thisheregirafFe Posted August 7, 2013 Share Posted August 7, 2013 just got back from glacier national park in montana. was an absolutely incredible place, but we got rained on for about 38 hours straight, so we unfortunately had to cut the loop short. still made it about 18 miles into the back country, but after wet tents, endlessly waterlogged boots, washed out clay trails that were hard as shit to walk, and not a single hot meal, we were ready to turn around. still had an amazing experience and spent the last two days trout fishing in the streams and lakes. my pack ended up being about 27 pounds w/o water (that's dry, i'm guessing about 30+ after everything was soaked down by the middle of day two) which was definitely manageable. all in all it was an incredible time. but i'm still taking in calories like there's no tomorrow. that country is massively huge, and pics don't ever do justice without any sense of scale... i can put anything i want down here?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted August 8, 2013 Author Share Posted August 8, 2013 Sounds awesome. Love hiking and camping amidst open vistas and in the presence of huge, craggy mountains. OAN - what's with the "wet tents"? Was there a tent-failure or was it more of the wrong tent/setup for the situation. - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xt2005bonbon Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 OAN - what's with the "wet tents"? Was there a tent-failure or was it more of the wrong tent/setup for the situation. +1. I'd like to know as well actually. FWIW, I've been very happy with our Mountain Hardwear Hammerhead 2. A bit on the heavy side, but great tent for 2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cww Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 Yea, I'm curious about the tent issues also. I have a REI Taj 3 and I use a piece of 3-mil plastic drop cloth for a tent footprint. The tent is quite heavy, but I've been out in bad thunderstorms (6+ hours of sustained heavy rain) several times and it kept us dry. 38 hours is really extreme though for average gear. Anyway, it's cool that you made the most of the trip. I need to get out there! And I know what you mean about the clay trails after a lot of rain. It's just terrible. Even worse when they're horse trails. +1. I'd like to know as well actually. FWIW, I've been very happy with our Mountain Hardwear Hammerhead 2. A bit on the heavy side, but great tent for 2. This tent is 25% off at REI.com right now. Seems like a decent deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xt2005bonbon Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 This tent is 25% off at REI.com right now. Seems like a decent deal. I need to get the hammerhead 3 though, because baby. But I'll probably never get rid of my hammerhead 2. Awesome tent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisheregirafFe Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 no failure/leaks or anything like that, but packing up a soaked tent while it continues to rain and putting it away wet (two mornings in a row) isn't ideal. not to mention nobody had a rain fly for their pack so moisture was creeping EVERYwhere. so basically we're trying to mop up what moisture we could with damp towels and there was just no escaping the wet after a point. thank god i had dry sacks for my socks, underwear and long johns and some clothes. and yeah, the clay trails were for horses and hikers alike. rough goin, but i have a feeling working out is going to feel like a joke for the next month or so. i can put anything i want down here?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xt2005bonbon Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 i have a feeling working out is going to feel like a joke for the next month or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted August 8, 2013 Author Share Posted August 8, 2013 I have Dana-Design pack flys for all my DD packs - ArcFlex Terraplane, Bridger and Bomber, and they're hoodded, so keeping me and the packs dry is pretty easy. WRT the tent wet issue. There's nothing you can do in a downpour to dry the outside (fly) of the tent off. However, if your tent is like most of mine, I have used my ground footprint and fly to allow me to collapse the tent under the rain fly and roll/dry-store it, and then take down the fly, shake off the excess water from it and the footprint and wet-store those until I'm ready to put it back up again. If it's still raining when you need to setup your next site, follow the reverse order - ground footprint, rigged with the fly (and vestibules), and then setup the tent under the fly. Inside stays dry, and you're a happ-ier camper. - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJBerk Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 On a completely different note (and certainly style!), we are trying our hand at RV camping later this month. After dropping our daughter off at university, we are driving up the Blue Ridge Parkway/Skyline Drive and are booked at 3 different campgrounds along the way. We decided to RV it rather than set up and break down camp every day. Rented a 31 foot class C. Should be interesting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted August 9, 2013 Author Share Posted August 9, 2013 We've RV'd before - from NW PA, to Maine, and the Canadian Maritimes, then down the entire East Coast to VA, DC, and then back up the east coast and back to NW PA. We were also in a Class C Motorhome and it was easy and convenient. We would stop and spend a few days, and day-hike, site-see, swim, etc., each day, for however long we were stopped. About a 3500-mile trip, end-to-end Recommend this mode if you have a long, multi-leg distances to go, a somewhat compact travel window, and want to maximize your down-time between legs. - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisheregirafFe Posted August 9, 2013 Share Posted August 9, 2013 always wanted to do an RV trip, but good god, the gas mileage is deplorable in those things. i can't imagine filling one up and seeing the cost of a plane ticket in front of me. i can put anything i want down here?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJBerk Posted August 9, 2013 Share Posted August 9, 2013 It is certainly NOT the most economical way to do it - hotels and our car would be far cheaper. It's more of a treat to try out and see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCHM1AN Posted August 9, 2013 Share Posted August 9, 2013 Keep in mind that, on average, our cars cost about $0.50-$0.55 per mile driven when it's all said and done. Add that into the cost of taking your own car and the difference in cost becomes less Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJBerk Posted August 9, 2013 Share Posted August 9, 2013 Agreed, but I've already paid over $2K for the rental itself, then add in gas. The good thing is it's one of the class C cab-over styles with the econovan front end. Not a bus class A, so it should be better on gas. Still, I'm sure it will add up! Plus, my time (not having to set up and rip down camp every day) is worth WAY more! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCHM1AN Posted August 10, 2013 Share Posted August 10, 2013 Agreed, and sleeping in an RV is way comfier than sleeping in the back of your car Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schrei Wolf Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 I picked up some news toys, a TNF Recon day pack and Grand Trunk Skeeter Beeter Pro. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted September 8, 2013 Author Share Posted September 8, 2013 Looks like a nice daypack and hammock. How small does the GTSBP fold-down? - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schrei Wolf Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 http://iris.backcountry.com/image/view/c71302/900/900 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted September 8, 2013 Author Share Posted September 8, 2013 Nice - stretch your day packing into a weekend. - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted September 8, 2013 Author Share Posted September 8, 2013 BTW - not backpacking, but did have a good time with dutch oven cooking on the Volcano stove last night. Stacked dutch oven cooking is so much fun and the results are amazing. In this case, beef stew, chocolate/cherry cobbler, and homemade biscuits, which were delicious. You can stack the dutch ovens 5-high on the Volcano. 10" Dutch oven with the biscuits went on about 40 minutes after this picture was taken, right on top of the 10" dutch oven for the cherry cobbler, which is sitting on top of 12" dutch oven where the beef stew is, well, stewing. - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schrei Wolf Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 For suspension I picked up 20 yards of 1" tubular nylon, and some small carabiners. My idea to cut it down into 2 25 ft sections and knotting it every 8-12" and putting a carabiner on each end of the shock cord for the netting suspension so I can attach it to the webbing for the hammock suspension. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBT Posted September 8, 2013 Author Share Posted September 8, 2013 At first I read tubular "hose" . But tubular nylon is pretty lightweight and packs down small, but I think you'd do just as well with 1/4" (or even 3/8") nylon line which would pack down even smaller, be less weight and would be easy to work with the carabiners as tension adjusters. - Pro amore Dei et patriam et populum - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schrei Wolf Posted September 9, 2013 Share Posted September 9, 2013 GTSBP is technically double hammock so I can actually use it solo or with my lady. Edit: Also the tubular nylon is supposed to be better for the trees so you're not damaging the bark. Otherwise I'd use some Amsteel Blue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schrei Wolf Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 Here's it set up. The factory carabiners need to go however, lots of sharp edges :/ http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc436/SchreiWolf/20130912_144909_zpsb13c7b92.jpg http://i1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc436/SchreiWolf/20130912_144919_zps6bd68a01.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cww Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 I'm currently planning my first overnight backpack trip of the year. Two weekends away. The leaves should be changing up in Northern Michigan by then. Better late than never! And Schrei Wolf, the hammock looks cool. I know you were saying it's a double hammock. I'm confused about how this would work. It seems like 2 people would just roll into each other in the middle. Getting cozy is fine, but damn, that seems like too much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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