F:AT Perpetual Hiking and Backpacking

metalface13 wrote: Scotland . . . all sound like excellent hiking spots though.

North Scotland is the one place I hiked where I felt I would be in deep doodoo if I injured myself. There's valleys up there where they won't find your body for six months. It's largely wet desert.

S.

True dat. Even if it's just the basic clothing to keep you warm and dry, it's really necessary. Once this year, we did a mountain where the peak was socked in with clouds, and was really cold and super windy, so you got wet real fast. We saw a lot of people up there who were wearing jeans and cotton t-shirts or hoodies, and they were pretty miserable looking.

On the way along the ridgeline to the next peak, we came across a crowd trying to help a guy who was cramping badly enough he couldn't stand or walk. He obviously hadn't drunk enough, and wasn't wearing enough, so the combination locked up his legs. It was a pretty remote area, so I'm really hoping he got moving again. We would've stopped and helped, but a group of Canadians were on the case. One thing I've learned is that Canadians are good hikers.

^Yeah, it doesn't take super top of the line stuff. Just so that you're wearing layers, and most importantly you're not fucking wearing jeans and cotton tshirt or a sweatshirt. My wife's mantra is "cotton kills." It would probably only "kill" on a backpacking trip in nasty conditions, but it WILL seriously make you hate the outdoors.

We've learned that Texans are the woooooooorst about carrying enough water in strenuous conditions.

Alright, I'm a fat middle aged boardgamer. A hike for me is climbing to the summit of the basement stairs so that I can get to the fridge.

Also in a bizarrely related anecdote vis-a-vis hiking Mount Washington in New Hampshire in the winter time. Be careful.

One of the most beautiful girls from my high school graduating class was hiking Mt. Washington when a large icicle broke free from a rock face and killed her. True story.

Gary Sax wrote: You guys mentioned gear. This seems like a real middle/upper class prick thing to say, but the proper gear ($$$) makes the whole experience much more pleasant and makes the miserable parts considerably less miserable.

I have an old, framed army pack and I've used it exclusively for years. On top of that, I have two German military sleeping bags that zip up to your eyeballs that's good to -20 degrees, and that's without the rubber cover.

Uncle Sam (and Auntie Merkel) have some serious outdoor gear.



Us at Silver Falls last October, attempting to recreate the Avengers, poorly.

You can tell how long someone's been hiking by their gear. If it's $1000 worth and it matches, they're new. If it's a bunch of beat bits and pieces that look like they're from three different wars they're seasoned. A Dad in my kid's Boy Scout troop was showing me his super cooking gear. It was really nice, but damn, it was airfare to Austria. A complete waste of money.

S.

Agree on the "usedness" measure. But you can be a vet (I'm not) and have $1000 gear, it'll just not be matched and will appear nice and broken in.

To get back to the original point of the post:

Anyone got any hikes planned? We're desperate to go do at least a few days in Glacier National Park, my parents live in Idaho, so it's doable. My wife's in Africa all summer so it won't be this summer. But I am going to visit her for a safari!

It's 12 degrees here. Tomorrow it'll be 5, and with wind chill, it's a -11. The only hiking I'm doing is out back to chop some wood for the fireplace.

Chaz wrote: GoRucks aren't anything about racing, and everything about pushing your own physical and mental limits (mostly mental) and learning to work as a team in difficult and uncomfortable circumstances. You will get pushed hard physically, but the point isn't to break you. Instead, you have to learn to find your own strengths, use them to help the group, and ask for help when you need to. If you haven't, think about trying a Light first. Those are 6-8 hours, usually cheaper, and just as hard as the full challenges. If you like that, then do the full 12 hour challenge.

For obstacle courses, what disappointed you specifically about Mudder? I actually find Mudders pretty poor these days myself, and vastly prefer Spartan races. Same idea as Mudder, but the obstacles and courses are much more difficult. The 14-mile Beast in Killington this year was the hardest 7.5 hours I can remember spending in a long time.

That level of challenge and teamwork is what I'm interested in. Good to hear from someone direct that the way they sell it actually lives up to the hype.

I had to bail on the Killington Beast, but I do hear it was reasonably hard. My issue with the Mudders (and most other longer courses) is that the challenge is almost entirely based on how much it sucks to run up and down a mountain. It's not easy to do it fast, but it's fucking boring and something I'm totally uninterested in. As a dude who has been teaching climbing (and running gyms) and also teaches fighting, the obstacles are pretty laughable for me. Like the big walls and stuff, I just walked up, jumped up and pulled myself over. I wanted stuff that would be tough and fun and interesting. Nothing in a Mudder ever has been other than helping other people, which I really dug.

The first night on a camping trip always washes away the buildup of parochial worries that cramp my mind and perspective. So I usually try to get out 3 or 4 times per year. My spouse has an injury that limits us to car camping and day trips of light trail hiking, but that's totally fine. There are great trails and camping within easy reach of Toronto. My favourite is probably Killarney Provincial Park .