Starting the Camp Gear Project

This project sounds like a lot of fun! And with multiples, you can do a lot of it assembly-line style.

Doreen in Alabama

On 2005-06-12 snipped-for-privacy@sbcglobal.net said: >Newsgroups: alt.sewing >Got the big box of materials and supplies in the mail and finally >completed the tutu, gown and square dance dress I have been fussing >over......so now I can start the camping gear for the family Grand >Canyon backcountry hike in 2 weeks. Joy,

I live 45 miles south of Albuquerque, but on the east side of the central mountains. Smile and wave as you go by.

Tom WillmonSaving....Mountainair, (mid) New Mexico, USA

Cat's Favorite Game - Ha! Made you look!

Net-Tamer V 1.12.0 - Registered

That is a much better way to see the West and to get a feel for what we have out here. Here in Nevada, we get skies of a blue that is not seen elsewhere. The shadings of color on the landscape are much more subtle than in wet, tropical areas, but have a beauty all their own.

You probably already know this, but put a shovel, a bag of kitty litter, and lots of water containers in your car. Also a blanket. What is surprising out here is the temperature difference between daytime and night. It can be extremely hot in the day, yet very chilly at night.

A cell phone is good to have, but there are vast areas without reception. We still have "wide open spaces" and lots of mountains and basins between the towers.

Have a wonderful time.

Uh oh...what do I do with the bag of kitty litter & shovel? I am taking a small shovel backpacking...but havn't heard of any need for kitty litter. The blankets I am making each of us should go down to 60degrees. They are 3/4" Polarguard 3D - ultralightweight. Should do the trick...don't you think? Joy

Where I live (Saskatchewan) we would use kitty litter in the car for getting out of snow or ice...... or in the summer out of mud (hopefully lol). It helps provide traction for your tires.

If the person who posted that advice has another reason I would be really curious???

HTH

Michelle Giordano

Polarguard 3D insulation)

Ooh, sounds fun! (alt.sewing.outdoors, anyone?) One of These Years (tm) I'm going to re-build my Kelty tent out of a lighter weight fabric.

What wickaway are you using & where did you get it? We just had a horrible experience with some wickaway from Textile Outfitters* - the stuff stinks like kayaking gear but it's never been used for that. :P Bleah.

gabrielle

• I'm otherwise a very satisfied customer of TO & realize this isn't really their fault...however I *did* email them about this twice & have yet to get a reply.

This is a post I made already to the Lightweight Zone Backpacking Group that Penny got me hooked up with (thanks again Penny!) There is a group there for "Make your Own Gear" that I get lot's of info and help from....lot's of good ideas.

I just wanted to keep everyone posted one of my latest Grand Canyon preparation projects.....our super comfortable shirts. While we were boot shopping the boys had each picked out those shirts made from Coolmax or Wickaway and they cost about $30!! So I came home and searched and found a GREAT SOURCE for the Wickaway materials and you are not going to believe how much money I am going to save on this project by the time you multipy it by my family of 5! The Wickaway fabric comes in hundreds of colors, weights, textures, etc....and even Lycras and Terry's too for making the hiking shorts or terry for hatbands etc. It is anywhere from 60-72" wide and.....(insert drum roll).....most are about $3/yd!!! Most the other places I found it was at least double or triple that. Not to mention I clicked on the samples I wanted for .15cents each and they were in my hand within a day or two! When I ordered the fabric I realized I forgot to order any samples of the ribbing....and (Peggy) even matched up colors for each of my selections for me...and a yard of ribbing is 2.50!! I can't get that with a coupon at JoAnns!!! Needless to say I am thrilled with this "find" of mine and wanted to share. Oh, by the way, they sell all types of other specialty fabrics too ...but I am tackling one project at a time.

have the 5 Tarps done!Joy

...but I am tackling one project at a time.

yes! Rose City Textiles. They're right here in Portland. :) Ihave a small stash of wicking fabrics I got there that are going to bebike jerseys when they grow up. gabrielle

Did you by chance make the mistake of laundering this stuff with fabric softener? I have a beautiful shirt that my ex washed with fabric softener (refusing to believe me when I begged her never to) and it's taken a bunch of washing cycles to get to the point where I can wear it without a nose-clip.

Another possibility is that you got a bad batch that had no or a poor antimicrobial coating.

Mike

Great! Thanks - I shall explore that later. I'm sure DH will be interested... :)

I'm in northern Nevada, which is still fairly cool compared to the south

- Las Vegas, Arizona, New Mexico, southern Utah -- and we're now going into daytime temps in the 80s, nighttime in the 50s. That gives you an idea of the range. When the sun goes down, the temps drop, and if there is wind, there is the windchill factor on top of the temp. Jackets, sweaters, ponchos and blankets are good.

When you get off the road, you can easily get stuck. The ground is sometimes loose decomposed granite going down quite a few inches - it's much like coarse sand. There is also clay. If there is water, it doesn't soak into the ground much, so you get standing water, running water, and mud. We do have flash floods and they are nothing to fool with. Yes, the kitty litter is for in case you need more traction on your drive wheel, or to fill up a small depression. The shovel makes it a lot easier to do that sort of thing. The favorite is one of those old military folding shovels that is very sturday yet tucks in a corner.

Best is not to get off the pavement, but that doesn't always work out.

I didn't catch when you are starting your trip, but they were clearing snow off the roads in the mountains in Utah, Nevada and California last week.

Next Wednesday I hope......we remain cautiously optimistic, but my daughter broke her foot on Memorial day (my birthday). She continues to train in a walking cast. We will just have to see how the healing goes. The hike is scheduled to start on Sat....from the North rim for one week in the backcountry. Joy

you can always pack a winch and a hi-lift jack, that's what we've done.

penny s

In article , small change of

uttered>> Best is not to get off the pavement, but that doesn't always work out.That conjures up an image in the UK ...

And don't forget your mobile phone to call for assistance ...

I don't think so. There's no cell phone reception in the Maze. We also carried 40 gallons of water, two spares, 20 gallons of gas and other necesarry items.

ps

fabric softener?

Nope. Performance fabrics (esp those that are required to absorb/wick) never get washed with fabric softener.

(How would fabric softener make it smell bad? Other than the nasty chemical smell of most fabric softeners. The kayak/river gear smell is much...earthier.)

gabrielle

The softeners coat the fabric and prevent the antimicrobial stuff from working. Add a little perspiration and such and the stinky stuff grows.

That's why polypropylene has such a bad reputation for smelling bad quickly. Polypro is difficult to treat with any antimicrobial stuff.

Mike