The SUL Mindset, Part 2: Less vs. Lighter

[Bill Townsend]

All right Ryan may have me coming around on the steripen, but using my short/wide pot won't fly. Not sure if it's a valid concern or anyone has an answer BUT: any reason not to use this system with a 1quart twist loc container? Not quite Nalgene quality plastic so I wonder about leeching, degradation, ect. I could switch ziploc's every set of batteries or some other such system I suppose.

[Ken Thompson]

"any reason not to use this system with a 1quart twist loc container? "

No. Steripen even replied to someone here who asked them that same question a couple of years ago.

[Ian]

Another option is to use your cook pot. My Steripen (and all of them to my knowledge) has a .5 liter treatment setting. If you're carrying the bowl anyways then it's 6 to one half dozen to the other I suppose.

Edit: Sorry. Tired from a long day of driving and re read your concern with your pot. If you're using an evernew UL pot then I suspect you'd be ok but I'll check my Opti with my Evernew UL 600 tomorrow morning to be sure.

Edit part deuce: I stand corrected. The Opti lamp is too long to work in the Evernew 600.

[Anthony Weston]

I think gear sickness is a terrible thing but there is an easy cure: sell or give it away. I think a consumer society can be wonderful or terrible. It's wonderful if I need something it's there. It's terrible if I don't use what I have and it's just wasted.

However I may have some gear that I don't use but it's there in case I want to go on a different kind of a trip or as a backup in case my pack splits so I don't have to miss a trip just because I'm waiting 8 weeks for the pack I ordered. Not to knock the cottage industry – Thank God for zpacks, mld, EE and all the others.

be prepared vs take less
so what is it they teach you in backpacking 101, "When you get back from a trip put everything you didn't use in a pile and then don't bring it the next time". Here again discrimination is needed, somethings that I didn't use like a 3 oz bug net on this trip – are still worth carrying so don't ignore backpacking 101 but don't put yourself in misery if you don't have to. It's fun to cowboy camp, if the conditions will let you get away with it, we did it last week on Alta Peak no tent required but don't put yourself in danger, respect that the mountain can kill.

It's like in Laurence of Arabia where the Bedouin says we don't love the desert we love water and gardens. I think real mountain men of yesteryear would give their eye-teeth for down sleeping bag instead of wool blanket and bear grease smeared on to keep you warm because it's that or die.

[Paul Wallace]

Being called a hypocrite for buying new stuff is not why I paid to subscribe to this forum. Lucky for you that you already have two expensive looking cuben fiber packs, which I assume you found on the side of the road and did not have to buy.

[Richard Scruggs]

Read the article again and still find it's really good, full of thought-provoking notions and insights — but, but, but . . .

Why even bother to include a rain jacket when you're feeling lucky enough to rely on a down sleeping bag with no shelter at all?

Why not cut the rain jacket as one less thing to clutter up the gear list?

Or maybe swap it out for an SUL poncho, something like the hoodless SpinPoncho T-Lite that BPL used to have in its gear shop, see link below (and say, that guy modeling the SpinPoncho T-Lite sure looks familiar, doesn't he!) —

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/spinponcho_t_ultralight_backpacking_tarp.html

Multi-functional (shelter/rain gear) at half the weight of the rain jacket, and all without increased number of items. What? Need stakes & guy line? Oops.

[HkNewman]

Think the point of the article was if one started traditional weight items (R3, down bag, waterproof/breathable jacket, etc..), an interested traditional packer could still go UL by taking less of items already owned.

Then start melting credit cards..

[Richard Mock]

I cowboy camped for 4 decades but finally educated myself of the dangers of tickborne diseases and have changed my behavior and clothing in the outdoors.

[Aaron Sorensen]

OK, I dig the article.
The whole less is more is a great mindset, and a great concept.
But calling a SUL Mindset?

It's terms like this that are just there to make you feel good about yourself.

This is why a size 6 pair of jeans would be a size 10 not too many years ago.
It just makes people feel good that they can be overweight and still fit into and say they are a size 6.

[Author]

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