New Gear!

This weekend Meghan and I visited EMS (Eastern Mountain Sports) in Williston Vermont, and got some needed, new gear for the trip.

Meghan had been using an old external frame pack that worked good enough. It was a bit small, didn't fit that well, but it worked. Decided it was time to purchase a quality pack that fits her properly, as it will get alot of use over the years. She decided to go with an Osprey brand pack, based mostly on how well it fit her, but also their "Any reason Any era" guarantee. I also have an Osprey and it's worked quite well for me. She got the Osprey Aura 65L model, in green. She's happy with it. I'm sure it will be a fine choice for this trip, and future backpacking\canoe tripping excursions.

We both purchased a new pair of sandals. Since we are on a canoe trip, we will be in and out of the water, quite a bit. Walking upstream, in low water, and on short portages will require something a bit more rugged and supporting than a pair of crocks. We opted for the Keen Newport models, they seemed ruggedly constructed with a good sole, and a closed rubber toe which is important. We may well wear these new sandals out on this trip, so it's good to start with a fresh pair!

I purchased a few items I think are pretty neat pieces of gear also. We will be taking cell phones (for check-ins, safety, emergencies, and meeting people) they will be off most of the time, but they'll need to be charged at some point. Our digital cameras will need charging as well. What to do?
Solar charger!
Goal Zero solar panel- the panel charges a battery pack (compact) which charges your electronics. I also bought a Brunton power pack, which can be charged with the goal zero solar. The Brunton, at 100%, will charge a smartphone 4x fully! That's impressive for a power pack the size of a medium cell phone. Between these, I don't think we will have any issues keeping the phones and cameras fully charged, the latter of which will get used the most. The solar panel is ideal for a canoe trip, as when you're out on the water, the panel is in full sunlight most of the time, unlike hiking, where it's spotty through the trees. 6-8 hours on the water, on a sunny day, this will work great!

So, an expensive weekend, however it was gear we needed and will see plenty of use this summer. We were lucky enough to get 25% off everything that day, which made things a little better.

We are still going to get a spare stove (MSR pocket rocket type, butane canisters).

Ice is nearly 100% out on the lakes\ponds in the area, so we'll be out paddling as soon as we can.
Getting even more excited to start as things are warming up, melting, and getting green.
A little over a month to go!