The gear question
It’s a conundrum, alright: what do you bring along for the next five months? What items do you actually need out of the piles of things some of us (i.e. me) have at home? And what do you want to bring that you might not need but would hate to be without should the need arise? I’ll post more about gear as I’m out on the trail using it, but for now, here’s a quick photographic overview.
Most of the gear I’ll bring. And yes, that is a boxed set of A la recherche du temps perdu (I still don’t know how to insert accents here, so pardon my French). I’ll start out with volume 1 (Swann’s way) and politely ask Naomi to send along subsequent volumes. Proust seems an excellent companion for a trip of many months.
Gear is an evergreen topic of discussion among hikers, but since I’d like this blog to appeal to others as well, I’ll give a brief rundown of the main gear items. My backpack is a Gossamer Gear Mariposa, modified to carry weight the way it was intended to (more to follow on that). I’ll bring a One shelter also from Gossamer Gear, as well as a Marmot Phase 20 sleeping bag (I’ve had no problem with the zipper despite the struggles of some reviewers). My feet should be happy in Smartwool socks and Salomon Sense Ride 3 trail runners for the start, though I doubt my shoes will last all that long given the amount of tread they’ve lost during my walks around the greater Madison area.
Some ultralight backpacking proselytizers argue against carrying a first aid kit, but I think that’s at best a second rate idea. I’ll happily be bringing about 6 ounces of basic medical supplies as well as a decent store of wilderness first aid knowledge. I hope my first aid kit sits unused at the bottom of my pack for the entire hike, but I’d still rather have it along as well as backup paper maps should my phone decide it no longer feels like working.
I think I meant to include something else in my gear list, but I can’t quite remember what…
Ever feel like you can’t quite remember something off the top of your head? Also, unrelated: silnylon dry bags make excellent headgear.
Alright, to bed with me now! My flight leaves at 6:00 AM for San Diego.
It’s strange, a little surreal, thrilling, and terrifying. Which is all to say that I’ll probably have more to write again soon, though this will be the last entry in this format. What will happen tomorrow? We’ll both have to wait and see.