Two Nights in the Ozarks

I started this blog entry over a week ago then *things* started to happen faster than I could think about them. Starting from the beginning, the past Saturday and Sunday, over a week ago, were absolutely beautiful. The sky was clear and blue and it was almost too warm. I'm glad that I managed to fit in two overnights out in the wilds of the Ozarks because it's going to get cold.

So I joined a group of local backpackers and we met up at UMR (University of Missouri) around noon and worked out the travel arrangements. This adventure was relatively stationary. We had permission to hike and execute a LNT (leave no trace) camp out in a local national park. While milling around I let several folks look at my "camping" arrangement inside Henry, my van. I alluded to "living out of" the van, but most folks don't catch on to that concept. It's still shady to appear to live out of a vehicle, much less IN it. When I have the modifications done to make Henry look more like an RV inside, then I'll press the idea forward, the idea of living out of a vehicle as a normal option for people to embrace. I'm not hiding it but for casual acquaintances I'm not advertising it just yet.

I'm still amazed at how much STUFF most backpackers think makes a great adventure. To me less has always been more. One older fellow tried to explain to me that my tiny pack was not going to cover two days of backpacking and camping out in the Ozarks. I just smiled mysteriously and asked him if I could snuggle up with him if I found myself in dire straits. He blushed appropriately and changed the subject. I do a lot with a 12 pound lumbar pack and he didn't bother to ask me what my plan was, he just did a typical rush to judgment. Actually I was overpacked for two days out. I do carry over a pound in my tummy pack, plus I carry stuff on my trekking poles, and more stuff in my pockets, so my total weight becomes 125 pounds of me and about 16-18 pounds of my "stuff." But I try to carry NOTHING on my shoulders. That's my weak spot. But compare my 15% body weight sized packing to those 40-70 pound condo packs and you can see why they are so concerned for me. What they don't know is that I can and I have camped out for over a week in the Pike's Peak area of Colorado with nothing more than the contents of a tummy pack. In other words, I have a full amount of survival gear in the tummy pack, and can live for a week on it because that's the training I've received. Lightweight backpacking is not for the average hiker, you need to understand how to survive on basically nothing then surviving on ten pounds of gear is a luxury!

Anyway, the trip was as much fun as backpacking. I like the time spent traveling in a vehicle, having a cup of coffee and a little camaraderie, and transitioning into the new space and attitude. I'm funny that way, for me its the journey not the destination. I took the older gentleman because Henry doesn't have seats for more than the driver and one passenger. He angled himself in position to travel with me. At that point I figured he was either feeling protective or attracted, and possibly curious about my plans for backpacking in the Ozarks with a tiny little lumbar pack. It took both of us to get his condo pack into the van and he still didn't "get it." There is a major rift between condo packers and ultralight packers and the former thinks the latter is just plain crazy and that we don't know how to survive. We had a good conversation, starting with packing for the wilderness. He was still worried about me.

So it started with "Don't you need a tent?" Since he didn't "see" a tent he assumed, I mean presumed that I didn't have a shelter at all. I told him I have a Hennessy Hammock and two tarps that weigh a total of two pounds for the entire setup. "Oh...well what will you sleep in, where's your sleeping bag?" Well, my sleep system doesn't have to be a "sleeping bag" though sometimes it is. For this trip my sleep system was thermals under flannels with two pair of socks and a woolen hat, inside a silk bag, with a bivvy sack backup depending upon the temperature, total weight of five pounds for the extra clothes, silk bag, and el cheapo bivvy sack. "Oh, I'd like to see that, but how are you going to cook?" Well that's pretty easy, my Esbit wing stove is 3 ounces, the six tablets are about 4 ounces, the fire starter is maybe 2 ounces, and the titanium pot is about 6 ounces. I'd say my entire "cooking" system including plastic utensils is less than a pound, and that includes a large folded sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil that can be used as a windscreen or to make a bigger pot. The Esbit fuel tablets are only for backup because the wingstove can use any found fuel, deadfall and twigs on the forest floor. So that takes me up to seven pounds. After that I had a pound of water handling stuff, two pounds of water, a pound of food, and a pound of personal stuff. I weighed it, twelve pounds and I was overpacked! That set the tone for this backpacking adventure.

We got to the parking lot and everybody met in a circle and defined the parameters of the trip. The two leaders were very organized and gave each of us small maps of the area and directions on getting in and out. Then we loaded ourselves up. I strapped on the tummy pack, then the lumbar pack, then grabbed my trekking poles and lccked up the van. I turned around and saw several straining faces as the guys did impossible acrobatic movements to toss those packs on their backs. I tried so hard not to laugh, but my body was quivering in mirth. I'm bad! There were two additional women in the group made up mostly of young fellows from the college. The women were fairly serious and they turned out to be a couple. One carried the tent and the other carried the cooking equipment, so they weren't loaded down too badly. Fit and athletic women can usually fit into a smaller tent, smaller sleeping bags, and can regulate body temperature better. Menopausal women, like me, can sleep in sub-zero weather and open the tent a notch to get some fresh air and that's like no problem. I don't get too many hot flashes thanks to my vegan diet, but I do notice that I really appreciate air conditioning like never before. In any case, I'm of the belief that we women have a leg up when it comes to survival under most any circumstances.

We hiked about six miles to the campsite, which wasn't too bad. A bit hilly, but nothing like the third class scrambles in Rocksylvania on the Appalachian Trail. It took us about two hours to get to the spot and set up camp. There was some friendly competition for good tent spots, and I hung back and let them fight it out. Then I went into a stand of trees and put up the hammock and added the two tarps on each side in a diamond formation. That served as a wind break and a privacy screen. I made sure I had a big rock and a log for comfort while cooking and eating. I hung my packs on the ridge line inside my hammock, which has it's own rainfly. Altogether it was a very cozy, lightweight, quick to set up system. I've spent years working it all out. There was water nearby so I opened up the collapsible pail and brought water to my site for later. We all met in the relative middle of the camp and had some lunch. I cheated with lunch and had a tofu salad pita sandwich with fresh broccoli, alfalfa, and mung beans, dehydrated onions, and one whole tomato. That never tasted so good before. There's something about a hike on one of the last days of autumn that makes everything you eat taste wonderful. And so it went.

Hiking is about planning, provisioning, preparing, and then hiking, eating, eliminating, and sleeping. Your whole world is simplified to the point where you are only thinking about your physical needs and the outside world is far away. No matter what is going on in the outside world, your world is simple and free.

Hiking Day

It was nippy last night in the van. I was snuggled into my bed and had cats trying to snuggle into me most of the night. Henry the van is not set up with heating other than from the regular vehicle heater. The thought of having a remote start to periodically heat up the van crossed my mind more than once throughout the night. I've had that before on the Expedition and used it when camping out or sleeping in parking lots away from home. But we managed. I slept great until about 5 am. No amount of lazing in bed was going to induce sleep again so I bit the bullet and got dressed. That was the hard part! I'm sleeping in thermals next time which should make it easier to get up.

Well I'm dressed now and have some hot chocolate next to me. The laptop is where it's supposed to be, on my lap, and the cats are snuggling up to my feet. I hear the two competing coyote families yipping to each other in the big field beside the big trailer. I wonder how I should manage hiking in coyote country? That's on the agenda for some research before I go hiking with the local college group today. I have bear spray and bear bells on my trekking poles, but I'm hoping to learn that coyotes never try to contact humans during the day. Bears aren't supposed to but lately I'm noticing that the bears don't read the same manuals that I read. I'm still looking forward to the hike and hope that some of the senior members of the group are armed with local lore. There is a renouned ecologist on this hike, a woman older than I, so I expect to learn a lot today. I'm particularly interested in local foods.

In a bit I'll have some coffee with Marie and wish the boys good luck with soccer, then I'm heading over to the RV to drop off Spike and Skyler. They did well in the van but I don't want to leave them in it for two days. When I travel I plan to leave the kitty boys with Marie. Hopefully, I'll have the van set up as an RV before I do extensive traveling so that I can leave the cats while working or hiking.

I love Henry

Henry is the best boyfriend I've ever had. He performs all the functions of a man and best of all requires very little care in return. Henry carries my worldy possessions for me by day and envelopes me in his warm embrace at night. He provides me with security in a hostile world. Becauses he's an older model, but a top-of-the-line model of his day, he commands respect. I have no fear of running afoul of societal mores with Henry's companionship. This means that Henry, my van, doesn't look like a derelict family of drug-crazed hippies lives inside. Henry looks like a modestly successful locksmith's van. Hmmmmm, I wonder if I should look into becoming a locksmith?

Van dwelling is fun now that I have Henry, but backpacking is even more fun--that's my true passion. This weekend is a backpacking weekend. I plan to look for a puppy to raise as my hiking companion, for those places that Henry cannot go. Soon...the way this week has gone I haven't had time to shop for anything. In between getting the van cleaned up and unpacked, the laundry done, and starting a new IT project so I've been digging into the Y2K rations, which are still good. My Y2K solution consisted of sprouting seeds, beans, and dried foods like corn, onions, and spices. I've kept up with that shopping, roughly twice a year, and have rotated my stock so everything is still less than two years old, while most is less than six months old.

I found that I need far less kidney beans than first envisioned. They are too much work, what with soaking, rinsing, and pressure cooking. I far prefer chick peas. Sprouted chick pea hummus is simply fabulous. It's possible to make it without using electricity, and that's a bonus. I just use a pastry cutter, that twisted set of metal blades used to "cut in" butter into a pie dough. Of course you have to sprout the chick peas first, then blanch them for a minute in hot water. Then cut into the two-three cups of sprouted chick peas a couple of lemons or limes juiced, a few tablespoons of sesame oil, and either peanut butter or tahini (sesame seed butter). Sometimes I use whatever nuts I have handy and crush them mercilessly before adding them into the hummus. After the basic hummus is fairly smooth other things can be added, like garlic, or cilantro, or other similar savory things. Once you have hummus you have a highly nutritious food and healthy food, deliciously prepared, that goes well with any type of vegetable crudite. I like eating foods as close to nature as possible, without much cooking. So hummus is a big deal when so much prep time and hot water go into it. It's still delicious and definitely far more nutritious and healthy than anything that is cooked to death.

With that being said, today's repast was as raw as I could make it while running out of fresh produce. I had been spending most of this week babysitting at the big trailer and sleeping in my van in the yard (you can hardly call it a driveway). I got up this morning and after making a cup of oolong tea I fired up the laptop to get a little work in. For some reason my groggy brain was able to quickly solve the highest priority issue in about 5 minutes, which involved 1 hour and fifty-five minutes of testing after ten seconds of typing. The problem was estimated to take 40 hours so I'm about 38 hours ahead. Being a fairly fair consultant I think I'll bill just 12 hours. The guys would bill the entire 40. I guess they can live with themselves, but I don't have to. I fixed a few other problems, too. That means I'm ahead on next week's billing. Since the big boys want estimates to measure the results I'll work to the estimates. Duh! I think the secret to being able to solve technical issues quickly is to purposefully ask my subconscious mind to work on the problem before I go to sleep. In nearly all cases of doing this I wake up with "the answer".

With "work" out of the way I grabbed my morning basket, the basket that holds clean undies and some frivolous toiletries, and ran inside to take care of some daily grooming needs. I "can" clean up inside the van but I don't have to. I live "out of" my van, not "in it". After the cleanup I located the last of the produce and did some food processing with the knife and cutting board. Everything's a salsa. Chop tomatoes, onions, and cilantro, then add some sprouts, and you've got salsa! Use a spoon and a couple of carrot sticks along with some hummus and you have dinner! I made enough salsa to last for at least two days. I'm hitting the farmer's market in Rolla first thing Saturday morning and that should take care of my food needs for the week. I expect to spend less than $10 for a week's supply of fresh produce.

Preparation for hiking this weekend is done. My lumbar pack is set, and it contains everything needed for an overnight camp out. Strapped to that is my fleece bedroll, my Hennessey Hammock, and an inflatable mat. I have a three-season system that weighs less than 12 pounds including water. At first I left out the inflatable mat and just used a combination of silk liner, fleece sleeping bag, and an emergency bivvy sack to mix and match a sleeping system suitable for the weather conditions. But in the hammock there is still a problem with one's backside getting chilled. So the self-inflating mat makes a nicer barrier as a well as a firmer sleeping surface. I can also use the mat for sitting or napping along the way. In ultra-lightweight backpacking, multiple uses are mandatory for any item in the kit. My lumbar pack has room for the heavy stuff in the bottom and also has a top part that has shoulder straps. Here is a review I did a while back: Kelty Lumbar Pack. Yes, I'm seriously into backpacking the ultra-light way.