle brackets and looking into a new register box with a sign "please don't stand on monument'. Still have to get the ok on that."

Among thru-hikers, this monument is probably the most photographed place on the Pacific Crest Trail, which means that for this year's hikers, they will get a photo of the monument in as tip-top shape as it is going to get.  I will say that it is going to be hard to keep people from jumping on top of it!  Perhaps a sign might deter hikers from piling on top of it.

Below are before and after pictures that Panama sent along.  Enjoy!

Before

After

Homemade Energy Bars

I have been making homemade energy bars lately. I got recipe off the web, and I modified it a bit to include some other ingredients that I like. I made my first batch on Saturday, and I dehydrated them for a day. Today, I tried my first bar, and I thought it tasted great. I made a second batch tonight, and I thought I'd write my recipe here:

1-cup Peanut Butter
1-cup Honey
1-cup Powdered Milk
1-cup Oats (finely chopped)
1/4-cup Raisins
1/4-cup Chopped Coconut
4-Tbsp. Wheat Germ
2-Tbsp. Flax Meal
2-Tbsp Molasses

Mix Ingredients together in a large bowl and shape into a bar with hands. Put into a dehydrator for about 8-hours. Let cool, and wrap for later hiking trips.

Boots or Trail Runners???

Shoes! Yes, shoes! I like to think that they are my gear item of the week. Truthfully, I have been pondering them for the last month.

I thought that I would start out wearing the Aku boots that I won at Trail Days back in 2001. Those boots are in good shape, since I hardly wear them. However, I think back to my Appalachian Trail hike and the time when I walked in a driving rain storm towards Hanover, NH with a pair of sloshy, heavy, water-logged Asolo hiking boots. How miserable it was to wear those "waterproof" pieces of crap that practically doubled in weight from all the water they absorbed. I tried to dry them out by stuffing newspaper in them and setting them in a sunny spot for a day, but I think all I did was create a hot, steamy culture inside the boots, suitable for the proliferation of jungle rot organisms. Needless to say, I switched to a lighter Merrill hiking boot, which did really well on the AT. Still, I yearned for fleet feet. Enter the trail running shoe.

I saw people wearing trail runners on the AT, but I stuck with what I had. When it came time to plan for my PCT hike, all I heard about was how most hikers wear trail runners, so I thought I would give them a chance. I wore New Balance 805s and 806s for most of my hike (the first 750-miles I used two pairs of blown-out running shoes), and I loved them. Nary did I experience major foot problems, and they dried out a hell of a lot quicker than big, clunky boots. I was a convert to trail runners.

Beginning the CDT in the middle of June means that I will be slogging through snow, and from what I understand, a good deal of rain. A part of me says, go back to boots, at least for the northern portion of Montana, but I think back to my previous AT experience, and again I am resolved not to wear them. So I have decided on the New Balance trail runners again - as they say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

I picked up a pair of 811s at the New Balance store here in San Francisco. Since the 811s are last year's model, the salesman knocked $20 off the price. I also went to geardirect.com, where I found the even older 810s in my size for $56 a pair, which I thought was bargain, so I bought three pairs! Now I am all set for the shoes for the CDT, which means I can now ponder other details of my hike, like making my own food for the trail. Time to research energy bar recipes!