Date: 2016-12-14
From: salisbury

To: Home
Miles today: 0.0

Gear ReviewOn buying used equipment,¢¦.DON¢T DO IT! I wish I had just bought the new stuff. 2,000 miles is no place for used stuff. I replaced quite a bit.I am cold natured. As I¢ve gotten older I¢ve had a tough time with handling cold throughout the day and night. Buffalo never had the same problem. Some things may have worked for most people but for me they didn¢t. Go Lite Quest 65 ¢ Didn¢t make it through the Whites. It tore up in the Mahoosic Notch from abrasion. The stitching was coming out everywhere. The torso adjustment kept on coming loose too. Drove me nuts If anybody wants it I left it at the AT Barn in Gorham.Osprey Atomic 60- This is an ok pack. I was in a pinch so I bought this in NH. This pack also had a torso adjustment. But this one actually worked. It also made the pack heavier. The hip belt cut me pretty good when the pack got many days of re-supply. In the end it was ok but I¢d rather have the ULA that Buffalo had. Marmot Never Summer-0 bag- An epic fail. It got wet on top several times. I needed it and it failed. When I changed back to the 20 degree bag it wasn¢t enough. Brrr.Western Mountaineering Alpinlite-20 Sleeping bag- It was used and I never knew if it had all the down it needed nor if it had been cleaned. I got cold when the temps got into the 20¢s. I froze when it got colder than 20 even with much clothing on.Kelty Never Cosmic 20- Worked for me from ME to VA (June-October) . In Maine and the Whites it got into the 40¢s and I stayed warm. This bag worked for me and I switched up because thought I needed too. It was too small for me too.Sea to Summit Thermo Reactor- I used this liner the whole way. Don¢t know think it helped me stay warm but worked great as a sheet/liner.Sea to Summit Pillow- Worked great. Bad neck due to wrestling injury as a kid made it a necessity. Merril Moab boots- I had the worst blisters in Maine I¢ve ever had in my life. The soles on these boots are pretty soft. The rocks beat up my feet. Never had a problem after I switched to Vasques.Vasque Breeze GTX Boots- Very comfortable and a known commodity to me. I could put them on right out of the box. They don¢t hold up though. I had the soles on 4 pairs of boots chip off on some of the rockier sections. Pennsylvania ate one pair up alone. Around Dragons Tooth a pair less than a week old had a large section fall tear off of the sole.Komperdell Poles- Were broken by the time I reached Rangely. Bought a set of Leki¢s and broke one within a week because I fell quite a bit. Made the finish with one of my older Leki¢s from the 90¢s and one of the new ones.Stove- Started with Pocket Rockets and finished with an MSR International gas stove. We could cook/simmer Pasta Sides better to maintain our personal weights. I lost 30 pounds and was far from fat when I left.Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 2- was an ok tent. Very light and held up for the most part. My only complaint was it didn't vent very well. It rained in my tent several times especially when camped near a body of water. Some of the poles got cracked but I fixed them quick with tape and wire ties. In the end I could find protection from the rain when I needed too. I used my tent much more than using shelters. Montbell UL Down Jacket- The only thing I'm real happy about. It kept me warm when I needed it. I only used it once during the day so that I wouldn'tget overheated.I'll have more to go over. Got to get back to work.