Tag Archives: backpacking

Camping in Heavy Rain – Pinchot Trail South Loop Backpacking Trip

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Join Sara and I for some Spring Backpacking, Camping in the Rain, and Trail Cooking on the Pinchot Trail southern loop.

 

FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links.

For this early spring camping trip, my wife Sara and I set out to do some backpacking  with our dog and explore Pennsylvania’s Pinchot Trail southern loop.  I had done the northern loop a couple of weeks before and it was quite nice, so I was looking forward to seeing what this new section had to offer.

For shelter, we packed in our 4 person tent as well as a huge tarp to give us some extra living space during the rain storm that was forecasted to hit in the afternoon and turn into snow by the next morning.

The bottom of the Pinchot Trail South loop runs along Choke Creek, which offers a string of 6 or so beautiful waterside campsites over the course of a mile or so. Legend has it that the last of those campsites is the most picturesque, so our goal was to hike in a few miles to the creek and get to that coveted campsite before the afternoon rain started. If the weather broke early, we would aim to take one of the earlier campsites.

Route Overview – Pinchot Trail South Backpacking Loop – Sintax77

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3 Days Winter Camping with NO STOVE – Cooking with Fire!

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3 Days of Winter Camping, Backpacking & Campfire Cooking in Pennsylvania’s Pinchot State Forest.

 

FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links.

For this late winter backpacking trip, I decided to challenge myself to cook “real food” using only fire for the duration of my trip. If you know anything about my patience for making fires, you’ll know this will truly be a bit of a challenge. 🙂

For shelter, I went with my minimalist camping hammock and ultralight backpacking tarp set-up. I also utilized a grill grate, a folding saw for harvesting campfire wood, and some extra cold weather clothing layers, as the temps were forecasted to head down to  around 15° F or so. There was also a chance of snow, sleet, and even rain, so I brought a full set of rain gear for warmth at camp and keeping dry while hiking.

Full Route Overview – Pinchot Trail North Backpacking Loop – Sintax77

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How to Survive an Ice Storm – Hammock Camping the Roaring Plains

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3 Days of Winter Hammock Camping and Backpacking in the Roaring Plains Wilderness during Snow and Freezing Rain.

FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links.

For this late winter backpacking trip, I decided to head back down to West Virginia’s Monongahela National forest to do some ridge hiking and cold weather hammock camping. Due to temperatures forecasted from the low 20’s to the low 40’s, I needed to pack in some heavier warm clothing layers for this trip, along with some camp tools, so I used my larger winter backpack.  For sleep and shelter, I used my go-to ultralight hammock and tarp set-up with winter grade down quilts (full gear list below).  As it turns out, I probably should have used that extra pack space for a larger tarp too, but live and learn I guess…

This trip video was sponsored by Magic Spoon.  You can try their variety pack and get $5 off by using this link and the code Sintax77.

The 6,792 acre Roaring Plains West Wilderness is a remote federal wilderness area located about 3 miles south of the more popular Dolly Sods Wilderness Area.  It boasts a healthy network of trails, which are unmarked and often, grown in and hard to follow.  Official paper maps are hard to come by, and by some accounts, not very up to date.  Based on my personal experience, I would highly recommend using a GPS with appropriate data while hiking here.  You can also find good trail info and map print-outs at MidAtlanticHikes.com and HikingUpward.com.  I also recorded my personal GPS data for this trip, which can be found here.

Route Overview – Roaring Plains Backpacking Loop – Sintax77

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3 Days of Campfire Cooking and Hammock Camping – Harpers Ferry West Virginia

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Hammock Camping, Trail Cooking and the search for an Elusive Hearth in the Woods of West Virginia.

FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links.

For this early February hammock camping trip, I set out to hike a 3 day hike with a nostalgic goal – to find a giant campfire hearth that my friend and I had built five years ago, somewhere off of the Appalachian Trail near the town of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.  I had always wondered if it was still standing after all these years, and thought it would be a great excuse to spend some time in the woods a cook some hearty camping meals.

My weather conditions were forecasted to have a pretty wide range during this trip, from the upper 50’s down to 30 degrees each evening.  I had a rough idea of the hearth’s location.  We built it at camp not too long after leaving the Harpers Ferry National Historic Area’s boundary while heading south on the Appalachian Trail.  My goal for the first day was to get myself to a legal camping area in this general area so I could search for it first thing the next morning.  If I found it early, I would then have the option to do a day hike to Loudoun Heights and Split Rock for views of the Shenandoah River and Potomac River below the ridge.

For sleep and shelter on this trip, I went with a simple hammock camping and ultralight tarp setup (gear list below).  I used the extra space in my winter backpack to load up on extra clothing layers, a saw for harvesting firewood, a stool for working in my makeshift camp kitchen, and my white gas stove system paired up with a fry pan and diffuser to try my hand at baking some trail bread at camp.  The cooler temps also allowed me to bring some “real” food, so I brought along some ingredients to make some smoked sausage one day and pasta with a slow cooked meat sauce the next.

This trip video was sponsored by Anker and their model 521 and 535 Portable Power Station.

Route Overview – Harpers Ferry Loudoun Heights Winter Backpacking Trip – Sintax77

Full GPS track data, including campsites, etc, for this trip and many others can be downloaded on my Trip Data Page.

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Winter Camping on Mt Washington – Deep Snow, Below Zero

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Backpacking & Winter Camping on the side of Mount Washington.

FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links.

For this adventure, I headed back up to the White Mountains of New Hampshire to do some snow camping and make another attempt at doing a Mt Washington winter ascent for some frozen views of the Presidential Range.  I tried this about a year ago, but a stomach bug and 85 MPH winds kind of put a damper on things.  This time around, I also brought a hiking partner, Frank.  We’ve done several winter trips together so far, but this would be his first time in the White Mountains.

Similar to last year’s trip, the plan was to set up a base camp at higher elevation, followed by a lighter weight trek up to the top of Mount Washington if weather conditions and visibility were agreeable. If the conditions were questionable, we made a back-up plan to scurry up the side of the nearer Mt Monroe.  And of course, if the weather really got bad, we would just play it safe and stay below tree line.

Trailhead Used: Ammonoosuc Ravine Trailhead
44°16’01.2″N 71°21’40.7″W
Base Station Rd, Jefferson, NH 03538

This is a large parking lot with room for many vehicles.  A parking fee of $5 dollars per day or an annual National Park pass is required.

Trails Used

  • Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail
  • Appalachian Trail (Crawford Path)
  • Mt Monroe Loop Trail

Campsite

  • Camp along Ammonoosuc Trail 44.26398, -71.32182
    • This was a small unofficial campsite located in a hollowed out spot not too far before entering the Lakes of the Clouds Forest Protection Zone.

Notable Backpacking Gear

Camera and Nav Gear used for this episode

Winter Camping in Pennsylvania’s Most Remote Forest

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Backpacking, Hiking & Winter Tent Camping with Snow in Pennsylvania’s Hammersley Wild Area.

FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links.

For this early December backpacking trip, I set out to hike a 3 day, 20ish mile loop in the mountains of north central Pennsylvania.  I created my loop by using a portion of the Susquehannock Trail System, some off-trail bushwhacking, and a ridge hike along the adjacent Twin Sisters Trail.

My weather conditions were forecasted to have some fresh snow, temps mostly in the 20’s and a potential for freezing rain as the temps rose further into the trip.  While this was a pretty wide range of possible conditions, it also wasn’t terribly cold, so I was still able to pack somewhat ultralight and minimal.  My camping target for day one was down in the hollow along the banks of Hammersley Fork. On day two I planned to head up to the ridge and camp in the area devoid of trees due to a forest fire back in 1962.  Due to the potential lack of trees, I swapped out my typical hammock setup for a single person tent and sleeping pad to keep my campsite options flexible.

The Hammersley Wild Area is the most remote swath of public land in Pennsylvania, with some spots over 5 miles from the nearest road, which combined with the season, I hoped would make for some rather secluded camping.  Conversely, this area is also a haven for public hunting, so I made sure to wear some blaze orange and remain somewhat quiet and on the trail until I got further away from any road access, as it was the middle of PA deer hunting season.

This trip video was sponsored by Dr Prepare. You can get 10% off their 178Wh Portable Power Station by using code STDP10 with this link.

Route Overview – Stratton Pond Vermont Backpacking Loop – Sintax77

Full GPS track data, including campsites, etc, for this trip and many others can be downloaded on my Trip Data Page.

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