Posts by Charlie Brumbaugh
Linseed oil is used because it's a drying oil, A drying oil is an oil that hardens to a tough, solid film after a period of exposure to air. The oil hardens through a chemical reaction in which...
I was hiking through the snow to a frozen alpine lake and it made me wonder if there were ice-skates that would strap directly to a mountaineering boot instead of being a completely separate boot? ...
That looks like a Spanish Saddle Bush-cricket (Ephippigerida areolaria) of the Ephippiger genus. The coloration and the area are right and its looks like a female.
So long as it's still holding butane and not deeply pitted you should be fine. I would assume that if it was already cracked through the butane would have already escaped. They don't seem to be rea...
A few nights ago I saw some minks in the grass right next to a seasonal irrigation canal that is dry most of the year shortly after dark. The irrigation canal has no fish or crawdads in it, because...
As the summer goes on, the cottontail rabbits are getting bigger and at the same time I am seeing fewer of them, presumably as predators whittle their numbers down. What percentage of baby cottonta...
The last time I went fishing, there were numerous times where I could tell that the fish were nibbling on the fly because it would move the strike indicator ever so slightly, but they wouldn't actu...
If you have tracking set on your GPS device and you forget to turn it off overnight, for instance, the track distance will continue to increase even though the device is not moving. What is happeni...
For short trips, lithium-ion batteries to recharge your camera/phone/GPS make more sense. For something like the Appalachian Trail where batteries aren't going to last the whole trip, a solar charg...
Rather than take a can of chicken while backpacking, it's possible to open the can, drain the juice and stick the meat into a ziplock which makes it much lighter and a ziplock is much more compact ...
I have done lots of hiking on trails with switchbacks and one thing I have noticed is that the length of the legs (how long you walk in one direction before switching back to the other) can vary w...
On a trip where you are constantly using a bladder or water bottle where it's not sitting around, I would limit the cleaning to filling it up and then dumping it once before refilling. Mould takes...
Storing the backpack inside instead of next to you won't provide a whole lot more security, in some crowded places where theft is more common it might be justified. Normally, if I am worried about...
After a rather unpleasant experience with my current bivy sack, I am looking to replace it. I know that I want one that will hold up in rain, but what else should I look for?
TLDR: Because its much harder that way and the extra altitude of the Himalayas makes it that much more difficult. Alpine style refers to mountaineering in a self-sufficient manner, thereby carr...
It is apparently not safe, among the poor today who have to use it as they have no alternatives, it leads to all sorts of health problems. It is also a worse polutant than burning wood. On the...
You have a couple of options, A soft case for your bow, put the bow inside the case and strap the whole thing to your backpack. A bow case with backpack straps. A bow case with a padded shoulder ...
Did some experimenting, and it looks like its only possible for them to come apart when the lever is up, so all you should need to do is store it in the down configuration and if you needed the ext...
All waters no, some places like National Parks require permits, see Dinosaur Monument and Canyonlands. It also differs state by state, in some states the water belongs to the public but not the st...
During rifle season, hunters are required to wear blaze orange (some states also allow bright pink). I have heard that deer and elk are color blind to blaze orange, is there scientific evidence to...
The cheap and simple solution to this is 5 lbs of peanut butter i.e. two normal sized Jiff containers and a spoon ducktaped to the containers for approximately 12,000 + calories. If unopened, they...
I have some obsidian and I know that it can be made into knives and other sharp objects such as arrowheads. Historically this was done for a long time in the United States before there were steel b...
Inspired mostly by this answer, if I were to decide to buy a set of throwing knives for just for fun, what exactly should I be looking for? I do realize that throwing knives are not legal everywhe...
It is fairly common practice to drive to a trailhead, park your vehicle and then go backpacking for a while. It would be a real bummer to come back from a trip and find that your vehicle has been b...
Petroleum Jelly (Vaseline) on feet can be used to, Treat dry cracked feet. Treat cracked heals. Reduce friction and therefore the chances of getting blisters. From personal experience the downs...
