Camping and Backpacking GEAR thread

Group trips require pics! Hope y'all get together

 

here are a couple of pics for scale, it weighs almost nothing (still too heavy for any short trips where I'm aiming to be ultralight ). Ill be testing it out this weekend.

My biggest problem is i want to look decent for the clients (even though we're going to be outside and they probably wont even notice) so i don't want to show up with greasy hair. Otherwise wipes are exactly what i would do. At the same time i love taking a shower in the morning, even if it is cold.

I have a Osprey kestrel 38 which is a great size for up to a couple nights in decent weather. It is an awesome backpack.

For my climbing gear or any trip i want to carry a bit more stuff i have an REI flash 46. It is very quickly becoming my favorite pack because i think it is a little more comfortable than my Osprey and cost half as much! For me i think the flash is the perfect size for almost everything I do.

 

How long is your hair? Women use corn starch to help degrease their hair on the trail, rub it in like shampoo and then brush it out. Shower sounds better.
I love my Flash 65. Which era of Flash is your 46? My Osprey Aether 70 was around $275, and I paid less than half that for my Flash new. It isn't as bombproof as the Rather, but beats it in every other way. I have a hard time fitting smaller packs, my torso is fairly long. A Flash 46 sounds about perfect for my 3 season uses.

 

Not very long at all, just an average dudes haircut. Exactly a shower just sounds way better and hopefully this will help convince my girlfriend to go on more, longer trips. Not that i have much of a hard time getting her to go anyway but this can only help

My flash was a 2013 i think, i bought it from the rei outlet for like $70 when it was a current model it was around $130. That sounds about the same as my Osprey, its better built but the Flash works better.

 

Hm.. What color scheme is your 46?

 

http://www.rei.com/skuimage/844660

black and green, the green is a tad bit bright but I think its a pretty good looking bag

oops 45L not 46L

 

I remember that. Mine is the prior year Flash. Much more sedate color scheme than my orange orange orange Aether.

 

yeah i always pick the dullest or most muted colored bags i can when i look, no reason to stick out too much. My osprey is green too but again not very bright.

 

Me too for now. Seems like fluorescent is all the rage. Especially for tents. My current tent is an REI Half Dome Plus Two. It has a similar muted scheme as my pack, greys with orange accents. But the rainfly is bright yellow. I don't mind it as a safety aspect should I never need to be found, that high visibility will be handy, or if I never am lost or disoriented and away from my tent. But those scenarios are unlikely, and I'd love a tent that doesn't look like a beacon when I'm trying to blend into nature. Need more greens AMD browns and tans.

 

I'm in for VA triple crown. Attempted it last year but backed out at mile 10 for a total of 20 mile day.

 

I ran into the same problem when I was looking for a tent for my BOB. It seemed like everything that was 4 season rated was bright yellow or orange.

 

What did you end up with? 4 season tents are probably the hardest to find in low temp colors. My tent above is mostly mesh and still has a bright ass rainfly. It is 3 season at best.

 

You said you have the half dome 2 plus, right?
I have the half dome 2 and have used it twice in the snow and it worked beautifully! The fact that the fly comes all the way down to the ground all around kept it pretty warm and the mesh greatly reduced the condensation so we were very comfortable.

 

Yeah, I ended up having to go with a heavy-duty 3 season tent instead (an Alps Mirada? Morada?). It's technically a 3-season, but it's got fairly thick material and an extra crossbar under the rain fly, plus multiple tie-down points. I've set it up in the winter, stacked snow against it and dusted 6-8 inches on top and it hasn't deformed. I'd probably be nervous in it during a blizzard, but it seems like it'd handle a regular storm just fine as long as I didn't let too much snow build up on it.
Plus it's a 4-person tent with two vestibules, so plenty of space for gear storage, and it only weighs about 6 pounds. Not as light as some, but still fairly light.

It has some touches of orange on the fly, but they're a fairly dull reddish orange, not a superbright flourescent.

 

Its rated at 3 seasons, and the pole structure and tent design aren't suited to load bearing duties. No doubt it could be pressed into service and could handle minor snow loads, but winter use with footage of snow falling I believe it would break and leave you in a bad situation.

Any pics of it in the snow?

 

Ahh I didn't think about load bearing. It didn't actually snow on us either of those times but it sure kept us warm.
I'll look around for some pics

 

Not bad at 6 lbs. Do you camp in snow much?

 

Load bearing is really IMO the big step between 3 and 4 season tents. Winter sees harsh weather not limited to snow, but also to severe winds and often sustained and variable, which basically puts a lot of pressure and weight against the tent structure and not always evenly either. Snow load at least is stationary, but wind forces can be just as severe and they're in constant motion so one section of the support structure might be bracing one loadz and simultaneously another section could have double or triple that load. Most of the super high end are either geodesic or geodesic inspired because that design is incredibly effective and strong, and handles wind deflection well. Hilleberg and others make tested 4 season tents for mountaineering, and of course, the quintessential North Face. Geodesic with heavy material and a very low fitting but well ventilated fly.

 

I used to do it pretty frequently. A buddy and I always used to do 2-3 rabbit hunting trips every winter, usually long weekends (Fri-Sat-Sun-Mon) and we tented. Never had any problems, even on the really cold weekends. The coldest night we ever did was -19, haha!
However, he had a kid last spring. We got out once in early December before the kid was born, but after that he felt bad leaving his pregnant wife at home along (can't blame him, I guess) and we haven't been out since he had the kid. In a couple of years we'll probably start doing it again, but it'll probably be cabin camping so he can involve the whole family.

I've thought about going on my own, but it's more dangerous and less fun.

 

Just picked up a Nemo Galaxi 2p, and this bad ass Nemo helio pressure shower

http://www.nemoequipment.com/product/?p=Helio+Pressure+Shower

Will be trying them both out for the first time on an upcoming trip to Zion