Puppies, pistols and cheap stuff for the Hoosier

“Sorry if this is too big...

Hello, long time listener, first time caller...er, uh writer...

I am brand-spankin' new here. I have looked through countless threads and appreciate all of the info that they have to offer. So far, this forum has been the best source of information that I have come across to get me off of my butt and on a trail.

First, I will get the controversial topics out of the way:

Puppies
I have a couple of canine buddies that I will be taking on the trails where allowed. Don't worry, haters, they are very well trained and obedient. I prefer them not to be used to clean up dishes after dinner though

Pistols
When alone, I will probably be taking my 9mm, just in case. I am not one of those that sits around reading Guns & Ammo in my underwear all day either. Just want it for the security from, not quadrepeds, but worse...other bipeds.

Cheap Stuff
I hear everyone talking about all of the pricey Top-o-the-line things that you can get, but what about the other stuff? I was on the Campmor site and see 20 degree sleeping bags for $39.99. What is wrong with them? I see seemingly nice backpacks for $49.99. They seem to be comparable to the others. How about those?

I guess, since I am just starting out, I am not really eager to spend 100s of dollars to find out that what I bought is only suitable for fire wood! I just want some decent stuff that will get me through a few nights in the woods to start with. Then, when I become addicted (like most of you seem to be) I will branch out.

I guess this would be the best time of year to get by on the cheap to prepare for the winter.

Oh, and by the way, I am in Indiana. Anyone close? Most of the people I know seem to the think living out of a pack for a week is a little silly, so I will probably have to find some others that think better of it.

P.S. I am type I diabetic, and what little info there is on here has been extremely helpful.”

“What is wrong with those $40 twenty degree bags is weight. What you need to do is join a few trips with the regulars and see what works for them. The trip pages here is the best, and the regulars do a whole lot more backpacking that the other side.

I have backpacked with a diabetic, and the extreme amount of exercise on occassion put him with a dangerously low blood sugar when he goes solo. He warned us to watch for symptoms, and to force him to eat if he became too mentally confused to recognize that is what he needed. Just stop and eat when you need, and you can backpack all you want.”

“You left out all the important stuff:

are you a hot babe, age, political affiliation, are you an alkeeholic, do you Troll often, religious affiliation......etc.”

“Thanks, Prosecutor.
I am pretty on top of my Diabetes. I am actually a road biker too. I have learned to know myself very well when excercising. Lots of trial and error!

I figured the weight thing, but MAN, I can't see forking out $200 for a sleeping bag just to get a mediocre one. I guess you get what you pay for in this instance.”

“Sorry, not a hot babe. I am sure that, now that you know that, you are not too interested in the rest...

Not sure that I am familiar with Trolling...”

“wow, a man after my own heart...he loves dogs, he's a cheap bastard just like me and he's a hoosier to boot!!! LOL

pups are great on the trail, although you're braver than i by taking two of them...i have two also but usually only take one if my wife doesn't come...just make sure they get along with other dogs...there's nothing more annoying at a campsite than 2 dogs going at it all the time

guns?, for humans?...don't know about that one...maybe if you are in bear country i can see but in the rare event that a human would mess with you on the trail it would probably just be to rob you and do you really want to pop someone just for robbing you?

cheap gear?, you might say that's my forte...hiking is just like anything else, you can spend a crap ton on top of the line gear or be just fine with cheaper gear...i spend decent money on foot wear and my pack but other than that everything is pretty cheap and i've done fine...in fact, since you're just starting out i recommend you start out cheap until you know you'll really like it and then you can start replacing stuff...i have a 0 and a 20 degree sleeping bag that i've never had problems with and both were less than $50”

“Thanks Thrifty.

I have been to the Wilderness down by bloomington, but not to backpack. What are some other good spots near Indy do get away. I am thinking about just logging some good one-nighters to get some experiennce...then move up.”

“Should we tell him about Crazy Mike?”

“The Deam Wilderness is a good one. There's usually 2 or 3 trips to there posted on here a year. It's not a bad place but the closer you get to the lake the more trashed it is.

Other parts of the northern part of Hoosier are also relatively close to Indy.

Other good ones near Indy are Morgan/Monroe State forest and Yellow Wood State Forest. The Tecumseh(sp) trail goes through there. There are some back country areas to both forests and they do allow backpacking. There's a particular section of the Tecumseh trail that passes from Morgan/Monroe to Yellow Wood that I really love. It's a lower lying area with lots of pines and creeks.”

“LOL, i've never met crazy mike, only heard stories”

“Also there is a "backpacking camp site" at Shades State Park...i've never been to that site but I have been to the park and it's one of my favorite”

“Welcome! Yay, another Hoosier. There are getting to be a whole lot of us now. We might even outnumber the Tennesseeans.

Like has been said already, just do it. Join a trip or two and you will be amazed at what you learn. It's so much fun to hike with other like-minded people. You end up spending a good part of the time checking out each other's gear. When you're not doing that, you're talking about it.”

“Sorry, not a hot babe. I am sure that, now that you know that, you are not too interested in the rest...


Willi4
9:24:35 PM
4/03/06

so not a hot babe, what about a hot stud?
we already know what these losers look like so your fresh meat :)~”

“BTW Will, you might want to fill out your profile a bit. It will make people a little less suspicious of your troll potential.”

“aren't you married mapple? ;)”

“hey so is bearpoopmagnet and no one said anything to him.


so raspberries to you!!!”

“Welcome to TT.”

“LOL, i didn't know bear"poop"magnet was married...my apologies”

“i thought he jumped over the broom stick last year.”

“I think he is engaged. Not sure if they tied the knot yet.”

“what's all this "tying the knot" and "jumping the broom stick" nonsense?

Willi, this is what we call thread degradation LOL”

“what 9mm do you have?”

“horn dogs!”

“One Inch=25.4mm

He got it all over the 9's.”

“I have updated my profile a little. I still don't know what trolling is, so need'nt be worried.

I guess that is what I am going to have to do. I will just go on some hikes. I checked the events calendar and it doesn't seem to cater to the Indiana crowd. Guess I will just wait and see.

I don't think that I would be one to describe myself as a hot stud, Ruby. Not saying that I am not...just wouldn't say so!

Mutt, Taurus PT111

I think this would easily fall into the category of thread degradation. Just happy that I could provide an area for marital status gossip.”

“hehehe I married crazy mike, and I still havent heard all the stories LOL!”

“hehehe I married crazy mike, and I still havent heard all the stories LOL! Sorry Willi but all the bast backpackpaing is beyond Indiana territory :P

join us for the UP porcupine mountains coming up! :)”

“hehehe I married crazy mike, and I still havent heard all the stories LOL! Sorry Willi but all the bast backpackpaing is beyond Indiana territory :P

join us for the UP porcupine mountains coming up! :)”

“hehehe I married crazy mike, and I still havent heard all the stories LOL! Sorry Willi but all the bast backpackpaing is beyond Indiana territory :P

join us for the UP porcupine mountains coming up! :)”

“ps...should we warn him about the dangers of baccon?
last edited: 4/04/06 12:35:51 PM”

“Say what?

What part of Indiana you from? I would love to know how many Hoosiers we have now. There has to be at least 25 regulars.

Welcome aboard! As thrifty said above, Charles Deam is a popular place for us. I may host a trip in the fall again...stay tuned.”

“When I joined TT two and a half years ago I heard all about Crazy Mike. My first TT trip ever was organized by him. And then, he never went on another trip again. Was it my fault? Did I do something?”

“BTW, here's some Indiana links for you:

http://www.hoosierhikerscouncil.org/

http://midwesthiker.com/

http://www.indianaoutfitters.com/gear_sellers.htm




Where in Indiana are you?”

“I will be married in July. Until then I can have some fun. Oh hell, I don't think I'll change much after, K?”

“I live in the Bargersville/Greenwood area. I work in Columbus.

I think that I might actually be going down to Deam on the 13th and 14th. Just by myself thought. My oldest (canine) has not been in the woods in a long time. Just a little overnighter to be sure that I have everything in order.

So far I have heard of Crazy Mike, have been warned of bacoon and still have not been told what trolling is.”

“BM, it's like my wife says, i'm married i'm not gay

SC, are you hoping the more times you invite him to the porkies the more likely he'll go? LOL

besides, how you gonna hike the porkies when you're pregnant”

“Okay, he has heard about the story that has made Mike a legend.”

“OMG! It's a Hoosier love fest.”

“LOL Thrifty!

I think the nicer you are to newbies the quicker they get skeered away when the gloves come off. Ya got a thick skin, willi? Don't let the nice welcome fool you.

;)”

“Willi, I was just down there last weekend. Stayed in Edinburgh and had dinner at The Willard in Franklin.

Trolling is when a TT regular makes up a fake screen name and pretends to be someone new on the board. You obviously aren't a troll. It's usually for the purpose of being anonymous while being especially nasty to people OR it's pretending to be a hot sexy young female in an attempt to make all the horndogs here look like desperate fools as they fall all over themselves to get "her" attention.”

“I have to admit, it is quite the fan fare. I never expected that a simple post would turn into a "Hoosier love fest"! Although, now that it has happened, it is nice to know that there are people out there other than IRL groupies!

I would love to go to Michigan. I don't think that I will be able to get it together in a couple of weeks though, despite your multiple offers!

Even if I didn't have a think skin, I think that I would grow one really quick in this place. Just judging from some of the other threads that I have read!”

“The Willard.....mmmmmm, great pizza!

ahhh, trolling. I see. Seems a little pointless to be swooning over someone on a PC screen, regardless if they are chick or not.

Actually, I do have a gear question:

I am looking for a bag that will take me through 3 seasons, but not bankruptcy. I will be looking for a better quality one later in the year.”

“willi, you're in my neck of the woods...i live on the south side of indy and get down to greenwood at least on a weekly basis...i'm originally from seymour so i also know columbus well...i've got a trip this weekend down to tennessee but after that it'll probably just be day hiking for a while cause our first child is due in June”

“never expected that a simple post would turn into a "Hoosier love fest"!

you get extra points for the creative thread title...who can resist clicking on a thread that has "puppies and pistols" in the title just out of curiosity

as far as the pack goes (i'm so gonna get drilled for saying this) but Dick's Sporting Goods has some good starter stuff”

“Sorry thrifty, I didn't mean back pack, I meant sleeping bag.

If I don't title it well, how else is anyone going to look at the thread?

Do I get to cash the bonus points in for a prize at the end of the year?
last edited: 4/04/06 1:43:59 PM”

“Welcome Willi.

The best piece of advice I received when I first starting purchasing my gear was to buy the lightest and the best quality gear that I could afford. I often borrowed stuff from friends or rented equipment from outfitters until I could afford to purchase what I wanted.”

“i forgot all about renting equipment...this site has info about renting...they're in bloomington

http://www.indianaoutfitters.com/index.html”

“Sorry thrifty, I didn't mean back pack, I meant sleeping bag.

my bad, you actually did write bag and i just can't read...i picked up a quest 0 degree bag at Dick's for $50...i used it a few weeks ago done to 20 degrees and i was fine”

“he was fine, but then again, he's also nuts and likes to freeze.”

“Is being nuts and liking to freeze the same a liking to freeze your nuts?

I got on the Indiana Outfitters site. Looks pretty good. Thanks for the advice. Won't be hard to stop by there on the way down to the forest.”