Today, when I started throwing up, I began seriously questioning the Universe.
It came to me last night-- that old saying, "everything that CAN go wrong WILL go wrong." It was right after my dad had to go to the hospital for his kidney stones, and we realized he might not be able to make it on the flight with us on Friday to head to my starting point.
Before that, we had two days where the router failed mysteriously and the modem kept shorting out, and I didn't think I was going to be able to get online and finish all my trip planning.
Then my FoodSaver was delivered broken, despite the extra padding and the many food items I still need to pack up. And then the FoodSaver we bought broke. But that didn't really matter, because I couldn't fit all the food I thought I needed for the first leg of the trip into my pack, anyway.
But maybe I should have expected this was where things were headed, when my shoulder dislocated again three weeks ago.
So, now I'm sitting here sipping water, hoping that I feel better soon, because we still have a lot to get done before leaving in two days. I suppose these things happen before every major trip--and if nothing went wrong, maybe I would be a little suspicious, but I would also probably be less stressed out. I just have to keep telling myself that it's all a part of the process, and this is just preparing me for when things don't go as planned on the trail.
I think I'm set, Universe. I don't think I need any more "prep", thanks.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
The Ultimate Gear List...sort of...mostly
Okay, here it is.
I meant to post this a while back, but I cannot tell you the anxiety creating this list has caused me. Those of you who talk to me often, know that I have been planning this trip for more than a year. And very few days have gone by where I haven't thought about and/or researched the trail, gear, food, safety concerns, etc. It has been exhausting at times, but in the end, I feel fairly confident in my choices. Now, that's not to say that 500 miles in, I might regret some of the choices, but I'll let you know when I get there! :)
Weighing EVERY SINGLE PIECE of gear wasn't so bad, it was adding it all up that was the kicker. It messes with your mind, trying to do this ultralight packing.
Messes. With. Your. Mind.
Note: gear and clothing in pack still subject to final change. Weight is not your friend.
Oh, and to those of you who might want to plan a similar trip: start early, do your research and try to buy your gear on ebay or discount sites. Unless you're a millionaire. In which case, you can do much better than this list!
I meant to post this a while back, but I cannot tell you the anxiety creating this list has caused me. Those of you who talk to me often, know that I have been planning this trip for more than a year. And very few days have gone by where I haven't thought about and/or researched the trail, gear, food, safety concerns, etc. It has been exhausting at times, but in the end, I feel fairly confident in my choices. Now, that's not to say that 500 miles in, I might regret some of the choices, but I'll let you know when I get there! :)
Weighing EVERY SINGLE PIECE of gear wasn't so bad, it was adding it all up that was the kicker. It messes with your mind, trying to do this ultralight packing.
Messes. With. Your. Mind.
Note: gear and clothing in pack still subject to final change. Weight is not your friend.
Oh, and to those of you who might want to plan a similar trip: start early, do your research and try to buy your gear on ebay or discount sites. Unless you're a millionaire. In which case, you can do much better than this list!
Gear In Pack: 9lbs
Clothing in pack=*2.3lbs
Electronics: 15oz (boooooo)
Tent: Tarptent Double Rainbow plus ground sheet, stakes and inner liner: 47oz
Sleeping Bag: Zpacks 30+: 16oz
Pack: GoLite Jam50: 30oz
Stove and pot total: 6oz
Homemade Cat can stove: 1oz
TOAKS titanium 1000ml pot, cup and spork: 5oz
Opsak bags (smell proof for food and garbage storage)
28x20: 2.8oz
12x20: 1.5oz
Sleeping pad: Inertia Xwave: 10.6oz
Ultralight pocket knife .9oz
Water system total: 13.1oz
Sawyer mini filter (x2): 2.8oz
Sawyer squeeze bag 16oz: 0.8oz
Platypus 1L bags (x2): 2.5oz
Camelbak 3L: 7oz
Hike goo: 2oz portion
sizes
Petzl Tikka xp2X Headlamp w batteries: 3oz
Solar panel: Bushnell BG solar wrap mini w usb cord: 4oz
Compass and mirror: 1.5oz
Flint and steel: 1.8oz
Paracord Rope 50ft: 3.3oz
First aid kit and toiletries: 4.5oz
* = packed clothing, everything else is extra to be sent to
me along the way and swapped out, if/when needed. Also, I have multiple shirts and socks, but they all weigh the same, so I didn't include every one of them. They will be mailed out to me along the way...in case you were worried about me not changing these out for 3 months...
*Sleeveless day shirt: 2.8oz
*Long sleeve shirt: 4oz
*Running shorts: 2.8oz
Hiking shorts:
Mountain Hardware: 6.8oz
Gore: 5.3oz
Hiking pants
*Mountain Hardware: 10.4
(southern portion)
BG: 14.4 (Northern portion)
Rain pants (Northern portion)
Golite: 7.2oz
Rain jacket (Northern portion): 8oz
*Down jacket: 6oz
*Sleeping shirt 2.4
*Long underwear silk (sleeping): 4oz
Windstopper pants: 6.5oz
Socks
*Teko: 1.2oz
*Lorpen (thicker sleeper): 2.7oz
*Golite fleece hat: 1.7oz
Fleece jacket (northern): 11.7
Electronics:
Kindle: 6oz
Iphone: 4oz
SPOT GPS device: 5oz
On body:
Golite visor: 1.4oz
Sunglasses: 1oz
Keen trail hikers shoes: 20oz
Drymax socks: .6oz
Moraknife: 3.7oz
Short sleeve day shirt: 3.6
Outdoor Research shorts: 5oz
Sports bra: 1.7oz
Leva Gaiters: 1.8oz
Nike sport+ watch: 2.3oz
Black Diamond Ultra distance trekking poles: 9.6oz
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