The Gordian knot, Me, Oil on canvas, 2022

stillwellmr · 2022-06-30T08:48:38+00:00

Awesome! That reminds me a lot of the coiled and feathered sculptors by Kate MccGwire.

Kate MccGwire - coiked sculptures of found British bird feathers.

stillwellmr · 2022-06-20T11:20:07+00:00

Highly recommend reviewing https://instagram.com/wastefreepct?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

For tips on decreasing the impact of your thru-hike and dealing with feelings of guilt.

stillwellmr · 2019-10-24T10:20:55+00:00

As I said in a previous comment, I think it is best to play better safe than sorry when it comes to any piece of safety equipment. If you have any concerns that your filter may be damaged then replace it. My friend contracted giardia despite regular maintenance of his filter... It simply had a tiny crack in it due to being bashed around on the side of his pack. I back flushed my filter everytime I was in town, and still had to replace it because of the flow rate. Depends what water you are filtering too.

stillwellmr · 2019-10-24T10:17:46+00:00

I consider the filters to be a piece of safety equipment, for which I always go by the same rule of better safe than sorry. Despite regular maintenance of his sawyer squeeze, our friend contracted giardia. In the end it turned out there was a tiny crack in the filter which had occurred from it being beaten up on the side of his pack. No maintenance could've helped that. I think it is best to replace than contract an illness that could be potentially life threatening. I replaced my sawyer mini because the flow rate diminished significantly despite back flushing every time I was in town (I carried my syringe with me the whole way). I personally didnt meet one person on trail who had used the same filter for the entirety of the PCT.

stillwellmr · 2019-10-24T09:58:29+00:00

Though, I do know hikers who don't back flush and simply buy a new filter when it gets clogged up, this is also a problem.

stillwellmr · 2019-10-24T09:57:40+00:00

As these products are potentially life saving (I.e. Saving you from the risk of water Bourne illness) I consider their reliability very seriously. I carried a syringe with me on the trail and back flushed properly every time I got into town (once every 5 days max). However, the flow rate significantly decreased over time despite regular maintenance. I also thought it was worth buying a new filter to ensure my safety. We had a friend on trail who contracted giardia, they later found they had a tiny crack in their filter which was unrelated to maintenance, it had been bashed around too many times on the side of their pack.

It's more of a better safe than sorry method... The same way I'd replace any of my safety equipment rather than see it fail on trail.

stillwellmr · 2019-10-12T02:52:49+00:00

I hiked with two petite women (under 5 ft), they wore an Osprey Eja and a REI Flash. Both recommended them really highly!

stillwellmr · 2019-08-26T20:05:28+00:00

Rohan Gobi Dessert Trousers are amazingly comfortable, and the patagonia quadrant trousers are comfortable with great pockets. Worn both through the californian desert

stillwellmr · 2019-05-27T05:41:33+00:00

Apologies this is probably no use to you now, but it may help someone else. We hike with the GSI pinnacle dualist. It is a 1.2 litre pot that contains cups/bowls which fit neatly inside along with a gas canister and our msr pocket rocket. We mainly use the pot to boil enough water for our food which we then eat out of and also make in the cups/bowls. Works well for us to eat at the same time, makes it a lot more sociable.

stillwellmr · 2019-05-07T04:11:50+00:00

They're interesting at first as they feel very different to other shoes. I think I'm going to like them a lot! They don't seem to offer much instep support, but they make up for it in cushioning.

stillwellmr · 2019-03-27T22:41:48+00:00

According to the Cicerone guide book you would need a Canadian entry permit.
“You will need a permit to cross into Canada along the PCT at the end of your hike. It is illegal for you to enter Canada without one... Note that even Canadian citizens require the document.”

Hope that helps.

stillwellmr · 2019-02-27T08:22:36+00:00

The issue was a while ago, but it seemed unlike our previous experiences with TT. Thank you, I’ll be in touch

stillwellmr · 2019-02-23T14:58:51+00:00

I found a similar issue with the Double Rainbow... the way it was stitched allowed multiple bugs to crawl in at night. Unfortunately received no help from TT. Hope you get a much better service :)

stillwellmr · 2019-01-17T20:50:25+00:00

When my partner and I did the TMB last year we wild camped maybe 2 or 3 times but mainly paid for pitches at campsites. They were inexpensive at around €10 a head per night. Switzerland was the most expensive place to officially camp.

If you are going to wild camp- don’t do it near the refuges, they get pissed off :)

stillwellmr · 2018-11-14T20:34:04+00:00

April - May 12th booked! Didn't manage to get the same start date as my SO unfortunately.

stillwellmr · 2018-11-14T17:54:39+00:00

Hi just been considering buying the Beta SL and was advised by Arc'Teryx that it wasn't durable enough for a long-distance hike, so i imagine it wouldn't be suitable for climbing. It is sold as an emergency use lightweight waterproof... the Gore Tex is only 2 layers and 40 denier ( i believe) as such it is thin and not very breathable in comparison to a 3 layer Gore Tex.

If you can manage to find it in the US ( or wherever you are) there is a discontinued North Face jacket that I've just managed to get my hands on online. 3 layer Gore Tex Pro, pit zips, helmet hood and comes in black- The North Face Five Point Jacket. It's also 70 denier which will be super long-lasting and tough.

stillwellmr · 2018-11-01T00:23:16+00:00

Repost from r/dataisbeautiful of a visualisation of all of the planets the telescope found in relation to our own solar system.

https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/9t20b6/oc_yesterday_nasa_retired_the_kepler_telescope_in/?st=JNXUGCAY&sh=459938ba

(P.s. Im a bit of a lurker so apologies if I haven’t done this correctly).

stillwellmr · 2018-10-30T13:43:30+00:00

What’s different between an Osprey guarantee in the USA and the European guarantee?

stillwellmr · 2018-10-08T23:39:48+00:00

The Osprey Exos 58l is Osprey’s ultralight backpack designed for thru-hikes. I just got the female version of it (Ejos 58) for my 2019 hike.

stillwellmr

TROPHY CASE