To: Stuff Stuff~~~ AND More Stuff
Miles today: 0.0

Continuing with the Gear ~~~Shoes ¢ I am walking with Vasque Breeze Low Trail shoes. Vasque has been very, very good to my feet. For whatever reason Vasque boots and shoes fit well with my foot type and I cannot stress enough to other hikers that if you come across a boot or shoe that works well with you, STAY with that COMPANY. Breeze Low has no Goretex. The reason is because, as many of you know, there is NOOOOO such thing as completely waterproof. I wanted a light weight shoe that would dry out quicker than a boot once it did get wet, which will be at least half of the hike. I know, I know, you people who worship the Goretex Gods are ready to convert me, but waste not your time. Trail shoes are also easier to break in, not that I would ever dump my Vasque boots. $109.95   1 lb. 13.4 ounces I also broke down and bought a pair of Crocs, which I have always thought were the ugliest shoes ever created (that is until Alexander McQueen came along). I have sat on a bench at Disney and watched entire families walk by in Crocs and I have to say, comfort beats out ugly. Crocs are actually quite comfortable and I bought the Mary Jane style which has an extra shoe loop to keep them on my feet when I ford the creeks and streams and they are not quite as ugly as the originals. Yes, it is a Carrie Bradshaw kind of thing. And they¢re in Mango color, too ! Bright AND Ugly.$15.50   15.5 ouncesWater ¢ Bottle vs Bag. Okay, I have never used a hydration system other than the simple bottle. I like using bottles, not only because I know exactly how much water I have, but I also use the drink mixes to add the electrolytes and flavor. That said, I bought a Platypus 2 liter bag, filled it, put it in the ¢special pouch¢ in my backpack ~~~ and hated it. I hate that the water is buried, I hate that it takes up a lot of room in my pack, I hate the hose looping all over the place. Hate it. So, I have moved it to one of my side pockets, attached the hose along my strap and I¢ll let you know tomorrow after my hike this afternoon. I will also have one bottle as a back up, possibly two to use the water system that goes with my Hennessey Hammock. I can¢t use Gatorade bottles because they don¢t fit in my side pockets. Nalgene bottles weigh a little more; I don¢t know. This is one of those issues that I will work out once I hit the trail. It may come that the Platypus will be a total bust and I¢ll use bottles galore.Platypus Bottle $19.95Platypus 2 liter filled   4 lbs 3 ouncesAquafina bottle filled   1 lb 5.6 ounces   I will be using Aqua Mira as opposed to the Steripen I wanted to buy. Well, I saved about a hundred bucks. Don¢t have to worry about batteries. Aqua Mira is readily available. And if I drop the bottle, they don¢t stop working, unlike the several stories I have read about the Steripen. Using a bandana to strain the water first, it is a lightweight, foolproof system. I will carry an extra Ziploc bag to use as a carry bag, although I have seen a non lubricated condom used as a perfectly good carrier of about one gallon of water. Remember; NON lubricating and size does matter (if you want to carry more water, you perv).Side Pocket on my pack ¢ Will hold the Aqua Mira, small tube of sunscreen and a whistle/compass/temperature ensemble, an item that Lesser Weasel said to toss. I did in front of him and then decided to carry it anyway. Okay, it weighs all of 1 ounce BUT it will also provide loads of fun in realizing just how friggin cold it will be in the mornings, keep me from heading the wrong direction and will signal my rescue unit when I realize that I¢m in over my head. " I ¢ think it¢s a keeper.Other Side Pocket ¢ The Poopy Pocket. This will hold all of my necessary¢s for my elimination system; meaning, how to pee and poo. Yes I have the Puril, yes I have the small roll of toilet paper with the cardboard roll out and taped on the outside so I only have to pull TP from the middle and yes I have one quarter of a bandana, yellow, actually, to remind me just where it¢s been, yes it¢s all in a Ziploc bag and no I will not be burying any TP (the last thing I EVER want to see is a minefield of waving TP). My main item, and one that I have not read about in any trail journal, is my Pstyle urination cup for women. It is a simple plastic cup that is curved outward and allows me to pee without removing my pants, which I believe is of great value in the woods. Not only will you never to see my white Irish bum shining between the trees, this cup allows me to pee without removing my pack and exposing this huge white target for every biting insect within 100 yards. I have used a Pstyle when I¢ve traveled overseas (trust me there are bathrooms across the globe that you simply touch nothing, absolutely nothing and this allows me to, quite simply, to pee like a man). Do the duty, rinse out with a little water and good to go.Fuel bottle ¢ It's a Sobe Life Water Bottle, a little thicker than the average water bottle (Fugi Apple Pear, quite deelish) with duct tape around it and denatured alcohol in a Ziploc bag. Okay, okay ~~~~ I actually bought a Jetboil because most of my meals are FBC, freezer bag cooking, and all I need is hot water for tea and bag cooking as opposed to sitting there and stirring my little kettle pot. If I were homeless and living in my truck, you betcha I would buy the Jetboil. The weight, however, is way more than what I wanted to tote. So I returned it. Saved $100.Fuel bottle will be in a side stretch pocket next to the extra water bottle. No, I won¢t get the two mixed up.Medical ¢ Very small water proof stuff sack in blue so that I can immediately grab it when I need it. It was reduced by half when I worked with Lesser Weasel, which means that my fears were all about injury and illness. I can live with a lot of discomfort, having raised two teenage girls to adulthood (and we won¢t even get into the husbands). Being wet, cold, hungry or hot doesn¢t worry me much. Living in Florida, I believe that the heat and humidity will be no problem for me. I have experienced several trips to Belize and Guatemala as part of a mission group from my brother¢s church and we were furiously overheated. What you do is have a ¢Belize shower¢ which is shaking as much baby powder down the front of your shirt without looking like you¢re a drug runner. Going without food will not hurt me in the least (there are easily 30 extra pounds that I will be losing on the trail). However, I am fearful about Lyme disease and twisting an ankle. But you know what? All the worry in the world will not change the situation. So in this instance, I relinquished medical control to Weasel and tossed everything I thought I would need and kept the following:1 Teflo Pad6 regular band aids7 Dr. Scholl¢s Blister Pads6 anti-diarrheal tablets1 Gold Bond Medical Wipe1 Go Ready Deet Insect RepellentIvarest Poison Ivy CreamLightweight mirror with a curved needle taped to the backIbuprofenWeighs 7 ouncesWith the exception of the poison ivy cream, which can also be used for bug bites, the deet and of course, the ibuprofen, I don¢t expect to use the rest of the medical kit.   My trail shoes are broken in and you won¢t be catching me drinking untreated water. But, for 7 ounces, I am willing to carry the basics and can always replenish. As I travel north, I may even eliminate what I don¢t use just to save those ounces and grams. I thought of adding a small airline bottle of whiskey (for medicinal purposes only). Crown Royal, anyone ??!?