.... reminds me of the time ....

in the early nineties, a bit before I created this site in 1995, went on a week long trip with a group of folks (guys, actually). I was just getting into carrying a light pack and was maybe a little religious about it - all my light gear in the face of all the other dudes with their heavy gear.

Anyway, very long story, so the short of it is this - when at our destination, I somehow was able to not squirrel away in my self-sufficient lightweight environment, but instead to join into the group share mentality. Of course, once encamped, their gear was more awesome than mine.

One guy brought a (must have been at least ten pounds) cast-iron griddle. It took four camp stoves under the thing (including my tiny tit gas stove) to heat the whole plate. Man that was fun. To this day I have fond memories of that trip.

We all went fishing (me with my 4oz fishing kit and they, with their full-size gear - of course, they did way better), caught 45 trout one day and had a major fish fry using that griddle. Some of the guys brought eggs, pancakes, pots, pans and so on. Things I wouldn't dream of bringing on a 7-day trip that covered 25 miles with about 5000 elev gain with some of it cross-country.

Anyway, now, when I'm with other ultralight gear junkies, I suppose I'm as religious as the next person, but when with a mixed crowd, I strive to blend in without too much regard to who has what -- and as you might expect from this experience, I don't mind using someone else's stuff, if they offer.

The trip was a success - everyone had a great time!!!