rob

will your work be featured on http://meanphotographers.tumblr.com/ ??

I think the answer to your question really depends on the application. The level of treatment needed really depends on the trip you are taking, I don't think there is necessarily a one-size-fits-all answer. For example, define "purify" -- most filters will do nothing against viruses, which isn't really a problem in North America but can be elsewhere. So maybe sometimes you care about that, and maybe you dont. Maybe some trips you might bring iodine for this reason. Or a heavier filter (such as the first need) which claims to be small enough for common viruses. On other trips, maybe you need nothing. I very rarely use filtration, especially if my trip is in the alpine. However, I have an MSR Sweetwater which I use backpacking, and I would not call it heavy (it's about 300 grams). It's helpful when you know you will only have access to lakes and stagnant water, as it also filters out muck. But I would not bring it to India, where water-borne viruses might be more common. I'd bring something a bit heavier, or supplement with iodine or UV. Or not. Chemicals, as you note, are time-consuming. Additionally, they don't work as well in cold water. But, sometimes I will bring only chemicals, as a backup, when I'm expecting lots of clean water I can drink untreated. Have you considered a steri-pen or other UV type system? They're fast and work well in cold water but of course do not filter out muck. If your trip takes you somewhere this is acceptable, then that might be the best option. my $0.02

you would really consider throwing away a brand-new pair of sabertooths and go buy another brand at full price? Geez, just use the damn things and if you're worried then keep an eye on them. It's a sunk cost at this point, so you might as well get at least a season out of them. it's not like they're going to simply crumble underneath you within a few hours of buying them. So much FUD flying around about the damn things. OH NO YOU BOUGHT SABRETOOTHS????? YOU'RE GONNA DIE!!!!

Austrians are built tougher than other people.

Let's assume your cell phone has coverage in your emergency. In that case, how is carrying a cell phone somehow more "self-reliant" than bringing a PLB or something similar? It all serves the same purpose. Calling 911 from the cell phone doesn't seem that much different to me than hitting the panic button on a beacon, except for the added gamble that it might not work, so I'm not sure why a PLB would take more away from the experience than a functional cell phone would. In my mind, if you really want the "wilderness feeling" or whatever, you shouldn't be bringing a cell phone either....

THen you should definitely get a PLB, not a SPOT. Don't fuck around, if you want an emergency beacon, get a real one.

when I was involved with moutain rescue, the SPOT call-center continually fucked up routing emergency calls. Some call center in Texas answers the emergency signal, and they're supposed to know which local authorities to contact. But in reality, they never knew who to call and by the time we got contacted, they'd usually been going round-and-around with other various agencies before finally reaching the correct sheriff's office. But then they were often really inaccurate about location, too -- sometimes giving us the wrong location entirely and making us call back to complain that the coordinates they gave us are in Iowa or some shit. Terrible company to deal with. Still, at least they got through, I guess. Personally, I've had nothing but trouble getting reception in poor weather with a SPOT device. I guess they use Globalstar for satellite communications, and Globalstar notoriously sucks. I've only ever had the SPOT work in good weather with a clear view of sky, so hopefully I never get hurt in bad weather or under deep tree cover Ease of use: I can never remember how to decipher all the blinking light combinations, and it's sometimes not clear to me if the message was actually sent. Is it still better than nothing? Maybe. Just don't count on it too much, I guess.

More Jews live in USA and Europe than the middle east, does that mean Judaism doesn't have any racial ties either?

at least he doesn't want to repeal anti-trust law, eliminate the minimum wage and disband the EPA like Ron Paul does.

I said god DAMN! you sure know how to have a good time.

can I "like" this comment?

I bet he'll blame it on someone else, the same as the republicans do.

didn't I see you on chatroulette ?

hey olyclimber do you live in olympia????

Preaching to the choir. And everyone else, well: "You can't reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into." Look on the bright side -- he'll never win, and at least he serves to identify the bozos among us.

"wal-mart vs. the morons" sounds like a pretty one-sided affair.

it's a real problem. I think maybe I tore some of the skin or something? Imagine trying to turn a tulip inside out without tearing something.

DO YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENS, LARRY???

look at that smile. That's how you do it.

I guess you're not supposed to pull your belly button inside-out. Who knew?

The other day I was messing around with my belly button (I'm an "innie") and I discovered, with great effort, that I could pull it inside-out. When I finally accomplished this, it gave me quite a strange feeling, like I broke something. So, I pushed it back in. It went back in, but slowly. I expected it to pop back in quickly, like a rubber band. But it just kind of deflated. Now it's back to normal, but feels weird. And when I push on it, it makes little squishing/popping motions like it doesn't fit anymore. WTF?

sweet! well done. I've tried to complete this traverse 3 times! one of these days.....

I think you're making it too complicated.

Thanks, guys! It's my first try at something like this, so I picked something relatively low-risk that would still give me a realistic taste of what's involved in doing something like this. I'm already figuring out improvements to make for next year's trip. For one thing, I've either got to get a front rack to distribute weight, or a good trailer -- especially as the load increases as I take on more technical endeavors. I'm leaning towards a small trailer so that I can just strap my pack directly on and also I'd like to experiment with getting the weight off the frame. One thing that surprised me was that it was much easier than I expected. Longer and slower, though. I had enough energy left to jog down the Wonderland Trail back to the bike, and I spent most of the ride home plotting the next trip -- always a good sign, in my book. Nope, Oakleys with prescription photosensitive lenses. Fancy!

People taking registers is not a new thing. I never pay attention to the annual threads about it, but I gather some people consider them to be littering.