Expedition Route

Route Planned! I think it's a pretty well balanced route with a lot of small lakes and a couple larger ones. We'll be going in on Moose and hiking North, then East before coming back going South and then West. Here's how the trip plays out:

Day 1 - Depart TEAM42 Headquarters at 5:00am. Arrive Moose lake trailhead, hike 3+ miles to campsite on Newfound lake.

Day 2 - Hike north to Birch Lake. Hike east across Birch, possibly crossing into Ontario, and ending at a campsite on Frog Lake to the South. 7+ miles.

Day 3 - Hike south across Esign Lake and then follow some other small lakes south and then west. End at campsite on Abinoji Lake. 7+ miles.

Day 4 - Hike Southwest over Boot Lake and then a bitch of a day hiking across Snowbank. End at campsite on the east end of the lake. 7+ miles.

Day 5 - Hike west, Portage to Flash Lake (140 rods), cross Flash and then portage (250 rods) to Moose Lake. 2 miles.

The best part of the route is that we'll be able to easily adjust it without turning back. There are a couple of spots where we could either lengthen the trip or shorten it up based on how we are traveling. See you on the trail!

Weather

I have been monitoring the weather in Ely for the past week or so. Up until this week it has been in the 20s during the day, and around -10 at night. This week and weekend the forecast calls for highs in the low 40s; and lows in the 20s. There's a 40% chance of "snow" on Saturday (but it would most likely be rain). I'm packing my gear as if this was a summer trip because things are going to be wet.

Chad's Meal Plan

These plans sound mighty tastey! I'm bringing oatmeal and cereal bars for breakfast. Granola bars, dried fruit, beef sticks, candy, etc. for lunch. Hamburger Helper for dinner (the flavors will have to be a secret until the trip). I also have some tasty hot beverages for morning and night!

I hope it doesn't get too warm that our snow melts away. NO SNOW MEANS NO FUN.

Happy trails!

Winter Expedition

A few notes on the winter expedition:

The ten day forecast predicts temps in the upper 30s (too hot!) and snow on two of the days. Hopefully the snow will not turn to rain in those warmer temps.

Chad and I will be planning our route tomorrow.

Since we'll have colder temps and don't have to carry the food, we can splurge a bit on our meals. Here's what I'm thinking for my dinners:

• Cheese stuffed Ravioli
• Chicken Alfredo
• Steak and Potatoes
• Rice & Shrimp

I'll do my usual oatmeal for breakfast and snacks for lunch. What about the rest of the TEAM?

JMT Permits

Last call...

I will be filing for permits Friday Feb. 26th. Right now there is myself and 2 of my UND buddies. If you want or think you might want to go on the hike I need to get permits now. The permits are $5 a piece. It's eaisier to get a permit and not use it rather than the other way around. If you can't commit but still have interest I can put you on a list of alternates.

Farewell Tribute to Dave's Poles

A 42 second farewell tribute to Dave's Poles.

The Evolution of a Cook Set

I've spent the last few days perfecting my alcohol stove (or rather building through trial and error a version of Chad's stove) and rethinking my approach for pots and water bottles. Now that I've got a good stove, pot and water bottle solution I thought I'd take a moment to walk through the evolution of my cook set.

All weights include actual fuel brought on a 4-5 day trip and empty water bottles.

"Traditional" Approach

Way back before I started my ultralight quest my cook set consisted of:

• MSR Whisper Lite Stove (with bag)
• 22 oz MSR Fuel Bottle
• 1,000 mL Nalgene bottle
• Measuring Cup
• Mug
• Spork
• Bowl
• MSR Pot (with bag)

All of this weighed in at 66.7 ounces or 4.17lbs.

Ultralight

As documented in this blog, over the last couple years I have been transitioning to an ultralight style of backpacking. My original goal was to get my base weight down to 12 pounds.

I traded out my stove, mug, spork, and pot for lighter options. I quit carrying a Nalgene bottle and started carrying a Gatorade bottle. With the new "tea kettle" style pot, I was able to leave out the measuring cup altogether. My new cook set consisted of:

• MSR Pocket Rocket
• MSR Fuel Canister
• Titanium Mug
• Titanium Spork
• Gatorade Bottle
• Tea Kettle

The new cook set weighed in at 21.6 oz or 1.35 pounds. A reduction in weight of 45.1 ounces or 2.82 pounds.

The Super-Ultralight Quest

I was able to surpass my 12 pound goal and spent most of 2009 with a ten pound base weight for warm weather trips. My new goal, for '010, is to join the "Super-Ultralight Club" with a base pack weight of seven pounds.

My MSR Pocket Rocket has been replaced with a homemade alcohol stove and I combined the pot and water bottle. The new cook set consists of:

• Homemade alcohol stove
• Titanium Spork
• Pot/Water Bottle (Snake Eyes Can)
• 3 oz Listerine Bottle filled with fuel

The new kit weighs in at 5.4 ounces; 61.3 ounces less than my original cook set and 16.2 ounces less than my ultralight cook set.

Here's the kicker, the Super Ultralight Cook Set cost me less than $15, about half of which was for the spork.