My first trip, in 1972 as an eleven-year old, wasn't too bad because my parents were kind enough to have bought me a decent-quality down bag and a Kelty external-frame pack. Boy Scout trip up Mission Creek in the Coachella Valley and out the Whitewater River. Still, I bet my pack weight was over thirty-five pounds, and I couldn't have weighed more than ninety. It was brutal.
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My blog on politics, the environment and the outdoors: Haiwee.blogspot.com