Post Hike Checklist Contest

1. Set up tent,ground sheet for drying, spray clean if necessary

2. hang up sleeping bag for drying

3. shake out water filter and set aside to dry, backflush if needed

4. empty food bag

5. empty pack of everything else, return first aid kit and TP (resupply if needed)

most of my stuff doesn't live in my pack, i have stuff in a bin or used for other things so i start every trip with it almost empty. emptying the food back after is definitely a good idea haha.

1. Sweep garage floor.

2. Dump all packs, duffles and ice chests onto garage floor. Shake out sticks, leaves, bugs and crumbs.

3. Distribute items to laundry hamper, refrigerator, and dog's dish as appropriate.

4. Hang quilts, bags, pads, and tents from the garage ceiling (or outside if the weather is nice). Stuff sacks, too. Wash melted chocolate off of tent floor.

5. When dry to the touch, turn gear inside out and rehang (turn over if in the sun outside). Invert stuff sacks. Kill invasive species that just dropped to the floor.

6. Account for tent pegs and guy lines. Fold/roll/stuff gear into stuff sacks.

7. If not already clearly labeled, put tags or masking tape on each stuff sack identifying its contents: "20F youth bag", "3-person dome tent", etc, adding modifying based on experience "optimistic 20F bag", "tight 3-person tent". Store on shelves for next trip.

8. Pick the most annoying item (short coming of the first aid kit, pot handle that didn't work, bad zipper in sleeping bag) and fix it.

9. Do laundry. You do it, not your mom.

Everything Jake & David said, plus:

– Take batteries out of electronics that will be stored.

– Thoroughly wash water containers, hoses & bite valves (sterilize if necessary) and allow to dry.

– Safely store stove fuels.

– Store gear in as few places as possible.

By that I mean keep as much together as possible so it isn't a pain to find it next time.

– Write down some "lessons learned" about any aspects of your trip you want to remember for next time. Gear, food, pace, techniques; what worked & what didn't, etc.

Post Hiking Checklist:

1.) Give bag to Mom.

2.) Done.

1. As soon as you return, sit down on patio or garage floor and take one thing out of the pack at a time and ask the questions. DID I USE THIS ITEM? If not, is it part of my 10 essentials or an integral part of my backpacking gear? This would be things like rain gear, pack cover or liner, etc. If it is not, then put it in the pile of things you are not going to take next time.
2. Clean out backpack.
3. clean cooking gear, tent,clothing,and water filter.
4. Clean or at least air out sleeping bag.
5. replenish first aid if necessary.
6. Put everything away properly.
a. sleeping bag in cloth storage bag.
b. Inflatable pad stored inflated.
c. If possible, store tent unfolded or rolled.
d. Check # of stakes and poles, replenish if necessary.
e. Return all troop gear to quartermaster.

@terry, you mentioned storing an air pad inflated. I was just curious as to the reasoning, is it to prevent folds/creases that will cause leakage later? I could see how an inflatable pad would deteriorate at any crease over time. Also, should they be fully inflated or mostly? (I would be worried about stress if the pad was left fully inflated, especially due to temp and pressure changes)

I would add: weigh the food and fuel that is brought home unused and enter the data into spreadsheets. Every trip yields more information about the "pounds per person per day" of food that my family of three actually eats and the amount of canister fuel needed. Hopefully I will be cured of packing so much unnecessary weight in food/fuel.

>"you mentioned storing an air pad inflated. I was just curious as to the reasoning, is it to prevent folds/creases that will cause leakage later?"

What I do is to store most pads in a pants-hanger with the valve open (such that it auto-inflates). My reason for that (after renting dozens of Thermarests for a few years) is that pads stored expanded will reinflate quickly. Those stored compressed with reinflate more slower.

Since I got some down-filled pads, I cycle dry air* through them in an effort to remove the humidity that my breath introduced into the pad.

* that can be letting them reinflate / causing them to reinflate with a blower outside during cold, dry conditions. Or doing the same but using the chest freezer as a source of cold, dry air.

…

Check parking lot to make sure I leave nothing behind.

Dry wet stuff, wash dirty stuff, use enzyme deodorizer or sanitizer if necessary, air/dry and store.

Restock kit materials (repair, hygeine, etc)

Go to Hillmap and modify planned route to reflect actual route.

Upload photos and write short trip summary with link to map for my notes.

Make any applicable notes on gear and skills development.

I don't have an actual checklist, but one thing I did after my last long trip that I should always do is go through each item and think about what needs to be repaired, modified or replaced.

For example, I repaired my sleeping bag zipper, replaced boots that were shot, repaired and modified my tent, replaced glue in my repair kit, etc.

I find it really easy to store gear thinking "I'll need to fix this before the next trip" and then forget about it.

After seven years of trips with my ADD boy scout, I've learned to focus on personal cooking gear and clothes. I help him make sure that all clothing is out of his pack and sleeping bag and that his personal cooking gear makes it the kitchen. We learned this the hard way after several trips in the past.

Everyone else's advice is solid.

We break things into three categories:

Stuff that goes on every trip, and doesn't need fixing or replacing or cleaning. All of that goes right back in the pack, right where we need it.

Food and cooking items (and water filters) get washed and returned to their place in the pack the next day. Clothes get washed, dried, and returned to the pack the next day.

Tents, if they need it, get cleaned and dried, then packed away. Sleeping bags get aired out for a day, then returned to their storage bags, with the stuff sack inside as well, so we know where to find them.

As David said, anything that got broken or lost is fixed…

I inflate the pad, leave it inflated for a while. Then open the valve and put it under the bed. This takes care of any memory the foam in the pad might have had if it were to sit rolled with all the air out of it. It just helps with the longevity.

I have a guest bedroom that I use for my gear room. I unpack the down stuff and left it re-loft and dry out on the bed. Tent gets strewn around the floor, likewise to dry thoroughly. I have stray cats in the back yard and 3 housecats, so my no-cats-allowed gear room is where it all has to go. I inflate the pad and then prop open the valve so eventually any moisture evaporates out, then hang it upright. (I have the Exped UL7 Synmat and use the Schnozzle but still find that I can see moisture inside). I resupply the bathroom kit, toiletries stuff sack, and first aid kit as needed. Clean out the food bag.

Usually I leave everything airing out all week — then just repack it into my backpack for the next weekend trip. :)

Kelly

First Prize= 5 points to Roger Dodger because he wrote the most/longest post

Second Prize= A Tie! so they split the 4.5 points (second/third) between them Terry Thompson for his succinct list directed at a 12 year old boy and David Thomas because he said "not your Mom" referring to who should do the laundry, great advice for training boys to be men.

Your points can be claimed any time in the next 45 days, but they need to be picked up in person, or you can send a self address stamped to the contest headquarters and they will mail them out.

Honorable Mention goes to: Jake, Frank, Kate, Laurie, Spelt, Buck, Joseph, Paul and Kelly- your names have now been honorably mentioned. Thanks for responding.

Marginal Honorable mention- Christopher- he did make me laugh with his post, though it was completely contrary to what I'm trying to accomplish with the boys.

Here is what I came up with- It is in a Word Doc and a format that doesn't copy to this forum very well- the first section is in a table format that has boxes to check off when completed and the alpha section is dialog backing up the checklist. Both are on a landscape formatted sheet with the table on the right and the dialog on the left. Everything on one page, easy to read and use (hopefully).

Post Hike/Camp Out Checklist

Empty Pack and stuff sacks (completely)
Throw out trash/ empty any food
Dry Tent/Tarp (set up and fan dry)
Air out and Dry Footwear
Dry rain gear
Do laundry. You do it, not your mom
Clean/Wash Cooking gear
Empty water bottle, dry out

Inflatable pad stored inflated
Air out the sleeping bag- store in large cotton bag
Inflatable pad- stored inflated
Check headlight batteries to see if they need to be replaced
Replenish my first aid kit
Replenish my hand sanitizer
Replenish Matches/ Firestarter

Take a shower!

Return gear to proper location – check # stakes and poles before returning

A. Dry our/your tent and gear as soon as possible, because moldy tent and gear (like your sleeping bag or rain gear) is a bad thing. Let everything air out completely before repacking.
B. Wash all your clothes as soon as you get home. Don’t forget that they’re in your backpack, because a few weeks later at the next campout it’s going to be really nasty (much worse than that moldy tent smell).
C. Unpack all food, because this is even nastier than the previous two items weeks later.

D. Air out Sleeping bag and shelter for at least 2 days (or longer if drying) and then repack shelter, wash stakes to make sure they are not caked with mud. Sleeping bag goes into storage bag, uncompressed.

E. Check headlight batteries to see if they need to be replaced. Take batteries out of, headlamp, camera, GPS.

F. Put everything away properly

G. Think about lessons learned, what worked, what didn't. Ask the question “DID I USE/NEED THIS ITEM”? If not, is it part of my 10 essentials or an integral part of my backpacking gear? If not leave it home next time. What foods I enjoyed, what I didn't. How many calories did I consume/versus bring. Kaizen, continuous process improvement.

H. Take a shower. Everything else is getting clean, so should you. Plus, you don’t want to get that sweaty smoky smell all over the house and scare the cat or dog away.