live and learn

Mike and I have learned several new things on each outdoors trip we take.

At Jay Cooke we learned:
(1) that you can gather all the wood you need near the campsite, as long as you have a Sven Saw. Thus, you do not need to buy a pile of wood, tie it to the back of your pack, and haul it to the campsite yourself. (And we wondered why the park ranger laughed at us...)
(2) that good-quality, waterproof, not-worn-through-the-soles, hiking boots are a true necessity. You can't hike in tennis shoes or in 15-year-old winter boots. Trust me.

At Itasca we learned:
(3) that vodka and gatorade will do the trick with a lot fewer pounds to carry than a box of wine.
(4) to just wear the same clothes throughout the entire trip. Layers! But also bring fresh clothes to change into at the end (and some deodorant), or you may alienate the fellow diners in the local eatery you stop at afterward.
(5) a waterproof tent is also a necessity. And you should really check to be sure that it's waterproof, before just assuming that it is because all tents should be.

At the BWCA we learned:
(6) that single-portaging would be far preferable to double-portaging.
(7) that neither of us really likes oatmeal. At all. So why bring it, even if it is the quintessential backpacking breakfast? Similarly, we're both happy eating Clif bars and fruit leather (or cheese & summer sausage on bagels) for lunch, so we should avoid packing any lunches that require any cooking or prep work. Lesson learned.

(Anything else I'm forgetting, Mike?)