Let’s face it…we’ve all forgotten to bring one or more essential items on a hiking or backpacking trip. I, for one, pretty much always forget my compass. Call it overconfidence, forgetfulness, (extremely) early-onset Alzheimer’s…whatever you want. The fact is, I know I’m not the only one. So, what do you do if you find yourself lost on the trail without your compass?

Unless you forgot to bring your watch, too, you can use it to help you figure out which direction is which.  Here’s how:

Turn your watch into a compass

If you’re in the northern hemisphere, simply point the hour hand of your watch at the sun. The point midway between the hour hand and the “12″ on your watch is roughly South. Simply turn around to identify North, right for West, left for South…you get gist. Reverse the technique if you’re hiking in the southern hemisphere.

Ok, let’s say you’re wearing a digital watch, or no watch at all…what do you do?

Make a dirt compass

Here’s a good tip I saw on Man Vs. Wild. It’s not the quickest method, but it’s accurate (note — start this technique in the AM):

• Find a level piece of ground with good sun exposure, like a meadow or flat ridge top.
• Drive a 3-4 foot stick straight into the ground.
• Mark the tip of the stick’s shadow with a pebble.
• Using this marker, draw an arc around the stick, making sure to keep your original marker in place.
• As the sun moves across the sky the shadow will shorten and pivot to the other side of the stick. When the shadow meets the other side of the arc, mark this spot with another pebble.
• Draw a straight line between your two markers. This line represents West (1st marker) to East (2nd marker).
• Draw a perpendicular line across the E/W line to complete your “dirt compass”.

Do as the Wise Men did

If you’re lost at night, stay put. Seriously. Make camp and wait ’til morning. If the sky’s clear and you MUST try to navigate at night, the best bet is to use the North star (it’s named that for a reason).  Contrary to popular belief, the North star — called Polaris — is not the brightest in the sky (which is Sirius, btw). Here’s how to find it:

• Locate the Big Dipper
• Draw an imaginary line between the bottom-outside star in the cup through the top-outside star and beyond. The medium-bright star in the line’s path is Polaris.

These are the most popular tried-and-true methods to find North without a compass, but there’s bound to be others. Please comment if you know a different and/or better way!

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!

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.

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. It’s the most recommended anti-chafing solution on the market, and smoothing some on will eliminate friction for the entire day. As a bonus, you can also put on feet to help prevent blisters.

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.

* 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!

The smell of last weekend’s campfire still clings to your clothes. You try a standard wash and spray it with Febreeze but nothing seems to get rid of it. What’s a hiker to do? Here’s 5 proven ways to get rid of that campfire smell in no time:

1. Have a Coke. Add one can of Coca Cola to your wash along with your normal detergent. A professional cleaner swears this works, so why not give it a spin? (Via ThriftyFun)

2. Just add vinegar. Add 1 cup of white vinegar to your wash load and let soak for 30-60 min. Also works well for lots of other lingering odors.

3. Pack your threads in potpourri. (Via HowToGetRidOfStuff.com):

To remove the campfire scent and add a fresh, natural scent to your clothes, you need the following:

– Zip-lock bags or plastic bags
– Dried flowers, or other fresh-scented items (do not use fresh flowers because they will get crushed and stain your clothes)
– Baby powder

Follow these steps to get rid of the campfire scent:

– Place some potpourri in the plastic bag, and add a few shakes of baby powder.
– Place the smelly clothes inside the bag.
– Shake the bag thoroughly, like you’re dredging a piece of chicken in flour. Make sure that the baby powder reaches into the folds of your clothes.
– When you’re ready to wear the articles of clothing again, shake off the flowers and the baby powder. You’d be surprised at how clean and fresh-scented your clothes are.

4. Baking soda to the rescue. Baking soda is like the duct tape of…well…ingredients (?). Use #1,452 is adding a tablespoon or two to the washing machine along with fabric softener. No more smokey clothes!

5. Take the lazy way out. Buy some MiraZyme. Amazon has it cheap right here

Do you have a method that works great for you? Share it in the comments!

flikr: K7Adventures

There’s plenty to worry about when winter backpacking, like how many layers to wear, how to stay warm at night, and which type of boots are best in the snow. When focusing on such core concerns, it’s easy to forget about planning for the seemingly simple things, like finding the best place to set up camp. Before you head out on your next winter overnight trip, check out Compass Points for essential tips on how to pick the best winter camp site.

Know how to boil water and slice some cheese? Sweet! I saw this video the other day and decided to test it out.  The results were delicious! Try it on your next hike and let me know how it goes.

Recipe and video courtesy freezerbagcooking.com

I was surfing YouTube today and happened upon this video detailing various ways to make DIY ultralight backpacking gear from stuff you probably already have around the house.  Check out the video below:

Photo via BackpackingLight.com

Sam Haraldson from Backpacking Light Magazine came up with the idea of making his own camera case from bubble wrap and duct tap before he tackled the Pacific Northwest Trail back in the summer of 2006.  He thought it was a dud but decided to take it anyway, and to his surprise it lasted all 1,200 miles of the PNT.  Cheap, lightweight, durable and one more example of why duct tape rocks–visit BackpackingLight.com and learn how to make your own.

Ok, the purists might hate this one, but the MacGyver in me loves it.  All you need is some steel wool, your cell phone and some tinder (dryer lint ftw!) and you’ve got fire!  Video from the team at Backpacker:

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