Beyond the Sagebrush

With the weather getting chilly
hot springs are looking more inviting.
Soldier Meadows hot springs - Black Rock Desert, Nevada

Serious injury and even death can and have occurred at hot springs - soak responsibly.

It Starts With an S and Ends With a T

While accepting last week’s Lace Up Your Boots challenge I found inspiration for this week’s blog…on the bottom of my shoe - scat. There were ridiculous amounts of scat on the Water Canyon Interpretive Trail. Scat can be an exciting sign of wildlife, but I don’t need to see signs of the last dog(s) to pass through the area.


Respecting others isn’t the only reason to pick up Fido’s scat; pet waste can pollute water sources. Some parks have pet waste bags available or you can purchase a supply at your local pet store. I have a supply of pet waste bags and find them in my coat and purse pockets like most people find used tissues – thankfully they’re unused bags. Or if you’re out backpacking and far away from a trash can, have your dog use a cat hole – ha! – bury their poop at least 200 feet from water sources and trails.

Not only is dog poop on the trail unsightly and unsanitary, it’s just plain gross. Please dispose of Fido’s scat appropriately; the bottom of my shoe appreciates it.

Now scat,
Trails

Lace Up Your Boots: Take a hike

Welcome to our new blog series that challenges you to get outdoors. The task may be as straight forward as this week’s – go on a hike. Or as challenging as…well you’ll have to check back to see what other exciting tasks we have in store for you.


Go on a hike: your hike can be short, long, flat, straight uphill, in your local park, or a far-off destination – your choice. Let us know how it goes!

Join us for a public lands clean up!

Trail Log

Conserving what I love.
Sequoia Kings Canyon National Park, CA

"In the end we will conserve only what we love. We will love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught." - Baba Dioum

LNT on the TRT

Last weekend Nevada Outdoor School partnered with the Tahoe Rim Trail Association to host a Leave No Trace Trainer Course. Not only did we cover some exciting outdoor ethics materials, but we also covered some ground! We backpacked the 22-mile section of the Tahoe Rim Trail from Tahoe Meadows to Spooner Lake. We had opportunities to practice LNT principles, including Be Considerate of Other Visitors while sharing the trail with a wealth of mountain bikers and Respect Wildlife by storing our food properly in bear boxes. Throughout the hike participants enjoyed views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and vistas of Lake Tahoe – I’ll put this trip in the success column.

Tracking our progress on the first day of our epic hike

LNT Trainers ready to impart LNT wisdom

Lighten Your Load

I am about to embark on the longest backpacking trip I’ve been on – 22 miles. For some that may be a stroll, for others that might be an epic distance. Either way, that’s not a distance I want to carry 35 pounds. I’ve heard various numbers for how much your pack should weigh; including a third of your body weight, in which case I’m good to go. Recently I found a figure of 15 to 25 percent of your body weight; now my pack needs to lose at least five pounds. Here are some weight-loss ideas I put into practice:

- Swapped my camp shoes from Chacos to light-weight slip-ons. That just cut about two pounds, plus the point of camp shoes is to make less of an impact and my slip-ons have no tread left on the bottom – Mother Nature wins too.
- Traded my super-cush Thermorest for a three-quarter length lighter one.
- Lightened up on the trail mix. I always seem to hike back to the trailhead with an absurd amount of trail mix left, not this time!
- Photocopied the section of the trail we’ll be hiking, instead of packing the map of the entire Tahoe Basin.
- Removed the day-pack attachment; we’ll be through-hiking so there was no need for a day-pack besides to add extra weight.
- Combined educational materials. This is a Leave No Trace Trainer Course, which adds instructional materials to my pack weight. I ditched the clips and rubber bands and combined everything in one sandwich bag.
- Opted for a down-feather sleeping bag. Ok, this was done a long time ago because my synthetic sleeping bag weighed five pounds and took up a third of my pack space. My down bag weighs half of that and compresses significantly smaller.


What good did all of that do me? Eight pounds! I’m much more excited about this trip now that I’m only carrying 27 pounds. Pick up a copy of Lighten Up! A complete handbook for Light & Ultralight backpacking by Don Ladigin for ideas on lightening your pack. Illustrations are by Mike Clelland, who also did the illustrations for Allen & Mike’s Really Cool Backpackin’ Book.

The best way to find out strategies for light backpacking is through experience and the experienced. How have you cut pack weight?

-Trails