*My great adventure* - "I think it's a good idea...

Hi Sarah and Alasdair,

I am in receipt of your applications. I have sent them back approved in today’s mail.

Best regards and good luck on the trail.

Barry
Barry G Danton - BSO
Canada Border Services Agency
Pacific Crest Co-ordinator
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:D

That's our Canada entry permit sorted, which means that all the paper work has now been completed and approved. Have to say I am happy to see the back of it, as the combination of permits, flights and visas has been soul destroying! It seems a shame that a wander in the wilderness takes so much paperwork!

Most of the things left on the todo list now related to packing up this life, ie cancelling phone contracts etc. Last pair of footwear also arrived the other day, so now we pretty much have everything we need. I am planning on taking some photos/making blog entries about the kit choices we have made, so I'll post them up once done.

Anyway, only 63 days to go! :D
 
Glaucus said:
Not long at all, you better update blog regularly when your out there.
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Yeah, I'll try and update it whenever we have phone reception/internet access. You can follow it on my website; www.afowler.co.uk/adventures or twitter; http://twitter.com/#!/bear_and_boy :)

Zero Pope said:
I kind of agree but at the same time, it reduces the number of people doing so, making it more peaceful for yourself. Hope you have a great time, look forward to 18 million photos!
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Maybe not 18 million, but we have enough memory cards for an estimated 34560 raw photos. :D
 
methman said:
How is this amazing trip going?

Fantastic idea, it really is.

Although the rucksacks seem really small, id take a 65L as a minimum.
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AS TW Fox says, we haven't set off yet. We fly out on the 20th April, so not long now. I only have 1 full week at work left! We have been busy planning, sorting and training though. We went out today for a training hike with fully loaded packs. I added 10Kg of metal weights to mine to simulate 5 days worth of food. We now also have all the paperwork sorted and finalized. It's now mainly packing up our flat, ready for moving out next weekend.

The packs are smallish but most of the kit is ultralight and ultra compact. Thru hikers joke that you can tell a weekend hiker by their huge rucksacks. We have packed and repacked the rucksacks over and over again to make sure everything has a place. So far it is all working well. For some of the longer sections I may need to lash a stuffsack with extra food to the outside of the pack, but this isn't a problem. Also most of the longer sections are where we have to have bear canisters, so the food will be stored in them, ontop of the rucksacks.
 
methman said:
How is this amazing trip going?

Fantastic idea, it really is.

Although the rucksacks seem really small, id take a 65L as a minimum.
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Big rucksacks are very rarely needed unless you have shedloads of heavy equipment. I think too many people don't take enough care in their kit selection personally. A 40L pack is generally big enough for most proper backpacking trips, we're not talking bronze DofE here.;)
 
Amp34 said:
Big rucksacks are very rarely needed unless you have shedloads of heavy equipment. I think too many people don't take enough care in their kit selection personally. A 40L pack is generally big enough for most proper backpacking trips, we're not talking bronze DofE here.;)
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Hey, don't diss the bronze DofE! I did that when I was at school! :p To be fair it was pretty easy, as the 'expedition' was up Teesdale where I had been loads of times before, so know it like the back of my hand.

But yeah, it is funny when you see a group of DofE kids with 100+ litre packs with pots and pans and all sorts of rubbish hanging off the back, knowing that they are out for a day or two at most.

The only time you would need 100+Litre packs is if you can't resupply for several weeks or months at a time. For example Ed Stafford carried up 80Kg of supplies as he crossed the Amazon over 2 years. He would walk for several months at a time, not knowing when he would next come across any civilization.

On the other end, you get ultra light backpacking, where you can get away with 20-30 litre packs weighing no more than 2-3kg before supplies. It involves a lot of compromises, and is a bit too extreme for me at the moment.
 
+1 for the comment regarding ice axe and crampons: get a steel ice axe, and get crampons.

Secondly, get some training in the use of your ice axe, specifically how to brake with it. I don't see a strap on the axe; get one!

EDIT: Also - a helmet! Very obvious, but easily forgotten!

Very very envious of the trip - you'll have a fantastic time!
 
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Can't believe I missed this. It should be the adventure of a lifetime :)

One question though, what's in the three green cuben stuff sacks in the photos above? (top right of photo)
 
Col_M said:
Can't believe I missed this. It should be the adventure of a lifetime :)

One question though, what's in the three green cuben stuff sacks in the photos above? (top right of photo)
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I believe that's the tent but i could be wrong.

Good luck for the trip and you should keep this thread updated with the progress if you can.

I went on a cycling trip from dorset to sweden (had to stop due to adverse weather conditions and reached Nordkapp by car) and had an amazing time.

One suggestion is to stock up on supplies at every opportunity and not when you need them.

As per charging equipment, i took a wind-up torch with me that also had connectors for mobile phones, turned out useful when stranded in the woods in middle of sweden and managed to charge my phone that way. Also there are some other chargers available which take AA batteries, i bought mine for like £10 and again came with loads of adaptors so it was quite usefull.

Bring some sealable bags, like the ones to be used in airports to bring liquids on board, kept my passport and other documents dry when under heavy rain.
 
I've skimmed this thread several times and I'm impressed. I thought my 3.5 month road trip was an adventure.

MK - have you considered adding some Sugru to your kit?
I'd be happy to send you a small pack if you want to try it.

Also if you know when you might be passing through some of the towns en route, a nearby holidaying OcUker might be able to provide some support. There's a slight chance I might be around LA and SF in the summer.
 
makno said:
I believe that's the tent but i could be wrong.
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That's what I thought initially but it's far too big for a MLD Supermid in cuben (going by the price) which will pack down tiny as it's essentially made from a material as thin as a plastic bag :) (I mean that in the best way, I love lightweight tents) It also has no poles as you use a trekking pole.
 
SillyHeatsink said:
+1 for the comment regarding ice axe and crampons: get a steel ice axe, and get crampons.

Secondly, get some training in the use of your ice axe, specifically how to brake with it. I don't see a strap on the axe; get one!

EDIT: Also - a helmet! Very obvious, but easily forgotten!

Very very envious of the trip - you'll have a fantastic time!
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Microspikes will be sufficient for what we are doing. Also our shoes aren't stiff enough for proper steel crampons. We do admittedly need to get some iceaxe training in, but unfortunately we simply haven't had the snow this year to test them out. We are going to have to get some training in once we hit easy snow slopes on the trail. A helmet is total overkill and would just be dead weight for the whole journey.

Col_M said:
Can't believe I missed this. It should be the adventure of a lifetime :)

One question though, what's in the three green cuben stuff sacks in the photos above? (top right of photo)
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The top one is the Cuben Fibre Supermid with bug net perimeter and door and Cuben Fibre Groundsheet. The other two contain the Thermarest Z-Lite sleeping mats. We are keeping them in stuff sacks to stop them getting dirty when putting the packs down.


:)
Pug said:
would it be quicker to walk canada to mexico, its downhill going south ;)
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But you would also have the sun in your eyes all the way down! ;) Much better to have it on my back where I can use it to charge batteries.

If anyone is interested in what camera kit I am bringing, I am posting a big blog post about it on Wednesday. For now I have put up a blog post about the camera attachment system and waterproof cover;

http://www.afowler.co.uk/posts/717/
 
When you brake with an ice axe, your head is tucked in to the slope and your heels up to prevent you from tumbling down the hill. Hence the recommendation for a helmet! If you don't bring a helmet, I'd leave the ice axes at home, they're dead weight.

The microspikes are dead handy on icy paths though, good buy! I have a set myself for general meandering.

I'll follow your blog with interest!
 
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