First Trip of the Year

Hey Everyone,

This weekend I went on my first backpacking trip of the year. My venture crew and I headed to Uwharrie National Forest for our first hike together. Temperatures where mild compared to the 20's we have been experiencing, and we even managed to slip out just before the heavy rain fell. Although it wasn't a long hike, it was one of the more interesting trips I have taken. Menu choices are always fun to see, and there was no shortage of interesting meals. Now that the first trip is under our belts its time to hit the gears lists and start to shave some pounds. I hope to get everyone to around a fifteen pound base pack weight.

I have some really cool ideas for gear this year. I also have seen some new things that have come out that may make it into my pack. I think this is going to be a great year. I hope to be under nine pounds soon so keep checking in to see what I come up with.

See you on the trail,
Lance

Fun and Excitement to Come

Hey Everyone,

Sorry for the lack of activity on the site lately. I have been out, I just haven't had much time to post. I went fly fishing last week in the cold and did quite well considering I had to break the ice out of my guides all day long. I am also in the process of planning a backpacking trip with my venture crew. I'm already getting requests for classes this coming spring and have been invited to a couple events. I think this year I'm going to play around with some ultralight tent/shelter ideas and see what I can come up with. I also plan on cooking some original meals this year on the trial. By the way...If you haven't been following Tinny lately I urge you to check out his recent tinkering. This should be a fun year and I cant wait to see what comes of it.

See you on the trail,
Lance

Cool (weather) Tips

Hey Everyone,

I went out for a day on the river yesterday. The weather was very nice- mid to low fifties, and overcast. I'm sad to say that the fishing was very slow. I did manage a couple fish, including this very strong fifteen incher. I guess cold weather slows everyone down a bit.

One thing to remember is, if you are venturing out this time of year, you should wear layers. With morning temperatures in the twenties or thirties, and afternoon temps getting into the fifties, layering is a great way to adapt to the weather. I think that a couple of thin layers are better than two heavy ones. Also, it's fine to have a cotton shirt for camp and sleeping in, but for strenuous activities you should be wearing synthetics and fleece. Synthetic drys faster and fleece will still keep you warm if it gets damp. I like to wear a nice long sleeve synthetic shirt with a light or medium fleece over that. If it gets windy or rain starts to fall, it's very easy to put on a light shell.

If you have any winter backpacking trips or just plan to camp out for a night, remember to put your canisters and water filters into your sleeping bag with you because these items can freeze, and either ruin your filter, or make that warm morning cup of coffee slow coming.

See you on the trail,
Lance

Reinventing the Wheel

Hey Everyone,

I just watched a video from Tinny on Mini Bull Design. It seems that the pot that I, as well as many others have been using, is even better than we thought. Tinny has been creating many different pot designs over the past year. He's made everything from pro 20oz wide mouth pots to little QMH 8oz pots. He recently built a new wide mouth ring for the lip of a pot. He also has started to make lids for Snow Peak Ti-mugs. His recent endevor was a new bottom that featured heat sinks. The question was, was it worth the time that he put into the manufacturing of this new pot. This is the kind of thing that I love about Tinny, hes always experimenting with new ideas and designs. That is the reason that I consider him the finest alcohol stove builder around. This is also why I only carry Mini Bull stoves. Here's the video from his site that explaines the rest.



See you on the trail,
Lance

Cold Weather Num-Nums!

Hey everyone,

With the weather cooled down a bit its time to change the menu for backpacking. I usually carry cereal in a ziploc with 2/3 cup of Nido dried milk (add one cup water and shake...cold cereal). However, in the colder months, it sure is nice to have a hot breakfast to get the day started right. I usually carry oatmeal or cream of wheat which is good but... the other day I came across a ten grain cereal (www.bobsredmill.com/cereals/) in the grocery store. When I read how easy it is to make, it screamed backpacking food. I took it home and just added some brown sugar and WOW! I have played with it with my backpacking cook set and have come up with a good portion (the bag directions make way to much). Here it is.

At home put this into a ziploc bag.
1/2 cup cereal
1tbsp brown sugar

On the trail
boil 1 1/4 cup water (or just boil 2 cups and make some coffee or cocoa)
turn stove down to simmer or like me, take pot off stove and place in cozy.
pour in cereal and let sit for about five minutes.

I like to put milk in so here is an addition...
put 2/3 cup Nido in a snack sized ziploc and place it in the other ziploc with the cereal.
mix this with one cup of water in your Nalgene bottle (while your waiting)
add to pot and there you go hot cereal with milk on the trail.

Feel free to add some nuts or dried berries to spice it up (oooh blueberries!)

There are a tone of different types on the web site. If you have already tried some of these let me know your recipes or favorite kind.

See you on the trail,
Lance

Eighteen and Eighteen

Hey Everyone,

I spent yet another day on the water. It was a great day for fishing with overcast skies and temperatures perfect for a light fleece shirt. I brought along a buddy of mine to share in the fun. It was a very eventful day. I caught around eighteen fish. I also landed a beautiful eighteen inch rainbow that just made the day for me. I have noticed that this site is slowly becoming a backpacking/fly fishing blog, although, most information is relevant to backpacking. If you're interested in fly fishing and hiking, Jason Klass now has created a web site www.backpackflyfishing.com that covers just that. I will be a regular visitor there so come check it out. Now if I can just find some hike in fly fishing spots I'll have it all.

See you on the trail,
Lance

The GREAT Outdoors

Hey Everyone,

I had an exceptional day on the river. I caught well over twenty trout. I showed Christi how to tie a fly and promised to use it when I went yesterday. Well not only did it catch fish, it caught the biggest one of the day. Here are a few photos from my outting. A day like this is just another reason they call it the great outdoors.

See you on the trail,
Lance