Just finished watching the documentary of the Piccard-led solar flight around the world. VERY tech laden yet always reliant on human daring and endurance.
And it reminded me of how backpacking has evolved into being tech laden, in a very good way.
1.silnylon and Cuben fiber tents/tarps
2.DWR treated down for garments & bags
3.ever lighter and more efficient stoves of every fuel
4.fully synthetic clothing and/or spendy Merino and alpaca wools
5.GPS routefinding in small stand-alone units, watches and phones
6.freeze-dried foods -ever tastier (in some brands, that is; o)
7.digital cameras/phones that can do GPS too
8.emergency beacons like SPOT & much smaller sat phones
9.ultra light and ultra comfortable mattresses like Neo Air
10.packs W/internal frames under 2 lbs.
11.carbon fiber hiking and tent poles
12.better and better synthetic insulations
13. ever lighter footwear
14.lighter drones with 4K cameras to record our adventure and harass other hikers and wildlife (What? You don’t take your drone backpacking??)
15.Don’t forget your earbuds to hear tunes from your phone or now outdated iPod to block out those pesky sounds of nature like wind, bird songs and the screech of a hawk.
Aaahhh Nature!
