Camping Hiking & Backpacking — Gear, Equipment & the Latest Development

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October 9, 2010 by Jonsky

SUN is the international show dedicated to professionals in the outdoor sector which will be held this year in Italy at the Rimini Expo Centre on October 14-16.

SUN.LAB is designed as an open space for research and innovation which promotes new concepts and innovative designs in the field of outdoor furnishings.

Taking part in the event will be designers from around the world as well as students from European universities. Expect to see some of the most innovative designs at the event.

More info at Independent.co.uk and SUNGioSUN.it

October 9, 2010 by Jonsky

TreeHugger founder Graham Hill is trying to radically reduce his footprint and live happily with less space, less stuff and less waste on less money, but with more design. He calls it “LifeEdited.”

So what does one learn from camping equipment? What Graham Hill calls LifeEdited is what camping equipment is all about. Take camping chairs as an example; they’re fold small, often use minimal raw materials and cheap, all of which is achieved through great design.

Here’s another example:

There is a lot to learn from camping equipment. Most kitchen stoves weigh in at a couple of hundred pounds of steel and take up 5 square feet of space, or over 1% of Graham’s apartment. Yet Warren has shown us a stove that weighs less than an ounce. It is perhaps a bit minimalist, but what happens when you think of living like you are camping at home? It particularly makes sense when you have a sixth floor walkup.

Using camping equipment at home can save you a lot of space and probably some money as well and if you feel like camping, you can just use what you already have at home. It’s a win-win option.

Read more at Treehugger.

October 8, 2010 by Jonsky

Tourism experts in Australia predict that the traditional camping holiday will be replaced with one where the tents are pre-erected and supplied with more facilities than a normal hotel room.

I’ve never been to something like this but I think it’s a good idea. Not everyone likes setting up a tent, eating freeze-dried food and sleeping on a camping mat. Something like this will likely lure more people to camping and to experiencing nature.

Tourism Forecasting Committee chairman Bernard Salt said camping was no longer just a cheap holiday for people who couldn’t afford hotels, but had evolved to become a more luxury experience for people who had a deep appreciation of nature.

But if you look at it from another angle, I think too many people can mean trouble for nature. More people means more waste and more pollution and soon or later, the lush green backcountry can turn into a city, with people taking advantage of the booming industry, unless of course if it’s controlled by strict regulations.

Read more at The Australian

October 8, 2010 by Jonsky

Camping is already ranked as one of the lowest cost family vacation but you can save a lot more cash by following these tips:

• Share the cost with other families

Whether you’re cabin camping or camping in a cabin tent, there are lots of things you can share that will save you a lot of dough. For example, you can share the cost of meals, fuel, supplies and site rentals.

• Go for free or really cheap campsites

Federal nationals parks of Haleakala on Maui and Volcano National Park allow free camping on a first-come, first-serve basis. You can also go to boondocking.org and search for free or almost free campsites in the US. The United States Bureau of Land Management allows free camping on certain public lands.

• Get high quality cheap gear

You can find quality cheap gear by searching at cheapism.com or rent gear at Lowergear.com

Read more at KansasCity.com

October 8, 2010 by Jonsky

Dave Hess, outreach specialist of REI, Reno will give a program about cold weather camping from 6 – 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 21. Cooler weather and shorter days should not prevent you from enjoying the Tahoe Basin during the winter months. Go with confidence knowing that you are prepared for all conditions. Join REI camping expert Dave Hess to discuss gear, clothing, personal comfort and safety considerations for your late season and winter adventures. Presentation is free at the Donald W. Reynolds Community Non-Profit Center at 948 Incline Way, Incline Village, Nev. Please RSVP to programs@tahoerimtrail.org or 775-298-0012.

via North Lake Tahoe Bonanza

October 7, 2010 by Jonsky

Tracy Williams went on a camping trip her family and connected to nature but not without the convenience of modern technology. While high tech camping gear can be quite expensive, she still saved a lot of money compared to last year’s World Disney World vacation (at least $4,000).

Here’s an excerpt of her story:

Camping. Isn’t it all about getting back to nature, the intimacy with grass and trees and rivers while stripping down to the bare necessities of our modern day lives.

I am the outdoorsy type. I can “rough it.” Or at least, I use to could.

In my younger days, going tent camping, “primitive camping” it is called, was considered recreational. It was also a great way to have a cheap vacation with the kids.

These days, my back craves memory foam, my hot flashes crave an air conditioner, my hair craves a shower, hair gels and ceramic hair dryers, my breakfast food requires a coffee pot and a toaster, making my comfort zone high on my priority list. Anything less is miserable. Camping is, and can be— miserable.

However, I am all for an adventure and when the fall break vacation trip was planned, three pairs of eyes starred hungrily at me when the dirty word ‘camping’ was pitched. Flashes of memories made by a campfire, the best tasting eggs and bacon, the sound of quiet made me say yes, but my enthusiasm waned quickly as hubby began announcing plans. Happily he exclaimed, “It’s going to be in the forties at night, maybe thirties.” Great, I thought, cold camping. Had to be better than hundred degree camping which I endured during the summer for one night, but thirties? Must camping be always in the extremes?

Read the rest here.

Some pretty high tech gear you might be interested in:

October 7, 2010 by Jonsky

Believe it or not, a bear can smell 7 times better than a bloodhound and 2,300 times better than you.

Here’s what the Bear has to say:

Even if you buy and use a high-grade, 100-percent-odor-proof bag, there are some compelling reasons not to skip the canister or bear bag. My naturally curious nature means I might investigate a freeze-dried package anyway, and the situation gets worse if I’m a habituated bear with any experience or contact with humans. I might’ve learned that humans carry around various packages that contain tasty goodness, and I may attempt to investigate them regardless of smell. Better not to give me any chance of finding a reward—it’s bad for you, and potentially catastrophic for me.

Even if you put your food in a bear it’s a good idea not to sleep with it in your tent. Hang in on a tree out of reach and away from the campsite. Make sure the wind is not blowing the scent of food towards the campsite.

If you want to take extra precautions, don’t cook at the campsite. Do it a mile or so before you set up camp because the smell can stick for hours.

via Backpacker

Image copyright of PaulBasye.com

October 6, 2010 by Jonsky

What Oprah does, people usually follow. At least most of her fans does, but what if Oprah goes camping? If Oprah is doing it, it must be a good thing right? Do I believe that a lot of people will start camping after Oprah? Not really, but I’m willing to bet that whatever camping gear she uses will be selling like hot cakes. She probably doesn’t even need to buy them. Outdoor companies would probably rush out to sponsor her. Rich people usually get stuff for free. It’s the poor ones that have to pay.

via Andpop.com

October 6, 2010 by Jonsky

Below is your typical camping experience:

As novices to camping holidays our gear was pretty basic. We had a borrowed tent, two air mattresses, decent sleeping bags and a fold-out table and chairs. Our travel stove and gas lantern were about as luxurious as we got, and even then the gas ran out on our lantern about three bites into dinner the first evening.

Here’s glamping, South African Style:

Within hours the campsite filled with Landrover Defenders dangling jerry cans, seven-man tents the size of small houses and children so accustomed to camping that they have no problem hooking up the Cadac gas canister to the three plate stove while Mum peels the potatoes for dinner. One couple told us tales of camping across Zimbabwe where they peered from their rooftop tents as wild game walked beneath them. Their entire family is hooked on camping and all sixteen of them were pitched in the same area with a large circle of camping chairs in the middle for the evening bonfires.

It’s not the glamping I expected when I first saw the title of the article, one that involves a huge luxurious tent with comfy beds, expensive furniture and high tech camping kitchen but it’s glamping all the same. It’s probably the reason why camping is so popular in South Africa especially with so many wild and wonderful places to explore.

Read more at the Telegraph

October 6, 2010 by Jonsky

It was announced on September 10 that 38 counties in Pennsylvania had been declared primary or contiguous disaster areas including Johnstown, Bedford and Somerset because of the extreme dry conditions last summer. This means that it is important to be extremely careful with fires. Follow these tips to prevent a major disaster from happening:

1. Only build fires when necessary in designated areas
2. Have water nearby in case the fire goes out of hand
3. Do not burn trash or leaves in the fire (risk of air-borne embers)
4. Extinguish fire completely – should be cold to the touch
5. Be careful with cigarette butts
6. Consider using a camp stove instead of a campfire

via Examiner

October 6, 2010 by Jonsky

Sadly, there are still people in the world who want to see every acre of land, every plant, mineral, wildlife and water resource exploited for its maximum short-term economic reward. And there are others who would like to see our remaining wild areas preserved as museums where no human is allowed except, perhaps, for scientific study.

Then there are the rest of us, who just want to be able to get out in the outdoors and have fun. We want to visit beautiful, wild places and enjoy them. I think most of us hope in our hearts that they will still be there for generations to come.

Do these things when you’re in the outdoors so that others can enjoy nature as you just did:

• When hiking, stay in the middle of the trail to minimize erosion of new soil and widening of trail
• Carry your litter and others if you find any lying around
• Use only downed, dead wood on established firepits or better yet, use a camp stove for cooking
• Camp on durable surfaces
• Dispose your own waste properly

If each of us takes the maximum amount of enjoyment that we can from our time outdoors, while consciously having as little overall impact as we possibly can, that leaves more for our kids and our kid’s kids?

via Nashua Telegraph

October 5, 2010 by Jonsky

We were on the trail at 6:45 the next morning. The sky was overcast, which kept the heat down. At first, the trail was easy to follow, and the scenery was evergreen and deciduous trees with the occasional beavertail or hedgehog cactus peeking through.

About a mile in, we started our climb. It was no simple stroll on a dirt path. There were boulders that required the hiker to set aside his or her walking sticks and use both hands to climb. Narrow cuts between boulders and rock outcrops forced backpackers to twist and turn in order to negotiate a passage.

As difficult as it was, the scenery made the effort worthwhile. We were climbing between two peaks. The slopes on both sides held enormous granite boulders that stood out in stark relief to the brilliant green of the foliage. The sky steadily grew more overcast. It was the kind of setting that makes a person feel very small and insignificant. That feeling didn’t leave us for a couple of days.

Sounds like an awesome hike. Read more at AZcentral

October 5, 2010 by Jonsky

Rattlesnake Mountain has been closed to the public (except for occasional tours and special events) since World War II and it’s going to be open to 40 lucky people on October 9 in celebration of the 10th  anniversary of the Hanford Reach National Monument.

Registration is open now at Hanford.gov at a first come, first serve basis. If you’re interested, better hurry!

via The News Tribune

October 5, 2010 by Jonsky

Sara Stout, who resides in the Jupiter, FL area, had a once-in-a-lifetime experience, mastering Yosemite’s Half Dome hike in her fifties. She writes: “I just returned from my first trip to Yosemite (I’ve been waiting to go there since I was 14! – I’m in my 50’s ….) where I hiked Half Dome , ‘Yosemite’s Most Demanding Day Hike.’ They weren’t kidding!!! It was awesome but the absolute hardest thing I’ve ever done. My friends asked, ‘Why?’ and ‘How did you do it being a Floridian?’ and ‘What did you Experience?’ and I wrote up an account of my experience.” Sara is sharing that account with TravelSmart. Thanks Sara, and congratulations on your accomplishment!

Here are some of the tips:

• Be physically prepared – Train your body to get it accustomed to walking at least 10 miles. Sara trained for at least 4 1/2 months.

Still, how do you get ready for such a grueling 14 – 17 mile trek when you live in Florida where we barely have hills? By finding places that do have some elevation challenges. But first you must accustom your body to hiking at least 10 miles and the best way is to work up to this amount by starting with only a 1 – 3 mile walk if you haven’t been exercising regularly. Do this for a few weeks until it feels too easy and add on miles gradually. When I was training for the marathon I would do a three-mile power walk one day, the next day insert some short sprints within the three-mile walk, and later in the week (usually Saturdays as I had more time) I would add on a mile or two, then return to the regular walk and the sprint walk the following week. After a few weeks the regular walks increased as did the Saturday long walks.

• Try looking for the trailhead the day before the hike

We threw our duffle bags on the cots and went off in search of the trailhead knowing we’d be hiking to the trailhead before dawn the next morning. It was dark at this point so it turned out to be excellent prep to find the trail.

To get to the trailhead from Camp Curry we simply walked up the bus loop road to the Happy Isles Stop Number 16 and onto a bridge that crossed the Merced River. The trailhead was just past the bridge on the right. We could see the rock walls in the moonlight and below we spotted a young couple with headlamps coming off the trail. When we spoke with them they confirmed they were just finishing their Half Dome hike (they had left at 8 am and it was currently 9 pm) and they said that even though their feet were killing them it was worth the effort.

• Carry lots of water and some important gear

Feeling somewhat smug knowing that we planned to be on the trail by 6 am (and we were certain we’d finish before dark) we returned to the tent eager to prepare our packs for the next day’s adventure: A Camelbak backpack containing four liters of water as suggested by the NPS  (a two- liter water reservoir with an additional two-liter bottles of Smartwater which has electrolytes); sturdy telescoping hiking poles to take some weight as we hiked; a large bag of home-made trail mix, apples, beef jerky and a celebratory Snickers bar for the summit. Hat, camera, cell phone, sunglasses, first aid kit, flashlights and sunscreen completed the pack.

More tips for Hiking Yosemite’s Half Dome

October 3, 2010 by Jonsky

1. No beer around the campfire – for a lot of people, beer around the campfire and having a good time with friends is the best part of camping. A big No-No when you’re pregnant.
2. Uncomfortable beds – for a pregnant woman, probably nothing is good enough to sleep on, not even a really good air mattress on a good camping cot.
3. Pregnant women pee a lot – a camping toilet in a privacy shelter helps but it’s no fun especially when they’re already having a hard time trying to sleep.
4. Mosquitoes – it turns out that most insect repellents are harmful to pregnant women. Always check the label.

via CafeMom

p.s. Two camping chairs that might be great for pregnant ladies are the Brobdingnagian Chair (used with a stool if too tall) and Alps Mountaineering King Kong Chair

October 3, 2010 by Jonsky

It depends. If it’s a polar bear like the above, breaking a stick probably won’t scare it away. It not likely to scare a grizzly bear too but a black bear has a reputation of being easily startled so breaking a stick might work if it makes a loud enough noise. You’re better off shouting or singing badly though.

via Backpacker

September 18, 2010 by Jonsky

Autumn is not the end of camping season. For some people, camping season has just started and you’ll love autumn if:

• you find camping in a hot tent uncomfortable
• mosquitoes annoy you
• you agree that being outdoors in cool weather is much more comfortable
• the backcountry seems fresh
• you love the sounds of autumn
• you think a hot mug of coffee tastes better in cool weather

According to the guys at Bellingham Herald the best places to camp in autumn are as below:

• Upper Payette Lake
• Grouse Campground
• Bull Trout Lake
• Bear Valley
• Wood River; o
• Heyburn State Park

For more info, go to Bellingham Herald.

September 15, 2010 by Jonsky

Have you ever wondered how it feels like to be rescued after a climbing accident? The most important thing is this type of situation is to keep calm.

Rescue on Valhalla Traverse from getungrounded on Vimeo.

September 14, 2010 by Jonsky

Trailhead Coffee Roasters is a company, based in Portland, Oregon, that sprouts from the love of great coffee, the outdoors and doing good for the world. It is committed to supporting the women, families and communities where the coffees are grown.

On a recent 7-day, 450-mile cycling event called Cycle Oregon, Charlie Wicker, the founder and CEO of Trailhead, took his custom-designed 110-pound Rolling Cafe’ and coffee delivery bike for the challenge. The bike has a wooden box that serves as cargo space and cafe’ mounted on a Metrofiets bike. It even has custom inlay LED lights on the trailing edge of each side.

At the event, Wicker served stovetop coffee to riders who were lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time, particularly in the mornings. Laurie Robinson, who was one of the lucky ones, said that is was the best coffee he ever tasted.

September 13, 2010 by Jonsky

Would you let something as beautiful as this spoiled by oil drilling?

Backpacking America’s Last True Wilderness from Eric Rorer on Vimeo.

A two-week backpack in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge offers a glimpse of what’s at stake if this remote wilderness is opened to oil drilling.

September 11, 2010 by Jonsky

Photo courtesy of Sea to Summit

John Muir (not the American naturalist) is a mountaineer, polar explorer and desert survivor. He has gone solo in some of the most serious mountains in the world including Everest and five other summits. He’s what I would consider an epic wanderer. When he says he’s going out for a walk, don’t expect him to come back for dinner.

Is he really tougher than Bear Grylls?

Well, I don’t really know for sure but some people say so. I don’t think the two have been tested side-by-side and I think that’s the only fair way to compare the two. The next best thing would be to compare their achivements:

Jon Muir

“Muir climbed extensively in Australia and in the Alps of southern New Zealand in the late 1970s and early 1980s. His first big climb was in 1982 when he climbed the Changabang Mountain in the Himalayas. But in 1984 tragedy stuck when Muir was on the West Ridge of Mount Everest as part of an expedition of six climbers on their way to the summit. It was summit day when two in the team fell to their deaths. “My first thought was I didn’t want to follow them … I had to concentrate on the task at hand,” Muir says. He reached the peak of Everest in 1988.
In 1998 Muir and his friend Eric Philips were joined by Peter Hillary, the son of the great Sir Edmund Hillary, on a trek to the South Pole. It was to be the first unsupported trek from Ross Island to the South Pole and back. While completing the outward leg, the 84-day journey established a new route to the South Pole through the Transantarctic Mountains via the Shackleton Glacier.

The bearded adventurer also made it to the North Pole in 2002 and again he was teetering on the brink of disaster. Muir plunged through the ice into the Arctic Ocean in 2002. “I had just four minutes to get out or freeze to death,” he says. “Everything happened in slow motion and I think I was sinking slowly. There was a moment of horror as I was breaking into the water.” After the initial shock of realising he had fallen into the ocean , Muir’s survival instincts kicked in. He developed a technique in those first few seconds to extricate himself. “The only way to describe it is as the funky walrus maneuver…. I have never experienced anything like it in terms of going into cold water but I had to focus on getting out. I am scared of water and what’s lurking below.” Fortunately Muir’s partner threw him a rope and he scrambled out and onto the ice.

Muir also made a solo trek across Australia in 2001, walking some 2,500 kilometres from Port Augusta in South Australia to Burketown in Northern Queensland. He packed the bare essentials and by the end of the trip had lost 23 kilos and his canine companion Seraphine. His trip was the basis for the documentary Alone Across Australia.

Muir also spent 52 days in a kayak in 1997, travelling from Cooktown in Queensland to the tip of Cape York. Once again he lived mostly off the land and sea” – ABC.net.au

Bear Grylls

“At 7.22am on May 26th 1998, Bear enteredThe Guinness Book of Records as the youngest, and one of only around thirty, British climbers to have successfully climbed Everest and returned alive. He was only 23 years old.

The actual ascent took Bear over ninety days of extreme weather, limited sleep and running out of oxygen deep inside the ‘death zone’ (above 26,000 feet). On the way down from his first reconnaissance climb, Bear was almost killed in a crevasse at 19,000 feet. The ice cracked and the ground disappeared beneath him, he was knocked unconscious and came to swinging on the end of a rope. His team-mate and that rope saved his life. The expedition was raising funds for the Rainbow Trust and Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital.

Previously, in 1997, Bear had become the Youngest Briton to climb Mount Ama Dablam in the Himalayas (22,500 feet), a peak once described by Sir Edmund Hillary as unclimbable’.

Prior to the Everest Expedition, Bear, also a Karate Black Belt, spent three years with the British Special Air Service (21 SAS). What makes his story even more remarkable is that during this time he suffered a free-fall parachuting accident in Africa where he broke his back in three places.

In 2003 Bear successfully completed another ground breaking expedition, leading a team across the freezing North Atlantic Arctic Ocean in a small open rigid inflatable boat.” – BearGrylls.com

Who do you think is tougher?

BTW, Bear’s got a new knife!

September 8, 2010 by Jonsky

I somehow knew this was going to happen sooner or later. You spend a lot of money and time into making a product that could potentially make a lot of money and then some other lesser companies steal your ideas and make them their own. It happened before and will happen again. It’s a very common trend.

That is exactly what is happening to Vibram today. Scores of counterfeiters are making fake Vibram FiveFingers and selling them to people looking for cheaper alternatives or those who are unaware.

Vibram’s response?

See Vibram’s warning to counterfeiters.

September 7, 2010 by Jonsky

I had a good laugh watching my first Naturist video, “The Naturist: Bed Time presented by Teva, starring Gavin McInnes”. It wasn’t what I was expecting. In the video, Gavin McInnes teaches you how to make your own outdoor bedroom. I never thought he meant bedroom as in an actual bedroom complete with drawers for your clothes, rack for your boots, bed and even bed lamps but it’s great fun. Just don’t expect to learn anything from it

[via OutdoorsMagic]

September 6, 2010 by Jonsky

Wasp sprays usually have better accuracy and range to hit bears at the sensitive areas but they’re not better at keeping away bears when the attack. Why?

1. Bear sprays fire in a wide fog so that you don’t need accuracy to nail an angry, charging bear.
2. Even if you hit a bear in the eye, it’s not likely to irritate it more than a pepper spray does.
3. Making a bear inhale wasp spray doesn’t stop it from attacking

Unless you plan on using the wasp spray as a flamethrower (using a lighter), stick with a bear spray.

Taken from Backpacker.com

September 6, 2010 by Jonsky

Conor Pope of The Irish Times was expecting to stay at a nearby hotel, with beds, hot water and the like, when he was sent down to the Electric Picnic to “produce a daily, bite-sized edition of our Friday entertainment supplement The Ticket for festival-goers.”

Then everything changed:

“At the last minute, the Ticket editor decided it would be a wheeze if I camped, in order to, you know, savour the real festival experience. It is more than 20 years since I slept in a tent, so I wasn’t thrilled, but I was so desperate to go to the Picnic – it was my very first time – that I agreed.

She allowed me to spend more than €200 on a pitch in what is known as the Tangerine Fields. For this hefty sum, I got my tent put up by magic elves, an air bed and a sleeping bag. And I was promised a better class of showers and toilet facilities.

Now, while these might well have been better than what was on offer in regular campsites, that does not make them good. The toilets were hazardous from the start, the showers were not much better, and the queues to get into them were massive.”

Finish the story at the Irish Times.