Member's Tips

Submitted by:

John Jaskolka

Backpacking Nutrition

Carrying enough food and water for a 7 to 10 day trip may be difficult for anyone. If you are not normally a very active person you may require 2 to 3 times the calories and water you normally consume. Plan Carefully.

Always carry Water Pure Tabs or the equivalent. Pumps can and do malfunction.

Plan on foods that require no or little cooking and save on fuel weight.

Examples:

Breakfast: Raisin Bran Total gives you total vitamins. Place a cup or two in a zip lock bag, crush the flakes then add 1/3 cup powdered milk. Roll the bag from the bottom and zip. In the field pour water in the bag and eat from the bag. No dish to wash.

Lunch: Peanut butter and Jelly (carbs and Protein) Sandwich made with flour tortillas. P & B mix can be bought in small plastic jars (don't carry glass). Tortillas save space and will not mold like bread. Use the tortillas from the shelf not those from the cooler.

Evening :Instant rice and instant Cous Cous only require you to bring the water to a boil add the material and shut off the flame. Cous cous comes flavored and the rice can be flavored buy adding dry packaged Cheese Sauce or other flavoring. Rice and Cheese requires less space than Mac and Cheese and the nutrition is comparable.

Snacks: GORP seems to be the best offered on the market.

Tips for Backpacking

1. Take a tarp w/ you on a camping trip . It makes a rainy meal much more tolerable
2. Travel light and go far. Look for ways to cut down on weight. You can cut 4 or 5 pounds off your backpack weight by just using some of the ultralight models
3.Buy quality gear when your life depends on it. The most expensive gear is cheap gear.
4. Use check list and update them after every trip (every trip is a learning experiance)
5. Take a first aid class and review often. Don't wait until you need it to learn it.
6. Eat small snacks frequently when doing endurance activities - GRAZE
7. Layer . I believe that the layer next to the skin is the foundation of an effective system. Wal Mart and Target have good base layers that are affordable.

Submitted by:

Bill Sadler

Canoe/Kayak Packing List

The two columns to the left of the items listed are "T" for items to take on
trip and "P" for items packed to take on the trip.

About a month or two before a kayak camping trip I fill-out the header
information and check off the items that I know that I want to carry with me
on the trip. As time goes by and I think of additional items to take along
then I check them off in the "T" column on the list. As I pick-up to go on
the trip, as each item is packed, then I check off the item in the "P"
column on the list.

At the bottom of the list is where I plan the meals for each day. Meal and
water planning can be very important because of limited space in a kayak.

Submitted by:

Lynda Sadler

Dressing for Cold Weather Adventure

As cool weather approaches, this is a good time to stock up on the right winter clothes for the outdoors, particularly for paddling. There are several high tech fabrics now that make it more comfortable and safer for us to be in an environment where we might get wet – and cold.

Submitted by:

Bambi Edwards

Books by Women and about Women, Wildlife and the Outdoors

At the East Coast Kayaking Festival in Charleston, I attended a women's forum hosted by Lena Conlan, kayak guide and author of Crossing Latitudes. During the presentation she shared this list of books. I have read a few already and thought you might enjoy the list.