Dumbest thing taken on a backpacking trip?

Parma

@parma26
Joined
Feb 12, 2014
Messages
754
We have all done it, and seen others do it too. What is the dumbest thing you have taken on a backpacking trip, or have seen another take on a trip?

Scout trips are unbelievable when you get to camp and see what they (or their parents) have packed into the backpacks.
Last summer we had a kid bring hair gel! And another kid brought a whole package of Oreos...but that turned out to be the greatest thing ever!
 
My first backpacking trip ever and solo was in the Porcupine Mountains upper Michigan along Lake Superior. I brought a walkie talkie. I enjoyed listening to the marine weather forecast.
I think my pack was like 65 lbs for a couple nights.
 
I once saw a scout in the Sawtooths carrying a steel 20 quart cooking pot strapped to the outside of his pack. I still shake my head at that one. I hoped he was carrying the pot for cooking everyone's meal, but I knew that probably wasn't the case.

It's been so long since I carried stupid stuff that I just don't remember what it was. All of my gear used to be military surplus stuff that was heavy and bulky. But it was cheap. And that was the number one criteria for an 18 year old who wanted to backpack.
 
All of my gear used to be military surplus stuff that was heavy and bulky. But it was cheap. And that was the number one criteria for an 18 year old who wanted to backpack.

That's not dumb, that just the bottom end of the learning curve. IMHO, any good backpacker needs to go through the heavy and bulky phase to understand what's important and what isn't and then the lighter and higher quality gear is truly appreciated.

Your mileage may vary.
 
dumbest thing I've taken is a friend who wouldn't stop complaining.

My friend is a scoutmaster and he had a scout struggling with his load on a backpacking trip. They divvied his load up between the other scouts and leaders, only to have the kid pull 6-PACK OF COKE out of his pack when he got to camp.

Had I been there, I would have handed the cokes out to everyone else and made him watch as we enjoyed them. Then his mom would have called me on the phone on Monday to chew me out. :D
 
Last edited:
I had a friend long ago that complained of a heavy pack. When I asked him what he had, he didn't mention anything out of the ordinary for our two-day trek through Buckskin Gulch. Well , it turned out his "food" was CANNED chili and beans and multiple cans of assorted canned fruit and vegetables. It was probably near 5 lbs for the one meal (he unnecessarily had enough for both of us!) He also had more canned fruit and milk for breakfast! The best part of it all (or worst depending on POV)... he forgot to bring a can opener! So... he spent nearly an hour opening up the cans for his dinner with a knife+rock and then scrapped the breakfast plan. :facepalm:
 
I went with a couple once who had never been backpacking. I offered to let them borrow some gear but they insisted they had their own gear. Then I offered to go through their gear and make sure they weren't taking anything unnecessary, but they insisted they had it under control. They didn't complain during the hike, but I could tell they were struggling. When we got back home one of them found out she had badly injured her shoulder from the backpack. It was then that I learned they had brought 3 gallons (that's right: gallons) of water for our overnight trip in the Uintas. I remembered they were fascinated when they saw me treating water, and they accused me of "cheating" when they picked up my pack at the end of the hike.
 
I don't know but seems to me what is "dumb" is a bit subjective and highly dependent on your status at any given time in life. My parents were never into backpacking and, in fact, didn't do much hiking-at least not after we kids arrived. Sooo, what's a 12 year old supposed to do when they actually want to do some backpacking with next to no money? The surplus stuff actually was an improvement over where I started and while we used as much oatmeal/powdered potatoes/mac & cheese etc as possible, the entry was usually Dinty Moore beef stew or spam. Only stuff that was available in the parent's kitchen. In our defense, that was a couple decades before Mountain House and most of the stuff marketed as backpacking "food" was just gawd awful.

But I did see a guy packing a cast iron dutch oven once----- Iron man training? To each their own.
 
"dumb" is very subjective. What i consider dumb, others consider it a need.
A guy I went with wanted a big tent so he packed his 4 man tent. to me that's dumb, to him that was what he wanted and didn't mind the added weight.
 
This is more just annoying. When I was hiking Timp, a group of about 7 or 8 high school/college kids walked by me going the opposite direction on the trail. The kid walking in front had a big 80's looking boom box attached to his pack with bungee cords and blaring crappy dubstep. I had literally just arrived in Utah a few hours ago, and was too captivated by the scenery around me to really care, but thinking about it now, that would have really pissed me off back home.
 
If you enjoy yourself and have a good time I suggest it doesn't matter how heavy your pack is or what crazy things you bring along.

The dutch oven carrying guy is crazy, but the more I think about it....... he might be onto something. I can't imagine anything much better than making a dutch oven beef stew high in the mountains. Let's see 3lb bag of potatoes, 2lb bag of onions, 4lb of beef, Dutch oven. Might be able to do it for under 20 pounds. :) Might be worth it.
 
Similar threads
Thread starter Title Forum Replies Date
Glasterpiece Some storm pics I've taken over the years. Photography 0
Nick The forum has taken over General Discussion 7

Similar threads

Back
Top