Hiking Terminology 101

Wednesday, January 18th, 2012

Anyone who has taken up a hobby on more than a semi-regular basis knows that with each hobby or endeavor, there are typically certain words that develop known only to the community devoted to that hobby. Hiking is no different, and if you want to become a truly avid hiker, you’re going to have to speak the language. Don’t worry; this isn’t like learning Spanish. It simply means picking up some basic hiking terms, some of which are listed here.

• Day Packs: Day packs are like smaller versions of backpacks that you’ll use for a common hiking jaunt, packing only what you need for a day’s worth. Backpacks are more suitable for more long-distance hikes and for the different activity of backpacking.
• “From the Skin Out” or FSO Weight: As the title suggests, “from the skin out” refers to everything you’re carrying with you that you weren’t born with. In other words, FSO weight includes everything you’re carrying, from your sunglasses and clothes to your backpack and hiking stick.
• Packweight: Different from “From the skin out” weight, the packweight refers to the actual backpack you’re carrying itself. Don’t include food and water in this weight: simply refer to the actual weight of your backpack.
• Pronation/supination: Both of these refer to the angle at which your foot hits the ground. Pronation refers to rotating your foot inward; supination refers to rotating your foot outward. These are also popular terms with runners, who need to make sure that their form is ideal for the pounding that their feet will take. As you can imagine, this is also important for hikers.
• Guiding stars: Guiding starts are ways that help you find your direction at night; they’re different in the northern and southern hemispheres. If you’re in the northern hemisphere, you’ll look for the North Star; if you’re in the southern hemisphere, try to find the Southern Cross.
• Cairn: A formation of rocks or simply a pile of rocks that helps indicate the direction of the trail. Needless to say, keeping on your trail is of vital importance to a hiker that doesn’t want to get lost.

These terms simply work as some “basic” hiking terminology: if you want to learn more, simply remain exposed to the hiking community and you’ll pick up more advanced terms. Don’t be embarrassed to ask another hiker what a term might refer to; after all, we all had to learn them at some point or another.

Things to Remember When Going Camping

Tuesday, December 20th, 2011

Ever gotten all the way out to your campsite, only to forget that one essential item?  Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Whether you’re going out for a week long hike or just overnight, the last thing you want to do is get to the camp site and discover that you’re missing that one vital element. This guide will give you a basic list of the items you’ll need to remember in order to make your trip a success.

* Bring the right shelter. Regardless of what kind of camping you’re planning on doing, a proper shelter is will make the difference between a good trip and bad one. Shelters can vary from a simple tarp and rope affair to sophisticated high tech tents. You must pick a tent based on your needs for the trip. Choose one that’s both large enough and sturdy enough.

* Navigational aides. Who wants to get lost when you’re out there to enjoy yourself? There are all sorts of fun technological gadgets to help you find your way on the trip; however, make sure such a device will work where you’ll be traveling. While these gadgets may be useful, if you’re going to be hiking, you may want to have a backup map, compass, and someone familiar with their use.

* Provisions. Rations come in all shapes and sizes, but make sure you keep a couple things in mind when packing them. First, confirm that you’re carrying enough water for the duration of your trip. Second, if you must carry everything in backpacks, make sure not to weigh yourself down with unnecessary luxuries. If, however, you’re just out for a fun time overnight then by all means pack those coolers full.

While camping can be both fun and arduous, this guide will help you make sure your trip is enjoyable. Make sure to keep in mind the kind of weather you’ll encounter, how long your excursion will be, and how you’ll go about navigating. Hopefully, with the help of this basic list, you will make your trip one to remember, not one to forget.

Photo credits: El Dav

How to Save Money on Camping

Monday, December 12th, 2011

In these difficult economic conditions across the world, it’s not always easy to consider luxuries like camping trips and vacations as “essentials.” However, if we’re going to maintain our sanity during these times, we’ll have to keep living our lives and find ways to scrimp, save, and still pull off an adventurous, fun lifestyle.

That’s why this article will explain how to save money on camping, allowing you to take a quick, easy, fun camping trip for less money then you’ve been spending in the past. Let’s take a look at how this is done.

To save money on your camping trip, start in your house.

Your house? Absolutely – before you even start spending money for equipment and camping gear, you need to look in your garage, basement, and attic to see what you’ve already got. No sense in buying a new tent if you already have a perfect one downstairs, waiting to be used.

Second, don’t go to the store to buy camping gear without a search online.

Online stores like Amazon and eBay might have what you need at lower prices, especially if you’re buying used equipment. If you don’t have an Amazon or eBay account, don’t worry – it won’t take long to set up and you can be saving in no time! Use the internet to find cheap items you can buy that you didn’t find around your house.

Third, bring your own food and be ready to cook it.

Buying bulk items like hot dogs and buns will be much cheaper than taking your family out to eat, and roasting wieners over the fire makes the process fun. Just make sure that you’re ready for your food: pack up a cooler with ice to keep your meats cold and fresh and you’ll be set for the weekend. You can even cook popcorn over your fire, which makes a great snack and is incredibly easy to carry.

Looking at these tips, you have a great starting point for saving money during your next camping trip. There are dozens of other ways to save money, so the rest will depend on you: if you adequately plan and prepare for your camping trip, you’ll find that saving money is easy, as long as you hold a watchful eye on every purchase and ask yourself “can I save money doing this a different way?”

Photo Credits: mckaysavage

Hiking: Should You Bring a Light Backpack or a Heavy Backpack?

Wednesday, December 7th, 2011

When someone is going for a hike, they inevitably run into a decision to make: should they pack heavy and be sure they have plenty of supplies, or should they strip down to the minimum and carry a lighter load? It doesn’t take much thought to imagine that the heavier your bag is, the more supplies you’ll want to keep (such as food and water to remain hydrated and fueled). Is either strategy better than the other one? Let’s take a closer look.

Bringing a heavier bag will sometimes be necessary. If you’re going on a long hike, there are certain supplies you’ll need that you wouldn’t carry on a short hike. If you’re going on a weekend backpacking trip through the hills, you’ll want to carry supplies for camping at night, as well. If you’re just going for a quick jaunt up the hiking trail, you’ll only need a first aid kit, and some food and water.

General wisdom amongst minimalists who like light backpacks suggests that the lighter your load is, the less you’ll need to carry. To consider the alternative of wearing a heavy backpack, we’ll have to consider the benefits that adding extra supplies might carry with it.

Ultimately, the things you bring in your backpack should either be necessary for your survival - first-aid, food, water, etc. - or should make your life easier in some way. This brings us to the idea of technology.

Some gadgets, such as GPS navigation devices, can really make your life easier. However, they aren’t always totally necessary. The decision ultimately comes down to enjoying the convenience of a heavier load against depending on yourself with a smaller amount of supplies.

It’s recommended that you bring everything you need to keep safe, and work to keep it as simple and light as possible. For example, a GPS watch is easy to carry. Make a list of all of the things you’ll want to bring hiking, and then narrow it down to the bare necessities, or the excellent conveniences that don’t add too much weight to your load.

Ultimately, experience and skill will help determine how little you’ll be able to carry. Even if you want a very light load to carry, try going on a brief hike to see what kind of supplies are and aren’t necessary. Good hiking starts with you.

Photo Credits: rebonnett

Deuter Futura 28 Reviewed

Friday, December 2nd, 2011

Huh? What’s a Deuter Futura 28? And how will it help me hike?

Those are better questions than you realize: the Deuter Futura 28 is a hiking backpack built for use all over the world – from urbanites to travelers to, especially, outdoor warriors – and is designed for maximum utility and durability.

Hikers know the importance of carrying a durable and comfortable backpack. With an uncomfortable backpack, hiking uphill ceases to be an adventure and starts becoming an excruciating chore. No one wants that. Hiking is about being outdoors, seeking adventure, and enjoying yourself. The Deuter Futura 28, one of the most comfort Aircomfort hiking backpacks, is built around this purpose.

How? A lightweight steel frame is built into the backpack, which takes the weight off of your back and shifts it. This helps you balance the weight better with your hips, promoting natural walking motion and taking pressure off of your back. Experienced hikers know the importance of relieving back pressure, and the steel frame built into the Deuter Futura 28 promotes proper weight balance.

Additionally, the pack itself is lightweight – only about 2 pounds. With built-in hippads to help cushion the load on your hips as well as shoulder straps to ease and balance the load, it’s as close you can get with a backpack to feeling like you’re not carrying a load whatsoever.

And what kind of load can you carry? Try 1700 cubic inches, absolutely maximized space that ensures you’ll be able to travel as well as you want without unnecessary stress or baggage.

You’ll find a rain jacket to help protect water-sensitive items, protecting them from the rain and any unforeseen “moisture spots” along the way. This makes the Deuter Futura 28 also a capable backpack for camping.

A reservoir pocket and drinking tube connected to the backpack can help you hydrate yourself on-the-go, helping improve your hiking time and focusing on the journey.

What features could be improved? The hydration system is sold separately, so this is not totally an all-in-one feature backpack. Additionally, even though a built-in rainfly helps protect baggage from getting wet, the entire backpack itself is not waterproof.

Those are the flaws, and they are far outweighed by a premier hiking backpack that emphasizes performance and bag space. For the hiker that looks to be hiking often – or even for the beginner that just wants to take a load off of their back – this is the type of backpack that will help support the weight you carry as you travel uphill.