TALL GUY TENT - SoLong 6

Tall people be warned. You may finally have an answer to your needs for a lightweight backpacking tent. Lightheart Gear (http://www.lightheartgear.com/) will soon be introducing the SoLong 6, a tent similar to their well-received Lightheart Tent. The prototype needs a little tweaking, but initally weighs in at 26 ounces. It will be 100" long and 55" wide (tapering to 30" at the foot and head) with 45" of headroom and 8" boxed carbon fiber stays at the corners. For those of you who will be at Trail Days this year in Damascus Virginia, keep an eye out. You can expect the initial run to be in silnylon which I'm guessing (without any basis whatsoever) a price point of about $250. If a cuben version is offered, Judy Gross (the owner) will be more than happy to accept all (or most) of your savings account. She might also offer different silnylon color options which is always a nice touch.

Ultralight....Hiking Stick....er, Stool?

Much like I never thought I'd be writing about an ultralight cot, I never figured I'd be writing about an ultralight stool or hiking stick either either. A stool to weight-conscious backpackers is otherwise a log, rock, or dare I say, good ole Mother Earth...not something you carry.

Well, the folks at StikStool (http://www.stikstool.com/) came up with a fairly ingenious idea which utilizes something that at least a portion of the hiking population already carries - a walking stick.

Personally, I carry trekking poles because I get fatigued fairly easily and they have made a huge difference for me to be able to walk longer and further. They also frequently do double-duty as my tent or tarp supports. However, if you're inclined to merely carry a big stick, well, consider the StikStool.

The stick stool weighs 26 ounces and is 62" in length. The stick portion is made of rigid PVC pipe, perhaps not as sexy as titanium or carbon, but capable of holding up to 350 pounds. When not using it in stick mode, you simply attach the seat, collar, and 4 end caps which create a triangular base configuration. The entire product is $30 and no individual part is more than $4.10 for which replacements are available. I'm not saying I'll be toting one around during my backpacking adventures, just pointing out that it does exist for those of you who enjoy being one of the few bringing a chair.

Ultralight External Frame Backpack

I mentioned LuxuryLite two week's ago as the manufacturer of an ultralight cot. I'd be remissed if I also didn't also mention another way you can drain your wallet.

Luxurylite manufactures a 1.75lb backpack they call the LuxuryLite RadLite Extreme (www.luxurylite.com/radlitepackindex.html). At $600, and a mere fraction of the cost of a new car, you too can be the proud owner of this external frame backpack which boasts stacking chambers of cuben fiber pouches which slide on their highly adjustable aluminum and carbon fiber frame. With a contoured waist belt adjustable from 24-44", the total capacity is 3434 cu/in...or less. Heck, they'll even let you try it for 30-days for free. A $215 non-cuben version is also offered which doesn't include the $75-$85/each storage cylinders.

So once again, if you have money to burn, pick one up! If you have lots of money to burn, feel free to send me one too.

Mountain Laurel Designs UL Tent - Cricket

If you happen to have $295+ to spend, perhaps you might be interested in Mountain Laurel Designs new tent - the Cricket (http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=47&products_id=174). MLD introduced the Cricket at the same time they introduced a new solo Trailstar tarp ($155/10.8oz in silnylon, 7.5 oz or 5.8 oz in two grades of cuben fiber).

The Cricket represents MLD's first move towards a lightweight tent and accomplishes it nicely with a silnylon option coming in at 19.5 oz and a cuben option at 13.5 oz. Both are essentially an outer fly with inner net tent which clips to the fly. This modular design means you can use separately the fly, the inner net tent, or both together. This seems to be the most common way I've seen lightweight tents manufactured lately Add another $150 for cuben. The specs on MLD's site aren't too telling right now as all details haven't been posted, so I can't provide headroom, length, etc. Regardless, owning several MLD products myself, I have no doubt it will be well engineered, well made, and more importantly...a real possiblity for many lightweight backpackers looking for greater protection from the elements.

Ultralight...COT?

I think we'd all agree that sleeping on the ground isn't always fun (no need to chime in hammock campers). Air mattresses help, but are a bit clumsy, heavy, expensive, and prone to popping and maintenance. Ever thought about lugging around a cot? Probably not, well, unless you're car camping. Well, how about an "ultralight cot"?

LuxuryLite (www.luxurylite.com/cotindex.html) has been tweaking their cot design and got it down to a merely 2lbs 12 oz. That's actually less than some air mattresses. For a mere $220 of your hard earned dollars, they will be happy to send you their fairly inventive cot which packs up to be 16"x5". Made in Texas in the good ole USA, it is a full 24" wide (wider than most air mattresses) and 74" long (longer than most air mattresses) with no crossbars to get in the way. It's a simple engineering feat of stretching fabric over patented bows which creates the cot and gets you off the ground.

So if money is really burning a hole in your pocket and you don't mind the extra weight, get one! If you have a lot of extra money, feel free to get me one too.

Two Announcements

I've been tremendously busy this month and was unable to post despite the fact that there are quite a few pieces of gear I wanted to mention and even a couple MYOG projects. Nonetheless, below are two announcements I promised the owners I would distribute. I am not affiliated with either and cannot offer any insight to them. To be clear, I don't want to be the sounding board for most announcements other than my own, but both of these had merits and I elected to pass them along.

ANNOUNCEMENT #1

• Trail Dames Annual Trail Summit Conference
• June 24-26, 2011
• Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg VA (USA)
• Register at http://www.traildames.com/ (PayPal is accepted for the $89 conference costs and rooms can be reserved through university housing which range from $89 to $110)

Trail Dames is a group of colorful women backpackers with a wide range of skills and experience in both backpacking and life. This conference, however, is open to everyone (males/females/married/singles, etc.).

The conference will include a presentation featuring Jan Benshop (aka: Dutch Treat) who is well known in hiking circles for his intelligent lyrics and tuneful, finger-style guitar. There will also be workshop lectures regarding: wildflowers on the trail, trailside cooking, lightweight backpacking, wilderness first aid, and slide shows on hiking the Incan Trail, hiking in New Zealand, and Thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail. There will also be sunrise Yoga each morning and an Awards Banquet. The only activity where guys will be off limits is a belly dancing class.

ANNOUNCEMENT #2

• www.bestbackpackingreviews.com

Are you looking for gear reviews from legitimate users which aren't biased with the sales pitch and cover all kinds of gear? If so, check out http://www.bestbackpackingreviews.com/.

The idea behind the site is to create a community atmosphere where real users of gear can give their honest opinion so people like you and I don't need to waste endless amounts of time and money trying to find gear that suits our needs. Like any other endeavor where a rating system is utilized, the more people who participate the more likely the ratings will be accurate.

When Good Enough....Is Good Enough

Backpackers of any experience eventually learn not to add something to their pack unless it legitimately contributes to the performance of their gear, comfort on the trail, safety, or personal pleasure. This sentiment has not stopped gear manufacturers from doing their best to market new gear in such a way that it sure feels like it is a must-have product. Whether printed media, blog reviews, or trips to my local gear shop, it's not uncommon for me to stare longingly at a product that claims to be the answer to any problem I may have. In 90% of those cases, my money stays in my pocket.

Case in point is a product called a ZEM Bootie (http://www.zemgear.com/). It is the black shoe in the picture. The manufacturer is trying to take advantage of the lightweight shoe/shoeless market similar to the Vibram Five Fingers. As someone with absolutely terrible feet, going shoeless in most cases just isn't an option. So when it comes to a water crossing, I'd prefer to have a dedicated "water shoe" as going barefoot is just about as undesirable as sloshing around in my hiking shoes while evaluating the true test of drying efficiency.

I thought I'd give the ZEM Booties a shot both to serve as a water shoe and potentially as a lightweight slipper of sorts which I might be able to use in hotels while traveling. Oddly enough, a pair of size 14 slippers fills up a travel bag nearly instantly making bringing any kind of slipper not an option. Well, the ZEM Bootie arrived at my doorstep for a healthy $36.80 in a size XXL which is claimed to fit a size 13-14 foot. It is essentially a neoprene upper sewn directly to a very thin sole similar to the consistency of a flip-flop.

For backpacking and water crossings, the ZEM Bootie was intended to replace a product I've talked about before, my Sprint Aquatics Mesh shoe (www.sprintaquatics.com/prodinfo.asp?number=901). The only reason for the considered replacement was because I felt the ZEM Bootie would last longer and be more comfortable despite a considerable weight difference (54 g vs. 155 g). Both, very light. Truth be told, I actually love my Sprint Aquatics Mesh shoe. For $3.99 and 54 grams, it's really tough to hate that kind of investment. I've used it in several water crossing situations and they've been perfect, well, perfect on the bottom of my feet as otherwise there is no top support to protect from something like rolling rocks.

So will I make the switch? Actually, no. The ZEM Booties are constructed better and will last longer, but aside from comfort, there is no real great gain. The material on the bottom arguably isn't as robust and the fact that the upper is sewn around the sole makes it susceptible to debris and all kinds of abrasion at the seams. The cut of it is a little goofy too with the sole being too thin and the length of the toe box being way too long. I must admit though, overall they are more comfortable than the Sprint Aquatics both due to the materials and the fact that the Spring Aquatics has a very tight elastic cuff around the ankle and barely fits my foot. Being that my regular trail runners are plenty comfortable in camp, I really have no use for a water shoe that is anything more than the absolute minimum I need.

This is a great example of trying to upgrade gear for no real gain and a process of constant evaluation for me.

Ode to Finland!

Backpacking and nearly anything outdoors is a hobby of mine, one which quite literally keeps me sane from otherwise long work weeks and stresses of life that would otherwise likely swallow me whole. Because it is a hobby, it means I have limited time to devote to it. For the time I do have, I strive to use my time wisely.

One of the ways I supplement my interest is through online resources such as blogs or backpacking forums. I'm always very appreciative when I stumble across a site that brings with it clarity of thought, conciseness of language, a sense of humor, and content consisting of original thought. It is this assessment that led me to be a regular lurker to Hiking In Finland (http://www.hikinginfinland.com/) run by Hendrik Morkel, a self-described entrepreneur of an environmental management consulting company. Aside from his top notch website with the features I already mentioned, he supplements his content with excellent pictures, trip reports, and comments on first-hand gear choices which I personally appreciate. And let's face it, the guy can grow an impressive beard. Hendrik must be on to something considering Forbes magazine rated Finland just behind Norway and Denmark as the "World's Happiest Countries".

Late in 2010, Hendrik was kind enough to offer up a couple of Kupilka cups to his readers. The Kupilka, to my understanding, is a mainstay in the pack of many bearded guys living in Finland. I personally love these kinds of traditions for many reasons. I think the world scoots along at a pace which often leaves many unable to reflect on the past and appreciate the present. Much of life has become disposable and each generation seems to push further and further away from fundamental ethical boundaries and the practices of their ancestors. In some cases this is necessary and welcomed, in others - it's a shame. Aside from the inherent functionality, carrying the Kupilka expresses a nice nostalgic and respectful sentiment while perhaps introspectively acknowledging the simplicity of nature and those that came before us.

Much to the surprise of someone who quite literally has never "won" anything (me), Hendrik informed me that I had won one of the Kupilka cups. Within a few weeks, sure enough it was on my doorstep complete with a Finnish postcard, Swedish hot chocolate, and a peppermint liqueur made in Finland. In as much as I appreciate the generosity to ship something like this across the pond, I more greatly appreciate the sentiment that came with it and the education of the cup, the culture, and the tradition.

So publicly - thanks Hendrik! I used the Kupilka for the first time in a late December snow. Not being a regular snow camper nor one to bring anything other than a single cooking cup, it was quite welcoming to have a secondary cup which enabled me to forgo the use of freezer bags to scoop my meal. About 10pm that night, shortly before bed, I raised the Kupilka in a north easternly direction to pay homage to a good man, with a good blog, in an intriguing country.

Visit Hendrik at http://www.hikinginfinland.com/. Thanks Hendrik.