Our method was developed while long-distance hiking on the Montana Continental Divide Trail, where we had 3 weeks of rain for the first 3 weeks, and 2 weeks of rain/snow flurries for the last 2 weeks, of a 12 week trip. Although regimented , it did allow us to keep our gear dry...AND , AT LEAST ONE PERSON DRY AND WARM. (In a party of two).To me, that seemed like a real safety factor; because the tent was the last thing packed, there was always an opportunity to "reconsider and retreat", back into the tent. We transferred it to canoeing, it has served us well in really nasty weather.All of our trips are multi-week, so I worry about gradual attrition, lost items, things getting wet and unusable, the "accumulation of small mistakes". Our best time was 1 hour with the Peace River (Alberta) rising rapidly on our little beach, I finished loading the canoe in ankle deep water. More often it takes 2 hours. (Just like everyone else...:) ! 1)Coffee is made the night before and kept in a thermos.Breakfast is "mueseli" ( with cold water and powdered milk). 2) When I get out of the tent in the morning (to make breakfast), my wife begins packing (in the tent), while drinking her coffee...sleeping bags in their sacks, loose clothing in their stuff sacks,TR pads deflated ( and into their sacks). 3) While eating her breakfast in the tent she pitchs out the packed gear (sacks are at least wet-proof), which I pack into the large SeaLine Bags,which I haul down to the water line as filled. (Bags are organized into "Sleeping & Tent Stuff", "Her clothes and belongings", "My clothes and Belongings", "Kitchen" and "7 Day food bag" and "Main food Bag". Really compulsive about this, and bags are color coded and have pictographs drawn on them). 4)I start loading the canoe.... the first bags in are the last ones needed at next campsite. 5)Tent (NF VE-25) comes down last. Taking it down while Wendy is still inside is a real "hurry up, we're moving out!" call.With tent down and packed, only day packs are left to carry down to canoe. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Sat Nov 13 1999 - 15:21:32 PST
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