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NEWS: 28 1730 JAN 2001 Still haven't changed over servers, and I'm debating on weather or not to do it now. May be more hassle than it is worth. I don't want to spend a lot of money on this site, so a commercial web server isn't an option unless I could get free sponsorship. No biggie, I'll stick with NBCi for now. I also have uploaded my first book review: Ray Jardine's Beyond Backpacking. Check it out, especially if you haven't read the book yet. Other projects I'm working on are planning some local hikes, planning a big section hike of the AT in June, and doing some planned updates to the web site like compass use, stove reviews, etc. My goal is to always be updating this site to keep it fresh. SGT Rock! NEWS: 17 2000 JAN 2001 Today I got home and my new Ultralight Hennessy Hammock was here! I immediately took it out and played with it. Although I haven't taken it hiking yet, I have updated the Hennessy Hammock Page. I'm still working on the server change. This linking two sites is a pain in the butt. I haven't devoted full time to it, other projects such as work are priority. SGT Rock! NEWS: 15 2200 JAN 2001 I'm still working on the info for the site, but nothing new updated yet other than this news page. I just finished making modifications to my Lodestone Overlode backpack. I can now carry 6 days of food and 3 seasons of gear in a 2900ci pack! The backpack itself weighs 50.5oz after modifications which include adding 3 shove-it pockets, removing some superfluous loops and straps, and removing the aluminum stay. I had planned to remove the hip belt, but I'll wait on that until I'm used to how the pack rides in case I need it - that would cut about 10oz. I've also been changing some gear based on Ray Jardine's book "Beyond Backpacking". I have made the following changes to try on my next backpacking trip: 1. Replaced my convertible pants with a pair of lightweight shorts and a pair of nylon shell pants. 2. Replaced my long sleeve silk shirt with a nylon shell jacket. 3. Replaced my boots with 24oz running shoes 4. Replaced Thorlo light hikers with polypro sock liners. 5. Replaced 10oz Laguna sandals with 6.5oz sandals. I have also thought about replacing my iodine water treatment with a Safewater Anywhere in-line filter, if anyone has experience with one of these, please e-mail me and tell me about it. Last bit of news for today is I will soon change my server to Bellsouth so I can avoid advertising. I'll keep my HTML files on the Bellsouth server, and my photos on another server like NBCi or some other server. It will take some time to change the link for every picture on the site, so it may be a few days. SGT Rock! NEWS: 07 2100 JAN 2001 Haven't been doing much today, feeling under the weather. Just repacked my backpack after doing some work on my equipment. After reading "Beyond Backpacking", I have been re-evaluating some of my gear. Current 10 day heavy pack list is down to 44.5 pounds and my 6 day light packing list is down to 33.5 pounds, both are three season. This is with a base weight of 21 pounds and 18.5 pounds respectively. I still plan to get a sleeping bag that is less than 2 pounds, which should reduce pack weight another 1.5 pounds. Home made projects I have done so far: 1. 9oz umbrella. Don't know how much I'll like it, but for 3 bucks from Wal-Mart, it's worth the risk. 2. My wife helped me make my silk mummy liner - 6oz and it's a cool pattern on the material. 3. Seam sealed my sil stuff sacks. I didn't make the sacks, their Equinox stuff sacks from Backcountry Outfitters. 4. Ripped out the mesh liner and the cargo pockets and saved 2.5oz from my Stern's rain pants (Wal-Mart again). 5. Silk bandanna made from the remnants of the silk. 6. New 12oz fuel and oil bottles from Evian water bottles - .75oz each. 7. Tent pegs from gutter spikes. I've also tried putting some mesh pockets on my Lodestone Overlode backpack, it's harder than I thought because I can't get to it with a sewing machine. I've got to figure a better strategy. You'll notice the new section on the content bar: Books and Videos. I moved the "North to Katahdin" there, and will also post reviews and links for other books and videos about backpacking stuff as I come across them. The book titles are books I've read that I want to share, so as I write and post a review, the link will be added. SGT Rock! NEWS: 06 0800 JAN 2001 Happy new year, hope you all had a pleasant holiday. I know I did. I still haven't received my new hammock, but I have got everything else, along with some new beefy tips for my trekking poles, some polar pure, and some silk so I can make a mummy bag liner. Over the holidays I read Ray Jardine's book "Beyond Backpacking". A very good book about reducing pack weight. There are some things about his system I don't quite agree with, but he has done quite a bit of hiking and research into his light weight system. If you get a chance, go read it. I think I'll post a review of the book at a later date. I also started playing with my Lodestone Mountaineering Overlode, partially as a result of reading "Beyond Backpacking". I'm going to be doing some modifications to the pack to reduce pack weight and make it more efficient for my packing and hiking style. When I finish my modifications I'll write a review and have some pictures. I just recently switched ISP to Bellsouth.net which provides a free 10 meg web space free of advertisement, so I may switch over to that. Only problem is that I'm currently at 11 megs of content (9 megs are pictures) and still want to be able to have the site grow. I'll try to figure out a solution. Other than this, there aren't any new updates to the site. I've kind of lost a little steam on the compass project, so I'll need to rededicate myself to that. I have gotten some questions about the page with some good ideas on how to make the resection easier and more field expedient for someone that doesn't need an 8 digit grid to their location. SGT Rock! All dates are done in military day/time group. Example: 20 1945 OCT 2000 This means 20 (20th day) 1945 (7:45 PM) OCT (October) 2000 (year 2000). Hope this clears up any confusion. |
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