NEED ADVICE

“Hey there.

I'm 17 and I live in MA, 'bout 20 min south of Boston. I want to take some friends with me on a camping / hiking trip, but nothing too heavy. I'll be an Eagle Scout this summer and one of them knows what he's doing, but the other 2 are novices.

Also, we can take someone over 21 if necessary.

Anyway, we need to leave Friday afternoon (1:30, 2pm?) and be back home by Sunday night (6, 11, whenever).

Ideally we just want to set up camp and go to bed Friday night, then hike all day-ish Saturday, get back to camp, sleep / eat, etc. Then maybe just do a nice quick scenic hike Sunday.

Or, we can just set up friday, then pack up and hike, setting up again Saturday night, then ending up back at the car(s) Sunday afternoon.

Also, I have a general question about building cooking fires... are they allowed? Under what conditions? What about small stoves? etc etc.

Thanks SO much for any info you could give me. Feel free to send it to rbrown@peterelliot.com

THANKS!

-RCB”

“Wish I could help, but I don't know the area (I'm in CA)

I would suggest using a small stove instead of cooking over a fire, you may be able to rent the stove from a local outfitters...cooking over a fire takes a bit of skill to do it right, probably best not to try it on your first outing.

Practice using the stove before you leave...

Good luck”

“first off did ya want bad advice or good? and how much did ya wanna pay for it? (WE TAKE VISA)

destination wise use the trail section matt has on site and see if any interest you. many trails have names that can be searched on the net for lots of info. also check for conservation/natural resource depts of the area you want along with state parks and the forestry service.

in general open fires are discouraged as they are somewhat distructive but are in fact allowed in most established camp sites. Cooking methods depend more on what your bringing for food. Boiling water can be done over any fire but more complex foods usually should be done on a stove. Always check with the land owner before lighting up!~)”

“First thing I learned was that all my gear, state of the art 20 years ago, was pretty antique now, as were my methods, when I started up again a few years ago. Learned the hard way:

Go as light as you can. You'll be surprised by what you carry and never use. Use products that have multiple uses (example: a blaze orange fleece shirt serves 3 purposes, emergency flag, warmth, and rolled up, it makes a dandy pillow).

Do not bring canned food. When weighing your pack before you leave, and it's too heavy, remove the canned food and replace it with pasta, rice, ramien, anything dehydrated. You can filter or boil water, rehydrate your food and chow down.

There are many opinions on weight of back packs. Some are able to go with 12 pounds, ultralite, very expensive, and doing without some comforts. I go with about 35 lbs. Some have regretted doing 70 lbs.

Final advice: Go and be prepared to learn, that's the best way.

Happy Trails.”

“What mtnsteve, DOM, and Uphill said. Very true about go as light as you can and leave the canned goods at home. It's fun seeing how light you can go, and you'll definitely appreciate it once on the trail. Good luck!”

“Rbrown, there is a TrailTalker named Steiny who lives in your area. I will email him and see if he can answer some of your questions.”

“RCB: Are you leaving next Friday, or today?

There are a lot of trips you could take. I'd suggest heading into the southern end of the White Mountains.

First of all, I suggest getting a good trail map and guide book. The AMC's guide to the White Mountains costs about 26 dollars but has detailed trail descriptions and comes with great trail maps.

For most trail heads in the White Mountains, you will need a parking permit. You can get these at backpacking supply stores such as REI or EMS. Another place to get your permits and local information is the information center at Exit 28 from I-93 (The Campton, Rte. 49 exit). This is a great place to stop, the people are pretty helpful there and have some useful trail maps and books. How helpful they can be depends on who is on duty. Route 49 North takes you to some great backpacking routes.

Generally speaking, you are supposed to camp 200 feet away from trails and streams. You should also bring a stove if you plan to cook. Places like EMS (which is all over... there is one in NH convenient to exit 14 from I-93), REI (there is a convenient branch in Andover... just minutes from I-93), and Hilton's Tent City (in downtown Boston). The EMS and REI I mentioned are great last minute shopping places to get equipment or supplies you need at the start of a trip... just be sure you get directions (using the phone or mapquest.com). The REI is very convenient, but easy to miss. If you got to REI, consider joining. Its only 15 dollars for a lifetime membership.

If you are going with brand new hikers, consider doing the Sandwich Mtn trail to Black Mountain Pond and back.

You can get full rules for the White Mountain National Forest at

http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/white/recreation/land_above/backcountry_rules.html

Two great message board sites for local backpacking information are:

http://appalachia.outdoors.org/bbs/index.cfm

http://www.viewsfromthetop.com/

Other good information can be found at:

http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/whites/”

“whew pedx that was some good stuff... I woulda charged him for that much :}”

“Seek the advice of the one they call MARVIN GARDENS.”

“LOL Dirty!”

“Aero....on the money, as usual.”

“Hey, thanks a lot everybody. I love this site, everyone's so friendly.

Ok, well, we don't have a specific date yet, I'm just trying to plan where we're going, not so much when. (although it'll probably be b4 the end of June).

Anyway, I'm sure all this will help. Thanks again.”

“"Everyone's so friendly"
rcb4t2
09:15:07 AM
06/13/02

You should have heard me go off on a telemarketer this morning before work!

Have a great trip. :-)”