Hi All, I've decided to get serious here and post a bunch of material. I am going to publish a series of E-books about camping ideas and about my experiences. So I'm going to publish several excerpts from my E-books here, and also many of my posts to certain other lightweight group.
I hope you find this enlightening, or enjoyable, or helpful.
I get to BS a bit because this is my site. I'm told that soon I will be syndicated and others will use my stories. Thats wierd.
Jim Shaw
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Cozy warm - winter warmth
This is meant to be a comprehensive but short treaties on sleeping “Cozy” [skin] warm vs. “core warm”. First the given: Mitts are warmer than gloves because the fingers are next to each other and keep each other “cozy” warm (98 degrees).You need good insulation under your sleeping bag that will not compress. A mummy bag is the warmest shape because it limits the volume to be heated, but you have to be fully inside it with the hood closed down to a breathing hole and all internal adjustments tightened and your “neck yoke” (if you have one in your bag) spread over your shoulders to keep the cooler air around your face from mingling with the warmer air deeper in your bag. A snug fitting bag is warmer than a loose fitting bag. A balaclava is warmer than a hat. Tucking each layer of underwear, fleece etc carefully into each other will make you warmer. Elastic in the design of the sleeping bag – to keep the insulation next to you and to restrict air flow Given enough insulation and a fuzzy liner you would be more “cozy” warm sleeping naked because your skin would be in touch with other 98 degree skin which is the warmest you can get. A fuzzy liner is warmer than nylon next to your skin, because of this wearing a thin fleece layer is more cozy than being naked in a nylon bag without a liner.
Other important concepts – You will eventually have to get out of this bag and if you are wearing some insulation inside your bag the shock will be less when you open your bag. If your bag is against the side of the tent and a cold wind is blowing, that side will be noticeably colder. A snow cave is warmer than a tent, but wetter and requires more energy – generating dampness.
Upper body vs. legs. In the old days down pants and bibs unzipped between the legs and then the ends would zip together so your warm legs were next to each other, this was much warmer than sleeping with each leg in down pants that are pressed together – old timers will confirm. This is for the same reason that mitts are warmer than gloves, even if you keep the fingers pressed together wearing the gloves – its not the same as all the fingers contributing to heat one space in a mitt. Still I like to sleep in my down bibs and fleece long underwear because when I do have to get out of that bag, all I have to do is pull on my huge down coat and mitts to be fully dressed.
I think the most argument is about upper body warmth. I say that if you have good bag that is reasonably snug that you should put your coat over your bag and not wear it inside. My coat is so huge that I couldn’t wear it in my bag anyway, but when I have worn a lighter down coat inside my bag my hands froze and my arms were not warm. If you slept in that same bag in the coat but pulled your arms inside so they were more in contact with your body, they would be warmer, like wise putting your coat over your bag allows your torso and arms to be in touch more like fingers in mitts and you would be more “cozy”
If a cold wind is blowing against the side of your tent, wrapping part of your coat around the side of your bag against the tent wall will add considerable insulation to that side. And finally the inside of your coat will be warmer to put on in the morning if it was against your sleeping bag all night. I wear thin gloves to sleep in even though mitts would be warmer because its easier to deal with zippers and draw strings.
I have survived an open bivouac at minus 40 and because all I had was my sleeping bag, I wore all of my clothes and snow mobile suit inside it. I was really cold. If I had put my coat over me it would have blown away or filled with snow, so I wrapped it around my feet to prevent frost bite. Fortunately there was only light snow that night and it covered my bag and helped keep me warmer, but I was not cozy warm.
Other important concepts – You will eventually have to get out of this bag and if you are wearing some insulation inside your bag the shock will be less when you open your bag. If your bag is against the side of the tent and a cold wind is blowing, that side will be noticeably colder. A snow cave is warmer than a tent, but wetter and requires more energy – generating dampness.
Upper body vs. legs. In the old days down pants and bibs unzipped between the legs and then the ends would zip together so your warm legs were next to each other, this was much warmer than sleeping with each leg in down pants that are pressed together – old timers will confirm. This is for the same reason that mitts are warmer than gloves, even if you keep the fingers pressed together wearing the gloves – its not the same as all the fingers contributing to heat one space in a mitt. Still I like to sleep in my down bibs and fleece long underwear because when I do have to get out of that bag, all I have to do is pull on my huge down coat and mitts to be fully dressed.
I think the most argument is about upper body warmth. I say that if you have good bag that is reasonably snug that you should put your coat over your bag and not wear it inside. My coat is so huge that I couldn’t wear it in my bag anyway, but when I have worn a lighter down coat inside my bag my hands froze and my arms were not warm. If you slept in that same bag in the coat but pulled your arms inside so they were more in contact with your body, they would be warmer, like wise putting your coat over your bag allows your torso and arms to be in touch more like fingers in mitts and you would be more “cozy”
If a cold wind is blowing against the side of your tent, wrapping part of your coat around the side of your bag against the tent wall will add considerable insulation to that side. And finally the inside of your coat will be warmer to put on in the morning if it was against your sleeping bag all night. I wear thin gloves to sleep in even though mitts would be warmer because its easier to deal with zippers and draw strings.
I have survived an open bivouac at minus 40 and because all I had was my sleeping bag, I wore all of my clothes and snow mobile suit inside it. I was really cold. If I had put my coat over me it would have blown away or filled with snow, so I wrapped it around my feet to prevent frost bite. Fortunately there was only light snow that night and it covered my bag and helped keep me warmer, but I was not cozy warm.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Chaos in the Woods
The “Woods” is different.
We tend to live in cities in boxes with square edges, flat “safe” streets and sidewalks with go and stop to regulate our daily movements. Our cell phone number is digital even – not analog. Analog refers to having a complete sweep from zero to maximum, not from zero to one. This is not a “natural” condition because the zero or one merely have to be approximate and not exact. All of this is done in an attempt to control Chaos.
The nature of the Universe is not just chaotic – it is chaotic because of the very real effect of Chaos – a law of nature – not just an observed quality. Like gravity, the speed of light, the speed of sound and the 4 forces, Chaos has to be understood when entering the “Woods” because the woods is analog AND chaotic. For example, the “sidewalk” in the woods is never really level, its always off a bit because the surface of the Earth “flows” down hill. Rocks are tilted and all are in the process of falling even lower. Many processes are strained and just waiting for someone or something to trigger them.
The “woods” is an extremely safe place. The woods is never in danger of itself and every chaotic event from a grain of sand rolling, or a boulder rolling, or a volcano erupting is completely normal and Chaotic. The “Objective” danger in the woods is extremely low. The odds of a volcano or mountain or boulder falling on you are extremely small. You can also be struck by lightening, suffer a heart attack, or choke to death, but again all of these are chaotic.
What’s “dangerous” about the woods is that it is different than our city born expectations. How many times have you carefully prepared a camping list at home and ended up missing important gear and having some totally unused gear because after you were sitting in the woods for a while it dawned on you that “Its different out here”. I have nearly killed myself on numerous occasions in the Sierras, within half a mile of my truck. Like I was cross country skiing in deep snow and stopped too close to a steep edge and fell through the cornice. I’ve skied across lakes and broken the ice and danced on my skis to survive. The guy who cut his hand off, he simply put his hand where it dislodged a process ready to happen – he should have foreseen the possibility. I walked across a couloir once that had a deep landslide in it. It moved a bit when I stepped on it and I jumped higher up and grabbed a pine root. Five minutes later that same HUGE rockslide rained refrigerator sized boulder down the side of Cathedral Peak. Hundreds of tons of rock suddenly gave way when a 175 pound guy provided the last straw.
So what are some of the things that can get you? Stepping on a log with the center of a hiking boot, between the treads – broke my leg that way. Rocks waiting for a chance to move. Weather. Anything at all can be dangerous if you look at it as “solid” and find out that it is Chaotic. So its your appreciation for the fact that anything CAN happen, and treading lightly so that you are not the cause of your own demise by triggering natural chaotic events.
Jim – Because of the above some of feel that psychological preparedness is far more important than having gear.
We tend to live in cities in boxes with square edges, flat “safe” streets and sidewalks with go and stop to regulate our daily movements. Our cell phone number is digital even – not analog. Analog refers to having a complete sweep from zero to maximum, not from zero to one. This is not a “natural” condition because the zero or one merely have to be approximate and not exact. All of this is done in an attempt to control Chaos.
The nature of the Universe is not just chaotic – it is chaotic because of the very real effect of Chaos – a law of nature – not just an observed quality. Like gravity, the speed of light, the speed of sound and the 4 forces, Chaos has to be understood when entering the “Woods” because the woods is analog AND chaotic. For example, the “sidewalk” in the woods is never really level, its always off a bit because the surface of the Earth “flows” down hill. Rocks are tilted and all are in the process of falling even lower. Many processes are strained and just waiting for someone or something to trigger them.
The “woods” is an extremely safe place. The woods is never in danger of itself and every chaotic event from a grain of sand rolling, or a boulder rolling, or a volcano erupting is completely normal and Chaotic. The “Objective” danger in the woods is extremely low. The odds of a volcano or mountain or boulder falling on you are extremely small. You can also be struck by lightening, suffer a heart attack, or choke to death, but again all of these are chaotic.
What’s “dangerous” about the woods is that it is different than our city born expectations. How many times have you carefully prepared a camping list at home and ended up missing important gear and having some totally unused gear because after you were sitting in the woods for a while it dawned on you that “Its different out here”. I have nearly killed myself on numerous occasions in the Sierras, within half a mile of my truck. Like I was cross country skiing in deep snow and stopped too close to a steep edge and fell through the cornice. I’ve skied across lakes and broken the ice and danced on my skis to survive. The guy who cut his hand off, he simply put his hand where it dislodged a process ready to happen – he should have foreseen the possibility. I walked across a couloir once that had a deep landslide in it. It moved a bit when I stepped on it and I jumped higher up and grabbed a pine root. Five minutes later that same HUGE rockslide rained refrigerator sized boulder down the side of Cathedral Peak. Hundreds of tons of rock suddenly gave way when a 175 pound guy provided the last straw.
So what are some of the things that can get you? Stepping on a log with the center of a hiking boot, between the treads – broke my leg that way. Rocks waiting for a chance to move. Weather. Anything at all can be dangerous if you look at it as “solid” and find out that it is Chaotic. So its your appreciation for the fact that anything CAN happen, and treading lightly so that you are not the cause of your own demise by triggering natural chaotic events.
Jim – Because of the above some of feel that psychological preparedness is far more important than having gear.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Meeting an internet friend
I'm about to go Backpacking with an Internet friend whom I have never met in person. I have seen pictures of him, more of his son and dog who will both accompany us.
Some people have questioned this practise of meeting up with "strangers" because "who knows", but you learn a lot about the people in your forums when you know them over time. I remember when I met my primary climbing partner Paul when he called about an ad I had at REI. People said "how do you know he won't kill you", and his wife said, How do you know hes not a crazy and will take you out in the forest and kill you?" We've been vey close for a couple of decades now.
I met TomD for the first time in a motel outside Yosemite. I had called and made a reservation and told them to let Tom in when he arrived. When I arrived I paid and they said Tom was already there. So when I knocked on my door - TomD appeared. And we have enjoyed a close internet relationship since then.
Now I'm going to Meet Bigfoot2. I'm taking him kayak/canoeing this summer on Deer Lake by the south edge of Sisters Wilderness. If you Google Earth the area, theres a scarry story about a bigfoot sightng there - Woah huh?
More later
Some people have questioned this practise of meeting up with "strangers" because "who knows", but you learn a lot about the people in your forums when you know them over time. I remember when I met my primary climbing partner Paul when he called about an ad I had at REI. People said "how do you know he won't kill you", and his wife said, How do you know hes not a crazy and will take you out in the forest and kill you?" We've been vey close for a couple of decades now.
I met TomD for the first time in a motel outside Yosemite. I had called and made a reservation and told them to let Tom in when he arrived. When I arrived I paid and they said Tom was already there. So when I knocked on my door - TomD appeared. And we have enjoyed a close internet relationship since then.
Now I'm going to Meet Bigfoot2. I'm taking him kayak/canoeing this summer on Deer Lake by the south edge of Sisters Wilderness. If you Google Earth the area, theres a scarry story about a bigfoot sightng there - Woah huh?
More later
Spring in Bend
Woah - what happened to Spring this year???
Its the last day of April and it snowed here today. Two days ago I was skiing on an inch of fresh snow at Mt Bachelor, in a blizzard! I was wearing a helmet and goggles and had a balaclava under it all and my nose was still cold on the lift.
So I'm going Backpacing with my Friend Matt, whom I have yet to meet in person - he's an internet friend. We're going to Oregon Dunes, more specifically to Three Mile Lake which is on the beach near Elbow Lake, which does come up on Google Earth. It will be an interesting contrast in gear. He has a few high tech items and a new beta plastic "tent" to try out for a certain company. I have been considering carrying a few obsidian "blades" for any cutting purposes, and maybe my Koa chopsticks - smuggled out of Hawaii.
This wll be a three day trip with a lot of eating and since we will be at the beach we can cook over a fire so you guesed it - steaks the first night.
More on this trip to come.
Its the last day of April and it snowed here today. Two days ago I was skiing on an inch of fresh snow at Mt Bachelor, in a blizzard! I was wearing a helmet and goggles and had a balaclava under it all and my nose was still cold on the lift.
So I'm going Backpacing with my Friend Matt, whom I have yet to meet in person - he's an internet friend. We're going to Oregon Dunes, more specifically to Three Mile Lake which is on the beach near Elbow Lake, which does come up on Google Earth. It will be an interesting contrast in gear. He has a few high tech items and a new beta plastic "tent" to try out for a certain company. I have been considering carrying a few obsidian "blades" for any cutting purposes, and maybe my Koa chopsticks - smuggled out of Hawaii.
This wll be a three day trip with a lot of eating and since we will be at the beach we can cook over a fire so you guesed it - steaks the first night.
More on this trip to come.
Friday, February 8, 2008
Welcome to Bend
Hi All,
I moved to beautiful Bend, Oregon 2 years ago to be closer to nature. I live out Century Drive towards Mt Bachelor ski resort at 3800 feet of elevation. After decades of climbing and backpacking in California's Sierra Nevada Range, I find the Central Cascades Range to be very different. The Cascades are Young Volcanoes and there are 5 big ones about 20 miles west of me. The Sisters/Mt Bachelor massif forms a huge weather barricade for the city of Bend. We're in a kind of pocket where the sun shines 320 days a year. Bend is a center of World Clas: biking, skiing, running, backpacking, fishing, climbing, 4wheeling and every other out door activity.
I moved to beautiful Bend, Oregon 2 years ago to be closer to nature. I live out Century Drive towards Mt Bachelor ski resort at 3800 feet of elevation. After decades of climbing and backpacking in California's Sierra Nevada Range, I find the Central Cascades Range to be very different. The Cascades are Young Volcanoes and there are 5 big ones about 20 miles west of me. The Sisters/Mt Bachelor massif forms a huge weather barricade for the city of Bend. We're in a kind of pocket where the sun shines 320 days a year. Bend is a center of World Clas: biking, skiing, running, backpacking, fishing, climbing, 4wheeling and every other out door activity.
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