Ultralight Tip of the Week

[Henk Smees]

@Mike

Merci beaucoup! Once again!

Same to you Addie.

[Kevin Sawchuk]

Make sure your shorty socks are at least ankle high. The really low cut ones let dirt and pebbles get in under the sock (there is an opening between the ankle bones and Achilles tendon). That hurts and slows you down while taking the junk out.

[Mary D]

Another issue that I discovered the summer I switched from boots to trail runners: Unlike boot tops, sock tops are not mosquito proof! It's worse when you are sitting because the pants bottoms ride up. I discovered this after a trip in Wyoming's Wind Rivers, discovering that itchy ankles are a bit of a distraction while driving back to the Pacific NW!

Alternatives: use repellent (especially in camp), spray sock tops with permethrin or wear shorty gaiters. The last works best for the bugs and also for keeping junk out of the shoes.

[George Matthews]

TFD,

That made me hungry. Good documentation. I also rely upon my wife for all things culinery. She did give a thumbs up to Mike's treats in his book when I showed them to her.

[George Matthews]

Mike, thanks for the sock tip. I read it in your fantastic book a while back, but was glad to feel that it was OK to wear more than one pair. Been wearing a thin liner (that I used to wear by itself) with a slightly thicker light sock. That combo makes a significant difference low 30ish F temps for me.

[Anonymous]

"Are there any natural thickeners (I suppose they’re called starch or pectin) that could be used as well? If so, which are more calorie-dense?"

You might try powdered full fat milk, like Nido. It's calorie dense and when added as a powder makes a good thickener. The fat in it will also help bind the other ingredients.

[Henk Smees]

Hi Tom. Good idea. Sure gonna try that.

Hi George. Wife asked what I was up to when she saw all those bowls&dishes coming out of the kitchen cupboards. I explained and she laughed (didn’t believe I was able to do something that *difficult*. When I finished she didn’t laugh anymore (kitchen looked like a battleground), but she sure liked (LOVED) the taste of the bars; well, the crumbs. (Be assured I, obviously, did all the cleaning up).

OFF TOPIC: Every time I use the Huaraches I get a bit more accustomed to them but they’re definitely NOT comfy.

[Hamish McHamish]

I think it's a mistake to compare Fritos to nuts based only on calories per ounce. The calories in nuts are mostly fat, while Fritos are a nice mix of complex carbs and fat. Fritos are superior to nuts for steady energy.

If you can't find the reduced sodium Fritos at the store, another option is the Fritos "Big Scoops". For some reason these have less sodium per serving (110mg vs. 170mg) and are available in big family size bags at Wal Mart for cheap.

[James Marco]

Excelent tip. Note that chewing a few beans allows the flavor to keep for quite a while. Since I grew up in an old italian family, I was pretty much weaned on hot, right from the roster, coffee beans. A bean or two in your cheek will hold flavour for about an hour while hiking.

[Jeff McWilliams]

I own Mike's new book and recently read it cover to cover. I really enjoyed it. I'm not a UL backpacker yet. We're hoping to adopt many of the techniques described in Mike's book this coming season.

One of the tips I found intriguing was the recommendation to choose a camp spot somewhere other than established tent pads.

I certainly see the advantages as described in the book: There is added flexibility in being able to hike longer and picking a site at the last minute, you can find a softer spot, a more secluded spot, a spot with better drainage, or better protection from the elements, etc.

However, this advice seems to go against traditional "Leave No Trace" philosophies. I belong to a outdoor club in Southeast Michigan, and I'm not sure how I would defend such a practice to staunch supporters of traditional LNT camping.

It's also unclear to me how various park services view this practice. Is it frowned upon or completely banned outright in some areas? How does one find out? I did some Google searching for National Parks policy on camping but didn't find anything conclusive.

Can others help shed light on this topic, or point me to some previous discussion threads that may enlighten me?

Thanks,

Jeff

[Mike Clelland]

Reply to Jeff:

---

1 – The idea and ethics behind STEALTH camping mean you will ONLY sleep at your camp. Both cooking and eating will be done along the trail. So you will have a minimum impact on the site where you will sleep.

2 – This is a technique for wilderness environments without the prescribed rules one might find in a busy national park.

3 – Some places (like Yellowstone National Park) require that you camp in a designated campsite. These rules were made for "traditional" campers. Other places (like Grand Canyon National Park) will issue the user a special bivy permit if folks are choosing a route in terrain without established sites.

4 – An impacted site that one might find along a trail in a well used environment is set up for BIG tents and lots of people. These usually have trash, used toilet paper and habituated animals around. I avoid these sites.

5 – I feel strongly that a skilled camper (ore a small team) can camp for one night in a hidden spot in the woods, and they should have almost zero impact. They can carefully pick a small spot to sleep, and if they need to set up a UL shelter (like a tarp) they can do it with almost ZERO impact. The stealth technique requires that the campers leave their site in a way where nobody would know they camped there. This is an excellent LEAVE NO TRACE technique, and I advocate it strongly.

6 – Wilderness areas (like the Wind River Range in Wyoming) allow camping with pretty much no rules. They ask that you camp a certain distance from lakes and rivers, and that you don't make campfires during certain seasons. This is the environment where STEALTH CAMPING can be done without worrying about permits or federal rules.

[Brian Austin]

The Real Reason to Stealth Camp, especially in the National Parks is that all of the camping sites in said NP's are all stuffed in copses of trees where there aren't views. True, the NP's in the SW you WANT the shade, but everywhere else, you want the SUN and the Views. Nearly everyone in NP's are in tiny corridors. Get outside of the corridor and you won't see a soul.

Yea yea, I know said NP's 'thinking' is that no one wants to see your tent. The fact of the matter generally is that it is all of you and maybe 2 other folks and "seeing" your tent is not a problem at all. In the National Forest its far more likely to be you, and ONLY you unless in a VERY popular spot like Image Lake or name your favorite spot… << HERE >>

If folks would eat/wash at lakes and then camp on ridges, not only are the views better, the sun rises sets earlier/later making it more enjoyable, the bugs fewer, but humanity is non existent as well.

The true fact of the matter for the predominant vast majority of the places anyone goes backpacking, walk a 200 feet off the trail and you can leave as many traces as you want and NO ONE will EVER see it. Just to put leave no trace in perspective. Its 99.99999% Wilderness and a TINY TINY TINY portion where everyone goes. No, its not OK to destroy, but most folks get to their "destination" and plop down literally and figuratively speaking in the same spot that EVERYONE else does and that is why the environment gets "ruined" around said spots.

[stephan q]

Most parks maintain designated camp sites to reduce impact of the hordes. Yosemite rules require your campsite to be a proper distance from roads, trail, water and use only existing fire rings below 9600 ft. Beyond that, you are free to camp as you please.
"Stealth" only applies to camping in an off limits area. Many persons feel "safer" camping in designated sites with bear boxes. Places like Yoho or Jasper, with very short seasons, would be hashed were it not for the quota system and designated sites. stephan

[Mike Clelland]

"STEALTH" is used to define a *hidden* campsite.

If you hide your camp you won't impact other hikers who would want to have a wilderness experiences. It's NOT to break rules or be sneaky.

If you have a small low-impact site away from a view corridor and well away from the trails, then other visitors will be able to hike along and enjoy the feeling of solitude.

[Paul Wagner]

BTW, when we camp in a previously unimpacted spot, we make sure to replace any stones or pinecones we may have moved to make a sleeping pad. That way the next guy who comes along won't be able to tell we camped there…and can have the same experience we did.

[Dale Wambaugh]

If you stealth camp with a hammock, all you leave are footprints and maybe a couple stake holes.

[HkNewman]

Wondering if stealth includes a small enough pack so you get mistaken for a dayhiker. A big honking sleeping pad strapped to the outside of a pack may give the plan away to an alert ranger. Ditto with a large pack.

[Dale Wambaugh]

Ditto with the car left at the trailhead or parking lot overnight :)

[Jeff McWilliams]

HK Newman – I prefer Mike C's definition of stealth camping, which is to preserve the feeling of solitude in the wilderness, NOT to break rules or be sneaky.

In that case, it should be of no concern to me whether a fellow hiker or park ranger sees my sleeping pad and realizes I intend to spend the night sleeping somewhere in the back country.

If I have to worry that my actions could get me ticketed, fined, or expelled from a wilderness area, I shouldn't be doing whatever it is I'm doing.

[Jeffs Eleven]

Yeh yeh- car at the TH. That the one, man.

[HkNewman]

@ Jeff: Yeah, I see what Mike is saying, though (for example) climbing out of the corridor of the Grand Canyon will likely require a last night camp at the usually packed Indian Gardens to get to the Rim by 10AM-ish (and Flagstaff with beer by high-noon). I could also see bring a subdued color shelter to a highly impacted area like the highly-visited California parks/wilderness areas, so I was more thinking out loud. Heck, maybe even a camo-colored tarp, like multicam.

[stephan q]

Howdy, I think there needs to be a distinction made here. OB camping(out of bounds) is sneaky and against the rules. Stealth camping is legal and refers to a higher level of LNT camping. One sets up camp and leaves no trace, and also strives to remain out of view of anyone else in the area. stephan

[Brian Austin]

So, being considerate is stealth camping? Ok.

Just type be considerate; not a selfish egotistical a$$.

I know, a word with more than 3-5 letters in it…

[Dean F.]

I've heard sneakily camping in prohibited areas called "commando" camping (especially by the kayaking community when camping on privately-owned land) so I use that term to differentiate from the "stealth" camping that Mike is describing.

UL hikers are the sorts who often find themselves in remote wildernesses where there isn't much cumulative impact to campsites simply because almost no one goes there except a few UL crazies. In such a situation I'm all for stealth camping, but I will certainly follow the rules in any National Park I visit. The thing is- many National Parks will issue back-country permits that allow at-large camping, if you can get them, so I always try to.

Anytime that I am allowed I prefer to do it Mike's way. It's much more enjoyable and certainly less destructive than the mud-wallows that most designated sites turn into. Of course, if there was no such thing as designated campsites in high-use areas and EVERYONE tried to camp at-large then a lot of the most convenient spots would get thoroughly trashed instead of just the one designated spot. So I'm all for designated spots in high-use areas. I simply avoid high-use areas whenever possible.

Does that make me a hypocrite for stealth camping any time I can legally get away with it? (And don't get me started on the difference between "legal" and "moral".) Yeah, probably. But I'm just enough of a snooty elitist to not count myself among the mob of "common" campers with their Coleman tents, lawn chairs and beer coolers. As with most avocations the people who are true enthusiasts are usually in a different league from the more typical recreational user. I would challenge you to identify any of my camps after just a couple of days or a decent rain, so it's rather hard to argue that I'm not adequately LNT.

I mean- seriously- I'm a low-impact fanatic. For instance I am aghast any time I see someone cutting trail corners or otherwise contributing to "social" trails, and I NEVER use them except maybe when it gets impossible to differentiate them from the main trail. But I acknowledge that LNT are guidelines for the populace at large and I'm confident that my own standards are actually HIGHER than that, so my conscience is clear.

[Mike Clelland]

I try to obey the rules in National Parks and such.

But – I have had some situations where I chose not to once I was in the backcountry.

One example was in Yellowstone. I had a permit for a high ridge line camp, but there was a scary lightning storm as I was ascending up toward the high country. I chose to STEALTH camp lower in a valley. It just seemed dangerous to go up that high for reasons of a permit.

I did a very tidy job of being hidden from other users, and i kept a fastidiously clean camp.

Mike C!

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