Northbend in the spotlight!

Tomorrow morning, dear daughter and I go to North Bend State Park to start our 3 day guided backpacking/kayaking/camping excursion.  I am so excited!  Things have been somewhat crazy and stressful in my life and I really need this vacation.  I'll update this blog with pictures and a complete write up of North Bend's new Adventure Quests.  We are among the first guests to try the backpacking adventure.  Jarod and Marina are our guides and they have a great trip planned for us.  It is my hope that we enjoy this so much that dear daughter will willingly be my backpacking partner for years to come.

The park isn't terribly far from where we live - a drive of a little more than an hour - it is closer than Cooper's Rock and WAY closer than Seneca.  They have several miles of developed trails within the park and the North Bed Rail Trail is an easy walk out of the park.  North Bend State Park sits right about the middle of that 70 mile trail and there are guided hikes that happen weekly to the tunnels, along with education about nature conservancy, wildlife and many other topics of interest.

Check out the park if you live in West Virginia, or you will be traveling through here.  There's a lodge with rooms to rent and a camp ground with a swimming pool, as well as a lake and boats available for guest use.  This place really is a jewel in the hills  :)


OH and just to add to this post .... here's a neat little article about how good for you getting out in the great outdoors is  :D

Just a few words

So, I took my tent down on Wednesday.  It folds up pretty well.  I can say I will like it for car camping for sure.  Not so much for backpacking unless I have someone to share the load with.  Definitely need to do a lightweight tarp instead of the rain fly in the summer, though - the thing is airless with the rain fly on.

I have an 8x10 tarp I am going to play around with next week and figure out different ways to set it up.  I need to get some kind of pole configuration, though.  Maybe some PVC pipe.  That stuff is like Duct Tape and WD 40 LOL!

Have Tent, Will Shelter

So, my Coleman Hooligan 2 person tent arrived on Saturday, but I worked all day  (insert Sadface here).  I worked all day Sunday as well, but I was home in time to set up my tent and start testing it out.

Let me just say that it has been hot and humid here, so much so that by the time I was finished setting it up, I was soaked head to foot in sweat.  As a friend of mine said, people pay good money for sauna treatments, and here you are, getting yours for free.  I guess she has a point LOL!

The Hooligan 2 is easy to set up, but it is not free standing, which is a pity.  It is also very heavy, weighing in at 7 pounds for the fly, tent, poles and stakes.  If you think that the average weight load for a backpacker is supposed to only be 25% of their body weight, and they say you shouldn't go over 30 to 35 pounds for normal packing, then you begin to see that this tent takes up a LOT of your weight allotment.  In fact, just the Big Four (shelter,sleeping pad, sleeping bag and pack), will take up a LOT of your 30 to 35 pounds with this tent.  My camp kitchen is 3 pounds.  I think the 40 liter pack I was given is about 4 pounds.  Already we are up to 14 pounds, and that isn't including water, food, navigation or extra clothing.  Add in another 4 pounds for sleeping bag and pad, and we are at 18 pounds.

So that leaves 10 to 15 pounds for everything else.  Water weighs 8 pounds per gallon, and you should drink half a gallon of water per day if you are sedentary, working in a climate controlled area and otherwise just doing what  you usually will be doing on a normal, daily basis.  BUT, and this is a HUGE one ... if you are involved in anything that requires you to work hard and sweat outside, you have to replace that water.  Depending on activity level, you can rely on at LEAST doubling that amount PER DAY.

I know when I was climbing in Veedauwoo, I would take a one liter nalgene bottle full of water and that would be good for the morning, then I would have to refill it for lunch and then again around 3.  And my body needed ALL THREE LITERS while on the rock.  I drank more when I got home, so I know I went well past the half gallon mark.  I anticipate at least that much water consumption - from half a liter per hour to a liter per hour - on the trail, so that's quite a lot.  1 liter of water weighs approximately 2.2 pounds.

So, 18 pounds of gear already, and that's just the basics.  Add in a 2 liter Hydration pack, and let's just say full, it weighs 5 pounds with water and all accoutrements to make the thing work.  23 pounds of stuff and I am only carrying at top total of 30 pounds - because while I might weigh over 200 pounds, I'm only 5'1" and not stronger than a woman weighing 115 pounds.

I have 7 pounds available to pack food, clothing, navigation, sanitation supplies, and any emergency extras.  Now, if I have a partner that can take half this tent or will pack the kitchen and their own kitchen too, I've freed up 3 to 4 pounds.

BUT if I decide to do some solo trekking - I really need to come up with a much lighter alternative, because packing a 7 pound shelter is crazy.  A hammock is sounding better and better!  A hammock, bug screen and tarp shouldn't weigh more than around 4 pounds total for all three, and quite likely less.

Hmm.  I've really gone off on a tangent here.  I will talk more about this tent in another post.

Thanks for reading  :)

My tent came today

It's a Coleman Hooligan 2.  I can see it being a decent tent when I have dear daughter to carry half of it, but I will have to figure out something for when I'm solo.  The tent is very large for a 2 person set up, and it weighs 8 pounds with all the stuff.   Maybe getting a lightweight pole to replace the one that is in it will work.  The only thing keeping me from just going with a cheap tarp set up is all the bugs.  I need a physical shield from all the blood suckers.

Gear Fun!

I did a review for Amazon on my Coleman Peak 1 stove.  First time using it to cook with.  I made some chicken soup.  I was quite impressed with how quickly it heated the soup.  My only complaint about it is that canisters, in general, are not  stable apparatus.  I will be getting an inexpensive canister stand to add to my cooking gear.




I still have a fair way to go before I am all set up for adventuring on my own.  I do have a tent incoming - the Coleman 2 man Hooligan.  I hope it lives up to it's reviews.  I'll get some seam sealer and probably do a backyard camp sometime next week in it.

The next couple of big ticket items will be a sleeping bag and pad.  I am torn between cheap vs. higher quality.  I like cheap because I'm not rich... but then I like higher quality because cheap usually ends up meaning spending more money.  I am also torn about getting a strict Summer bag (which would be an ok 2 season bag for West Virginia, as it does not get horridly cold before November or after April, in general.  I can also get an inexpensive liner to increase the comfort rating of the bag, some performance underwear and a hat and socks to sleep in - which takes down the comfort rating further.  I usually sleep hot.  A 40 degree bag is cheaper than a 20 degree bag, and I have to ask myself which I would use more.  It's not like I'm through hiking from north to south on the Appalachian Train in the dead of  winter.  Weight is also a factor, as I don't want to haul a 4 poster on my back.  I'm thinking I will probably get the Suisse Everest 20 degree bag.  Not sure what camp pad I will get.

So - sleeping bag and pad are my last two things to get for solo trips.  Of course, I want to get dear daughter geared up with me, so that's more to consider.  But all of this is a start.

Gearing Up

I really shouldn't go nuts in buying gear, but I need a backpacking tent and sleeping bags still.  I haven't got the bags, yet, but I did get the tent.  I have a pack that will be good enough for getting started, and then it will turn in to my bug out bag when I upgrade to a real backpacking set up.

Two weeks from now, dear daughter and I will be having our little vacation at North Bend State Park.  The folks there are great and working with us to create an enjoyable backpack and kayak adventure.  Yes, we are going to learn the basics of kayaking on the lake there and we are going to learn the basics of back country camping and hiking and navigation, too.  I can't wait!

Someday is here, now.

When I got married, I put a lot of things on hold that I loved to do.  Husband and kids took priority over what I wanted, and that was ok.  I've always said that someday I would get back into the outdoors and do the things I always wanted to do - camp, hike, backpack, climb - so I am going to do it.  Someday is here, now.

I live in West Virginia, where there is so much nature sometimes you can be overwhelmed with it all.  I am glad to say that I embarked on my Someday last Saturday when my daughter and I went hiking at Cooper's Rock State Forest.  I am terribly out of shape and a moderate, but twisty Rattlesnake Trail tested my endurance.  It was fun though.