Backpacking…

We are frantic around here, our house is in chaos.  John and I are in the throes of preparing for an upcoming backpack, our first in three years.  It is not that we are new to this rodeo, we’ve been through this exercise many times before.  But three years is “a while” and updated packing lists have disappeared, gear has been shuffled around and everything needs to be unpacked and aired out.

My packing list, the only one I can find on short notice, is circa 2001 Gates of the Artic, Alaska.  Written for 12 days in the wilderness, the list will be modified to reflect our very modest overnight needs.  An all out search will be launched when we return for updated pack lists that are likely filed with trip reports.

This trip will mark my 75th backpack in a span of 17 years (14 excluding the last 3 years with no trips).  We have taken some spectacular trips over the years and some very simple overnight trips.  Most have been with friends and more than just about anything else I have done in my life, the remarkable experiences I had while backpacking remain very clear in my mind.   A few of these trips include:

Maroon Bells Wilderness, Colorado, 5 nights   (photo from a day hike from camp)

Maude’s Crack, Big South Fork, Tennessee, overnight

Wind Rivers, Wyoming, 6 nights (I have a fear of water crossings, another story)

West Coast Trail, Vancouver Island, Canada , 5 nights (loved camping on the beach, hard as hell hike)

Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, Peru, 4 nights (first night on the trail, most remarkable hike and next to Gates of the Arctic in the Brooks Range, Alaska, my favorite)

Mt. Assiniboine Provincial Park, Canada, 5 night (1st 2 nights in big snow, beautiful!!!)

Hope you are doing something that brings you great personal satisfaction this weekend.  Thanks for reading!