Backpacking Myths

I am working on a new page for my site called "Backpacking Myths and Half-Truths." It will cover things like the idea that coffee dehydrates you (it doesn't), and that alcohol can only cause harm when you're cold (actually, it can prevent frosbite - without causing hypothermia if you will soon be somewhere warm), and that hi-tech socks are best (I stopped getting blisters the day I switched to thin nylon dress socks).

What I need is some suggestions for other myths and half-truths. Thanks in advance to anyone who wants to contribute.

Steve
www.The Ultralight Backpacking Site.com

 

i guess with the alcohol it depends on how much you drink...if your unconscious outside ...well thats just not good...lol

 

water rationing: don't ration water, ration sweat. (more of a survival tip but still, people have died of dehydration with full canteens because they were rationing).

 

i don't do much backpacking but spend a lot of time in the woods ...in cold weather ,forget the fancy expensive clothes ..layer your clothing and remove and add as the weather changes or you get warmed up ...have seen that over and over again people from the states come to canada with clothing they went to buy at an outfitter from the states and paid a premium price for totally inept clothing ..seen the same in central america ..people would go to an outfitter and hit the tropical jungle with snakeproof boots and gaiters and mesh hats in 100 plus temperatures ..all i could think of was P.T.BARNUM'S a fool and his money are soon parted

 

if you properly distribute your pack and carry it up on your hips and dont carry more than a third of your body weight your back wont hurt. everyone is always asking "didnt your back hurt???"

 

hmmm... the black junk on the bottom of pots cooked on a fire will give either diareah or gonareah if you eat it.

 

I almost never treat or filter water at all. Ray Jardine talks a lot about this. Most people are immune to giardia. But this half truth is too radical for most people. You definately don't have to boil water for 20 (or even 5 minutes) minutes to make it safe. It is bizarre to me that 150 years after pasteurization was discovered that people are so paranoid about water, if you pasteurize water it is safe; i don't even bother with that. I try to drink from springs or fast moving creeks, but have drunk live water from rivers and lakes hundreds of times, with no problems, but then most people are more delicate.

 

This is more of an unstated truth that defies the logic of most retailers selling camping equipment, they usually are made in bright colors (tents, backpacks,etc) and bright colors will actually attract grizzly bears.

 

although coffee itself doesnt dehydrate you.....the caffiene in it sure as hell does.

 

I was about to say that..

Caffeine is a diuretic.

Diuretic

A diuretic is a substance that removes water from the body by promoting urine formation and the loss of salt (sodium).

Considering that coffee DOES contain caffeine. (Unless it is decaffeinated).. it WILL draw water from your body thus the dehydration.

Same deal with alcohol.

You balance this by drinking more water

 

I was just reading a (fiction) book and read something about grizzlies being attracted to backpackers because the smell of sex.... and now Im wondering if its true or just a myth: .. can grizzly bears smell those "secretions" or even the hormones in general, on people who may have had sex while out backpacking, and does it attract them ...
I know its true with the menstruation thing, but now this has got me curious, lol.

 

only one way to find out.....

 

Caffeine in coffee is a diuretic. How does it not help dehydrate you?

 

LOL!

 

yeah, i work in a coffee shop, and let me tell you, if you drink more than a cup or two of coffee it can dehydrate you pretty fast, especially if you aren't severely addicted/tolerant to caffeine. what i'd be more concerned about is how the hell you're going to make palatable coffee out in the wilderness. only way i can think of without hauling around a heavy percolator or something would be a little individual travel french press mug....but cleaning it would be a bitch.

they're pretty cool though


but coffee, especially in excess, can certainly dehydrate you, and some of the other side effects can be unpleasant when hiking.

i'd suggest trying to wean yourself down off of drinking so much caffeine before a trip like this. get yourself down to one cup of coffee in the morning, then when you're actually out there maybe only have a cup or two of black tea. its less caffeine, still enough so you wont get withdrawl headaches, its better for you, and easier to make and clean up when your in the great outdoors. besides, part of getting out and hiking or camping is to escape the stress, hustle and bustle, and schedules of the modern urban world. in my humble opinion, its simply foolish to plan on getting up at dawn to hike endless miles every day. i'd prefer to wake up on my own, have minimal caffeine and warm up to the day slowly, soaking in my surroundings. hiking trips should be vacations, not work! if you need to wake up so fast that you NEED coffee, the great outdoors may not really be for you. tea will do the trick just fine without dehydrating you as much. many people find drinking as little as a cup or two of coffee in the morning on an empty stomach can help with making a bowel movement inevitable...and then you have increased heart rate and perspiration. coffee is fine and good in its proper place, but i would think it would be a bad match for backpacking, all messes aside. it just would make me uncomfortable. i'd rather get a much gentler dose of caffeine, and retain my precious, natural fluids....

 

Coffee is good for moving that morning dump along, if you know what I'm saying. Still, instant coffee isn't very good, and I don't generally drink coffee when i'm camping/hiking. I don't drink coffee anymore at all, actually, save for the occasional cup. Caffeine is for people who don't like mornings and who seem to need to rush a lot. Neither of those apply to me. Plus, I have an allergy to allowing myself to become addicted to things.

 

yeah, coffee in the morning often sends me to the fortress of solitude for a little while. which is one of the reasons it's not great for camping....call me crazy, but i prefer NOT to have to take multiple shits a day out on the trail....in fact, i like to perform as few bowel movements as possible in those situations....coffee wouldn't help me be more comfy at all haha

but coffee can be pretty relaxing, too, and it doesn't HAVE to be for people who "hate mornings"

i slept in this morning, got up, took a shower, then went out on the back porch and enjoyed a nice, rich cigar with a nice, rich cup of coffee (and a little pot) and just relaxed, bathing in the spring warmth and closing my eyes to listen to all the songbirds filling the air with music. late enough to be warm, early enough on a monday that there aren't lots of noisy folks banging around doing yardwork and stuff.......

the particular coffee was a great pairing with the particular cigar, and it was one of the most pleasant hours i've spent in quite some time.....


but like i said, i work at a coffeeshop, and can get a pound of coffee free every week, and free drinks on the clock. hell, i can't say no to something so delicious and pleasant! but while i'm a daily coffee consumer, i do have something of an addictive personality and try to keep it to a minimum....1-2 cups a day....

still, sometimes tea is just the better choice, especially when i want my morning caffeine, but just not so much....plus its a bit healthier, too, and easier on the stomach (good for those of us with a touch of acid reflux...)

 

yeah i was just gonna post about that! i was semi surprized when i heard about that... people dying of dehydration with water on them.... drink when you are TRULY thirsty

 

years in the military doing long hikes with heavy loads has tought me that "sip when you are thirsty" would be better advise... drinking water in big gulps will just make you have to piss because you won't absorb it fast enough.

 

It's not healthy to hold your poo in. First, you're supposed to be shitting as many times a day as you ate the day before. Hard to do on a modern diet, low in fiber. Still, twice a day is recommended, morning and night. Trying to "perform as few bowel movements as possible" is not healthy, holding it too long can slow or stop the peristalitic action of the digestive track, which allows stagnant poo to deform the colon, sometimes making little sacs, in which "deposits" of poo form, which can cause colon cancer. I say shit, and shit often! Otherwise you may later find you'll be shitting into a bag attached to your butt the rest of your life, because you had to have your tumorous colon removed!

Oh, and the part about coffee being for those who hate mornings was mostly tongue in cheek.