Just back from my first of three weekends at winter scout camp. Here's some quick-hitting lessons learned:
1. Over-glasses (yeah, those ones) are a great substitute for glacial glasses. And no one cares what you look like as long as you're warm.
2. Puffy vests are excellent. This was the first winter weekend that I used my Patagonia Micropuff vest during winter. And it performed beautifully. I wore it walking around camp over my baselayers and windshirt, and it kept my core warm. In turn, my arms and legs were warm. Excellent all around. Puffy vests are also great for taking up space underneath overparkas without making your arms bulky.
3. BD powerstretch gloves eventually die. Not a new lesson for me (this is my second pair I've killed, and my brother has gone through at least one pair), but I came to realize it more this weekend. I went into the weekend with a small hole on the inside of my left thumb, and the hole only got bigger as I used my hands. I also developed a small hole on the inside of my right thumb. These gloves are a little over a year old, and I used them in all seasons. Despite this durability shortcoming (again, expected), I will continue to use these gloves because I love the material and the leather palms.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Saturday, January 2, 2010
New cottage gear manufacturer added: enLIGHTened equipment
Tim Marshall's enLIGHTened equipment has been added to my Cottage Gear Makers list (at side bar).
Tim makes quilts high-quality insulation and shell materials, including 800+ down and Momentum 90. He also does custom work. He has also pioneered the use of 0.33 oz/yd^2 Cuben fiber in quilts, and has developed the so-called "World's Lightest Quilt" (WLQ), which he has named the Epiphany. Steve Evans of BPL got the original version, the WLQ-1, which uses 8 oz of 800+ down and weighs in at a paltry 11.01 oz. The link is to the now-lengthy forum thread about the quilt, its subsequent models and other ramblings. Tim's custom work has included making synthetic quilts for a child and toddler, which he did for BPL staff member Doug Johnson.
Tim's site also includes a downloadable Excel spreadsheet whereby you can get a good guess as to how much your custom beauty will weigh.
You can contact Tim via e-mail.
Tim makes quilts high-quality insulation and shell materials, including 800+ down and Momentum 90. He also does custom work. He has also pioneered the use of 0.33 oz/yd^2 Cuben fiber in quilts, and has developed the so-called "World's Lightest Quilt" (WLQ), which he has named the Epiphany. Steve Evans of BPL got the original version, the WLQ-1, which uses 8 oz of 800+ down and weighs in at a paltry 11.01 oz. The link is to the now-lengthy forum thread about the quilt, its subsequent models and other ramblings. Tim's custom work has included making synthetic quilts for a child and toddler, which he did for BPL staff member Doug Johnson.
Tim's site also includes a downloadable Excel spreadsheet whereby you can get a good guess as to how much your custom beauty will weigh.
You can contact Tim via e-mail.
MLD's ~10oz Dyneema Pack
Ron Bell at Mountain Laurel Designs will soon be releasing a sub 2100 cubic inch capacity UL backpack, code-named Newt.
This of course, gives Zpacks a direct competitor in the UL dyneema pack category. I wrote about Joe's new Dyneema pack in my recent post, New Zpacks in Dyneema.
What does this all mean? Joe has been criticized by BPL as using simple (but effective) construction techniques. However, Ron's gear has long been lauded for its quality manufacturing. I think only time will tell. Both packs are based on proven designs, and I expect both to withstand the beating of years of abuse or a thru hike. Bring on the testers.
This of course, gives Zpacks a direct competitor in the UL dyneema pack category. I wrote about Joe's new Dyneema pack in my recent post, New Zpacks in Dyneema.
What does this all mean? Joe has been criticized by BPL as using simple (but effective) construction techniques. However, Ron's gear has long been lauded for its quality manufacturing. I think only time will tell. Both packs are based on proven designs, and I expect both to withstand the beating of years of abuse or a thru hike. Bring on the testers.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
2009 Gear picks
At the end of every year, BPL editors put together a list of three of each of their favorite pieces of gear from the past year. It isn't a formal endorsement or an Editor's Choice award (a la BACKPACKER). Here's my entries, with one additional from my special lady.
Arctic mukluks by Steger Mukluks: My feet were warm and dry in a myriad of conditions with these muks on. For the UL hiker, they're 20 oz per foot of warmth. Try to get that out of any other full-on winter boot. You won't. Now I just need to figure out how to keep the laces from absorbing moisture and freezing at night...
Dixon Double Bivy by Oware (Dave Olson): I bought this for use with an Oware CatTarp 2 for the special lady and I, and we love it. The the Pertex has excellent water-resisting (almost water proof?!) capabilities and it kept us dry during a deluge in a poor camping site.
Z1 by Zpacks.com (Joe Valesko): Simple design with a full features made this frameless pack my go-to when I didn't need to carry a tent. Solo, I could probably go a week with the pack size and more if I didn't cook. The design only gets better with the use of Dyneema in Joe's latest iterations.
Honorable mentions: GossamerGear LightTrek3s; Integral Designs MK1 XL; Integral Designs VB socks; MYOG torso pad (hacked Ridgerest).
And the pick for women, written by my fiancee: the GoGirl. The GoGirl is an FUD (Female Urination Device) offered at the wonderful price of $6.00 a piece! Simply put: women use the GoGirl to pee standing up. No longer do I have to go 1/2 mile off trail to find a suitable tree to drop trou behind. I can stand aside the path just like my fiance. Of course, it takes some practice...and I recommend using it with a skirt. The GoGirl is made out of medical-grade silicone so it reusable and germ resistant. And the best feature for ultra-lite backpacking is it's ability to keep its shape after being shoved, squished, and compressed into the tightest places in my pack.
[edited 1/4/10 for for clarity]
Arctic mukluks by Steger Mukluks: My feet were warm and dry in a myriad of conditions with these muks on. For the UL hiker, they're 20 oz per foot of warmth. Try to get that out of any other full-on winter boot. You won't. Now I just need to figure out how to keep the laces from absorbing moisture and freezing at night...
Dixon Double Bivy by Oware (Dave Olson): I bought this for use with an Oware CatTarp 2 for the special lady and I, and we love it. The the Pertex has excellent water-resisting (almost water proof?!) capabilities and it kept us dry during a deluge in a poor camping site.
Z1 by Zpacks.com (Joe Valesko): Simple design with a full features made this frameless pack my go-to when I didn't need to carry a tent. Solo, I could probably go a week with the pack size and more if I didn't cook. The design only gets better with the use of Dyneema in Joe's latest iterations.
Honorable mentions: GossamerGear LightTrek3s; Integral Designs MK1 XL; Integral Designs VB socks; MYOG torso pad (hacked Ridgerest).
And the pick for women, written by my fiancee: the GoGirl. The GoGirl is an FUD (Female Urination Device) offered at the wonderful price of $6.00 a piece! Simply put: women use the GoGirl to pee standing up. No longer do I have to go 1/2 mile off trail to find a suitable tree to drop trou behind. I can stand aside the path just like my fiance. Of course, it takes some practice...and I recommend using it with a skirt. The GoGirl is made out of medical-grade silicone so it reusable and germ resistant. And the best feature for ultra-lite backpacking is it's ability to keep its shape after being shoved, squished, and compressed into the tightest places in my pack.
[edited 1/4/10 for for clarity]
Saturday, December 26, 2009
New ZPacks in Dyneema
Long time gone from the blog, but here goes a resurgence.
Joe Valesko of Zpacks.com is introducing a new line of packs out of Dyneema X fabric come January 2010. Dyneema X is the current gold standard for those looking for UL gear made out of bombproof materials. If you pay him enough, Dan McHale will make you a pack made out of nothing but Dyneema strands.
Dyneema X weighs about 4 oz/yd^2. This is about three times the weight of silnylon (post-impregnation). However, when the amount of fabric in the gear is so minimal (like that on a pack), the weight increase is proportional but not overly substantial. I'd be willing to guess that a stripped-down Dyneema X 26 will weigh in at about 9 oz. This is three times the amount of my stripped-down Z1.
Other pack makers use, or have started to use, Dyneema regularly in their packs. GoLite, Six Moon Designs and MLD all use Dyneema is some fashion or another. However, none of them weigh in as low as the anticipated Zpacks models. The MLD 2010 Prophet is about the closest you're going to get for a full-featured pack (defined as a rucksack with straps, size pockets and rear pocket). GoLite's Ion is about 9 oz pre-strip down, but that pack lacks external pockets.
I'm slightly biased in preferences, of course, because I love the simplicity of my Z1. But if you want a UL pack for that needs to be tough, Joe's new line should be fantastic.
Joe Valesko of Zpacks.com is introducing a new line of packs out of Dyneema X fabric come January 2010. Dyneema X is the current gold standard for those looking for UL gear made out of bombproof materials. If you pay him enough, Dan McHale will make you a pack made out of nothing but Dyneema strands.
Dyneema X weighs about 4 oz/yd^2. This is about three times the weight of silnylon (post-impregnation). However, when the amount of fabric in the gear is so minimal (like that on a pack), the weight increase is proportional but not overly substantial. I'd be willing to guess that a stripped-down Dyneema X 26 will weigh in at about 9 oz. This is three times the amount of my stripped-down Z1.
Other pack makers use, or have started to use, Dyneema regularly in their packs. GoLite, Six Moon Designs and MLD all use Dyneema is some fashion or another. However, none of them weigh in as low as the anticipated Zpacks models. The MLD 2010 Prophet is about the closest you're going to get for a full-featured pack (defined as a rucksack with straps, size pockets and rear pocket). GoLite's Ion is about 9 oz pre-strip down, but that pack lacks external pockets.
I'm slightly biased in preferences, of course, because I love the simplicity of my Z1. But if you want a UL pack for that needs to be tough, Joe's new line should be fantastic.
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