rucksacking

Light repairs

Here's a nifty post from Ryan Jordan's Backcountry blog on a .7 ounce repair kit that should handle most jobs. To take care of you tarp, pack, clothes, shoes and inflatables, he recommends three things:

• Patch it with DUCT TAPE. *Yawn* - I know - but it works. I use the cloth kind. This is my patch, for clothes, tarps, packbags, shoes, rafts, pads, you name it. Any major holes or rips always - always - get a patch. But don't stop there -
  
  
• Glue it with ADHESIVE. That's right, glue the tape to the gear with a strong, fast-curing, urethane-based adhesive. That way, the patch won't come off - ever! I use a mixture that can be stored in a teeny foil tube dispenser and is ready to go. All sorts of brands available, get it at industrial supply houses, then test. It should cure within 30 minutes. You don't want to wait for repairs when you're on the go. The one I use is awfully toxic and non-eco-friendly (toluene, urethane, diisocyanate, etc. etc.). But there are no green options, yet. The adhesive glues the patches, strengthens seams, seals pinholes and small punctures on its own, and is the most important piece of repair kit you can carry for any kind of inflatable.
  
• Sew it with a NEEDLE and THREAD. The only critical repairs that require needle and thread are pack harnesses and shoes. So, make it stout. I use a thick but sharp tapestry needle with a huge hole that accomodates my thread - no dental floss here - I go for the waxed poly used by leathercrafters.

Handy and light!

Source: A 0.7 oz Expedition Repair Kit

Groundsheet/pad package

Nifty little Backpackinglight.com article on combining an inflatable pad, foam pad and groundsheet package all in one, made with a bit of barge cement (whatever that is) and ingenuity. Great illustrations, too.

Make Your Own Gear: Multi-Pad-Ground-Sheet Integration System [Backpackinglight.com]

A spork to end all sporks

The Light My Fire spork, available here, is a welcome addition to the mostly boring world of lightweight trail utensils. Brightly colored, brilliantly designed, light and strong (made of heat resistant PC material, it apparently isn't afraid of boiling water). Hope to get one of these and test soon.

Bright headlights

Petzl announced in February that its 2006 line of headlamps would feature new, brighter LEDs -- in some cases, improving performance by 80%. Yowza. The change only affects the Tikka and Zipka compact headlamps, not the fabulously-reviewed Tikka XP (see a video of the XP in action here). Personally, I've just been trying to find the Tactikka XP Adapt, a version model of the XP with a housing that lets you clip it to a belt or jacket, and of course comes with the fancy red filter for preserving night vision.

The new Jet Boil

Hoping to stay on top of the new market niche they've created, Jet Boil is following up their successful first model with a new twist: Group cooking! The new, larger Jet Boil system weighs in at a hefty 19 0z., but offers a much wider array of cooking options. Not only is the included 1.5 liter pot much friendlier to group outings, once you've boiled some pasta, you can take off the pot and use a skillet to sautee the onions.

The editors over at Backpacker magazine definitely like the new model, giving it an Editor's Choice (TM) designation.

Power pack

Not exactly light, but oh-so-geeky-cool:

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a backpack that can actually generate electricity as its wearer walks. The suspended-load backpack can generate about seven watts of power solely via the motion of the person carrying it, which is achieved by detaching the pack’s frame from the load it carries and harnessing the energy generated as the load moves up and down on vertical springs. The actual energy generated depends on the weight of the load and how fast the person walks, but is usually enough to charge several handheld devices at the same time.

Perfect for that iPod, digital camera and coffee bean grinder you always take along.

A backpack that generates power [Engadget]

Around the Web

Looking for backpacking web logs this morning, and came across this great Yosemite blog. Makes me long for California. Also came across Toolpicks, a site that occasionally features handy backpacking items, like this lightweight fishing set-up, which would be perfect on the John Muir trail.

Apple - iPod nano - Features

Apple introduced a full-fledged backpacking mp3 player today: the iPod nano. No wonder everyone was lining up at the Apple store in Soho last night...

Also, for fun...

...this handy Appalachian Trail mileage calculator, for all your section- or thru-hining needs.

Appalachian Trail Distance Calculator [Ragtag.org]

(1 Can Coke + Chocolate) x Sun=Fire

This excellent little article guides you through a marvelously simple way to start a fire using a soda can, chocolate, some tinder and lots of sun. Great website, too.

Can of Coke and a Chocolate Bar [TrackerTrail.com]