[philmont] Pack Weight (was Dining Fly)

Please keep in mind a few things.
 
First, most of us aren't ultralight gear junkies who cut off the handle of their toothbrush to save 10 grams. Many of us can't afford it, nor have the time to track down the lightest of all gear. As Scouts, we have to be thrifty and also "prepared" for anything. That means bringing a stocking hat, even if we probably don't use it, and possibly bringing a heavier sleeping bag because it MIGHT get colder than we anticipate. Many of your youth cannot afford a $350 Gregory pack or $400 raingear. That's reality.
 
A funny story. On one of our pre-Philmont backpacks, an ultra-light junkie came flying by us with a glorified day pack on. The kids were impressed. He ended up at the same mountain lake as us, eight miles up the trail. The next morning, we saw him again and asked us how we liked the cold. We said we did fine, no complaints from anyone being cold. He was surprised, because he had to get up at 2 AM and start a fire because he was freezing and his glorified tin foil sleeping bag didn't keep him very warm (and he had no tent) and he didn't have enough clothes to layer up. Our group listened intently and learned a good lesson that day. Traveling light doesn't necessarily mean the best.....
 
Second, as advisors, we aren't just looking out for ourselves, but for a whole group of young adults. That means in many cases, the advisor carries items that he MIGHT not carry was he just looking out for himself, or things to which the advisor may want immediate access. In this case, I'm thinking of "difficult day" trail treats, gear repair kits, more elaborate first aid kit, camera (plus batteries, memory cards, etc.), ranger and staff gift(s), etc.
 
Third, it's not a forced march. Bring some of the creature comforts. That can mean a chair, or a reading book, or a pillow. The "average" day at Philmont is 5-7 miles (50 miler divided by 10 days). Sure you hear stories of the bad days (I've had a few, like Clark's Fork on into base camp, and the climb up Phillips from Clear Creek, ending up at Cypher's), but most of the days are very good days! I like to tell myself, a bad day at Philmont is usually better than my BEST day at work!
 
That being said, my base pack weight in 2004 was 65 lbs with 4 days of food and 3 Nalgenes of water. I decided to skinny it down some for 2007 and got it to just over 52 lbs with 3 days of food and 2 Nalgenes (one oversized though). That included a camera, pillow, reading book, 1 lb pack of Twizzlers for a trail reward, and gear repair kit, large first aid kit (think 6" by 6" by 6"). And I never really struggled. Don't get me wrong, I had some days when the hiking was done, and I was glad it was done. And I wasn't the fastest hiker in the group, but in the top half for sure. And I don't think I'd leave any of that stuff behind the next time around.
 
FYI, the main things I did to skinny my pack weight down was: lighter raingear (but I could afford it); leave one pair of underwear (bringing 2), one pair of heavy socks (bringing 2) and one pair of shorts (bringing 1 pair of shorts and 1 pair of zip-offs); and a lighter sleeping pad. Pretty much everything else in my pack was the same as 2004.
 
Of course, this is my 2 cents, your mileage will vary <g>! YIS. Mike Conkey ('76, '02, '04 and '07).
 
 

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Received on Tue Apr 15 07:38:20 2008