Maybe Chaff?

[Diplomatic Mike]

I didn't know what forum to post this in. :)
Sometimes it seems like there are two forums.
The majority of content leaves me baffled, as folk discuss hiking with a postage stamp as a shelter, and a moths wing as a quilt.
Does the wind blow, and rain fall in the US, or is everything California? :)
And if you pay mega bucks for a pack, is the maker a god?

[John Myers]

I've never been to Scotland, but I'm guessing you have a lot more stormy weather than what I see where I generally hike. :)

And as far as cost, pretty much all my gear is worth what I paid for it. Some of these cottage manufacturers have impressive skills and provide really high quality products. I have yet to be disappointed in the quality of any gear I have purchased from the smaller shops.

[Diplomatic Mike]

Tongue in cheek, John.
I've contributed a fair amount to Rons' pension. ;)
It's quite enlightening how folk the world over think their particular circumstances must be the same as everyone else.

[Eugene Smith]

Ahhhh…..Mike, you won't live this one down will you? ;-)

[Diplomatic Mike]

I'm just jealous, Eugene! :)

[EndoftheTrail]

"It's quite enlightening how extremists the world over think their particular circumstances must be the same as everyone else."

Fixed it for you, Mike.

[Diplomatic Mike]

I was trying to be serious (for a change) Ben. :)
It's as true for myself, as everyone else. We all think about what are our personal needs, and comment accordingly. You see folk saying you need 'this' or 'that, but they are looking from their own perspective. We all do it.
Sometimes it's funny looking in from a different perspective.

[EndoftheTrail]

Mike:

You need a McHale pack. We all do. End of story. OK, all better now…

[Brian UL]

In the UK it looks like you have a lot of treeless windswept country with frequent rain storms.
Even in the North east where heavy rain can last a weeks or more there is very lush thick trees and vegetation. This means its easy to stay out of the wind , so your main focus is the rain. Most of the time rain will be fairly vertical because the wind is slowed down by the forest. But bugs are really bad in the summer. So this means most of the time I can sit under an open tarp w/ bug netting and stay dry. Thru hikers here like tarp tents that can remain open to deal with the heat and humidity but can be fastened down when it rains. Things are very different in the winter when vegetation is gone and the temp plummets.
The south west is perfect weather most of the time. I don't think you can find anywhere in the world that would be easier to go UL unless you need to carry water. I like to spend time just sleeping under the stars when I visit.

[Gerry Volpe]

Another Northeasterner here, definately no weather utopia. I rarely offer advice on this site but if I do here or somewhere else I usually try to emphasize that it works for me. I often tarp in all but really buggy conditions. I usually camp lower in the trees like Brian said and actually except in winter you pretty much have to due to the environmentally sensitive nature of our alpine zone. I prefer a mid type shelter in the winter and shoulder seasons and if I could have only one shelter would definately pick a mid. We also have lots of shelters on established trails. My wife and I have used a 10 by 12 flat sil tarp for ten years in some nasty weather and been super comfy. That said a couple years ago I got a 5 by 8 to lighten up for solo trips and felt very exposed. I have only carried it a few times on short trips with decent weather or as a backup when I planned on using shelters. It is too bad because I was hoping to eventually pick up a cheap poncho tarp to try out, guess I would have to make my own big one. I think an 8 by 10 or a 9 by 9 would be perfect for me solo in bad weather in my locale.

[HkNewman]

California and the American southwest you can find perfect weather anytime. During winter the lower elevation coastal hikes are great and then as temps rise, travel to the taller mountains. Other places, Hiking in the USA from Lonely Planet recommended foreign travelers backpack the US spring and fall for optimal hiking elsewhere in the US (avoiding the winters and the thunderstorms of summer).

[Jim W.]

You've been watching too many Baywatch reruns. The truth is that Malibu water temps can be in the 50's (F) in August. We actually have a mountain or two here also. Christmas week 2010 one ski resort got 16 feet of new snow. My parents live in the desert with 4" average annual precip. One July afternoon they got 7 inches of rain in two hours. My brother had 60" of rain in four months last year.

Oh yeah. Most weeklong summer trips in the Sierra don't see a drop of rain. It was 80 and sunny last weekend.

[Anonymous]

"Does the wind blow, and rain fall in the US, or is everything California? :)
And if you pay mega bucks for a pack, is the maker a god?"

Look on the bright side of things, Mike: You've got better beer and whiskey.

[Travis Leanna]

>Look on the bright side of things, Mike: You've got better beer and whiskey.

Ooooohh, be careful Tom. There's some mighty fine microbrews here!

[ben wood]

"And if you pay mega bucks for a pack, is the maker a god?"

i guess, the chosen ones will defend him to the death, and the non-chosen just don't get it.

[Anonymous]

"Ooooohh, be careful Tom. There's some mighty fine microbrews here!"

How well I know, Travis, living in Seattle. The US of A is no longer the laughing stock of the beer world. I was just trying to give Mike something to cling to in his hour of need. ;=)

But ya gotta admit their single malts rule.

[Anonymous]

"i guess, the chosen ones will defend him to the death, and the non-chosen just don't get it."

Or just can't afford it. Sort of like the 1%'ers vs the 99%'ers? ;)

[Ken Thompson]

60"+ rain a year here. High winds. No midges, but bears. Freezing temps and 100 degrees or more in the summer. Paradise on Earth.

[ed hyatt]

Tom – you've committed the cardinal sin of spelling Whisky with an 'e'…

Mike's tag means he can't actually leave Scotland without the Border Police being alerted…

But, I know what he means. I've backpacked and cycled all over. But my first US experience, the JMT, was an eye opener….what were all these people doing lying on the ground covered in nothing but a thin later of nylon taffeta..? You can bring some of that philosophy over to Britain…let's see how the cuben Trailstar fares…

[Diplomatic Mike]

I've bribed the border police. Ed. It's the FBI i'm worried about. )
It was a thread i read yesterday that got me thinking. Dangerous, i know.
Someone posted that they had 3" of rain last year! The west coast of Scotland had 157".
Thinking about it though, at least i don't need to carry water.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

Tell me more about these perpetually warm places where shorts are worn 360 days a year. And the wind is balmy. It never rains? Tell me more!

Cause it isn't that way here in my corner ;-) Well except for my husband and brother who only wear pants if it is like snowing.

And yes, bow to the gods of gear. You bad believer!!

[Diplomatic Mike]

I believe in the gods of gear, Sarah. Many a sabbath i can be found lurking in their temples.
It seems though, that there is one angry god that will tolerate no worshipping of false idols. :)

[Anonymous]

"I believe in the gods of gear, Sarah. Many a sabbath i can be found lurking in their temples."

Are you sure you didn't mean beer, Mike? ;=)

[EndoftheTrail]

"I believe in the gods of gear, Sarah"

Good for you, Mike. I minister to the gods by propagating the faith and stamping out heresy wherever it rears its ugly head. Tom will burn in gear hell… a bubbling cauldron of silnylon is awaiting him.

Ben.
The Gear Enabler.

[Anonymous]

"Tom will burn in gear hell… a bubbling cauldron of silnylon is awaiting him."

You're starting to sound like my wife on those rare occasions she ventures into my little shrine down in the basement.

[Author]

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