Well, my baby is due in a month. So, I knew this past weekend would be my last chance to get out there for a while. A couple friends of mine wanted to get out there too. We decided on Jay Cooke, and it was amazing.
We arrived to the park at about 4, and got to our site by about 5:30. It was a great site. There were 2 fire pits, 4 picnic tables, and a bear box. It was the most luxurious backpacking site I've been to. I got my hammock setup, relaxed for a few minutes in it, got some water by the river, started a fire and started cooking my dinner all before my buddies had their tent setup (I didn't say anything for the record, just smiled to myself). Unfortunately, it got really cloudy that night so there weren't any stars.
I got a little chilly on the face because I setup just over the edge of the hill going down to the river. So, all of that cold air was coming up the hill, and hitting me. My winter yeti UQ kept me plenty warm. I was going to bring my crowsnest that I just got before the trip. But, I didn't have enough time to play around with it to make sure I wouldn't get cold. I later found out on Monday that the crowsnest is very warm. I just needed to tighten the shock cord suspension. Anyways, I had my breakfast from the hammock, and was ready to do some hiking by 8. The ground dwellers were up before I was but did not want to hike because they were already sore from yesterday! Their pack weight was probably more than twice as mine, and I'm not even an ultralight hiker, yet. So, I assumed that had something to do with it, and I went off hiking with my dog. Saw some deer and eagles along the way. Made it back for dinner, and was able to watch the stars. This night I closed the doors of my DIY tarp on the side of the river to block that cold wind. It helped a ton! This night actually went below freezing so I used my IX TQ/UQ booster (pics posted soon). This definitely boosted the temp. But, my dog slipped his nose under my quilt sometime during the night. I woke up, and my golite ultra 20 felt dry. But, the inside of my IX booster was soaking wet. It wasn't a big deal since it didn't make me cold, and that was the last night. Got up and took the long way back to the parking lot. I couldn't have asked for a nicer 3 days for hiking, and it was a great mental recharge for me before the baby comes.
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Originally Posted by pizza
) level grassy ground but there aren't any decent trees in the campsite area for hanging a hammock. There are some pine trees on the spur trail leading into the camp that might work ok though. Lost Lake is also in a swampy area. Silver Creek is the only backpack site I haven't seen yet. I may have to check that one out next time I go out there. I'll probably go back to Jay Cooke in the fall. It's too busy out there in the summer time since it's such a popular park.
my base weight is almost there.
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