I have adopted a dog. It’s about time. She is a 9 month old, 75 lb ball of fur and exhuberance, and, yes, she is excited to see you. Here is a picture of her. Like all labs, she only speaks in all caps.

HELLOOOO! I WANT TO BE YOUR FRIEND!

Her name is still to be determined. Options include Chaco, Nyah, and Princess. My aunt says that she looks more like a horse than a dog, so Dorse is also an option. Here is another picture.

BALL! BALL! I WANT TO CHEW THE BALL!

I’m looking forward to taking her on her first backpacking trip soon. It will take a bit of time to work her up to that kind of mileage. We’ll start with camping. This is perfect because somebody, and I’m not going to say who (Shannon), already bought her the REI Adventure Dog Tent. So now my shelter, backpack, and sleeping pad, all weigh less than the tent my dog will sleep in.

The Princess name has some basis in reality, you see?

SOMEDAY I WILL GROW INTO A GREAT BACKPACKING DOG THAT WILL WANDER ALL THE LANDS, HIKE 1000'S OF MILES, AND CARRY ALL MY WEIGHT ON MY BACK!

That last one was actually me talking. Anybody out there got a great furry backpacking buddy? Thanks for meeting mine.

Jared M. from Baltimore, MD

Question:

After seeing all of your cartoons, I can’t help wondering, did you attend art school? Are there any showings of your pictures around the country? Why have I not seen your work before?

Answer:

I can understand your confusion. Many people who see my work wonder the same thing. For example, this is a picture of a crocodile wearing a space helmet.

Crocodiles in space

I know what you are thinking, and, yes, it is brilliant.

How is that helmet useful to the crocodile? you might ask. How does it deliver any oxygen to it’s lungs?

And will I tell you that, if you have to ask, you will never understand.

Incidentally, I do have a sister who studied art in school. Hi Audrey! Unfortunately, she can’t drop what she’s doing every time her big sister needs a picture that demonstrates the similarities between birds and dinosaurs (and this sort of thing happens a lot), because she is too busy making actual art.

So, I guess what I’m saying is that you’re stuck with me. And yes, I did just draw a picture of a crocodile wearing a top hat. Try not to get overly excited. It’s bad for your cardiovascular system.

If you are a follower of my blog, you may have noticed in the past several months that things have been a little wonky. To tell you the truth, everything that could go wrong, has gone wrong.

1. Database trouble. All comments lost.
2. Site hacked. Not good.
3. Moved to different host. Database screwy. Recent posts lost.
4. Blog combusted into flames.

This is an artistic rendering of my computer right now.

This computer is not happy

Did I mention I dropped it? Computers don’t like being held together by duct tape.

This computer is not happy either

So I’ve been a bit low on the electronics front lately.

This does make some things difficult. For example, playing my favorite games goes slower without a computer.

Paper frogger is not as fun

Paper Tetris (last one in color)

Or watch my favorite shows.

Don't stop, believing

There are certain advantages. I’m currently balancing a long skinny object with ink in it, while I write on this thing called paper. It’s an enjoyable experience.

Weird.

Did I mention that I quit my job? Because I did. Working in a warehouse is a constant reminder that your job will someday be replaced by a robot, and who am I to stand in the way of progress? Plus what’s the point of working in a backpacking store if you don’t have time to actually backpack?

My plan is to hop in and out of town on trips until I’m broke. Then I’ll elbow a robot out of a job (’cause humans got rights, too), and go back to hanging pants all day.

Until then, I’m off to the woods, and I’m bringing my electronics with me.

The ones that don’t hate me, that is. This means that despite the fact that I trimmed webbing off my backpack and cut my sleeping pad in half, I’m still carrying my iphone, solar charger, camera, extra batteries, and tripod with me. All of these items weigh in at a total of 5lbs. Not to worry. For backpacking, the weight of a camera is like the number of calories in a Christmas cookie. It just doesn’t count.

So I’m crossing my fingers that there are no more website crashes or broken computers. Here’s to joblessness!

I’ve been slowly chipping away at my pack weight over the last year, and it’s been a super fun process. The items on this list have been tried over the course of a couple of backpacking trips, so I’m confident that they are workable for me. So without further ado, here is my current gear and weights.

I should say as a caveat that I am one of those lucky people who sleeps warm. Aren’t you jealous? Well, I do melt when it’s hot, so everything evens out. And this list does not include my camera or electronics because everyone knows that those things exist in a separate area of the space time continuum where my toys have no weight. More on that later. 

Chirripo sunrise

We are at 12,000 ft on the top of Chirripó, and my little brain, used to living at sea level, is playing the base drum inside my skull in protest. I try to remind it that we live in the second story of a house, so that’s really 20 feet above sea level, and every little bit counts.

My brain isn’t buying it.

Let me start by laying out the events of the past few days. First, we left my house, took a train to the airport, a plane to Denver, another plane to San Jose C.R., a taxi to the bus station, a bus to San Isidro, and a taxi to San Gerardo de Rivas. We then paid for the permit to enter the park.

Amount of sleep in the last 36 hours: 0.

We woke up the next morning at 4 am, packed up the Tarptent and carried our packs 4 km to the park entrance. Add 6 km for accidentally missing the park entrance and getting very, very lost. A nice man let us jump in the back of his truck on his way to work, and set us on the right track.

We were then starting our hike having already done 10 km already.

The climb was fairly brutal, at least for 2 people carrying too much weight.

12 Cosmic Brownies, Addy? 12? They sell food in Costa Rica.

But maybe not Cosmic Brownies.

Everyone coming down the trail was carrying, at max, a water bottle. A large fat kit chugged his way down and told us that the view made it all totally worth it. In my heart, I slowly began to hate him.

Why was no one carrying backpacks we wondered? They had all hired donkeys to porter their gear to the base camp. I would say that I took pride in carrying up all of my supplies, but those Cosmic brownies (12, really?), instant pudding mixes, and GU shots were burning a hole in my pack. At each break, both Shannon and I consumed as much food as possible so that we wouldn’t have to carry it.

Who knew that I would ever have to force down a brownie.

The first day’s hike ended up being around 20km. More or less. The maps are a bit fuzzy on distances, and we have no idea how far lost we were in the morning. Regardless, we were counting steps by the end and taking frequent stops. When we saw the base camp, I lost my fatigue and took off running. Shannon was not quite as enthusiastic. Because it was so cold, we slept that night in a cocoon of emergency blankets.

The next morning, we awoke at 2 am so that we could summit at sunrise. Even though I was heavily sleep deprived, had a small marching band inside my head, and generally hated everything that did not involve the words warm, sleeping, and sea level, Shannon somehow coaxed me out of bed.

Once on the trail, we hiked with headlamps under more stars than I have ever seen. We passed a group that had left earlier than us (you know, the ones who had all hired donkeys to take their gear to the base camp), and, I’m not going to lie, I felt pretty proud of us at that moment. The final climb was steep, but reaching the top was exhilarating. We could see in the distance the people coming up the trail behind us. 25 of them all holding flashlights. It looking like a moving Christmas tree light I was reminded of the scene in 13th Warrior when the Wendol are raiding camp. Cue Antonio Banderas saying, “They are only men!” What? You haven’t seen that movie? Good for you. Those two hours of my life are gone forever.

Also, I haven’t learned how to shoot low light settings and my fingers were too cold to operate the camera.

Reader: It couldn’t have been that cold. Exaggerate much?

Addy: Shhh. You are ruining the story.

On the way down (Lord bless the way down), we slowly warmed up as the elevation dropped and the sun came out. I began to feel hope that I would not remain cold for the rest of my life. Several kilometers later, we got to see brightly color lizards sun themselves on the hot rocks. Humming birds flew around the trail mating.

We finally stumbled all of the way down into town and collapsed in a hostel. Sleep is a good thing. The pounding in my brain got a little bit quieter.

While I write this, I am sprawled out on a mattress with the thickness of a notebook, eating and drinking everything in sight. I could really, really go for a Cosmic Brownie. Too bad we ate all of them in two days.

All of them. 12 brownies in two days. At least my pack got lighter.

To end this, and maybe this is just the sleep deprivation talking, let me say that Chirripó is a beautiful, beautiful mountain that I will NEVER climb again. But you should try it if you go to Costa Rica. And, if you do hire a donkey to porter your gear, I promise not to judge you in the slightest. As long as you don’t judge me for eating 12 brownies in two days.

I’m teaching a class tonight at REI about lightweight vs traditional backpacking. It’s a bit of a mock battle between me (representing lightweight) and a very experience backpacker Mike Little (representing traditional weight). I’m planning on printing out my notes and then trimming off the unnecessary paper. Gimmicky, no?

Here are my notes for the class, and I wanted to thank the online community for teaching me so many things.

Ultralight Backpacking
Go farther faster with less effort

The principles behind ultralight backpacking

 Creativity – Multi-use objects
Simplicity- Pack only what you need
Awareness- Know your surroundings
Empowerment- You are in control of your gear. Change it or make your own.
System focus- Look at your decisions holistically
Community- Participate in a larger conversation

Benefits

Enhancement of the experience- Women, older individuals, and those with mobility difficulties will most readily feel the change.
Protection of your body- Prevent common injuries. Danger zones: your back, your knees, and your feet.
Freedom and privacy. -Allows you to get farther into the backcountry. Ever want a trail to yourself?

Natural extension of backpacking ideas

 Ultralight backpacking has pushed the industry to lighter options. You are already used to giving up certain things. You leave things behind to go car camping. Leave more things behind to go backpacking. Extend this process to go ultralight.

Steps to lightening your pack

1.Get a scale that shows lbs and ounces.

2.Lighten up your big three: shelter, sleeping bag, backpack. In that order. Shoot for under 6 lbs.

3.Consider tarps. Quilts. Frameless backpacks.

4.Pursue multi-use objects whenever possible

5.Other elements- When was the last time you used x? Do you really need it?

6.Last step- Footwear.

7.Consider volume as well as weight

Shelter

Consider tarps or tarp hybrids. Multi-use- hiking poles eliminate the need for tent poles.

Sleep system

The insulation under your body is compressed and loses it’s warming ability. Consider quilts. Do you need the insulation under your body?

Backpack

How many liters do you really need? Lighter weight options out there. Trim unnecessary features.

Consider frameless packs. Multi-use- use a single cell foam pad as your suspension.

Stove

Alcohol or Esbit fuel stoves. Lightweight and simple.

Use pot as bowl instead of bringing an extra bowl.

Clothes

Bring only what you need. Use synthetic and wool options.

Footwear

Last step- do this after lightening your whole system. Don’t carry a 50lb pack and wear sneakers.

The biggest impact for comfort.

Extra ounces per step.

Multi-use options

Waterproof gear as a vapor barrier at night. Stuff sack for pillow and backpack for under your feet. Bandana instead of toilet paper. Duct tape solves everything.

Resources

 Trail Life by Ray Jardine

Lightweight Backpacking and Camping edited by Ryan Jordan

Strong online community. Join the conversation!

I have now edited my first set of pictures in Costa Rica, and I am missing that country already. The high temperature in Portland is still a good 15 degrees lower than the low in Costa Rica. This means that I have gone from lying naked on the bed with a fan on me  while complaining about the heat, to being bundled up with a blanket by a space heater while complaining about the cold. Not entirely true, just 35% true.

Spiky Plant

My little lizard buddy

Lizard the sequel

Clouds rolling in on Chirripo

Tiny crab in Santa Rosa National Park

Little crab pushing the water out of his hole after a wave. Pic by Shannon.

Finding tracks early in the morning. Not sure which kind.

I should really get better about ID-ing flowers.

Hello team. I have been a little away from the web while here in Costa Rica, but someone just contacted me to tell me that comments are down.  I just logged in to discover that all of the comments over the last two years have been deleted and all of my links are gone. Does anyone know why this would happen?

If anyone has any web advice on how this could happen, please let me know. It won´t let you comment, but my e-mail is adelaide@dressedindirt.com

The two of us

For those that don’t know, my good friend and hiking partner Erin Saver and I were planning to do the PCT together this year. I can’t go, but that shouldn’t stop you from reading about all of her great adventures. Her blog is Erin’s PCT Thru-Hike Journal. I hope that you’ll check it out and follow along.

I recently discovered that Mattexian and I have something in common: we both work in warehouses. It’s not an entirely bad job. But after 8 hours of opening boxes and hanging clothes I begin to think that someday my job will be replaced by a robot, and maybe that wouldn’t really be so bad, and the robot would work round the clock until one day it developed sentience and slowly began to hate life and dream of a career in the liberal arts, possibly writing binary poetry. Bad binary poetry.

00100011111
111000101
0101010

Nothing good can come of this.

One of the perks of working in a warehouse is that you get to listen to whatever you want. I’ve been on a bit of a podcast kick these past two months. Here are my favorites, which I am officially peer pressuring you into subscribing.

1. Practical Backpacking

This podcast is a great resource for ultralight backpacking. I’ve worked my way through several, but so far my favorite episodes have been “Tarps 101″ from Ron Bell, an interview with Henry Shires, and a quilt overview with Andy Burgess of Golite.

2. Backpacking Light podcast

This one hasn’t updated in a while, but there are still some great episodes if you look through the archives. One example: “Inov8′s Wayne Edy on Women’s Footwear Design.”

On the non-backpacking front, I also listen to Coffee Break Spanish.  Mi cerveza por favor?

WNYC’s Radiolab. Documentary style show that taught me about the brilliance of pigeons. Seriously. Go ahead and give bread to those little guys. They saved lives in WWII.

Savage Love Podcast. NOT suitable for work. Unless you work from home, and even then you won’t be getting anything done if you are listening to this one.

ITunes U. Someone brilliant came up with this idea. Universities around the world will record their classes and put them on the web for free. I’m about halfway through Yale’s Intro to Psychology with Paul Bloom and loving it. Go free education! Up on the lis next: Zombies in Literature. That’s right, I’m classy.