Hiking. Day, Thru, Section, Ultralight to Traditional

Got to take my oldest son on a backpacking trip this weekend....

Nice that you got to spend time with your boy! I wish my daughter would show more interest in hiking. Nice pictures and good tip on the collapsible bucket!
 
My hiking days ended with a herniated disc at the L5/S1 in 2003...but very much enjoyed extended backpacking trips prior to that...climbed Mt Chirripo in Costa Rica @ 12,500+ ft...only place you can see both the Pacific & Atlantic oceans at once...hiked the Kalalau Trail, Napali Coast on Kaui several times...spent the night in a 2 man tent above Hakaano Valley on the sea cliffs of Molokai during Hurricane Iwa on my way to Pelekunu Valley from Halawa Valley, Molokai...

But like Overlander said, it's all by 4low these days...
Very nice! I did Rincon De La Vieja down there. Awesome hike, got to see the volcanic plug when the clouds cleared out for about 3 min, it was amazing.

I used to do a fair amount of backpacking... Always overloaded with gear, fly rod, normal rod, camera gear lol.

This was Rae lakes loop, left out of onion valley and went through Whitney portal, did the loop and 5 passes over 7 days and then back out the east side. Was 2 of us, and met up with friends 2/3 of the way through.

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This is why I now always travel with gel superglue...
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Group shot after we all met up. Meeting up in remote areas based on estimated time tables agreed upon days ahead of time based on guesstimates is always a crap shoot!
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Here's a cool tip/trick that I've been really happy with. I've been using Tyvek for years as a ground cloth/footprint. It's affordable and lightweight and very durable. It's becoming so popular that instead of buying a huge roll at a hardware store, you can buy it by the foot on eBay for a decent price. About 20-30 bucks for most backpacking tents. It's noisy at first, but throw it in the washing machine with no soap, and it gets wrinkled and is very quiet. Just got another tent so I just washed some new Tyvek this morning.

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Here's a cool tip/trick that I've been really happy with. I've been using Tyvek for years as a ground cloth/footprint. It's affordable and lightweight and very durable. It's becoming so popular that instead of buying a huge roll at a hardware store, you can buy it by the foot on eBay for a decent price. About 20-30 bucks for most backpacking tents. It's noisy at first, but throw it in the washing machine with no soap, and it gets wrinkled and is very quiet. Just got another tent so I just washed some new Tyvek this morning.

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Good tip. I'm going to try this out, even better that I have a roll already.


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Excellent tip WJ.
With the prices of backpacking tents going through the roof and not even including a foot print is pretty crazy. If your not a gram counter tyvec is the way to go. A home made foot print will most likely last longer and offer greater protection compared to the ultralight ($$) factory versions.
 
Excellent tip WJ.
With the prices of backpacking tents going through the roof and not even including a foot print is pretty crazy. If your not a gram counter tyvec is the way to go. A home made foot print will most likely last longer and offer greater protection compared to the ultralight ($$) factory versions.

I bet if you cut it to the exact size of your tent and used a grommet kit you could attach it to the bottom of the tent poles similar to that of my REI 1/4 Dome or other style tents like this.
 
I bet if you cut it to the exact size of your tent and used a grommet kit you could attach it to the bottom of the tent poles similar to that of my REI 1/4 Dome or other style tents like this.

Somebody beat you to it, lol.

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Oscar took me to Devils Lake State Park for a day of hiking. I started in Port Washington and had breakfast at the marina while watching the sunrise over Lake Michigan:

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After riding 100 miles west I arrived at the Merrimac Car Ferry:

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Train trestle over the Wisconsin River:

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Waiting patiently:

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The guy behind me had a Renegade and stopped over to check out Oscar. By the end of the ferry trip he was ready to trade the Renny for a Wrangler! He really liked the no doors thing:

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Trailhead for the Devils Lake, Ice Age Trail Segment. We don't have any mountains in Wisconsin, but we do have some hills here and there:

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After 4 miles and 500ft of elevation, I reached the top of the Western Bluff. It was a good spot to have some lunch and watch the turkey vultures:

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The rock formation is called Prospect Point:

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North Beach:

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Enjoying the views from the East Bluff:

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Fall colors:

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Famous, Balanced Rock:

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In all, it was a full day of 250 Jeep miles plus 10 hiking miles and a nice way to spend a Friday!
 
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Oscar took me to Devils Lake State Park for a day of hiking. I started in Port Washington and had breakfast at the marina while watching the sunrise over Lake Michigan....
In all, it was a full day of 250 Jeep miles plus 10 hiking miles and a nice way to spend a Friday!

Nice pics. Looks like a good time.
 
Hiked the Holy Hill Segment of the Ice Age Trail. Light rain ended just as I got to the trailhead which left the trail slippery in spots. I was glad that I had my trekking poles! With temps topping off in the 50’s and dipping into the upper 30’s, the fall colors are at 75% or so:

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Holy Hill Basilica:

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The sun making an appearance:

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Despite the cool temps, the pines were still fragrant:

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Hiked the Holy Hill Segment of the Ice Age Trail. Light rain ended just as I got to the trailhead which left the trail slippery in spots. I was glad that I had my trekking poles! With temps topping off in the 50’s and dipping into the upper 30’s, the fall colors are at 75% or so:

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Holy Hill Basilica:

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The sun making an appearance:

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Despite the cool temps, the pines were still fragrant:

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I'll have to check this out before I leave Wisconsin. Holy hill is 15 minutes from my house. Looks like a good time

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I'll have to check this out before I leave Wisconsin. Holy hill is 15 minutes from my house. Looks like a good time

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You should! I parked on Holy Hill Road (HW 167) between HW K and Carmel Road. The trail crosses Holy Hill Road and there is a small parking area just West of the trail on the North side of the road. You can hike either North or South, but I recommend heading south toward the church and Donegal Road which is about 5 miles round trip. I did that plus hiked North to Pleasant Hill Road which was almost 8 miles total.
 
Kearsarge Pinnacles and Kearsarge Lakes with my sons a couple of years ago when they were 10 and 8.
Zpacks Triplex Cuben Fiber 3 person tent. 1.5lbs.
Last photo is Alabama Hills with Mt. Whitney in the distance.

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Wow!!
Kearsarge Pass with the little ones?! Can’t wait to take my daughter along on some of these more grueling hikes.

Gotta love Zpacks. Definitely one of the best in the ultralight game.
 
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