Before we bought our F-250 Super Duty, I had decided we needed a camper shell, or what is now mostly called a “truck cap.” There are several reasons why I wanted a cap. Before purchasing I did a little bit of research, which I am going to share here. Continue reading F-250 Camper Shell
A lot of people struggle with the concept of layering clothes for backpacking. Hopefully, I can simplify it, with some real world examples. Backpacking is a good example (vs. snowshoeing or mountain climbing). The backpacker spends most of the day walking with an occasional rest break. He also spends time in camp doing chores and often a little bit of time just sitting in camp. So we can “define ” these activities as sitting, light work, and heavy work. Impact-Site-Verification: 329d9066-0a94-4b4e-8ff9-65d7ee7893a5
For backpackers the following layers are almost universally accepted as the best way to dress for the backcountry:
Most of the time these are not all used at the same time. Weather, temperature, wind, level of activity, and the individual’s metabolism determined what layers should be worn under what conditions. Continue reading Understanding Layers Using Patagonia Clothing as a Guide
Have you noticed the trend?
Lately I’ve been reviewing a lot of old gear, which I still use. The reason is, these items work. Much of the new stuff are just iterations of the old, camouflaged by marketing people, created to imply new and improved.
I have been using Patagonia Baggies for most of my outdoor activities for 35 years. Not the same pair, because they do wear out eventually. They do last longer than any other shorts I have used though. Continue reading Patagonia Baggies Shorts: 35 Year Review
All my life I’ve had a healthy heart — as far as I know. I’m active and my heartbeat and blood pressure have always been at the lower level of healthy. Back in January I was told there is something wrong with my heart. Continue reading Senior Moments: The Heart
Hiking staffs have been around for a long time. Moses used one to lead his people out of Egypt. Confronting Ramses, Moses transformed his staff into a snake and then back. He used it to produce water from a rock, and even used it to part the Red Sea. Try doing that with a set of trekking poles!!
Continue reading Tracks Hiking Staff: Better Than Trekking Poles
Time to write about something other than our house remodel. Since we are forced to stay at home, I can’t go backpacking or camping for a while; thus I can’t share any trip reports. Writing trip reports are a pain in the ass anyway, something I have mostly quit doing the past few years.
This isn’t a review. In my opinion, a review requires several years of use, or a few hundred days/nights of use. For that reason, I find most gear reviews of limited value. Often I find gear reviews useless.
Continue reading Black Diamond Mega Light Pyramid Shelter: Not A Review
If I haven’t bored you yet, this is the next post on our house remodel.
Of all the rooms I completely tore down to the wall studs during our house remodel, this was the easiest. Probably because my skills improved as I progressed room-by-room, it was more intuitive to anticipate problems, and there was only one big obstacle in this room. Continue reading House Remodel: Guest Bath Demolition Phase
Again, I’m continuing the House Remodel series. What else can I do since backpacking and camping in California are pretty much closed to me. I have patience. The last post in the series was about our master bath demolition, which went well over all. The same cannot be said about the kitchen.
Of all the work I had planned, the kitchen was supposed to be the easiest.
In my post on planning for the demolition, I mentioned that,
A simple galley kitchen, there wasn’t a lot that could be done without some really, really major construction. So we would end up upgrading the cabinets, countertops, and flooring.
As it turned out, we found a plethora of problems after we removed the old kitchen cabinets. Continue reading House Remodel: Kitchen Demolition Disaster
Continuing the Home Remodel series. In the last post, I wrote about preparing for demolition, which was really a planning exercise.
In this post I’ll discuss what I tore out, why I tore it out, and what unexpected problems I found. Continue reading House Remodel: Master Bath Demolition Phase
Continuing my series on our house remodel. In an earlier post I discussed the importance of planning. In this post I’ll review the demolition preparation phase, with an eye to planning. Continue reading House Remodel: Preparing for Demolition