Backpacking

Fun and Adventure are yours

BackPacking

Author: Hak Ty

Backpacking is a mixture of hiking (walking in the wilderness or climbing mountains for exploring.) and camping (staying in the wilderness or in a protected forest for a day or two).

Backpacking is the best of both worlds. A backpacker makes a base at one place and then packs all the gear into a backpack and hikes off to a different location.

This gear consists of essentials like food, water, shelter ot the means to obtain them. The gear includes only bare necessities, less than one would carry for a stationary camping.

This is an excellent recreational activity, to explore a place that is beautiful and fascinating. It is called tramping or trekking in other parts of the world.

Imagine being in a lush green forest environment away from all civilization or on a mountain which is inaccessible to humans. Since there are bare necessities with you, there is a sense of simplicity and being one with nature.

Of course the meaning of bare necessities is different for different persons. So if your backpack is heavy then you will cover less ground in a day. The backpack can be a nuisance and a distraction in enjoying the scenery. So what gear to carry is an important issue.

Backpack trips can be for one or two nights or if it's a long-distance expedition may last weeks or months, sometimes aided by prearranged food and supply drops.

Backpacking is tougher than ordinary camping. There may be areas where regular traffic of backpackers camp, here they might have a fire ring, maps might also be available as well as some warning and information signs.

Many of these camps are no more than level patches of ground without scrub or underbrush.

In many desolate areas, these common camp bases do not exist and travelers pitch their tents wherever they please.

Sleeping Bag Liners Instead Of Bags

Author: Steve Gillman

Sleeping bag liners for camping? My friend Dion made fun of my "poor excuse for a sleeping bag," but it kept me warm as the temperature dropped to the low forties, and it weighed only five ounces.

So, how did it a sleeping bag liner keep me warm? The real secret was the fifteen minutes we spent gathering dead, dry bracken ferns to build a two-foot thick mattress. We set the tent on that. Then, in my liner with all my clothes on, I was fine. Actually, I've rarely slept as well camping as I did that night.

Using Sleeping Bag Liners Instead Of Bags

You can buy light sleeping bag liners from Campmor and other suppliers, or do like I did. I sewed a simple one of bargain-bin nylon material ($1/yard) obtained at Walmart. Buy the lightest nylon or polyester material you can find. Depending on what you use and how big you make it, it should weigh between four and nine ounces.

I found I could stay warm with a light sleeping bag liner in autumn, at a few degrees above freezing, so this strategy should work well for summer nights in the sixties. Be careful, of course. It could be dangerous, or at least uncomfortable enough to ruin your trip. Test this strategy near home, and know yourself and your enviroment.

You may want to learn a few tricks for staying warm if you try this strategy. When it isn't too humid you can breath in your bag, for example. Many backpackers will tell you not to do this, because you'll be damp in the morning, but in a dry enviroment you'll dry quickly once you hit the trail.

Spread the liner out to dry during a break.

Just as I did the first time, you can also use a mattress of dried plants. Use dead leaves, palm fronds, grass, cattail leaves, some softer tree barks, etc. A mattress of this sort insulates you from the ground, which normally takes away much of your body heat. Scatter the leaves in the morning so they won't smother the plants underneath.

Try to go to bed warm. If you're warm when you get into your sleeping bag, you're more likely to stay warm through the night. If you start out shivering, it's difficult to warm up, especially in a thin bag.

These are options, but not recommendations. I've gone out with nothing more than a bivy sack in my jacket pocket, but I'm not recommending that either. This is just to present all the possible options for the ultralight backpacker. One of those options is sleeping bag liners.

More tricks for staying warm: Hot tea before going to sleep...

Exercise a bit... Cover yourself with extra clothes... Elevate your feet slightly... Go to sleep earlier or later.

Experiment to see what works best for you.

Author: Steve Gillman

Why learn about medicinal plants?

Certainly, backpackers shouldn't leave the first aid kit home, but it can be useful and interesting to know a few plant medicines too. Whether you are someday in a survival situation, or you just lost your first aid kit and have a terrible headache, wouldn't it be nice to find relief nearby?

You can. There are many effective medicinal plants. Some are also dangerous, of course, just like synthetic medicines can be. I won't discuss those here. This is a quick guide to a few safe plant medicines.

Plants For Pain Relief

Fill the bottom of a cup with shredded willow bark, and make a cup of tea with it. Let it steep for a few minutes before you drink it. The active ingredient is salicin, closely related to salacylic acid, which is used to make aspirin. You can also try chewing on a few balsam poplar buds.

Antiseptic Plants

Sap from "blisters" on balsam firs is a strong antiseptic. Pop the blisters on the trunks of young trees, and the sap will ooze out. You can spread it over cuts and small wounds to prevent infection. It is very sticky, however, and it will be difficult to wash off (at least it smells nice).

The crushed leaves of Saint John's Wort can be used as an antiseptic dressing as well. I once put a wad of the mashed leaves on a nasty gash in my foot, replacing it occasionally, and the cut healed faster than I've ever seen a cut heal. St. Johnswort has anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal properties.

Medicinal Plants For Diarrhea

You can drink tea made from the roots of blackberries and their relatives to stop diarrhea. Just fill the bottom of the cup with the cleaned and shredded roots and pour boiling water over them. Let the mix steep for five minutes before drinking.

Oak bark and other barks containing tannin are also effective. I have also used the twigs to stop diarrhea when I was backpacking in Mexico. Make tea with a spoonful of the bark or chopped-up twigs. Tannins can be hard on the kidneys, so drink just one cup of tea, or use oak only if you don't have other options.

Skin Medications

You can relieve the itch from insect bites, sunburn, or plant poisoning rashes by applying a poultice of jewelweed (Impatiens biflora). I have seen a poison ivy rash cleared up overnight using the juice from jewelweed. It is also said to work on sunburn as well as aloe vera.

Make a tea of witch hazel leaves (Hamamelis virginiana), and you can use it for relief from insect bites, and sunburn. Witch Hazel used to be a common astringent that women used as a "tightening" face wash.

There are hundreds of wild medicinal plants that could be useful to hikers and backpackers. You don't need to become an expert to benefit from them. Just learn to identify and use a few of the most widespread and safest ones.

Author: Jay Bauder

Some tips on backpacking

Travelers around the world enjoy seeing the sights and wonders of different places with only a backpack for all the things they need. Because they only have a pack on their backs, the possibilities of new sightseeing and activity adventures are limitless.

But of course, before you head for a faraway hiking adventure with your backpack, you must make sure that you bring all the things you need to put in your backpack. Below is a checklist that would help your backpacking adventure a pleasant experience.

- Backpack

Of course, how can you go for a wild backpacking activity without a backpack! Pick one that is comfortable and fits well on you.

- Quick Drying Towel

Widely available in many stores. You don't want a heavy, damp towel on your backpack, do you?

- Walking Shoes

Pick comfortable shoes as you would learn soon enough that walking would be a major part in your backpacking adventure.

- Underwear and socks

These go without saying.

- Long Underwear

This depends on the season and place where you are traveling. You might also wear your long underwear when you stay in hotels that do not have adequate well-heating systems.

- Pillow Case

Pillow case is an essential thing to keep when you stay in backpacker hotels.

- Sleeping Bag

When you stay in backpacker hotels.

- Passport

Don't even think of leaving the country without it.

- Spy Wallet

So that you could be able to divide up the money that you have just in case.

- Day Pack

Most backpacks have a detachable daypack.

- Camera

A digicam may be better, but bulkier and heavier to carry.

- Journal

For the writer and chronicler in you.

- Flip Flops

Useful when you take a shower.

- Traveler's Checks

You can never be too sure with your money.

- Wet Wipes

Always come in handy. Easy to carry too.

- Landry Detergent

It might prove handy.

- Space Savers

- Rain Coat

Especially if you travel on a rainy season.

- Lock

For the safety of your belongings.

- Band Aids

It's better to be prepared than not at all.

- Travel Guide

Try picking a comprehensive yet easy-to-carry travel guide.

- Personal items such as toothpaste, deodorant, soap, and shampoo

For hygienic purposes.

- Clothing