CRAIG FOWLER aka SCATMAN ~ THRU HIKING GEAR & TRAIL WISDOMS
“Kinda really go into it with an open mind and just be open to what the trail’s going to tell you.”
GEAR
PACK
• Gossamer Gear Pack
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MISC
• “Walk in the Woods” by Bill Bryson
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• The Pines in Maine
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• Guthook App
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• Bike Packing Triple Crown
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• The Tour Divide
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• Colorado Trail
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• Hayduke Trail
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• Anker 20,000 Amp Battery Recharge
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• Mini Triple Crown
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• Calendar Year Triple Crown
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• Hard Rock 100
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• Rain Wrap (ZPack)
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• Dude Wipes
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WISDOMS
PACK
• Look for the comfort and then the small features you think you need when it comes down to it. Cause, it really just comes down to what works for you in particular.
• You just have to try stuff. It’s a tough thing to do cause it’s expensive, but the only way that you’re going to learn is to do it for yourself.
• On the AT you can get away with a smaller pack than you think you can.
Whatever size pack you buy, you will fill it.
• The easy way to learn is to go on a hike, come back and go through your pack and put everything in a pile you never used. Next time don’t bring it.
THRU HIKING
• It’s all relative.
• It’s going to be wet on the AT. And the CDT.
• You want one thing to do many things. That’s the easiest way to save weight.
• Kinda really go into it with an open mind and just be open to what the trail’s going to tell you.
• If you want to do a continuous thru hike on the CDT, go southbound. It’s your best chance to have a continuous hike.
• That’s where you get into trouble as a new thru hiker. You have to really listen to what the trail is telling you. It’s not what you want…You have to swallow your pride and just go with it. Because if you try to fight it, you’re going to lose.
• Try to live in the now.
• You don’t do anything in life alone.
• Your mind will always give out before your body.
• Someday basically equals never. So if you want something, to do something, no matter what it is in life, get the calendar out… make yourself accountable.
• It might not work out how you hoped or how you planned, but it you’re flexible with your mentality or decision process the world’s not going to end.
• If you get so attached to your trail family that you’re not willing to leave them to continue with what you thought your hike was going to be, that’s going to be a really hard decision to make.
• You really do have to be happy with what you’re doing. And of course there’s gonna be times on trail where, most of the time, you’re like “this sucks”… but when you look around at the mountains and you don’t find anything to enjoy with this beauty, that’s a problem. And that’s when you need to stop and come back to it I think.
• Every day you have to find something worth enjoying!
• You just gotta go in headstrong because people want you to be scared, because they think there is something to worry about. There always is something to worry about, but… chances are it’s not going to happen. And you prepare for it.
• Your job is to walk all day. You want your job to go as smoothly as possible.
You wanna be as efficient at your job as possible and one of the ways to do that
is not carrying a lot of stuff.
• You remind yourself that when you’re in pain there’s people out there
who have it a lot worse and they don’t have a choice.