Posts by Sherwood Botsford
Change shoes. Visit a physiotherapist, and take your current shoes -- both the ones you use on trips, and the ones you wear every day. A good physio can learn a lot from reading the wear patter...
Good zipper may keep out more water, but a rain flap will do the trick. A rain flap has a vulnerable direction. Driving rain from side with the open edge of the flap will seep further. Rain gear...
I think you did just fine. Key factors: You want the leather to be non flat, so the stone sits in in one place. This will get you far more consistent throws. You have in essence created the poc...
I had this issue on canoe trips. I would wear my life jacket over my poncho. Worked a treat. One of the things in my backpack is a bungie cord long enough to use as a belt. It has a bunch of us...
Over most of your body your system can restrict blood flow to the skin, cooling the skin (and making you feel cold) Locations where bloodvessels run close to skin big sources of heat loss. Part...
Real examples abound. The best one from a story perspective is Wallace's "Lure of the Labrador" An entertaining read for so many bad decisions. They were out 5 months, expected to live by huntin...
I only wear hiking boots if there is significant off trail or heavy scree. The last dozen or so expeditions (1 week + trips ~50 lb pack) I did I mostly wore MEC reef boots, or divers boots, sized ...
Depending on the weather, I would try to keep them alive in the water until you are lamost ready to start back. Clean them just before you start back. If the weather is colder than that water, cl...
If the water is sufficiently clean that you are willing to eat the fish, it's clean enough to use to bleed the fish. Dirt as such isn't poisonous. Clear water isn't necessarily safe. Two ways ...
The second one is the better form. I have used that form, with the tall end in a spruce in both heavy rain and in snow, and stayed perfectly dry. However I didn't use a tarp as small as 1.4 x 2.4...
If you are a person who burns readily then sunblock at all times plus long sleeve shirt and hat are your only answer. However the danger of sun, IMHO is overrated, compared to the other hazards of...
Very rough rule of thumb is that effort distance (ED) is horizontal distance (HD) + 5 * Vertical distance (VD) So ED = HD + VD example: A recent hike I took had a horizontal distance of 85 miles...
I have found that soda pop bottles are designed for higher pressure and don't deform as badly. Plus they are cheap to replace. In general a soda pop bottle filled to just the start of the shoulde...
Interesting. All of the answers address winter mountaineering, which I would regard as a separate subject. Winter skills for someone like me, living 4 hours from the mountains, would primarily be...
I used to do canoe trips on the English River, in western Ontario. One of the mills polluted the river with mercury, and it made the fish poisonous to eat in quantity. Throughout the lakes downstr...
Try at forestry supply stores. The guys that sell pulaskis, fire pumps, etc. They have the entire setup for portable kitchens. The ones I've seen were a separate stove and bottle, but the stov...
I have traveled the back country for 4-6 weeks a year for 30 years, mostly in the Canadian rockies and on the pre-cambrian shield. I've never used water purification, nor did we generally in our g...
Piece of cake. I was working for St. John's Cathedral Boys' School in the late 70's. The school had a winter program that included week long dog sled expeditions. We had the odd case of frostb...
The change in distance from flat is fairly small. A 10% slope is about when you start toe striking instead of heel striking. Your leg is bent when your foot touches the ground and you have to str...
If your sleeping bag did NOT come with two stuff stacks, leave it loosely stuffed in your pack, or in a large cardboard box. I have an old trunk that is used just for sleeping bags and parkas.
I don't take a tent, I just take a tarp. Easier to pitch (if you have trees) In 30 years of experience (4-6 weeks per year) I've only once gotten actually wet doing this. Old tarp. Heavy rain....
I don't think you will get consistent 40-60 daytime highs (what I assumed you meant) anywhere that isn't moderated by the ocean. However Fiasco is correct: The Olympic Penninsula around Sequim is...
I've had the opposite problem. My feet are very wide from decades of mocassin use. So my ideas might not work. Certainly lacing techniques are worth trying. Normally I don't find these very eff...
I used to apply the 30% rule, and for out of shape adults it works pretty well. But I worked with teenage males, ranging from the 70 lb dripping wet grade 7 to the 160 lb lean as a rake grade 12 j...
Ben's answer above is good. I wish I could give him more than just one upclick. Rules of thumb: Carbs and proteins run 3.5 to 4 calories per gram. Fats run aobut 9 calories per gram. Working ha...
