Northern hang May 27-29

**Shug** · 06-17-2010, 17:12

Packing now .... I will see ya'll tomorrow at Perch Lake........ or Porcupine...... or on the trail ......
Shug .... Whooooooooo Buddy!!!

**koaloha05** · 06-17-2010, 19:43

Weather up here is a bit sketchy right now. It's actually warm and humid for a change. Tornado watch issued through tonight(Ashland, Bayfield, Sawyer Co.) Good news is sounds like the weather should be real nice from tomorrow on. Ticks seem to have backed off. Mossies are not bad.

Will miss another NorthernHang. Work schedule is thur-sat until next month. Payback time for taking a month off this Spring. Enjoy your trip!

**Shug** · 06-18-2010, 08:59

All-righty then ........ I am off to NCT in a half hour......
Looking forward to some slumber in the piney woods of Wisconsin.
And meeting new HF membs.
all secure in sector seven,
Shug

**Hawk-eye** · 06-18-2010, 09:00

Safe travels Shug of the Piney wood!

**Oscar-Blackeagle** · 06-20-2010, 11:58

Well, myself and my friend John made the 12 hour drive from Ohio. Got there later than we expected, about 2pm Friday. Set up our hammocks. I was so out of it after driving 12 hours overnight without sleep, but I persevered. Shug arrived an hour or so after we did. The potluck got under way later in the evening and most stayed up past 10pm. I went to bed around 10:30pm and didn't wake up til 8:30am. We all got up and around and were able to hit the trail at a fairly decent hour.

I stayed with the main group, pushing myself harder than I should have. At one point I realized I was overheating and needed a rest, so I stopped and let others pass. John was trailing behind, so I went back to try and find him. That turned out to be fruitless, so I decided to continue moving forward. I made it to the 5-6 mile mark where the trail crosses the road and stopped to rest. Stairguy and his son PJ came out and I heard news that my friend John wasn't going to make it out with his pack and that Fourdog was trailing behind carrying John's pack. Minutes later Fourdog came up out of the trail carrying John's pack as well as his own! After a rest and a snack, Fourdog, Stairguy and PJ hit the trail to meet up with the rest of the hammockers and I stayed behind to wait for John. John arrived about a half hour later with a pulled groin and blistered feet. It was evident that John wasn't going to make it in to camp and we had rode together, so we decided to make our way back to the car. Special thanks to Snipen's wife for the ride. That would've been a LONG walk.

This was my first time wearing a backpack and hanging with a group. I learned some lessons very quickly. I pushed myself too much to keep up with everyone else, rather than trying to set my own pace. As a result, my feet were extremely sore and my formerly sprained ankle was giving me fits from all of the rotation on the trail. A calf stiffened up like a rock. I'm still limping. hehe I went in with a 30lb load and came out with a new appreciation and a desire to reduce my pack weight.

I wish I could've stayed for the rest of the hang, but after I had a chance to rest I know I wouldn't have been able to walk if I had hiked in the rest of the way. I pushed myself way too hard and it took its toll.

On the bright side, all of my gear worked great. I was able to cook with the Bushbuddy in what I consider to be record time for the first real-world attempt.

There were some lessons learned and I have new adjustments to make. It was great meeting you all. I wish I had been feeling better on Friday. I was so tired from the drive. The scenery was beautiful and I wouldn't trade the experience for anything.

I can't wait to see Shug's video report and the hang spot everyone picked out. Thanks to: Fourdog for carrying John's pack, KayakNut for the beer, Canoeski for some handy knot advice, Walking Bear for the conversation and of course, Shug for the entertainment.

If I missed anyone and/or got some names wrong I apologize. Everyone was wonderful.

**questtrek** · 06-20-2010, 21:34

Oscar-Blackeagle,
Hey stuff happens ... at least you tried and went hiking into the Piney woods.

Lightening your pack is a big deal but can be done with the right gear ... A good load without food and water is about 16 pounds (could be a lot lighter but, not practical). Then when you add food for your stay and water needs depending on the availability. You base the weight on that. If it's a 3 day trek without water then you will need a lot more water weight and food. If it's a 3 day trek near a stream then you won't need much. So you should probably end up with a 20-25 pound pack max.

UL hiking still needs to be practical and with comforts. so figure out your gear over and over .. write down what you never touched and don't bring it next time. the things you touched a lot make sure you have....

just my 2 cents ... Congrats on the trip .. and thanks for posting! ...

**Oscar-Blackeagle** · 06-21-2010, 05:48

Originally Posted by questtrek

Oscar-Blackeagle,
Hey stuff happens ... at least you tried and went hiking into the Piney woods.

Lightening your pack is a big deal but can be done with the right gear ... A good load without food and water is about 16 pounds (could be a lot lighter but, not practical). Then when you add food for your stay and water needs depending on the availability. You base the weight on that. If it's a 3 day trek without water then you will need a lot more water weight and food. If it's a 3 day trek near a stream then you won't need much. So you should probably end up with a 20-25 pound pack max.

UL hiking still needs to be practical and with comforts. so figure out your gear over and over .. write down what you never touched and don't bring it next time. the things you touched a lot make sure you have....

just my 2 cents ... Congrats on the trip .. and thanks for posting! ...

Thank you for the pack advice. Yes, I was coming to that same conclusion myself. I had approximately 25 lbs in my pack after taking out extra clothing I didn't need. My back and shoulders didn't complain, which is a testament to the ULA Ohm's design, but my feet just weren't used to walking with a pack. I need to condition myself to wearing a pack. Once I do that I'm sure I'll be fine.

After I got home from the 12 hour drive, I went through the same thing I had gone through at camp on Friday---very tired and zombie-like. I went to bed last night at 7pm and woke up at 6:30am this morning. I doubt I'll ever travel that far without a second driver (I wasn't about to let John drive my car. He's a speed demon). The good news is we're both healing fine and we are already discussing the next trip and adjustments we'll be making.

**kayaknut01** · 06-21-2010, 06:49

my first hang n hike i was packing a 42 lb pack, i paid for that and i learned alot as well this time around i wieghed all that went into my pack added it all up and was amazed at the difference, i did my math 3 times because the numbers were just not or could not be correct but without food /water i was at 18lbs added 3.5 lbs food 21.5 added water was at 25lbs, i thought i had did an awesome job of dropping the pounds, stormcrow would be proud, just some advice for whats its worth, start walking with your pack loaded with 5lbs for 2 weeks then 10 for 2weeks and so on that really helped me get the body used to the pack wieght imo walking with a pack is much different then walking without cheers glad to have met ya oscar and john see ya on the trail