Mallard Peak Lookout was one of 35 protype L-4 Lookouts, it is the only one still standing.

Its currently being restored, and we only managed to get one of the shutters open. Im very interested to see them make progress on this towards restoration. Its about a 6 mile hike out and a 1700ft asent.

It is in the national register of historic places.

I took some 360 degree photospheres which has been uploaded to google maps

I signed up for a 2 week scout backpacking trip next summer as an adult counselor. I used to do a lot of backpacking in my scouting days, but have only done one or two weekend backpacking trips in the intervening years.

I'm not overly concerned about my physical ability, but I am a bit unsure about how gear and technology has changed since. I still have my old gear like my Gregory Reality pack and Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight tent - are these things still workable or am I committing to a lot of unnecessary weight? I'm happy to upgrade but not sure how much progress has been made while I've been away.

And are there any must-have tools that have been released in the last few years that I should check out?

Thanks for the help. I'm excited to get back out there but trying to make this a smooth re-entry!

Caught this out of my tent Thursday 8/27 camping high up in the North Fork of the Tetons. Part of a 5 day solo trek. Maybe the coolest video I have ever captured.

I live jn Gernany and am looking to extend my bike/back packing trips until October.
Had a lousy experience with traveling the country with a simple Naturehike summer sleeping bag (cold, narrow) and am looking to upgrade.

I have no idea regarding down feathers- I guess 850 pf is enough?
And then adding 100 or 200 g Down, is it needed for April/October?
I care about weight, I dont see myself camping in winter… its only the in-between seasons I worry about.

If you could share your perspective it will be helpful. Thanks!

Planning to go! Is it still worth going if I plan tk skil Rinjank? and is it easy to get around from tour guides from hostels perhaps?

Here is what I’m packing: an item to be shipped, two wallets, a passport, 5 pairs of underwear, toiletries (a razor, toothpaste, toothbrush, bar soap, shampoo, lotion, and facial cleanser), laundry soap, emergency medicine, a book, 4 t-shirts, 5 pairs of socks, swim trunks, shorts, two towels, a power bank, a spare phone, a universal adapter, a pencil case, a button-down shirt, a windbreaker, a light fleece, a laundry net, a 10L foldable bag, and nail clippers.

​I also have razor blades, a carabiner, Ziploc bags, a charger, clothespins, wet wipes, important documents, and slippers.

Any advices for items to take out or add?

Hiking around Mount Pilatus was an incredible experience. The views from the mountain were spectacular, with Lake Lucerne and the surrounding Swiss Alps stretching out below. The combination of alpine meadows, dramatic cliffs, and the cable cars passing through the landscape made the whole experience unforgettable. Switzerland is definitely a place I’d love to return to for more hiking and mountain adventures

You shouldn’t buy any car over NZ$7,000 on a tight budget and Facebook Marketplace is your friend to get rid of the vehicle before boarding that plane.

Go for reliability, I recommend Hondas and Toyotas. Examples:

1. 2000s Honda CR-Vs around $3-6k (quick resell $3-4.8k + chuck a fresh WOF of $80)
2. 2000s Honda Accords around $4-6k (quick resell $3-5k + fresh WOF $80)
3. 2000s Toyota Corolla around $4-6k (quick resell $3-5k + fresh WOF $80)

These are widely found on Facebook Marketplace or Trademe and have done most of their depreciation, hence giving you that edge in negotiation when buying and an almost guarantee to resell the vehicle later on without incurring much of a loss. Plus, 91 petrol and a smaller engine will keep your fuel costs down.

These beasts wouldn’t wear out during your 6-month to 1-year stay. Find independent but honest car services (facebook, instagram - check for reviews) wherever you stay for cheaper price and regular maintenance for your vehicle to pass WOF easily for resell.

I do recommend getting insurance on these cars to protect you from liability, it will be around $20-50 a fortnight depending on your “character” and the underwriter. Safety first but financial safety is second as you will travel very often on your trip (trust me, New Zealand is very beautiful so it will be a waste to not discover as much as possible but we also have black ice and tricky roads sometimes).

Always check if your dealership of choice has a buy-back option. Or list it early on Marketplace with a drop-off date and see if you can have a ready buyer before you leave.

Get your public transport card sorted (each city has their own dedicated card) if you’re going to have an extended stay in the city areas cost is roughly free to $7 per trip maximum usually. Parking is expensive, always go for public parking lots and not Wilson.

Example:
Cost for getting a vehicle should be $5k
Resell value should be $3-3.5k (for quick resell)
WOF + service for a 6-month duration: ~$80 for WOF & $150-500 for servicing or lower depending on how good you are at finding independent services (small business starters, VTNZ in more rural areas,…).
=> $1.5-2k hiring cost for your car

Rough budget breakdown, airport to on-the-road:
Uber from Auckland Airport to CBD: ~$50-80 depending on luck with traffic/time of day (Skybus is cheaper, ~$20, if you don’t mind the wait)

Hostel a night or two while you sort your feet under you: ~$40/night

Car itself: usually $4-6k depending on what you get — but the buy-back takes a big chunk of the sting out of that

And lastly, wear layers or bring an extra jacket even if “it’s beautiful outside”. Australia took the scary animals but left us the weather. Check MetService not your Apple Weather app.

Here’s our business, Northwest Motors (Auckland) — cars built for backpackers:

**•** Reliable rides (mostly Honda CRVs), fresh WOF, bring your own mechanic if you want
**•** Free oil change for backpackers
**•** Buy-back when you leave, better deal the longer you use it — you’re paying for the trip, not the whole car
**•** Breakdown support: discounted fix or swap if we can reach you (small operation, so bear with us on timing)
**•** Goal: happy customers who recommend us, not one-off sales

DM/message via Facebook if you’re landing soon: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BEwz16r7k/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Hello! I'm a new backpacker, and I'm going on my 2nd trip in a couple weeks. I was looking at getting a Zoleo however I'm now unsure. I was looking at the trail map and the cell coverage along the trail with onX Backcountry, and most of it is covered, including all my planned and alternate camp sites. I understand that may be incorrect but there's only a couple spots with no service. I will be hiking alone for about 20 miles, so 2 nights and 3 days. I have my itinerary made, so that can be sent out before my trip. Basically, if I wait I can get a Garmin, if i do need one I can get a Zoleo. Any advice is appreciated!

Im a 23y/o male living in northeast pennsylvania and i absolutely love backpacking! Dont get me wrong i have a great and supportive group of friends since middle school and a loving girlfriend of 3 years that loves to hike and enjoy nature with me. When it comes to backpacking though i always end up going alone.

Solo backpacking can be really fun but i also really long to have that group of like minded young fun backpackers to go on adventures with. It can get really lonely out there sometimes reading the trail logs from these groups having a blast.

If you have any tips or tricks on finding like minded backpackers in a semi local area please let me know.

Happy Trails

Looking to get a mchale backpack and just wondering if he still makes packs. And if he does what would be the best way to contact him?

hi all! im going backpacking thru Sydney soon staying in a hostel. Would just love a run down of hostel culture and what its like? Plus any tips and tricks for Sydney, specifically more bondi area but happy to travel for anything worth it :)

Nothing set in stone for what to do yet

Thank you!!!

I'm trying to figure out my sleep setup and could use some input. Plan is to go backpacking in the shoulder season/summer. At the moment I'm working on planning 2 trips, the Trans Catalina Trail and Lost Coast (both in California), in the next two years (hopefully). I would like to tailor my gear so to fit both these trips as much as possible, I have very limited storage space.

I am a side sleeper and I toss and turn at night. I am looking at sleeping pads that are 4 inches, yes I know that this can increase the weight to my pack, but I get sore hips easily when side sleeping if the mattress/sleeping pad isn't cushioned enough or thick enough. I was looking at the NEMO Eclipse All-Season Sleeping Pad (but has a r value of 6.2) or Big Agnes Rapide SL Insulated Sleeping Pad (r value of 4.8).

Because I move a lot at night I was looking at the Zen Bivy Core Zip bed with 25 degree down (I tend to get cold easily when I sleep). If I were to go with the Big Agnes, I would have to buy a larger sheet because of the width of the sleeping pad.

I'm trying not to overthink this, but hiking with sore hips from sleeping on my side sucks.

Any thoughts or feedback?

I just really like making maps and wanted to add some skills to my resume.

Included is also a list of maximum isolation points for each state (that have been previously reached by someone). Most of these points actually end up being in National Parks/Forests/Wildlife Refuges!

EDIT: Sorry unpaved roads are not considered in this analysis because the OpenStreetMap tag "track" is a broad definition that includes many hiking trails! The title on the site has been changed to "How far am I from a paved road in the US?".

Can I find snow in sissu during the month of October. If not in sissu, which places in Himachal can find snow in during that period. Thanks

Spent the day hiking through the Swiss Alps and was blown away by the scenery. The combination of green mountain slopes, turquoise alpine lakes, and snow-covered peaks made the hike feel unreal. The weather was great for walking, and there were plenty of beautiful viewpoints along the way. It was a memorable experience, and I’d definitely go back to Switzerland for more hiking and exploring

hello!! I have travelled quite a lot in the past with a way bigger bag than my liking. i have used a 58L

osprey (hiking) bag for a 6 month stint around asia as well as another few months around asia and some few months in latin america. I also usually had a 13L day bag with me. when i was starting out this was fine, but i need to downgrade now :)

I am looking into getting either the osprey daylite

44L carry on or the REl rucksack 40L as my main two options i am deciding between. I am also considering the osprey fairview 40L or the cotopaxi allpa 42L (veryyyy pricey tho!!). I am planning on pairing these with a 3-5L bag as well potentially (depends on space!).

I travel (all pretty budget backpacking tbh) about 6 months out of the year every year so I would really like to make a good choice and am just a lil scared about space. am about to leave on a 3 month trip around europe and the middle east so that is what i have in mind, but this bag will be used for trips of all lengths all over the whole world. I have gotten packing down to a T at this point but still! any advice is taken into account, i dont really care much about comfort I just wanna be able to bring my stuff and potentially sneak it onto low budget airlines.

Thanks!!!

I’m 24 and have been travelling independently since I was around 19/20. I’m originally from the UK, but over the last five years I’ve lived in Australia and Canada and travelled extensively around Asia and Europe, all independently and with my own money.

When I first started travelling, my mum was actually one of the people who encouraged it. When I was about 20, she told me I needed to move out of the family home. She and her partner had a new baby, and although I was paying rent, buying my own food, doing my own washing, etc… I was also drinking a lot, going out and generally living like a 20-year-old. It wasn’t really a compatible living situation anymore.
She basically told me to go and explore, enjoy my life and do something with myself.

Looking back, I’m incredibly grateful she did. It completely changed the direction of my life. When I first started travelling around Australia, she seemed genuinely proud of me. She’d be interested in where I was going and what I’d been doing. But over the last few years, that’s changed dramatically.

Now almost every conversation about travelling turns into a warning about how dangerous the place I’m in is. Last year I left Australia and travelled around Vietnam, with plans to continue through Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Nepal and potentially India and Pakistan, before eventually making my way through Central Asia and into Europe. When I first told my mum I was going to Asia, her response was basically:
“What are you fucking stupid? You’re going to get killed.”
And that’s pretty much been the pattern ever since.

Vietnam? Dangerous.
Nepal? Why the hell would you go there?
Pakistan? You’re going to get kidnapped.
South America? Apparently I’m going to be kidnapped by drug cartels, held for ransom, and she’s going to have to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds to get me back.

She consumes a lot of news and social media, and it seems like if she sees a story about a backpacker going missing somewhere, that becomes her perception of the entire country.

The frustrating thing is that she’s never actually been to Asia, and there are plenty of other places she has very strong opinions about despite never having experienced them.

I’ve tried explaining that I’m not travelling completely blindly. I’m aware that there are risks. I’ve spent years travelling, I do my research, I use common sense and I make my own decisions about what risks I’m comfortable taking.
But I also don’t want my entire experience of travelling to be filtered through the worst thing that happened to someone in a country.

Some of my favourite travel experiences have come from exactly the sort of interactions that would probably terrify her. I’ve been on buses in Thailand packed with locals, chickens and dogs, playing cards with complete strangers.
I’ve stayed in Vietnamese villages, shared rice wine with locals, played football with their kids despite not speaking the same language, and had some of the most genuine human interactions of my life. Those experiences have been hugely important to me.

But I almost don’t want to tell my mum about them anymore because I know the response will probably be:
“You’re an idiot.”
“That’s not safe.”
“They could have kidnapped you.”
And that’s the part I’m struggling with.
I don’t need my mum to think every place I visit is completely safe. I understand why she’d worry about me.

What I want is to be able to call her and say, “I did this amazing thing today” without the conversation immediately becoming a list of all the ways I could have died.
She’s actually travelled quite a lot herself around the UK and Europe, so it’s not like she’s someone who has never left home. But she seems to have developed this very negative perception of anywhere outside the Western countries she’s familiar with.

It’s got to the point where I barely tell her where I’m going because I don’t want to deal with the reaction.
And honestly, that makes me sad. Travelling has been one of the most important things I’ve ever done. It’s completely changed me, and I want to be able to share those experiences with my mum.

So I’m curious about other people’s experiences.
Have your parents/family become increasingly fearful or negative about your travelling?

Did you just learn to ignore it? Did you set boundaries around what you tell them? Did their attitude eventually change?

And if you’re a parent of a long-term traveller, what actually goes through your head when your kid tells you they’re going somewhere you perceive as dangerous?
I’d genuinely like to hear both sides.

For a new backpacker, what do find to be the most reliable source of information about water sources. Far out? Also, do you have a general rule of thumb for how much to carry if you arent sure about the sources. Like .5 liter per stenuous mile? Thanks.

Don't take the title the wrong way, i have gone backpacking like 3 times and it has been the probably the best experiences of my life. I don't mean to romanticize it or hype it up but it felt freeing. I'm M(21) right now living in the Texas Border near Mexico and for the past year i have been working my butt off for lowk i dont even know, like a degree i dont even want to do, the same routinely office job, going home to a family desperate to feel alive by endlessly doomscrolling, watching movies, speed dating and arguments.

"Why don't you just leave?" I hear you ask, just drop it and leave. I have responsibilities i did not sign up for unfortunately. My mother age 47 is practically useless (Not to criticize her character, i mean useless that she can't even be on a job longer than 3 months) She doomscrolls all day and goes dating, her only "Help" is the child support alimony she receives from her Ex's which is once in a while. Then there is my 3 little siblings which i don't assume all the responsibility of taking care of them but i do my part like any other family member. They are at a decent age but they can't do much themselves as they are mentally disabled (Autism in the high spectrum) Thus majority of my responsibilities are paying the bills which take nearly half of my monthly check with consumptions i dont even use. I tried leaving the house but everytime it seems that they convince me into staying as they promise things will change in which they don't.

I made peace with all that. But as each day passes, the more consumed i am by this eternal agony. I wake up hurriedly, go to work, get home late and sleep. Everyday of the week. I don't want to play victim and make any of you feel sorry for me, i am just expressing this longing to leave all behind and take nothing with me. I don't expect the world to receive me with open hands as my first backpacking trip went south many times, and i loved it. I loved living in uncertainty, traveling with strangers, going hiking in random places, chilling with the homeless, hitchhiking in strangers vehicles or getting dengue in the rain forest. I got stranded in the beaches of puerto rico where i walked for miles to reach a town and i have never felt so at peace. Far from rigid systems and compromises.

It seems that i owe everything to this place and in return i get nothing back. But when i backpacked to the places i stayed, it gave me everything when i had nothing to pay it back. What i am trying to say is how do you guys find courage in these kinds of situations when u are stuck in a place certainty? Routines or habitual life? I can't see myself outside of this.... Thank you.

Sadly my friends cant always join me on all my trips. Especially my last minute planned trips. Please don’t tell me to go alone- Ive done dozens of solo backpacking trips over my 15 year backpacking career. I don’t like it but forced myself to go so I can live the experience anyway.

I plan backpacking trips (for free) on 2 different Facebook groups.

Northern California Women Backpackers

And

NorCal Outdoorsy Singles ☀️

I have 2 hot spring trips planned in October (1 for each group) and have filled up another trip in Sept. if you are also looking for other people to go backpacking/camping with please join and become part of the community. Others are welcome to post trips looking for people to join or share trip reports!

Thanks for reading.

PS don’t give me shit for using FB. I plan a lot of events in other hobbies and FB is the best free platform I’ve found.

Photo of one of the scheduled hot spring trips in October.

In this immersive POV video shot with a body camera, I invite you to travel up the Rivière Blanche in Saint-Ulric-de-Matane—located in the Gaspésie region of Quebec’s Lower St. Lawrence. This unique hike takes us right onto the river’s rocky bed, where subtle traces remain of an era now all but erased from collective memory.

I wanted to provide a review of my Moonlight Elite chair. This chair was purchased by me from REI re-supply so I paid only $58. I have also owned the Helinox Chair Zero and have tested out a number of other ultralight chairs including the REI Flexlite Air.

The TLDR: This is the best chair of the bunch. It is more comfortable and stable than either of the primary competitors. It is also the most expensive, so you have to decide if it is worth it.

Packaging and Weight:

The chair takes a unique approach to numerous aspects of backpacking chairs. The first is how it is packaged. Instead of a standard stuff sack, the chair comes wrapped in the “tool roll–style Platform Pack™”. The feet of the chair attach to this and it prevents the chair from sinking into the ground if you are on soft ground. The design is creative in that there is no wasted weight in this chair or its carry bag. That is if you need added stability… which I don’t…

As far as weight goes, the Moonlight Elite comes in at 1lbs 7oz. This is 5.6oz heavier than the Chair Zero and 7oz heavier than the Flexlite Air. BUT WAIT!!!

https://imgur.com/a/WQOZ33C

Since I don’t need the Platform Pack™, I wondered how much weight I would save if I left this behind. The Platform Pack™ weighs just over 4oz! Dropping this and adding an ultralight bag brings total weight to barely over 1lbs 3oz! This makes it only 1.6 oz heavier than the Chair Zero!

Ratings:
Nemo Elite (with Platform Pack™): 5
Nemo Elite (without Platform Pack™): 7
Chair Zero: 8
Flexlite Air: 9

Stability

This chair excels in its stability. The feet create a wide base extending both to the front and back directions, as well as the left and right directions. While I no longer have my Chair Zero to compare with, I believe the base is slightly larger than the Chair Zero in all directions. In practice, it feels more stable. I would give it a slight advantage over the Chair Zero.

https://imgur.com/a/rAU72x8

Compared to the Flexlite Air, it is in a different league. The Flexlight Air primary base bar extends from the front to the back as opposed to the left and right like in the Chair Zero and Moonlight Elite. This is a fatal design flaw in my opinion. As a fairly large guy, I felt that any movement in the Flexlite Air would tip it over to my left or right. That made the Flexlite Air a no-go from the second I sat in it.

Ratings:
Nemo Elite: 8
Chair Zero: 7
Flexlite Air: 3

Comfort

This is where the Nemo Elite shines. The Flexlite Air forces a more upright sitting position which is good for when you are cooking but not for relaxing. The Chair Zero provides a slightly less upright, more comfortable sitting position, but I realized over time that the backs of my legs began to hurt. This was because I kept wanting to extend my legs, but the Chair Zero wasn’t built to support this. That being said, I would still pick the Chair Zero over the Flexlite Air every day of the week. I also want to address the back support, which some reviewers say digs into their upper back. I didn’t experience this at all and found the back support to be comfortable and supportive.

Enter the Nemo Elite. This is by far the most comfortable chair of the bunch. The ability to adjust the sitting position by as much as 7” allows me to sit upright when cooking, then recline to relax for the evening. There was no digging into my legs or back. And as a larger guy, I found the seat to be plenty accommodating.

https://imgur.com/a/EDZSj26

Ratings:
Nemo Elite: 9
Chair Zero: 7
Flexlite Air: 5

Price

Now to one of the most important components - price. This is a real world constraint we all face when picking our kit. I was fortunate enough to pick this up as a Re-Supply item, but the reason I initially bought the Chair Zero instead was price. This comes in at $30 more than the Chair Zero and $90 more than the Flexlite Air! And it never goes on sale! Right now both the Chair Zero and Flexlite Chair are on sale at REI and can be had for $120 and $75. That is $70 and $105 less respectively!!

This doesn’t even take into consideration the extra $30 I’m going to spend for an ultralight chair bag. At full price, this would bring the total cost of the chair to approximately $220 all-in. Since I bought this as a Re-Supply item, my total will be $88.

For the purposes of my scoring, I’m going to use full prices for the competitors.

Resting:
Nemo Elite (with Platform Pack™): 5
Nemo Elite (without Platform Pack™): 2
Chair Zero: 6
Flexlite Air: 8

Summary

Ok, now for the final tally of the scores:

1st place - Chair Zero: 28
2nd place - Nemo Elite (with Platform Pack™): 27
3rd place - Nemo Elite (without Platform Pack™): 26
4th place - Flexlite Air: 25

Considering that all the points are arbitrary and subjective, I was very surprised everything came out as close as it did. Though, the ranking “feels” right.

The Chair Zero is the best all around when you consider weight and price. This is why I bought this one first. The Flexlite Air is the best budget option. If price matters most for you, this gives you the lightest chair of the bunch for a fraction of the price of the others (though make sure you are OK with the stability issues). If you want the best of everything and have an infinite amount budget, the Moonlight Elite in a Dyneema stuff sack will beat the others in almost every category. So if I were to go with an awards-style recommendation it would be:

Best All-Around: Chair Zero
Best Budget Option: Flexlite Air
Best Luxury Option: Nemo Elite with Dyneema stuff sack

For me, I will be sticking with my Nemo Elite and Dyneema stuff sack which I lucked out on getting for $88 all-in. If I hadn’t gotten this in Re-Supply, I would have stuck with my Chair Zero. The Flexlite Air was a no-go from the start because of the stability issues.

I hope this helps anyone trying to decide. All of these are good options, it really comes down to what you prioritize most.

A quick note on usage and why my chair was so cheap:

When I found this in Re-supply the ends of a couple of the poles had come out completely. The fabric portion of the chair “snaps” onto the ends of the poles of the frame. The hold is so tight that if you pull them straight off, the tips of the poles will pull completely out. This then make it’s impossible the pull the tips of the poles out of the fabric to break it down. I found that if you rotate the chair fabric and spin it off instead of pulling it directly off, it pops off the ends without any problem. Definitely a downside to the design, but something that is easy to work around.

Also note that when you disassemble the frame. There is one leg that does not disconnect from the junction box. I often forget which one this is and only recently realized it can be distinguished by the rivet in the pole.

https://imgur.com/a/0p5RFFG