Vacation Ideas?

We've decided to go camping & hiking. Considering maybe full blown backpacking..if we have the money for backpacks. That would be the ultimate outdoor adventure..hiking & camping along the way, over several days.

We went to Bass Pro Shop & got hiking boots and some gear today. Will get a 4 person tent when we go back in a few days.

Going camping in either southern Ohio or West Virginia, along the Appalachians.

 

I do a lot of backpacking through the Texas thicket. Tents are such a pain. Take up a lot of space, difficult to setup, just cause difficulties.

I use this. It's tiny, super light, much more comfortable, and takes seconds to put up/take down

Byer Moskito Traveller Hammock at REI.com


There are cheaper ones out there.

These ropes make it a snap to put up

Byer Amazonas MicroRope at REI.com

 

Also, look into Jet Boil and the freeze dried food... very easy to manage when hiking.

 

Thanks Peredhil. I'll look into it. How much does that way? The tent we were looking at weighs 6 pounds. It would sleep the 3 of us & maybe keep our gear from getting wet too,

 

with the ropes, it weighs about 1 pound. So 3 of them would be 3 pounds. With a tent, whose going to carry it? With hammock, everyone is responsible for their own. Another plus IMO.


I'm into hiking and ultralight - some of this stuff isn't cheap. I tend to go for 3-4 day excursions. I fit everything I need into one internal frame pack that weighs in at 28-33 pounds depending on how much water I take.

I do not take enough water for the whole excursion as it's just too much weight. Instead I carry one of these and refill my water whenever opportunity is given (usually from a creek or bayou, sometimes a pond or river, or lake)

Katadyn Hiker Water Filter at REI.com

Doesn't work for saltwater but otherwise, I've used this on all kinds of water. Finding a cold creek is heavenly during a hike. I try to avoid stagnant, but there's been times where it was critical to refill the water and all we could find was one nasty, green, stagnant pool... We strained it with a sock, boiled it with the jet boil, and then filtered it with this device. I had no bad effects from that water (there was some earthy bitter taste though). I wouldn't advise doing that, but when it comes to life and death... You have to do what you have to do.

Also, I have tested this with urine. Yip. Filled up a cup, filtered it to another cup. Honest to god, it had a slight odor, but tasted fine... It's also a part of my bug-out bag (in case of hurricane, zombie attack, etc.).

 

Come to Dallas. Then when you want to get out of the city you can go camping @ one of our several state parks.