Archive for the ‘Backpacking Tips’ Category
Make Your Own Food Dehydrator
Dehydrating food for the trail opens up many possibilities for the picky hiker. Cook it, dehydrate it, pack it, add water on the trail and…voila. It’s hard to beat a quickly-prepared, hot, tasty meal at the end of a long hiking day.
The problem: Food dehydrators can be expensive.
The solution: You can make your own!
Grab some duct tape, mosquito netting and a concrete form cylinder (5 bucks at your local hardware store) and head over to instructables.com for easy-to-follow instructions.
How to Stop Chafing When Hiking
Nothing can ruin an otherwise great hike like chafing (aka “Monkey Butt”). It’s caused by constant rubbing (most often in the upper thigh/nether regions) coupled with moisture and bacteria build-up. Hikers with chafing issues are often identified by their requisite “duck walk”. While heavier hikers are more prone to chafing, it can happen to anyone at any time. To keep it from happening to you, follow the advice below.
Put simply, prevent chafing by lubricating during the day and keeping dry at night.
Pre-hike prep:
Clean area throughly before heading out. Much of chafing is due to bacteria build-up, so it’s best to start from a sterile base.
Just before hitting the ol’ dusty trail, apply BodyGlide
During hike:
Wipe area with baby wipes or alcohol swaps to keep area clean and rash-free. Remember to reapply the BodyGlide.
Post-hike or in camp:
Wash area thoroughly, dry, then apply Gold Bond Triple Medicated Powder or plain ol’ corn starch. Keeping the area dry while sleeping is absolutely essential for quick healing and chafing prevention.
Some other tips:
* Wear moisture-wicking synthetic underwear. Cotton boxers or briefs retain too much moisture and take hours to dry, so try a pair of Underarmor or spandex instead. Proper fit is essential — opt for a pair that fits tight around the thighs and scrotum (if you have one).
* Wear a kilt and ditch the underwear. You don’t have to be Scottish…there’s not much more refreshing than a cool breeze cooling the jewels during a tough slog through the woods. Disclaimer: I haven’t tried it myself, but many a AT thru hiker swears by the kilt.
* Go commando. If wearing a skirt’s not your thing, simply try a hike without underwear (only try this in summer) under your shorts or pants. As long as you follow the above-mentioned essential steps pre- and post-hike, you shouldn’t experience any rubbing down yonder.
Any chafers out there have any better ideas for prevention or treatment? Please add them in the comments section below!
100+ Gear Lists For Every Type of Trip, Ever
A benefit of paid membership sites like BackpackingLight.com is they keep most of the spammy riff raff away, leaving room for only highly-enthusiastic, and (mostly) intelligent discourse.
Fortunately for us, there’s portion of BPL that’s both FREE of charge AND riff raff: The Community Section.
There you will find over 100 PDF-downloadable ultalight backpacking lists compiled by members of the community. Then, through the magic of crowdsourcing, the lists are ranked and discussed on the forums so that you can easily identify which lists are credible enough to assist in your own pack planning.
Head on over to BackpackingLight to check them out!