Backpacking on a Budget - Technical Backpacks

Backpacking on a Budget

One of the quickest ways to rid yourself of that almost transparent pallor and to lower your blood pressure a few notches is to leave the city behind and enjoy the wonderful outdoor recreation. Here are some tips for doing it on the cheap

If you follow the advice of the outdoor industry or Backpacker magazine, venturing from the relative comfort of your living room requires an investment in hundreds of dollars worth of the latest and greatest gear. With this guide in hand you can make it outdoors for less than the price of a few days worth of lattés, and even be comfortable. Take advantage of the last few weekends of decent weather before Seattle once again descends into rains of Biblical infamy.

Let's call it a day

One caveat: don't be a dumbass. The outdoors isn't your living room. Don't think that reading about anything equals actual experience. Outdoor activities are inherently risky and part of making them enjoyable is being self-sufficient and not jumping on a cell phone when you run out of food two miles down the trail. The joy of leaving the city behind is moving slower and enjoying yourself. Rather than planning a 10-mile hike your first time out, spend an afternoon picnicking by a creek. Asking that cutie in your math class out to a romantic picnic in the woods will go over a lot better than: "Hey Babe, wanna go to Dante's and have a few beers?" A day hike requires little that can't be found around your apartment. Grab some food, a container for water, enough clothes to stay warm, a rain jacket and some sturdy footwear.

You should also have a map of the area, a compass, a flashlight and a first-aid kit. These items, along with matches and a knife, are like American Express - don't leave home without them.

An extended trip

Day hiking makes for a good foray into the wilderness, but to get the real experience you have to spend the night. By adding a few items it is pretty easy to extend a day hike into a nice two- or three-day backpacking trip. All you need to spend the night in the great outdoors is a sleeping bag, some shelter and a backpack to carry all your beer. Although tents make a good home away from home, they are not essential. For less than $5 it is pretty easy to construct a shelter that will protect you from moderately bad weather. Two blue tarps from any hardware store, some rope or cord and a handful of tent stakes will do the trick. To make the structure, place one tarp on a flat piece of ground with a couple of trees nearby. String a rope between two trees about four feet off the ground so that it runs over the middle part of the tarp. Place the long axis of the second tarp over the rope and pull the sides so that you have a little chalet. Stake the edges of the suspended tarp to the ground and viola! You have a comfy, dry shelter. A well-strung tarp shelter should protect you from the worst of the elements - providing it's not raining five inches every hour.

Supper time
Now that you have a home, it's time to eat. Much of the weight and expense incurred by backpackers comes from toting along everything in their kitchens to prepare gourmet meals. Another pitfall is spending $5 to $10 on one freeze-dried meal that tastes worse than HUB food. There are two options available to those who don't have a camp stove, yet still want decent food in the back country.

The first is to go without cooking, this saves money and weight and also avoids the worst part of any backpacking trip - cleaning up nasty cookware. There are plenty of foods that are filling, require no cooking and can be prepared before your trip. Try making a gallon-sized plastic bag full of pasta salad, bring along your favorite sandwiches, some cereal with powdered milk for breakfast, just-add-water humus is available at PCC or just grab a loaf of bread, a block of cheese and a bottle of wine. For those who require hot food, cooking over a fire is always an option. Before you leave, cut up potatoes, carrots, onions and garlic then throw them in a container. Once you have a fire going, wrap the ingredients in two layers of aluminum foil with a couple tablespoons of margarine, throw the packets in the fire for about half-an-hour and you have a hearty meal.

Another option is to bring a pot with a lid and boil water over the fire, get some Ramen or other just-add-hot-water food and a meal will soon be yours. A couple words of advice about fire cooking: Boiling water takes a long time, any pot used over a fire will never be the same color it was before and fires are not great for the environment and are prohibited in many wilderness areas.

The outdoor gear market exists to facilitate comfort and convenience for people who have never lived without it. Some gadgetry is worth the money spent on it, other gear is nothing more than a toy.

The two items I feel are worth spending money on are a decent sleeping pad, and good footwear. A good pair of hiking boots can be found for less than $100, and after miles of hiking with a pack your feet will thank you for them. Additionally, sleeping pads offer added warmth and comfort, and a good night's sleep always makes for a more pleasant day afterwards.

Submitted by Steve Ambercrombie