Do you carry your car keys with you on the trail, or you do hide them at the car? There is no point to carrying extra weight, and car keys certainly fall into that category. I leave all of my keys in the car EXCEPT the car key itself. That goes in my pack.
Or do you really practice ultralight backpacking, and leave the car key artfully hidden somewhere so that you don’t have to tote the extra weight? (And no, please don’t tell me or anyone else WHERE you hide those keys…)
Of course, true ultra-lighters will either take public transportation to the trailhead…or buy a car with keyless entry!
I take my key with me... along with my drivers license, a credit card, and some cash. Its my reintegrating into society emergency kit.
I'm still trying to figure out what trailheads have public transportation.... and keyless entry still requires a FOB which is heavier and bulkier than a key.
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
I don't dare leave anything in my car that might be of interest to one of our many local car clouters. That includes any personal info.
I figure it's worth it for peace of mind to take my car key, drivers license, auto insurance card, auto registration, one credit card, debit card, a couple of $5 and a $20 bill, and a small piece of paper with emergency contact, medical and health insurance info on it. Total in a zippered snack bag is 1.8 oz. All other ID is left at home.
Re the car key, I take just the key, not the electronic remote gizmo which, as BZH points out, weighs more than the key.
Also, while on the trail, I treat my backpack as my purse and never leave it alone!
Edited by OregonMouse (05/12/1406:42 PM)
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey
I also carry the keys, cash, license and insurance cards. Put them in a small snack-sized ziploc, and you're really not talking about enough weight or bulk that your pack becomes a crushing burden.
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
Has anyone had any luck with those credit-card style plastic keys? I was given a free one with my most recent car, but it wouldn't work. That was 8 years ago, and perhaps the technology is more advanced? Certainly less weight and bulk than a metal key.
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey
Pretty much all new cars have the electronic chip in the key which means they no longer have those plastic keys for new cars. If you can find a place that will cut one for you I doubt the quality would be any better (more likely worse) than what you got 8 years ago.
Registered: 02/05/03
Posts: 3292
Loc: Portland, OR
I understand the impulse, but if I will need to return to my vehicle and drive myself home after a backpack, as opposed to being picked up, I always take the car key with me in the most secure place in my pack. I also bring my driver's license and oftentimes a debit card and a bit of cash. I deem these as necessary weight, like a First Aid Kit and PLB.
Good point on storage. Mine are on a ring, so I just clip them into the clip inside the hood pocket on the pack. I rarely have to get into that pocket so it's pretty sure to stay there. The cards and licenses go in there too, or in the pocket on the bottom of the hood pocket - again, someplace not likely to get opened.
Registered: 03/14/11
Posts: 66
Loc: SF bay area, CA
I keep them in my zippered pocket, which I check obsessively every time I get up. Sadly, I don't trust the other users of the trailhead enough to leave them behind. Maybe I need to head out to more remote locations.
ETA: I did use public transportation to get to Point Reyes.
Like others mentioned, I take my car keys, ID, debit card, health insurance card, and maybe cash if I have it with me. I leave rest of my wallet at home. I don't know how much that weighs, but it not going have material effect on my body when hiking. (It may not even have an immaterial effect!!!) Hike your own hike!
Edited by ETSU Pride (05/14/1410:08 PM)
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It is one of the blessings of wilderness life that it shows us how few things we need in order to be perfectly happy.-- Horace Kephart
Depends on where I am. If the area is protected, like a State Park or National Park, I'll bring only ID and the little plastic emergency key provided by Toyota. It's a slick little credit card thing, or hide one on the car somewhere. Otherwise, I'll bring wallet and keys. It's also good to make sure my hiking buds know where everything is in case I become room temperature during the hike.
Depending on where I'm actually going I may put my key in one of those magnetic holders and leave it with the vehicle. Other times I take just the key and in some places I leave the vehicle unlocked. So far each strategy has worked where I've done it so no complaints as of yet. For ID I'll typically take my college ID card along with a $20 bill for that "just in case" situation.
That's all for now. Take care and until next time...Be well.
I used to have a manual tranny car..I would put the ignition key in a ziplock baggie and roll the tire on to the key..They could search forever and not think to look under the tire for the key...the door key was in a hide-a-way magnetic box..
I take my car key with me, no fob. For extra safety, you could temporarily disconnect your battery while you're on the trail. This will deter most amateur thieves. Another option is to leave your key hidden in your vehicle and use a club on the steering wheel which takes a smaller, lighter key or a combination lock, like this one. Whatever you do, don't leave anything of value in your vehicle for other people or for animals. Hope this helps. Cheers!
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"Without craftsmanship, inspiration is a mere reed shaken in the wind." - Johannes Brahms
Registered: 11/23/03
Posts: 430
Loc: Kitsap Peninsula, WA
I have a light weight wallet or two I use for just the essentials when i am hiking. I have only a house key and car key on my key ring. I clip it on the inside of my backpack so it is near impossible to loose on the trail. You could put it in a plastic z-lock bag and hide it 100 yards up the trail and 10 feet off the trail under a log or rock.
a) I was camping about 2 miles from my car. Decided to take a walk in the morning to it to pack some extra gear only to find out that I don't have my keys with me.... Good lord, I found them in my hammock.
b) We were on our last leg about 5 miles left to my car, were crossing a public road and decided to drop our backpacks and sleds and hike light to the car and drive back to pick the gear... I nearly left my outer jacket with the car keys inside that backpack... It would be fun to snowshoes for 5 miles in fresh deep snow only to realize that I need to go back for 5 miles and do it again.
These situations made me think that hiding the keys a short distance off the car a mighty good idea. Besides, there're no valuables in my car, and if anyone wants to steal the car itself, glass window won't stop him.
Registered: 05/19/14
Posts: 182
Loc: Central Illinois near Springfi...
I took a cue from the travel shows, who suggest a money belt to protect your valuables from pickpockets. I regularly lose stuff from my pockets, so I use a flat zippered pouch with a cord that I wear around my neck. I put the paper stuff, like my fishing license or permits in a 3" X 4" zipper bag inside the pouch. It's light, unobtrusive and it hasn't gotten lost, yet.
Registered: 02/05/03
Posts: 3292
Loc: Portland, OR
I take my car key with me when I backpack. I consider my car key to be part of my critical emergency/survival gear. Like the rest of my critical emergency gear, I always know where it is and keep it with me always.
Generally, I place it inside my pack inside a small drawstring pouch filled with my valuables, such as my driver's license, debit card, and a 3x5 index card with some important phone numbers written on it. If I go more than a very short distance from my pack or my camp, it comes with me.
I prefer to leave my keys at the car. Just that dreaded thought of returning to my car after a 20+ mile hike only to find that somehow someway i lost my keys on the trail would be a horrific experience that i plan to avoid. Especially if you are several hundred miles from home in a very remote area, which is a common practice for most of us hikers
But i also understand that areas like trail heads and long term lots are like a magnet for criminal activities. I have never had any bad experience but i am sure there are plenty out there that have. I also drive an old beater probably the last car someone would want to try and steal lol.
The new key-less start vehicles which are becoming the new standard however i think could pose a threat to both sides of the fence, since water (possibly even dew), sub zero temps or even dropping your pack off your shoulder on a hard surface could cause it to malfunction. I guess only time will tell but for the foreseeable future i think i will continue to hide my keys at the car.
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Leave nothing but footprints Take nothing but pictures Kill nothing but time
Key with me. My pack has a clip for keys. Cash. Never know when I have to bribe someone for a ride back to my car if I bail out at a different trailhead. Drivers License and credit card, in the first aid kit.
My car is old and trashy. I doubt anyone would want to steal it. My bigger fear is that the car will not start due to some mechanical problem after sitting at the trailhead for weeks. I leave a small amount of cash in the glove box. Sort of tricks a thief into not looking further.
Food and cell phone are issues. No food can be left in the car due to bears, but I like to have some emergency food. I have an old Garcia bear can, so I put the food and toiletries in it and set it near my car. I have never had any trouble with this. I hide the cell phone in the car. Problem is that often I cannot remember where I hid it! When I get home I have to call my cell phone to find it.
Key with me. My pack has a clip for keys. Cash. Never know when I have to bribe someone for a ride back to my car if I bail out at a different trailhead. Drivers License and credit card, in the first aid kit.
This. I do the same thing when I ride my bike. I don't carry a wallet or keys, but I do take along and extra $40 just in case I really need a ride. I've only used it once, and it was well worth it.
You know i have never put much thought into carrying my I.D, i have always carried a few bucks with me since i often thumb a ride back to the car, but i think i will start to carry my I.D. as well from now on.
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Leave nothing but footprints Take nothing but pictures Kill nothing but time
Registered: 01/16/11
Posts: 180
Loc: Tacoma, Washington
My car key is an electronic fob. When I get to the trailhead I disable the fob by taking out the battery and tape the fob to an underside of an engine hose. The battery in the spare tire cavity. In the future I'm going to start leaving all the paper work at home....I rarely get stopped by authorities, and am going to assume that most would understand my motivations. The entrance combination code gets written inside of my pack, with a sharpie. On the trail I carry about three 20's' drivers lic., and one c.c.
A CHP told me that they'll accept paper copies with the address obliterated or smartphone pics of them. Too many folks get ripped off via stolen garage openers and without an address a remote becomes moot.
I was once stopped by a police officer driving my friend's car and without driver license (forgot my wallet that day) for speeding...
After I explained the situation, and provided all my information by memory (and the officer verified it on her computer), she let me go with a "driving without license ticket" and "speeding _warning_".
If not for Conceal Carry License, I'd leave my wallet home every time after that accident
PS My Driver License _never_ has my valid actual home address. PPS I'm not hiding it from the police, they have my address on file, but to show where you live to every cash register person ("May I see your ID please" when you buy something expensive with a credit card or just a bottle of wine, sound familiar, huh? - Yessir, sure sir!)... No way
How can you have a different address on file? Are you in the witness protection program or in the CIA? A LEO? In my state that's a fake ID and an offense. Unless I was scoring a pound of heroin with my credit card, I don't think I'd be too worried about getting tracked down by a cashier.
I leave my keys inside a crunched up paper coffee cup under the cap of my empty pick up bed. The key to the cap I place in my hitch receiver. On short trips keys go in a hip belt pocket that is never opened. I almost never carry money, but will in a few days in the Grand Canyon, as we are camping at Bright Angel the first night of this trip (re-doing the South Kaibab) and want some goodies from the Phantom Ranch canteen. I also have reservations for dinner, having done it once before. Sitting around a plank table eating family style with people from around the world is not something we get to do very often. Diversity is not one of the advantages of rural living. The worst key experience we've had occurred 3 years ago in the Grand Canyon at the Mather Campground on the South Rim. My wife had placed the key to the car sitting in long term parking back in Albany, NY on the picnic table when we were sorting gear. She wanted to hide it with other valuables in the rental car. A raven came down when she walked away and stole the key!!!! It was an expensive ordeal to replace the electronic key and get the car retrieved. She now keeps it clipped with a 'biner to something no matter what! After that incident, we've left my truck at the airport using the above mentioned method of key hiding. We'll be doing just that in a few more hours.
My license does not have the correct address on it either. But i do not do this intentionally. I have lived in 5 different locations in 2 different states within the last 2 and a half years. Switching I.D. from state to state can be a hassle not nearly as big as switching car registration though Grrrrr (thats a whole other subject). But the address on my current license is for my parents house even though its not my current residence i feel that it is sufficient.
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Leave nothing but footprints Take nothing but pictures Kill nothing but time
Registered: 05/19/14
Posts: 182
Loc: Central Illinois near Springfi...
I wondered about that too. I'll have to ask if I can get my license without the street address printed on it. A few years back, I would not have given it any thought, but with identity theft all the rage, it might be possible.
How can you have a different address on file? Are you in the witness protection program or in the CIA? A LEO? In my state that's a fake ID and an offense. Unless I was scoring a pound of heroin with my credit card, I don't think I'd be too worried about getting tracked down by a cashier.
No, I am not. When I moved from one place to another - I submitted a change of address form for DL online. They asked if I want a new DL for $15 or contempt to keep using the old one with my old address for free Guess what was my choice.
I guess, another, simpler solution would be to just put a label or a stripe of a ducttape over the address part of DL. I bet a cash register clerk would not insist on taking it off (as long as he could see your birth date and name match). If someone has a legitimate need to see your address, it's simple to take it off and put it back on right after it. That's what I'll do when my current one expires and they send me a new one with the address on file.
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
I remember a strip of tape being used once for address change (I think it was in Nebraska in the 1960s), but that wouldn't fly these days since your Drivers License is the ID you need to get on an airplane.
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
Very boring reading: Minimum Standards for Driver's Licenses and Identification Cards Acceptable by Federal Agencies for Official Purposes Federal Register January 29, 2008 per the Real ID Act of 2005.
Among many other things, the Feds don't want anything on the DL that could easily be altered.
I fly about once a year, but all three of my sons fly frequently (at least monthly) for business purposes. The one who lives in Washington (a non-compliant state) will soon have to start carrying his passport instead. although the Feds keep extending the deadline.
Edited by OregonMouse (04/03/1605:16 PM)
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey
Well, you pick what is more important to you - revealing your address to strangers in everyday transactions, or carrying a passport once a month to the flight.
I'm perfectly happy with my DL, it doesn't have my current address, so I don't need to hide it (and I flew several times using it). When time comes, and my state sends me a new DL with my address, I'll find a way to mask it.
I can't remember the last time someone asked for my license as ID. Of course, I'm not young at all, so perhaps that helps. But I've purchased expensive goods with my credit card and not been asked for ID. I've purchased scotch at BevMo and not been asked for my ID. Etc. So for me it's just not a concern.
I realize that we have veered off the original topic, but a few notes about some points that have been made.
1. Real ID continues to receive push back from the States, so it will not be implemented anytime soon. Can you imagine the chaos if the Feds decided to do so and all the residents of States with non-compliant IDs could no longer use them to travel, etc.? Not that many of us actually have an alternative such as a passport. So the Feds continue to say they are acting benevolently in extending the implementation when in actuality the States are raising the unfunded mandate issues.
2. If you don't want to carry your passport all the time, consider getting a passport card. That works for the TSA ID check and the card does not have your address on it like your driver's license does.
3. Merchants are in violation of their agreements with credit card companies if they require to see your ID to complete the sale e.g. MasterCard (however, Discover does permit this, which is one reason I don't have one). I have had some issues with merchants (e.g. Fry's), but have always been successful to date.
Now for my TSA ID check comment. They are fairly worthless. The TSA's mission is to keep WEI (weapons, explosives and incendiaries) off of planes and out of the airside areas of airports. ID checks do not further this mission. In addition, they are not checking against a database, they are checking one piece of paper against another to see if they match. And yes, you can fly if you have no ID; otherwise what happens to those that lose their ID on a trip?
With that kind of luck you should hike New Zealand. Rent a Kia and eventually a kea will steal your Kia key.
Cheers,
Not as lucky as one might think. When we stayed in Mather Campground in the Grand Canyon Village again a few weeks ago, the rangers were warning people to leave nothing on their picnic tables , ESPECIALLY shiny objects, as a raven had made off with someone's car keys, again. Not common, but not unheard of. In the extremely unlikely event we ever make it to New Zealand, I'll make sure to rent a Toyota to at least eliminate the chance of irony.
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