Monday, May 10, 2010

Result of my gear choices

So my choice of tent for my trip was a good one. Biting flies ate me alive so it was nice to have a refuge.

My choice of skirt was not so good. Like shorts, they allow your legs to get torn up by scratchy brush and stickers. A skirt is better than shorts but not as good as pants. I do like how with a skirt you can easily add layers underneath, so I will definitely use a skirt in the future, but only on clean, bug-free trails.

My choice of shoes was a disaster. Keen sandals are the worst of all possible worlds. As a shoe, there is no traction on the trail. I fell twice, once into a yucca bush that stabbed me deep into the muscle of my arm and punctured my hand and leg. In the water the shoes let in all the gravel and won't let it out again. Sand and gravel chewed away my skin as I walked. The trail was overgrown with foxtails which pierced the fabric of the sandals and collected inside. I was constantly being poked by foxtails. I finally resorted to fashioning gaiters and shoe covers from a stuff sack to protect myself from foxtails, but nothing could save me from the sand and gravel.

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