Advanced Backpacking Skills

When purchasing an insulated jacket for backpacking, should you buy one with a hood or without? I think it really depends on how you plan to use it with the other clothing you carry. In three-season weather, I bring a hoodless insulated jacket on all of my trips which layers …

One of the biggest differences between a single night backpacking trip and going out for a couple of consecutive days is the need to keep your gear dry. While this is relatively easy in warm, dry weather, it becomes far more challenging if you experience consecutive days of rain or …

Most of us have had to hike in bad weather at one time or another, on day hikes or backpacking trips. While there have been plenty of times when I’ve cancelled a day hike or postponed it do to bad weather, I’ve also be forced to deal with pop-up thunderstorms …

What is a flat tarp? A flat tarp is square or rectangular in shape, has flat edges, and 90 degree angles in the corners. They are wonderfully versatile and can be set up in all sorts of different shapes depending on weather conditions and terrain. Here are some great example …

When Wysteria, Sherpa, and I arrived at the trail head we found 4 foot snow drifts covering the trail. It was late March, and we’d planned to backpack north over Mt Greylock past the Massachusetts/Vermont border. We knew that there might be some lingering snow in the early spring, but we …

If you hike in England or Scotland, it’s pretty common to see hikers wearing a map case around their neck. But map cases are relatively rare in the United States. They can be quite useful however if you have a lot of maps that you have to manage or you …

Have you ever observed the footwork of a very experienced hiker? They tend to walk very efficiently, at a constant pace, often without looking at their feet. It’s something I do unconsciously now, but it took a couple of year of serious hiking to internalize. Take Small Steps For example, …

Have you ever come across a meadow of wild flowers and walked across it? How about tall prairie grass? If you have, you know that it takes very little to create a noticeable path through such an area. Once created, others have a strong tendency to walk along the same route and create …

When I go backpacking, I carry a small stuff sack with my tent stakes and extra cordage. I typically carry betwen 6 and 11 tent stakes with me, extra paracord and Kelty triptease. This is one of the more general purpose elements of my gear list, but it’s worked well …

I backpacked the northermost section of Vermont’s Long Trail during Hurricane Ike in 2008. I didn’t realize that I was hiking through a hurricane at the time, even with the heavy rainfall and wind, since that kind of weather is the norm on the Long Trail, not the exception. Hell, …

If you backpack in bear country, you need to learn how to hang a bear bag  (unless a bear canister is required by the local authorities.) No one ever formally taught me how to do it so I developed my own techniques, which I am continuously refining. But whatever your …

    Someone once told me that backpacking trips start well before you start hiking. Isn’t that the truth? Just planning and preparing for a 1 or 2 night weekend trip takes me at least a week of mornings and evenings, before and after work. Once I nail down my …

 Backpacking gear is expensive and you need to take care of it to extend its lifetime. Here’s a checklist of gear maintenance tasks I try to do the morning after I get home from a backpacking trip: Air out my sleeping bag or quilt to make sure they’re dry before storing un-stuffed. Hang up …

I just finished bagging all of the food I need for an upcoming trek through the 100 mile wilderness on the Maine section of the Appalachian Trail. All together, I packed 9 days worth of food in the 2 OPSACKs you see above. Together, they weigh 14.2 lbs and contain …