Ultralight Means Practical

Ray Jardine is most commonly referred to as the father of ultralight backpacking. His contributions to hiking, backpacking, camping, kayaking & other venues of outdoor activities have been limitless. For decades, Ray & his wife Jenny have tirelessly explored the world, building their own gear & constantly seeking ways to improve upon their own ideas. If you've never visited their site, check it out at http://www.rayjardine.com/index.shtml .

Steve Gillman is another outdoor enthusiast who's done much in promoting ultralight hiking. Steve gives a lot of great ideas, many of which I've incorporated into my own hiking & backpacking lifestyle. His site, http://www.the-ultralight-site.com/ has been a resource for thousands of hikers & wilderness students for several years. He runs the gamut with countless ideas regarding ways to shed grams & save weight, not all of which he practices himself. Of all the articles and info I've read by Mr. Gillman, one thing that impresses me is how practical he is. It's one thing to cut weight from your pack, but to go as far as some people go, I feel borders on absurdity.

Ultralight hiking & backpacking isn't just about going "light & fast," a slogan which I feel is mis-leading & not truly indicative of what the ultralight philosophy is. UL hiking isn't just about going as fast as you can. You want to enjoy where you're going & what you're going through, right? UL backpacking isn't simply about cutting as much weight out of your pack as you possibly can, but also in being a practical hiker & common sense backpacker.

It cracks me up sometimes when I hear of extremes that some hikers go to to shave a few grams off their pack weight. Things that go a bit further than cutting your toothbrush in half. I won't go into details here, but I'm sure if you've been around long enough & have dropped in on some hiking forums, you've heard or read some pretty funny things. Some of the things you'll see & hear are that which hikers make up & poke fun at, joking at their own expense. It can be entertaining. One thing every hiker or backpacker needs at all times is a knife. It doesn't need to be a Bowie, but you should have some type of knife. In my pants pocket everyday I carry a Mini-Paraframe by Gerber. There's seldom a day that I don't use it.

UL backpacking is a philosophy which I subscribe to, but not to an extreme degree. My goal here isn't to give a list of ways to cut your pack weight, as Steve Gillman has covered this in depth in his writings. Yet I'll just give some observations concerning UL hiking & backpacking.

1. Buy reusable equipment. This may sound odd, but in this day of instant this & disposable that, it makes more sense that if one is concerned with going ultralight, they'll invest in equipment that's durable and dependable. This is more practical and in the long run, saves money. I read in a forum where a hiker was looking forward to getting some throw-away toothbrushes, where you get one use from one toothbrush. Huh? Disposable toothbrush, come on now! How practical is that? What a waste of money & time. Not only that, but how can you actually believe you're shedding weight by having to buy several of these things if you're going on a mulit-day hike? UL here means ultra-lame!
2. When thinking of cutting weight, first think of what you want to carry. We don't usually have too much problem thinking of all the things we'd like to have with us when away from home.
3. Next, think of what you should carry. This narrows down your list quite a bit. Of course we all bring an item or two that may not really be needed on a hike. That's our choice, and allowing yourself a small luxury in some cases is a good idea.
4. Decide what you will carry. Sounds simple, but far too many of us have items in our packs that we bring along just because we're not sure if we should. When in doubt, do without.
5. Focus & be concerned with what you carry, not what others are carrying. Stop telling others that they shouldn't be packing something just because you're not. If they ask for your opinion, that's one thing. But too many hikers feel that they have the authority to pick on other hikers.
6. This is another should be no-brainer. Hiking your own hike doesn't mean that you're way of hiking is the only right way and everyone else's is wrong. If you're not carrying an mp3 player, fine, but don't expect everyone else shouldn't either. Hike your own hike doesn't mean "you hike the way I hike." 

Last year hiking the AT I met a lot of good people. Some folks I'd love to see again, some others well, you get the idea. I learned some things from both groups of people. I learned that UL is a relevant term, that it's translated in various ways. What works for one doesn't for another. What helps one is a hindrance to another. Hike your own hike, be a practical hiker & common sense backpacker. Be resourceful & take care of your equipment. Respect your fellow hikers & always be ready to help. And of course, always carry a knife.

Thanks for reading,

~The Pilgrim.

Riga Shelter Salisbury, CT

On April 11th my sweetheart & I drove down to Salisbury, CT for an overnight stay on the Appalachian Trail. Most of the drive there it rained, but as we approached Connecticut, the skies were growing more & more clearer. The forecast called for rain early Saturday, clearing in the afternoon and night, then sunny and 55 degrees for Sunday. We were looking forward to a good weekend hike.

We arrived at the parking lot on Rte 41 which leads to the Undermountain Trail around 4:30 pm. We headed up the trail to the point where it forks to the left with the junction of the Paradise Lane Trail. This lead another half a mile or so until we reached the AT. Turning south on the AT, we stopped a half mile up the trail at the Brassie Brook Shelter for a few minutes, grabbed a snack before heading on to the Riga Shelter, another 1.8 miles away.

It was overcast & cool on our way to Riga, the trail clear & pretty easy going. The trail crossed over a stream a number of times and we enjoyed rock-hopping & crossing the small bridges when available. The cool breeze and lateness of the day told us we were in for a cold night.

Another hiker was already in the Riga Shelter when we finally reached it; we think his name was Larry, after looking through the shelter register the next morning. He told us he'd been there since Friday night around 9 pm, and that it had rained Saturday until about 1 in the afternoon. So he waited out the rain, reading, and stayed through until Sunday morning.

Riga Shelter sleeps 6 like Brassie Brook, but for some reason, appeared a little smaller than the other shelter. But one of the first things I noticed was the new steps leading up to the shelter, built by the trail maintainers. Larry said they had dropped in 8 loads of lumber by helicopter, enough to build the steps, a new privy & two new tent platforms. They did a great job! My hat's off to all who give of their time & energy in helping to maintain what so many of us take for granted. In the near future, I want to start doing my part in volunteering when I can.

We decided to set up our tent on the platform directly behind the shelter, about 30 yards away. Beth is a cold sleeper, so I figured it'd be warmer in the tent rather than the shelter. Larry probably enjoyed his privacy, too. Beth cooked our meal of rice & beans with some white chicken while I set up the tent. Some hot tea helped keep us warm till we turned in for the night. There was a wash pit about 10 yards from our tent that we used to clean up. The stream running close by was a relaxing sound as we fell asleep.

Easter Sunday greeted us with a nice sunrise! Though it was still chilly, we were looking forward to a 55 degree day, or so it was forecasted. Little did we know, it would turn out to be mid-40s at best. But it was sunny, so we still had an enjoyable hike.

The shelter was empty when we woke, so Larry must've got an early start. We set up the stove near the shelter to warm up some tea & had a light breakfast. We eventually got back on the trail at 9:48 am.

Crisp, cool days always get me moving a bit quicker than hot days, and I enjoy hiking in this weather. The climb up the south side of Bear Mountain wasn't too strenuous, and a bit more taxing for the last 100 yards or so. We had a great view once we reached the summit, climbed up on the remaining rocks of the once standing tower. 

The wind was blowing pretty well, so we didn't stay on top of the tower for long, just long enough to say  we did & snapped a few pictures.   I was thinking of our trip down the north side of the mountain, as I'd read in an online forum a few days before that there were still many downed trees blocking parts of the trail. The trail maintainers have done a great job in clearing out most of the debris left behind from the ice storms this past winter. It's still pretty early in the season, and I'm sure they'll have the remainder of the stuff cleared away very soon.

Everything I'd read of hiking the north side of Bear Mountain was pretty accurate. It was real steep in some spots and going was slow, but lots of fun. I can only imagine how tough it was with snow & ice covering the rocks. In some spots we saw marks left from crampons on the rocks, long scraping lines.

In several spots along the trail we needed to go around the fallen trees. Most of the damage was found along the north face of the mountain and the base. As we hiked further north, there didn't seem to be as much debris.

Hiking solo for me is very enjoyable, but I was happy that my sweetheart, Beth, wanted to do this overnight trip with me. We had a great time & enjoyed each other's company, at least most of the time. Next trip we do we hope to have a few friends along and, of course, my little buddy Skippy Bones! We missed having him along, but felt it was best to leave him with Beth's dad & his Pug, Zoe.

As we descended Bear Mountain & headed north on the AT, we turned at the junction where it meets with Paradise Lane. From there, another couple miles or so back to the Rte 41 parking lot. We met 3 other hikers  & a dog named Simon who were on their way up to Bear Mountain, talked about our hike & unexpected cooler weather of the day. We reached our car just after 1:30 pm and headed home. Now we're looking forward to the next hike!

~Till next time, The Pilgrim.

Blue Hills Skyline Trail

Saturday, March 28th I hiked across the Blue Hills Reservation via the Skyline Trail. My sweetheart, Beth, along with Skippy Bones, our Toy Fox Terrier, & a couple other friends decided to take advantage of the proposed nicest day of the weekend, at least according to the forecast. Wouldn't ya know it, the meteorologists were right on; Saturday was a great day for hiking, sunny & in the 50s, and Sunday was a little cooler and rained most of the day. The hike was filled with good climbs, great views & lots of interaction with other people out for a day hike. Skippy also met some new buddies along the trail. 

Since the Skyline Trail isn't a loop but in a linear direction, we took two cars. The first car, being the destination car, was parked at the Shea Ice Skating Rink in Quincy. The four of us then drove to Canton and parked in a lot off of Rte. 138.  Looking at the map above, about 1 1/2 inches from the left side, the western section, there's a small green dot. That was our starting point. On the far east (right side) of the reservation is a red dot, our ending position. From one end to the other of the Skyline Trail is about 9 miles, though we skipped a small portion to the west of Rte. 138, our starting point, which accounts for another mile or so. So all in all, we hiked about 8 miles that day. Good time!

If you've never hiked any part of Blue Hills before, & you live within an hour's drive, you should check it out. On the last mile or so of our trip, we came across some rock climbers on Rattlesnake Hill. Each year, the Boston Chapter of the AMC hosts The Beginner Rock Climbing Program. They happened to be there that same day, so we stopped for a few minutes & watched. I've never done any climbing, but am seriously interested in doing it. Maybe this time next year Beth & I will set aside the time to do it.

This hill was the last good climb on the day, with the back side being a good cool down period, as we moved through the St. Moritz Ponds area. Somewhere near Rattlesnake Hill a few years back, Skippy & I came across a couple Timber Rattlesnakes that were mating. That was awesome! The month was August and, from what I've read, is the time when they do mate. Skip had scared them off into a bush just as I was about to snap off a couple great pics. But I moved slowly, further into the bushes and still managed to get some fairly nice pics of the 2 snakes. One was very dark, maybe even black colored, and about 4 feet long. The other was smaller, 2 1/2 - 3 feet in length, and tan & yellow. Timber Rattlers come in a wide range of colors, and along with the Copperhead, are the only poisonous snakes found in Massachusetts.

Check out these other links for Blue Hills info, as well as some regarding Timber Rattlesnakes & Copperheads.

www.timberrattlesnake.net

www.copperheadsnake.net

www.umass.edu/nrec/snake_pit/

www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/metroboston/blue.htm

~The Pilgrim.

Triple M Trail

The Metacomet-Monadnock-Mattabesett Trail system, otherwise known as the MMM Trail or Triple M Trail, is now just a signature away from becoming the first trail in 25 years to be accepted as one of the National Scenic Trails in America. President Obama will be the last to sign off on this trail protection bill.

On March 25th, 2009, legislation to adopt the trail as the 9th scenic trail in the country was passed by the House Of Representatives as part of a package of environment and land protection bills. Chris Dodd, Democrat Senator from CT, along with fellow Democrat Congressman Chris Murphy, were both instrumental in pushing for the Triple M Trail's inclusion as a National Scenic Trail. "The MMM Trail provides countless hours of recreation and relaxation to the people of Connecticut," spoke Dodd. "Today, we move one step closer to gaining access to federal resources for the protection and preservation of this precious national treasure." Congressman Murphy also added his thoughts, "This bill will give the trail access to grants and resources to help in its maintenance and preservation, all while maintaining its cooperatively-managed character."

The bill, known as the New England National Scenic Trail Designation Act, was included in a collection of more than 160 public lands bills, also known as the Omnibus Public Land Management Act. The bills which pass will be protected "against increasing pressures from residential subdivision growth," as quoted on Senator Dodd's website.

The Triple M Trail consists of the Metacomet & Mattabesett Trails in Connecticut & the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail in Massachusetts. Depending on the source you get your info from, the entire trail is noted as being anywhere from 190-220 miles long. The length known for each of the trails follows:

• Metacomet Trail.......................51 miles.
• Mattabesett Trail......................50 miles.
• Metacomet-Monadnock Trail...114 miles.

At any rate, this is wonderful news to all who've enjoyed hiking any part of these trails in the past. Yet, as with any bill that receives support, there remain others who aren't happy with the legislation. This following excerpt is from the recorder.com:

"But Cinda H. Jones, president of Amherst-based Cowls Sawmill and Land Co., called the measure "a colossal waste of taxpayer money" and said that rather than a boon, attracting hikers to the trail system would prove "an economic drain" to towns that might be called on to provide rescue services."

Apparently, 8 of the 100 miles of the MMM Trail in Massachusetts are on Cowls' land. Even with moving the trail eastward onto Quabbin Reservoir property, avoiding Cowls' property, Jones argues that the connecting trails on her property are still affected and barr Cowls from future development.

My argument for Ms. Jones is this: do a study of the towns through which a major trail either runs or is in close proximity to, and you'll find that there's an economic boost to those towns from the hikers who hike those trails. When hikers stop to visit these towns, they stop & spend money for resupply or to stay a day or two. They put money into the town. That needs to be weighed against the costs which have been used in past rescue operations. It's not surprising to me that someone who's the president of a sawmill & land company, and one more interested in depleting our trees & vanishing landscapes, would oppose this legislation for protecting the trail.

Nice job on the parts of every politician, journalist, trail-builder, trail-maintainer, hiker & everyone who's been a supporter of this bill being passed! Yes, we need more trails protected from encroachment of builders & corporate America. Congrats to all who've had a hand in this effort! Here's a short clip of Rep. Murphy speaking on the Triple M Trail.

For more info regarding the Triple M Trail & other sources, check out the links below.

http://www.nps.gov/

http://walkct.org/

~The Pilgrim.