(no subject)
I have the weirdest urge to go backpacking. Like, pack up a tent, hike 5 miles, set up a campsite and spend a couple days there kinda backpacking.
In fact, I've spent the better part of the morning looking up good backpacking sites here in Maryland (Assateague has really caught my attention) and the kind of equipment and knowledge necessary to successfully backpack to this measure.
The equipment isn't all that pricy. Maybe about $200-300 depending on how good of a deal I might be able to find on some things elsewhere (mostly looking through Dick's and Walmart, which I know aren't the best of places to look for camping gear, but oh well, it works). The only thing I'd need is a partner.
This type of deal would be an awesome chance to get in the element of nature photography full force. Beats the hell out of the disconnected "shoot from the side of the road" crap. The G10 would be perfect for it, being all tiny and whatnot. Definitely wouldn't bring the SLR, the sand would eat it alive. The G10's shell wouldn't let sand in at all, just gotta keep that front element clean.
I know at least one person who reads my journals does a lot of hiking and such, what do you think I would need for a trip that would primarily be spend on sandy beaches and marsh?
So far my list stands as:
- Tent
- Temp-sealed sleeping bags (I wanna hike in the winter, ie. now)
- Water purifier and anti-bacterial tab thingies (and a jug to store it in at camp)
- Tri-folding shovel
- Portable toilet with deodorant tabs (with bio-bags I can later bury)
- Cook-wares
- Food for however long I'll be camping
- LOTS of bug repellant
- Lighting for camp and hiking (LED flashlights and lanterns)
- Emergency first-aid pack
- Bathroom amenities (deodorant, maybe a little soap bar, small things)
- Changes of clothes (not many, only emergency changes)
- Small propane stovetop (might not be able to make fires for cooking at Assateague)
- Solar panel (little piece that could charge my camera batteries and phone if needed)
As for the fun things to bring, I'm looking at my Leila hookah and some shisha/coals/foils, my G10 and my cell phone will provide GPS in case I get lost while hiking. Playing this minimalistic, it shouldn't be too bad to hike a couple of miles, set up camp, rest on it for the evening and then start hiking and shooting the next day. No need for a cooler, we can stick to water and canned foods. Assateague doesn't have bears or other scary animals, only horses, so keeping food around camp isn't reported to be an issue. A leatherman would be plenty of tool to take on a trip like this. If I gotta pee, I can do it in the woods, and if #2 calls, the portable toiler will hold the waste in a bag I can later bury or toss out, eliminating mess (if worst came to worst, I'd bring a folding shovel to dig a bathroom away from camp). The water around the area sucks, but purifiers are cheap and portable, or if I really wanted to rough it I could just distill some water the hard way. Don't need any furniture, just the sleeping bags (there are some awesome sealed ones that will trap heat and keep you warm all the way down to 5 deg F at Walmart). The focus of the trip is to hike and make photos. Hookah would be nice while relaxing in the evening. A fire would be nice too, but I don't know if I could find any usable wood in Assateague since it's so moist.
All in all, it seems like a good time. Opinions? Takers? Mischief makers?
In fact, I've spent the better part of the morning looking up good backpacking sites here in Maryland (Assateague has really caught my attention) and the kind of equipment and knowledge necessary to successfully backpack to this measure.
The equipment isn't all that pricy. Maybe about $200-300 depending on how good of a deal I might be able to find on some things elsewhere (mostly looking through Dick's and Walmart, which I know aren't the best of places to look for camping gear, but oh well, it works). The only thing I'd need is a partner.
This type of deal would be an awesome chance to get in the element of nature photography full force. Beats the hell out of the disconnected "shoot from the side of the road" crap. The G10 would be perfect for it, being all tiny and whatnot. Definitely wouldn't bring the SLR, the sand would eat it alive. The G10's shell wouldn't let sand in at all, just gotta keep that front element clean.
I know at least one person who reads my journals does a lot of hiking and such, what do you think I would need for a trip that would primarily be spend on sandy beaches and marsh?
So far my list stands as:
- Tent
- Temp-sealed sleeping bags (I wanna hike in the winter, ie. now)
- Water purifier and anti-bacterial tab thingies (and a jug to store it in at camp)
- Tri-folding shovel
- Portable toilet with deodorant tabs (with bio-bags I can later bury)
- Cook-wares
- Food for however long I'll be camping
- LOTS of bug repellant
- Lighting for camp and hiking (LED flashlights and lanterns)
- Emergency first-aid pack
- Bathroom amenities (deodorant, maybe a little soap bar, small things)
- Changes of clothes (not many, only emergency changes)
- Small propane stovetop (might not be able to make fires for cooking at Assateague)
- Solar panel (little piece that could charge my camera batteries and phone if needed)
As for the fun things to bring, I'm looking at my Leila hookah and some shisha/coals/foils, my G10 and my cell phone will provide GPS in case I get lost while hiking. Playing this minimalistic, it shouldn't be too bad to hike a couple of miles, set up camp, rest on it for the evening and then start hiking and shooting the next day. No need for a cooler, we can stick to water and canned foods. Assateague doesn't have bears or other scary animals, only horses, so keeping food around camp isn't reported to be an issue. A leatherman would be plenty of tool to take on a trip like this. If I gotta pee, I can do it in the woods, and if #2 calls, the portable toiler will hold the waste in a bag I can later bury or toss out, eliminating mess (if worst came to worst, I'd bring a folding shovel to dig a bathroom away from camp). The water around the area sucks, but purifiers are cheap and portable, or if I really wanted to rough it I could just distill some water the hard way. Don't need any furniture, just the sleeping bags (there are some awesome sealed ones that will trap heat and keep you warm all the way down to 5 deg F at Walmart). The focus of the trip is to hike and make photos. Hookah would be nice while relaxing in the evening. A fire would be nice too, but I don't know if I could find any usable wood in Assateague since it's so moist.
All in all, it seems like a good time. Opinions? Takers? Mischief makers?