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  1. #21
    Registered User tarditi's Avatar
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    Congrats! Great accomplishment!

  2. #22

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    Quote Originally Posted by Dogwood View Post

    How did all the gear work for you? I got my eye on some of the pieces in your LT hiking kit.

    Congrats Deacon. So what are you going to accomplish for you 70th birthday?

    Of all the items I listed, I really did not like the Daren UL Dream hammock. The fabric is so thin, you sink down into it and its hard to move around. Because it weighs only 11 ounces, I was willing to put up with that. I much prefer my Warbonnet Blackbird, but its 28 oz. also, the hammock is 11 feet long and just barely fits under my 11 ft. tarp. I actually got wet one night from water running down the end of the hammock. Never happened with the WBBB.

    Everything else worked great for this particular hike. I cooked my dehydrated dinners (boiled water only) on a Foster Caldera Keg using a 1 gram Esbit stove. The cone, pot, stove, and screw together plastic containers weighed 5.6 oz. I lined my Zpacks pack with a cuben pack liner to keep the quilts dry.

    For filtration, I used a Sawyer Squeeze. The black bag that comes with it blew out, so I had to use one of my Evernew .9L bottles as the dirty bag.

    I started without camp shoes, but since it was so wet and I had so many blisters, I really needed them. I had my wife overnite my Waldies to me.

    My hat was a baseball style straw hat. Found it on Amazon. It was the only hat I ever wore that didn't get too hot.

    I wore the Zpacks rain skirt in the mornings to prevent wet vegetation from getting my shorts soaked.
    Last edited by Deacon; 08-13-2013 at 13:35.

  3. #23
    Section Hiker
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    Thanks for sharing, awesome! Congrats!


    "Your comfort zone is a beautiful place, but nothing ever grows there.
    "


  4. #24

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    So the wheels of evolution as a hiker and as a person continue to spin. THX for that info Deacon.

    The UL Darien can be customized. You can get 10 or 11 ft lengths, heavier body fabrics in single or double layers, various widths, etc. The UL Darien is also a Asym so you have to not only get a good hammock pitch(set up) for a comfortable lay but you have to lay in it as it was designed to be laid in.With a thinner silny body fabric you might get more stretch so that might affect the lay too. Add that to a heavy user and you might get undesirable sag. Was water coming down from the slings or tree straps? If so maybe a water stopper knot/ring, cord, deflector cloth(bag) might have helped. As Dream Hammocks says the UL Darien is not a beginner hammock. When you go to the lightest wt incorporated net hammock that may be available you have to expect some consequences.

    How did the Zpacks cuben rain jacket work in the humidity? Did you perceive venting or overheating issues with a non breathable material made into a rain jacket?

    Deacon let me know what you pl;an on doing with Darien. Give it some more use to iron out the kinks but if you decide to sell it let me know. I may be interested.

    THX again for the feedback.

  5. #25
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    Deacon, was wondering if you were happy with the Sawyer Squeeze on the LT? I was planning on using Aqua Mira, worked okay for me up there last year except for a toilet bowl spring at one particular shelter near VT 11/30 at Manchester Center. You did good surviving that July heat on the east coast. Good info, thanks for sharing.

  6. #26

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    Quote Originally Posted by Praha4 View Post
    Deacon, was wondering if you were happy with the Sawyer Squeeze on the LT? I was planning on using Aqua Mira, worked okay for me up there last year except for a toilet bowl spring at one particular shelter near VT 11/30 at Manchester Center. You did good surviving that July heat on the east coast. Good info, thanks for sharing.
    Yes, the squeeze worked well. I bought a set of the caps with the nipple on them and connected them together with a short piece of vinyl tubing. Screw one on the clean bag and the other on the output of the filter. That way you don't have to hold the two bags to get the water in; both hands are free to squeeze the dirty bag.

  7. #27
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    You are an ispiratin for all of us to keep young. I had the pleasure of hiking with Brice Hamock onthe PCT year ago. Last time I met up with him at an ALDHAW meeting I asked about his summers hikes. He said he was getting to old for long hikes, nothing over 500 miles for him anymore. I hope I can say that when I reach my eightys!

  8. #28
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    I think he was 82 whwn he made that statement to me & he was a triple crowner two time over at the time.

  9. #29

  10. #30
    LT '79; AT '73-'14 in sections; Donating Member Kerosene's Avatar
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    My 16-year old newbie brother and I (then 22) did the LT SOBO over the course of 24 days in August 1979, with rain recorded on 21 of those days. We were both probably carrying 45-50 pounds. Unless you were striving for a speed record, just finishing is a true accomplishment. It's a tough trail, especially up north, but very memorable. Congrats.
    GA←↕→ME: 1973 to 2014

  11. #31
    Registered User handlebar's Avatar
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    Congratulations, young man. I've been looking at a September thru hike of the LT, but have to wait to finalize plans as there are some family obligations that may require a deferral until next year. If you're anywhere near NE OH, there's an internet-enabled backpacking club. Google NE OH Backpacking Club, for lots of trips to help you keep in hiking shape.
    Handlebar
    GA-ME 06; PCT 08; CDT 10,11,12; ALT 11; MSPA 12; CT 13; Sheltowee 14; AZT 14, 15; LT 15;FT 16;NCT-NY&PA 16; GET 17-18

  12. #32
    Registered User Symba's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dogwood View Post
    That's a HUGE accomplishment on many levels in my opinion! 1) you learned from you past experiences 2) you stuck it out with the ups and downs and the rain 3) you came back and aced the test 4) you showed gratitude and appreciation by mentioning all those places, supporting people, and gear companies

    You also did it by starting at, IMHO, the harder end to start at, Journeys End, the LT Northern Terminus. Despite all the recent hoopla, and not intending anything derogatory about this hiking approach, ALL thru-hiking IS NOT about speed. It's mostly, IMHO, about what you did! What you did is also a recipe for success in life in many endeavors

    How did all the gear work for you? I got my eye on some of the pieces in your LT hiking kit.

    Congrats Deacon. So what are you going to accomplish for you 70th birthday?
    Well said!!! Congrats Deacon; AT thru-hike next? Hike on my friend!
    I am well again, I came to life in the cool winds and crystal waters of the mountains...

    ~ John Muir ~

  13. #33
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    Best thing I've read/heard today.

    Congratulations Deacon

  14. #34
    Registered User MamaBear's Avatar
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    A huge congrats to you Deacon! I completely understand your feelings of accomplishment!

  15. #35
    Registered User oldnevada's Avatar
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    Hi Five, Deacon.... whow. Still hope for me!

    I just ran into JuJu and Grunt yesterday at Prospect Rock. Finishing last sections of their NOBO E-To-E.

  16. #36
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    Congratulations! The LT is not an easy trail (however it is my favorite), no matter how you look at it, especially north........ but there are still some intense climbs before Maine Junction. My hat is off to you! You're now an Honorary Catamount!

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