Testing out the tent

We spent our first night in the tent last night in Hot Springs, SD. The low temperature was 20 degrees F. We made it until about 6 AM before we had to head inside due to the cold. The biggest issue was that the shared sleeping bag let heat escape between us when one person slept on their side. The other issue was that we just had a hard time getting to sleep, but that was due to us not being used to tenting. We might get individual sleeping bags for the start of the trail and switch back to the shared sleeping bag once we hit warmer weather. Hopefully a long day of hiking on the trail will help us to fall asleep faster. 

Testing out the pack

Today, Louisa and I went to Buffalo State Park to do some hiking. I brought my pack along to see how I would fare with 20+ pounds on my back. For the most part, I was fine but the balls of my left foot started to hurt toward the end. Perhaps I will need an insole to keep my foot from hurting. I also found out that my trekking poles need some adjustment. Only one week until we move out!

Gear Overview

https://lighterpack.com/r/8fs28q

I decided to put our gear together in a single list since some of the items are shared between Louisa and I and we haven't decided who will carry what yet. I also haven't included food yet since the amount of food we will carry at a time will depend entirely on how many days we plan to hike between towns. Worst case scenario will be the 100 mile wilderness in Maine, which will take about 5-8 days to complete.

There are some optimizations we can make to our gear and I'm sure it will evolve as we figure out what works and what doesn't. Our packs will be inevitably lighter during the summer months since we will be able to send some of the cold weather gear home (I'm looking at you, sleeping bag liners).

Also, I'm slightly concerned about the weight of our fuel canister. It's a 30 oz canister and after running the stove, I'm realizing that amount of fuel will probably last for months (not ideal). I'd rather have to resupply fuel once a week and save myself from carrying a non-trivial amount of weight.