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Austin Sierra Club Camper's Guide... section two...camping comforts |
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This part of the website was written especially for those campers who are new to the game and would like a few helpful hints about how to make sure their early camping experiences are not disasters. Consequently,
the site is divided into three sections: HIKING
STICKS 3. SECRETS OF THE WOODS - Stuff that even an experienced camper might not know.
While
we are on the subject of footwear, let's talk foot care. Intensive
hiking of the sort we do on our trips puts a lot of stress on your
feet and some up-front preparation before the trip can pay off in
avoiding grief out in the woods. First, spend some time caring for
your feet before you leave. Guys especially are careless about checking
for long toenails and ragged cuticles before they leave on a trip.
That carelessness can result in preventable discomfort and even
injury. Take some time to examine your feet carefully and trim back
any long toenails and ragged cuticles. Cuticle cream is also useful
in cleaning up ragged cuticles. In case you are inclined to think
that this is a bit fancy for preparing for a camping trip, consider
that fact that at high, dry elevations your feet, like the rest
of you, dry out and ragged cuticles can become troublesome burrs
that can lead to cuticle cracks and infections. A little extra foot
care before you start can head these problems off. It is also wise to bring shower shoes of some kind (see above) and medicated foot powder (if you are concerned about packing light, powder your socks before your pack them and leave the powder tin at home). When showers are available, they are often frequented by Boy Scouts and you know what kind of vermin and fungi they carry around with them.
Some hikers like the flexibility of a 'platypus' bladder (see above right) because it holds over 2 liters and folds away when empty. If you put it in your pack, make sure the top is tightly closed. It is annoying and dangerous to discover that your 'watertight' water bottle leaked all over your light jacket and rain gear and you don't have nearly as much water as you thought you did.
 Tents
- Once you have 'outgrown' your first tent you will have a better
idea of what you want in your next one. When you move up, consider
vestibule space. Experienced campers like to have a real
space between their tent proper and the end of the rain fly. The larger
the vestibule, the more equipment you can stow there - like your day
pack and your muddy boots and the soggy shirt or wet swim suit that
you don't want in the tent with you but which you also don't want
lying around outside on the ground. Lots of campers seek out tents
with lots of mesh (like the example above right) in order
to take advantage of every possible breeze and in order to view the
stars at night. For others, maximum headroom is a must, giving
the camper the luxury of being able to stand and dress inside the
tent before going out to face the day. Again, plan on visiting a good
camping store and plan on paying over $200 for a good tent. Check
the action of the zippers - they are usually the first thing to go
on a cheap tent - and make sure you can stretch out inside without
touching the walls of the tent anywhere. In a heavy rain, even the
best tent will collect condensation at the points where you or your
equipment touches the inside tent wall, so make sure you can sleep
comfortably without touching any of the tent walls. Most good tents
have gear lofts (net hammocks for small, loose gear and pocket
stuff, like keys.) Make sure the loft is positioned so that it can
be reached easily in the night ("What the hell is gnawing on
the zipper? Where is my little flashlight?") but so that it is
not a hazard to getting out of the tent in the morning. If you know
what you want in a tent and can forego actual inspection and tire-kicking,
you can get some very good bargains at mail-order camping sites like
Campmor.com
and Sierra Trading Post
 Duffel
Bags - Now
that you are starting to accumulate gear, you need to start thinking
about how to transport it efficiently, safely and well. There are
lots of very fancy gear containers that you can buy that afford lots
of nice amenities - like side pockets, waterproofing, secret compartments,
special clip rings, Buck Rogers decoder ring holders, etc. What I
would recommend is a plain old olive drab heavy canvas army-type duffel
bag. You can cram an amazing amount of gear in them and they take
a surprising amount of abuse. They are also cheap. I much prefer the
side-zipping style that looks like a huge olive drab sausage with
a zipper. Write your name on it with a felt tip pen and you have the
perfect gear pack. All the good ones have D-rings sewn at each end
of the zipper (make sure the zipper is big and heavy - this is where
you will have problems first, especially if you over-pack). Buy a
set of small, inexpensive combination locks (at Brookshires or Academy)
and use one of them to secure the end of the zipper to the D-ring
and your duffel will not work open on the plane and cannot be opened
quickly or easily by thieves. (Buy the TSA-approved combination locks
to avoid having them cut off by security at the airport) The plain
olive drab army-looking appearance of the duffel is also a deterrent
to theft. Thieves will jimmy open the expensive Samsonite case long
before they will mess with slicing open something that looks like
it contains some dog-face's dirty underwear.  Fishing
- While very few of our trips are really geared to accommodate the
fisherperson, fishing is an option on several trips - the San Juan,
Colorado trip, the Olympic Peninsula trip and the Sawtooth Mountains
trip all afford the opportunity to opt out of hiking for a day or
so and spend the day on a trout stream. If you plan to exercise this
option, be sure to let the trip leaders know enough in advance so
that they can make adequate plans to drop you at the right place and
pick you up later, if that is necessary. Also study the event schedule
for the trip carefully and plan ahead so you can purchase a license
for the required number of days. Colorado, Washington and Idaho all
have out-of-state permits, normally for 1-day, 3-day and 1-week periods.
Ideally, you should plan your fishing days well in advance and be
prepared to purchase a license for the desired day(s) as soon as you
arrive in the area. Again, let the trip leaders know so that you can
plan your license purchase to coincide with a trip into town for groceries,
ice or other necessities. Don't assume that you will be able to make
a special trip into town to buy a license at the last minute since
the leaders have other priorities to worry about and other uses for
the vehicles. Leave your favorite rod and reel at home unless you
have a good traveling tube for the rod. Your best bet is a multi-part
folding rod and reel combination that comes apart in sections and
packs easily and compactly. Diawa makes an excellent kit with a plastic
carry case and room for some extra flies and lures, but I have not
seen the kit in stores for several years now, so I don't know if they
make them any more. Check the local fishing regulations carefully
- most fishing areas in the West don't allow the use of live bait,
for example, and be aware of and observe all applicable rules. Hunting - is not permitted on any of the Austin Sierra Club trips. Leave all firearms at home. |
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Sierra
Club¨ and "Explore, Enjoy and Protect the Planet"¨ are
registered trademarks of the Sierra Club. Last updated: January 10, 2008 Content © 1999-2002 by the Sierra Club. |
Author:
Chuck Byrd, Austin Sierra Club Outings Leader, Webmaster and ExCom
member. email: 
HIKING
STICKS - Some folks don't like to carry anything in their
hands when they hike. I have a bad knee and I cannot hike without
a good stick. I recommend them highly, but personal experience has
to be your guide here. They take a great deal of weight off your
knees when you are hiking uphill and they allow you to shift your
weight more comfortably when you are coming downhill. They help
balance when you cross logs or rocks and they provide a critical
third support point on water crossings. I have a wooden stick made
of Sassafras wood (it used to smell like root beer) which I use
for dayhikes and car or van trips. Airplanes give you grief over
hiking sticks these days, however (they don't fit well in overhead
bins and some airlines consider them weapons), so I have a telescoping
walking stick that collapses to a length that can be stowed in a
regular canvas duffel bag (also see DUFFEL BAGS) Some of the very
best hiking sticks are Sotol and can be purchased in Big Bend and
other parts of west Texas. They are made from the dried stem of
the Sotol cactus plant and are astonishingly light yet extremely
tough. Hiking sticks are almost required if the ground is muddy,
wet, slippery, icy or otherwise tricky. Mine has saved me from a
bad fall more than once. 
Boots
- If you can make the room, it is always a good idea to bring more
than one pair of boots or at least an alternate pair of footgear
that you can hike in. Rain on a single day of hiking is usually
not a big deal (assuming you have rain gear, which you better have)
and you are not in any danger of hypothermia. Rain on several consecutive
days of hiking (rare, but possible) can be a problem. A second pair
of footgear allows you to leave one pair in the vestibule of your
tent to dry out while you wear the other pair. Having only one pair
means you get to hike in wet boots (not good for either your boots
or your feet). On a long trip where I anticipate some rain, I like
to take two pair of boots and a pair of sturdy sandals. The sandals
can be used for camp shoes (with thick socks if it is cold, without
socks if it is wet) and shower shoes as well. I like the kind with
adjustable straps on the instep as well as the ankle so I can wear
bulky socks if necessary. Teva-style river sandals are OK for this,
but I prefer sturdy leather sandals like you can get at Academy
or on sale. Go with a brand name you trust since the biggest problem
is cheap glue which permits the sole to part from the uppers.
Lots of hikers who go on long day hikes or backpacks invest in ceramic
water filters which permit them to filter the water in mountain
streams and lakes. If you hike much at all, you know that it is
very dangerous to drink untreated water even out of the most pristine-looking
streams or high mountain lakes. Giardia Lamblia, Cryptosporidium,
lead and other contaminants are present in most of the water available
to you on hikes. Water filters and the somewhat nasty-tasting chemical
water treatment pills are basic equipment for anyone who plans on
re-filling a water bottle on the trail.
SUN
SHOWERS - Many of the people who bail on the camping experience
do so because they don't like to get dirty and sweaty and then stay
that way for days at a time. It's a fairly natural reaction for
folks raised in a culture like ours where daily showers are routine
and going to bed grubby is not acceptable. Without getting into
questions of cultural anthropology, suffice it to say that lots
of folks feel more comfortable when they can sluice off a little
of the trail dust. While a large number of state parks and private
campgrounds provide showers, lots of the places that the Austin
Sierra Club visits do not. Very few National Parks or National Recreation
Areas provide showers (although several license private providers
who offer shower and laundry services, usually as coin-op services.)
Because of this, sun showers are a popular item for a lot of campers.
The sun shower is a large (the one shown is a 4-gallon size) plastic
bag that is clear plastic on one side and opaque plastic on the
other side. The inside surface of the bag (the surface facing the
clear plastic side of the bag) is black plastic and is designed
to absorb the heat of the sun. You fill the bag with water in the
morning and leave it on a flat surface like a flat rock or a picnic
table that will be exposed to the sun all day. While you are out
camping, the water in the bag heats up as the black surface absorbs
heat. In the evening, you hang the bag on a pole or tree limb and
use the shower head to rinse off with surprisingly warm water. After
a warm day in desert country, a 4-gallon shower with warm water
is just the thing to take the chill off a cold night and to rinse
away the grime of a long day's hike.