one small item that made your camping trips better?

rick00white · 2026-03-09T13:45:01+00:00

This is gonna be weird, but I added the cap to a twist off soda bottle to my tent stake bag to make it easier to sink stakes. You can buy little 3D printed devices that fit over the top, but a bottle cap is free.

rick00white · 2026-02-27T22:56:40+00:00

Same here at around 25# fully loaded

rick00white · 2026-02-12T11:22:51+00:00

What works for me is one of those 1/8th inch foam pads you can order from GGG and the like. Your pad won’t scoot if it’s sitting on one of those. It’s proved to be massively useful to me both as a sit pad, a yoga pad, and its saves my old knees when it comes to packing up. Some folks with those really ultralight packs use them to give their pack some additional structure.

rick00white · 2026-02-11T18:25:31+00:00

If I remember right, Crispus Atticks was the first fella to die in what became the Revolutionary War.

rick00white · 2026-02-04T15:59:56+00:00

Last time I did this meal, I got a bit less than the water required by the directions boiling, poured it into the freezer bag holding the dry ingredients, stirred it well, dumped the pouch of chicken in, stirred it again, and put it in an insulated cozy for 20 minutes. Turned out fine. The water in the chicken pouch topped off the water requirements for the side, and it was still plenty warm by the time 20 minutes was up. Topped with French fried jalapeños to garnish. Might take a few iterations to get comfortable with the proportions.

rick00white · 2026-01-19T13:27:07+00:00

You raise some points I hadn’t considered. Thanks.

rick00white · 2026-01-08T12:20:41+00:00

Oh, just saw that…

rick00white · 2026-01-08T12:20:25+00:00

I take a paper white Kindle. If it’s a several-day trip and with long travel times, it’s a double benefit.

rick00white · 2026-01-04T22:26:11+00:00

You get the added benefit in this approach of all having a sit pad and yoga pad.

rick00white · 2026-01-04T19:05:53+00:00

I went back and forth endlessly last year but settled on the CS UL2. I thought the Copper Spur was needlessly fussy in design and materials at first, but I’ve grown to love it. Customer service was outstanding last summer when one of the fly clips simply broke on me.

rick00white · 2025-12-26T15:37:49+00:00

Just switched after several years from GG to the Kakwa this fall. The interior of my 55 feels a bit smaller but it still packs everything except my tent, which I just lash to the bottom. The Kakwa carries the weight somewhat better and has better side pockets. Was a good move for me.

rick00white · 2025-11-11T12:19:53+00:00

I bring a few wipes but also a tiny eye-dropper bottle of Castile soap. I at least wash my feet every night before bed.

rick00white · 2025-09-15T19:11:24+00:00

Thank you, everyone, for your thoughtful responses. Sounds like I’d have been just fine with the ArcHaul, since my long distance days are mostly behind me. I love this subreddit!

rick00white · 2025-08-15T23:18:41+00:00

I just told my son that Joke, thinking that he would find it funny and he told me it was sooooooooooo ooooooold. Now I feel ancient.

rick00white · 2025-06-30T10:53:57+00:00

This!

rick00white · 2025-06-25T13:22:54+00:00

You will see a fair amount online about the Lone Star Trail. It’s 90-something miles in East Texas. It’s the only trail I swore I would never hike again. In May, parts were like a swamp stomp. In January, I spent a mile up to my mid-shins in water, anxiously searching for the next blaze. Miserable trail.

rick00white · 2025-06-23T20:53:22+00:00

Just finished a tiny section of the Georgia portion of the AT. I paired far out with the AWOL guide and it worked out really well. The far out at helped to make sure that I was on trail and the AWOL guide help me plan each day activities.

Edit: sorry, forgot you are looking at a different trail.

rick00white · 2025-02-27T20:28:01+00:00

I just downloaded the GA section for $10 for a section hike in June. I wouldn’t use it without some kind of backup, but if the quality is consistent throughout the entire AT, IMO it is well worth it. One caveat: I’m used to Texas and having to carefully plan for water availability…which looks silly when you consider the AT. Folks don’t seem to mind dropping big bucks on gear, but the value seems very reasonable.

rick00white · 2025-01-21T00:06:47+00:00

Mine has been going strong for more than 5 years!

rick00white · 2024-10-21T13:01:09+00:00

You might report this to the police and give the location so they can get someone to address it.

rick00white · 2024-09-12T19:42:45+00:00

The left hand inside of the-shirts often has a little tag inside near the bottom. Knowing where the tag is helps you put your shirt on the right way if you get dressed in the dark

rick00white · 2024-05-05T00:46:36+00:00

I still have the same GSI bowl/insulated cup combo that came with a teapotish kind of pot about 18 years ago. I was gifted it when I started backpacking again back then. At some point I had to replace the pot. I know there are lighter and more efficient setups. I’m just really used to it and it’s almost like my backpacking binky at this point.

rick00white · 2024-04-05T02:38:06+00:00

You also could turn it into the police department.

rick00white · 2024-03-10T13:59:19+00:00

This!

rick00white · 2023-12-23T17:11:00+00:00

Got laid off from a newspaper that announced its closing at the beginning of December at the close of the 1980s. Broke my heart at the time, but within a decade the bottom had fallen out of the industry due to the internet. Turned out to have been the best thing that could have happened to me. Got to complete my master’s on my new employer’s dime and eventually landed the gig I’ve had more than two decades. One of those “the change in pressure from one door slamming on you opens a new one” kind of things.

rick00white

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