Shopping...

Took a trip to REI yesterday to try to get my head a bit further around the upcoming endevour's equipment.  I've spent quite a bit of time hiking and running on trails, and a lot of time camping when I was younger, but never any real overnight backpacking tours like this one.  So I've gotta get as much informaiton as possible before I start buying anything.  REI is a great place, I've been into EMS and can walk around and look for days it seems without anyone speaking to me, and when I ask them things they rarely have much to offer.  Sad, customer service is apparently not a way to maximize profits I guess!!  lol.  Anyway, I had a list, started asking questions.  I'm planning on doing a week or so on the Appalachian Trail in August to get a bit of time out there before I go.  I've been spending a lot of time running on the trail, wonderful place.  Anyway, this post may be a bit distracted as the world cup is on...  Multi-tasking... 

Ok, so basically the issue is tropical camping and backpacking.  In general I need the lightest weight stuff I can come up with.  Obviously I'm going to be carrying it all in a pack on my back for some three months.  Problem is that that stuff is more expensive.  The other key issue with all of this is my desire to stay as "natural" as possible.  By this I mean, natural fibers, natural products, sustainable scenarios, etc.  There are two reasons for this, one allergies that I have to most synthetics, and second, principle.  If it doesn't happen naturally in naure, I'd like to not to be a part of it.  This of course is very difficult to do in our current world.  Especially in technical scenarios.  Everything is polyester.  It all does amazing things, keeps you dry, warm, cool, washes your backside, whatever.  But I want real, naturally occuring things, yet it is of course more costly to 'grow' in nature than to produce in a factory. 

I have been working with this for a while though so nothing new.  I usually wear cotton everything, but cotton doesn't do well in hot, sweaty environments.  Wool and Silk.  I've been looking at a company called Wintersilks which seems good and responably priced.  The wool however seems to be coming from Smartwool and that is a different story - wonderful quality, yet $60 for a T-Shirt.  Not sure if that is feasible on a budget that includes food stamps...   :-/  We'll see.  I'm still looking to approach Smartwool, Wintersilks, and Vibram on sponsorship basis. 

Prior to this expected aparrel disapointment though I went through all the gear.  I have a backpack that I used to backpack through Europe in 1999, and off and on in other terms since.  It would be adequate, but is not set up for a hydration bladder.  This is a bit of an issue.  I'll have to see if I can rig it up.  It is also not a top loading pack, but like a normal school backpack.  Easier to get to things I think, We'll see.  But I'm going to take it on my AT trips and see how it goes.  Hydration will be key.  I also don't want to show up in a developing country with new flashy stuff.  I'm poor myself (at least by american standards), so A, I can't aford it, and B, I don't want to present myself as someone capable of something I may not be.  This will already be hard to do.

Next, I looked at sleeping, both bags and shelter.  It's going to get 'down' to 60 degrees Fahrenheit (maybe 16C) at night, so its not going to be like I need much.  Of course though everything you see in NY for sale is warmer and they are mostly 'mummy' bags meaning no leg room.  But REI apparently has a 'sleeping sack' which is comfortable to 45 degrees (maybe 6-7C).  They have a down one which obviously could be good for my interests.  I still will entertain blanket options as I sleep year round in flannel and/or down.  Its going to be hot and humid there, so not to comfortable at times.  The other key to tropical treking seems to be to sleep off the ground.  'To much stuff going on down there' as I was told.  Makes sense, especially with the amount of moisture and rain.  I was looking for hammocks, but of course they don't stock them in West Hartford, Connecticut where I was.  Seems like they will be worth looking further into, but not what I expected (no white netted porch type!!).  Seemed like a sleeping bag that you just rope to trees and put a tarp over.  Again, we'll see, probably cost $200 - ouch.  I'll have to do some more online research. 

Cooking stoves... in going to Africa you never know what kind of scenarios you may find for fuel. So the most versatile one takes kerosine, diesel, and one other type of fuel for $130. It was the most versatile and most expensive - but you gotta eat!! Pots and pans, knives and forks.

My next big sticking point was more naturalist induced. Bugs and water. My helper was convinced that I needed deet, I thought he was joking. Hey, let me coat myself in chemicals just for fun and see if it bothers me... nope. I hate to be cynical, but its the only response I can take to what just seems so absurd to me. Same thing with water - no chlorene. Its a chemical that I, A, don't want to ingest, and, B, have always had trouble drinking and swimming in. But this is seen as blasphemy in what has become our artificially natural world. Iodine tablets are fine in "controled areas" such as the US, but apparently tantamount to suicide in other 'less clean' places. There was a UV neutralizer for $100. Lol, no chemicals, we'll see. As for the little critters, I'm thinking I'm going to stick with my brothers advice. When he went to Thailand for the summer he used "All Terrain Herbal Armor" and never got bit (while all the other students with deet regularly lost chunks of flesh!!)

Food however was a better conversation.  Not to much ideology that goes into drying food or dehydrating it.  There seems to be good harty food to be found in Sierra Leone, but I will certainly need to have some lightweight but dense protein with me.  Will probably do some of that before I go and for the AT trials.  Food there will be cheep, but I'm anticipating I will not get as much as I'm used to.  But how else do you understand a country but to live amidst it and use its own resources, at the levels those living there do...