There She Sits

Posted By on February 28, 2013

There She Sits

so, okay, i made the first BIG purchase for my through hike: a pack. i figure this is the most important piece of gear i can get, as i’m going to be schlepping it on my back for 6 months straight. it’s a piece of gear that is going to be a personal friend, a constant companion, a comrade in arms, so to speak. so off i went with one of the usual suspects acting as a mentor to REI to make the leap.

the pack

the pack

i tried on several packs, and kept coming back to this one. it’s a gregory deva 60 in a women’s small size. waaay more money than i expected to spend. i have a feeling this is going to be a constant theme for the next year. the rei pack expert salesperson said i was right on the border between extra-small and small, and i tried an extra-small first, but the shoulder straps cut into my shoulder in a very uncomfortable way, so i went with the small. and apparently there are, like multiple videos online explaining how to pack this baby, which i will have to study. the only thing about this pack that makes me a little apprehensive is the weight. the pack weighs 5 1/2 pounds. heavier than i wanted, but amazingly comfortable. so the first piece of gear i buy is a trade-off between comfort and weight.

i haven’t been on very many hikes/walks since i got her (already anthropomorphizing!), and i’m kind of leery of filling her up with stuff and going on day hikes with her, because i don’t want to look like a lunatic. but i guess i’m just going to have to get over that, because i have also made another decision: i will be doing vermont’s long trail as a training hike, probably from mid-august through early september. i want to go end-to-end, which, according to the gmc website, takes anywhere from 26 to 30 days. (although i read something else that claims that if you can do the long trail in 21 days you’re ready for the appalachian trail. note to self: more reading required).

oh and i signed up for the north south trail trek, or at least 5 of the 6 sections (i’m leading a hike in arcadia the same day as the final section/picnic, dang it). still trying to decide if i want to hike that while wearing shirley. (OMG I JUST NAMED MY PACK)

Comments

2 Responses to “There She Sits”

  1. Dan says:

    Cool that you are planning to through hike the AT. Will that be in the spring of 2014?

    You may be interested in watching Tuts’ videos of his LT and AT through hikes on his website. Here is the link:

    http://www.trekkingon.com/

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