this post was submitted on 28 May 2024
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I've been in the midst of a similar realization for the last year or so
You're the first person I've encountered who can relate, that's amazing XD
It feels weird to talk about the NEED to be outside and busting your ass hiking somewhere. I guess this is probably how people end up on the PCT. I don't know how to rationalize it otherwise
Yeah! I used to be able to get friends to hike and go on camping trips with me but people's priorities shift and I've realized no one else is really interested enough for it to be worth trying to plan/get people together anymore, so I just started going by myself last year and it's great. I shoulda started doing it sooner but I guess I didn't want to admit that no one wants to go on adventures anymore
It really is a pretty good antidepressant though. Sometimes a good hike gives me an afterglow for the rest of the week. I gotta get a water filter soon, that'll open up another handful of backpacking trails within a few hours of here.
Same, my friends all have new priorities and obligations with significant others, and then there's me 🥴. I convinced the person who used to be my most reliable friend to do big hikes with me in Europe and Mt Whitney this summer, but he's only done like 2 hikes this year so we don't know how it will go lol
Sawyer squeezes (the regular ones) are the way to go. Coupling one with a Cnoc bladder and a cheap water bottle female-female coupling (I think from Garage Grown Gear but also sold by Sawyer) makes either a gravity-fed or hand-squeezed setup easy. I've started bringing it with me on regular hikes in place of extra packed water
Do you backpack without a filter?? I know giardia isn't guaranteed, but that's pretty brave lol
Oh heck yeah that sounds awesome, i hope his knees are ready for it! Might recommend some trek poles to him if that isn't already a given? I really wanna go on a bit of a longer trip to do some mountain backpacking out west but i definifely need to train up a bit more. I did a couple day hikes in Colorado a few years ago and the terrain and scenery are such a refreshing change from Appalachia.
About the the filter- nah no way haha, a couple of the trails i did last year had cisterns of drinking water at a few points and another one i was able to cache water in advance at a road crossing about ten miles in. I'll check out the sawyer and cnoc, thanks for the recommendation! Heavy metals from old ass mining operations are a big concern in the backcountry water sources here, I'll have to brush up again on what's out there but from what I remember Grayl had the only filters that made any promises about heavy metal filtration. Kinda inconvenient since they don't lend themselves to hooking up to a bladder but i guess that's just the price of living in the dang rust belt.