And there you have it: the complete winter kit; I have my bombproof customized military poles and Karhu skis, my large backpack containing down jacket and stout GoreTex windshell in the main body, backup gloves in the outer left pocket and backup hats in the outer right pocket. My extreme weather mittens and down hat are in my Mountainsmith Organizer. Navigational instruments are located in the outer back pocket along with goggles, glacier glasses,Nat Geo topographical maps and my SPOT. The bottom compartment of the backpack contains my NEOS Overshoes and my Brooks Ranger Overboots. My camera bag is clipped onto key rings on the front of the pack and has my Canon G11,spare batteries, anenometer,stove schematics and camera manual, tally book and pencils, knife, whistle, customized daily map and my pre-programmed GPS--and its heated, with some bandanas in place to catch condensation. 25 feet of 9mm climbing rope are fastened to the bottom of my pack for multiple uses. My pulk is hooked to the pack with carabiners and the poles are crossed which greatly improves tracking, stability, and manueverability. The sled is loaded with the remainder of all my gear: sleeping bag and thermarest, spare clothing of numerous design and utility, cookgear, stoves and fuel, shovel, tent, snowshoes, sleeping kit, repair kits (general utility and stove), first aid and survival equipment, toiletries,tripod, and trash bags. Everything is lashed down with heavy duty rubber bungees ( the rope can also be used here in case of bungee failure). I have a few miscellaneous items that still have to be worked through on my list but everything is currently ship-shape: equipment has been tested, repaired, organized, packed , and labeled. I have a 14 day supply of food and dry beverage for an 11 day, 10 night trip. I'm ready.
Just for fun, lets talk about weight. I speculated in one of my first blogs that I thought my entire winter kit would weigh between 75 and 85 pounds. The entire kit pictured above weighs 105 pounds. However, I am hauling all the communal gear : cookgear, fuel, stoves, repair kits, first aid, survival, navigation, shovel, and tent with an extreme winter kit in itself. My partner will be inheriting some of this gear upon arrival in Talkeetna on February 26th, and the tent kit alone weighs 15 pounds. He'll be getting a little more than just that, so its safe to say I can subtract at least 20 pounds from my complete kit. That puts me back at 85 pounds. I can handle 85 pounds in the pulk, but now I will be concentrating on shaving a few pounds off that, too. Also, my kit will lose weight every single day: I will consume approximately 3.5 pounds of food daily and we will burn approximately 8 ounces of fuel. There will be no opportunity whatsoever to pick up beer, unnecessary baggage, restock, or buy souveniers. The only significant addition of weight will come from the water we haul every day, and I expect that to be 3 quarts each (6 pounds per pulk). Right now, I am right where I want to be....packed, prepared, organized, physically fit and frothing at the mouth!
Again, and just for fun, lets talk briefly about what may have crossed some of your minds; that I am a gearhead with a boatload of money invested in this kit. It's true. I won't break it down item by item but I can tell you that nothing has been purchased since 2005 for this trip other than the Zippo Handwarmer ($20),the Capilene union suit (a gift from the wife), the Action Packers ($19 each), and the food and beverages. All other gear and clothing has been in my personal arsenal for anywhere from 5 to over 20 years. I am not advocating running to your local outdoor store and shopping until you drop, but I will advocate buying items as you need them as long as you use them. As you can see, I have been at this a long time. If you build an inventory of gear around you over time and use it in varying situations in the pursuit of outdoor activities then you are serving yourself well!
A conservative estimate would put my entire winter kit pictured above at approximately $4,800 (thats a rough estimate of what I paid when I paid it--some of my gear is no longer available and some has risen considerably in price)and that doesn't include food, fuel, any camera gear, incidentals (like Bic lighters or zipties), or the gear I am lending my partner Jeremy ( there is still a considerable ocean of gear in my armory). Lots of it was bought on sale, and for every high-end , top of the line item I own ( the Wiggy's Antarctica sleeping bag was $475--I got the Patagonia down jacket on pro-form for $150) there was an item on sale--the Kelty RedCloud pack was $60! I bought the Brooks Rangers Overboots on Ebay still wrapped from OR for $30 from someone who intended to climb Rainier and never used them ! My point is....find what interests you and go for it. And always remember....If your gear takes good care of you, take good care of your gear!
I have added some miscellaneous items to my kit. I have my dry beverage pack which will house an entire days supply of tea, hot cocoa mix, Emergen-C vitamin powder, Kool-Aid, and sugar/dry milk mix. A mixing spoon is attached by a lanyard, and this bag will eliminate the need to break out bulk items for hot drinks on the trail. I am also packing a dozen Hand Warmers as a backup to my heating system for keeping camera batteries warm . Keep in mind that the warmer they are when you open them the better their performance will be. I also have two drinking nalgenes and their arctic covers. I have taken old wool socks and cut additional covers for them; this will act as an extra insulator but will be even more useful in the evenings when I fill a nalgene with hot beverage and put it in my bag ( along with myself). The sock will keep the nalgene from burning me. Its a good idea to carry your nalgenes upside down. Ice will form on the upper end exposed to oxygen first, and your lid will not be frozen shut. I also placed my simple mess kit into the stove bag: I have a 2 quart thermos, a lexan mug, fork, and spoon, and an insulated tea mug. Thats all I'll need. As I mentioned earlier, the thermos will be filled with boiling water every morning before making trail. Hot drinks of our choice will then be available at any time by accessing the thermos. Last, but not least, is a pee jug. Thats right, I will urinate into my color coded nalgene rather than exit the tent in the middle of the night. I have two wraps of colored tape for identification purposes, and multiple wraps of Gorilla Tape for general purpose. You may think that peeing into a bottle inside your tent at night is an offensive and disgusting idea, but after one night of serious winter camping you would be a dedicated convert--especially after going to bed with a separate hot nalgene full of tea. Trust me.
