Mike
Good Points and a great story! Thanks for the spirit in which they were intended.
I found last summer that I worried too much about my gear and not enough about getting in shape.
However, to balance your view point.
First, to most ultralight fanatics ( I am slowly becoming one) the term 'gear junkies' relates to the people who pack 'too much'
(too much being a judgement call). Not all ultralight fanatics spend tremendous sums of money. For example, I wanted to use a lighter sleeping pad. So first, I spent $10 on a blue, closed cell foam mattress from Academy (Texas's version of Dick's sporting good) and I cut a third of it off. I used it on two campouts and it was too hard, but I liked my son's thermarest. So, I went on Craigstlist and over a month searched for a used one. Finally I found a 2/3 length used thermarest for $15 dollars. The mattress made it all the way thru Philmont and beyond. So I spent $25 in total.
Many ultralight fanatics learn new skills and make their own gear. People have made their own backpacks too the tune of $55 dollars
(that is thrifty and resourceful). http://www.rayjardine.com/ray-way/php/order-form.php
If these packs are durable enough to be used to hike the PCT or the AT then Philmont would be no problem.
Before Philmont I started thinking light and placed titanium spork and sierra cup on my Christmas list to Santa. Getting my pack weight down for my first Philmont trek I did pretty bad and had a pack of 35 pounds before water, food, and crew gear.
Utralight fanatics who have only read about backpacking (like the fella in your story most likely) do not have the "Be prepared'
mindset that they should. Doug Prosser, an assistant Scoutmaster, shows that you can be prepared and carry a lighter backpack.
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/boy_scout_gear_list_philmont.html
So a scout (or scouter ) can be thrifty and prepared and ultralight IF they are willing to buy used gear (I just got a 2-burner stove (car camping, a north face down sleeping bag, and a used timberline 6 for $75), shop sales, and make their own gear. Heck, A Scout might also borrow gear ?
The first concept about ultralight is 'What can I leave behind and still be safe and comfortable?'
The second concept is "Every gram adds up!"
To answer your second point.
As Scouters we have to look out for our youth. Absolutely!
We have to be prepared ( within reasonable limits). For example, we had a repair kit for our stove (MSR Whisperlite)
and since that was the most complex piece of technology we were taking we left all the leatherman multitools
in the cars except for one lightweight model for repairing zippers or packs. As far as the First Aid kit goes -- I agree!
ONE adult should carry an augmented First AID kit. At Big Bend this Spring Break, I asked everyone to get out and hold up their First AID
kits. The Scouts had small personal kits. All four of us adults had big, augmented kits that we could have used to aid people at a 8 car wreck!
I could not convince any adults to leave their kits behind, so I left mine behind (and I made sure always to be with a person with a kit).
If I can create space in my backpack and a lighter load for myself then I open possibilities. It is now possible to carry part of another's load when they are injured or extremely tired without endangering myself. It is now possible to have a chance (very slight) of keeping up with the scouts!
Ranger gifts you carry only 3 days ( I made neckerchiefs and slides(triangular bandage size) for the crew and our ranger so weight was slight)
Trail treats we had our crew leader carry and decide when to hand out. My gear repair kit included a belt buckle, velcro, thread, needle, buttons, super glue and some spring-loaded cord locks and was very light.
'Third, it's not a forced march' You are correct -- unless your crew chooses a strenuous or super strenuous trek, but even then you are not
looking at 20-30 mile days like on the PCT or AT. So you do NOT have to minimize you weight for efficiency over 20 or 30 miles a day.
I minimize my weight AS a creature comfort! If I want a chair, then I tryto find the lightest, cheapest, most comfortable one.
My choice? A Thermarest trekker chair ( http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=39138707&memberId=12500226 ) so that I can use my sleeping pad 2 different ways (no, I did not eat in it). A book? I took a journal and wrote about my day or looked around me at the ranch and its creatures or watched the boys at program. I save books for when I am bored and I am never bored at Philmont. One of our Adults brought "Moby Dick." Having read this in college and knowing the width of Melville's vocabulary, I know that this guy was way over his head, but he wanted to carry it and make himself look good ( He never did actually read it!).
Bottom line : A scouter can 'be prepared' and a ultralight backpacker!
Love your 'your mileage will vary '
Yis
Sam Taylor T89 Austin, Texas
"I once was a bear ...."
Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance
>>> On 15-Apr-08 at 7:35 AM, in message <MDAEMON-F200804150735.AA3519931pd50005909481@troop47.com>, M J CONKEY <conkeymj@msn.com> wrote:
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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As you gather around this virtual campfire with fellow
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Received on Tue Apr 15 09:04:22 2008
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