Ryan Moulton

Hi Ryan,

I've been researching and writing for one of my own walking sites and knol's, and feel free to quote:
http://www.walkandramble.co.uk/expert-advice/lake-district-hiking-and-scrambling.html

Ben

Aha!! We've got you now Mr. smartypants permit-breaker!! You'll never hike Waimanu valley again!!! hahaha!
Actually, I'm curious how much these are. Generally how often do parks ask for permits and where does the money go?
If a place explains that the money goes toward support for the park, I'm much more cheerful about paying a fee.

Your introduction to backpacking is an excellent article and definitely worthy of the front-page feature it currently owns. Definitely a model of what to aspire to when writing Knols.

I've one tidbit to pick at, involving you statements about cotton clothing. I agree that in most situation cotton can be encumbering, if not dangerous. However, It seems to me that at least a portion of the users that access your article will be hiking in arid/dry/desert-like climates (Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada come to mind), where the sun and low humidity together make cotton a very, very desirable addition to a backpacker's arsenal. The fact that it is slower to dry than modern ultra-wicking synthetics makes cotton crucial for heat management in hot, dry climates and on-par if not preferable to the aforementioned polyester.

Perhaps you omitted this exception to curtail confusion, which is an easy state to find one's self in when discovering backpacking. However, if you found a way to make a statement regarding this extra bit oh knowledge, I'm sure those first-timers day hiking in the bush would be appreciative.

Ryan,

Well done, excellent knol, informative, includes safety aspects. I knew you were a Scout before seeing your photos. I'm an Assistant Scoutmaster with a troop in Wisconsin that's backpacked almost 300 miles in the past 4 years. I hope you don't mind, I'm adding a link to your knol to a page on backpacking on our troop website (http://troop641.wikispaces.com/Backpacking+Information). I've also trained many other Scouts and Scouters in our district on "how to start a backpacking program".

Only suggestions for additions to your knol: How much (weight) to carry (never more than a third of your body weight), and water treatment - SteriPen is also an option now (uses UV light). I've used one for a year now, it's incredible, weighs 7 ounces, works in 90 seconds per liter. And you can even buy them in Scout shops now.

For the sake of young Scouts, I hope you're working with a troop in CA.



Kent Kordsmeier
kentkordsmeier@gmail.com

Excellent article, beautifully presented. Wish I could put the information you provide to good use myself.