Sunday, October 28, 2012

Fastpacking lets you Get Away and Stay Longer. Article #1


Fastpacking lets you Get Away and Stay Longer - Sara Montgomery and Derrick Spafford

Rating ****

This article was very interesting due to the fact that it was relatable and was filled with ideas that I would use in future hikes.

In this article both Sara and Derrick summarized their three day hike in Killarney Provincial Park’s La Cloche Silhouette Trail near Sudbury. They talked about their strategic packing, their efficient shoes, their well planned menu and the outstanding views. On their first day they ate a huge breakfast and stated how confident they were with the small amount they had packed for their 78 kilometer trip. They headed on their trail aiming to go clockwise, so that on the first day their trail would be relatively flat as they were carrying the majority of their food. They claimed that their campsite was wonderful and that they had a good night sleep. Although on their second day the weather was not as nice as the first and they were considering not bring their fly for their tent to economize weight although, they were thankful they did as it was raining that night. On the last day they said that the weight of their bags seemed heavy although they pushed on due to the beautiful views of ridges of blinding white quartzite.

 
I found this article extremely beneficial as it gave me many ideas and tips on how to pack efficiently. At the beginning of the article they gave a thorough explanation of what they packed in order to save weight. For food they packed lightweight, calorie-dense items for example energy bars and nuts. They mention macadamia nuts in the list which seems like a good idea to bring next time I go hiking as they are light-weight and have lots of calories and fat in order to have more energy. Not only did they give a summary of their trip but also give me ideas on how to pack more efficiently with the fastpacking method. They claimed that you should only pack the complete essentials and look at the weather, terrain and other important aspects before hand in order to pack the bare minimum to make the hike more enjoyable.

 
This article was both entertaining and beneficial and I recommend it to anyone that plans on going on a long distance hike.

 
By: Ellen Kinsey

 
Montgomery, Sara. Spafford, Derrick.  Fastpacking lets you Get Away and Stay Longer. Ottawa Outdoors Magazine, 2012, Web
http://ottawaoutdoors.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=234:fastpacking-lets-you-get-away-and-stay-longer&catid=35:adventure-articles

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