I like the idea of having a stash of Wee Scout sized packs on-hand so the parents of growing youths don't need to deal with the headache of outfitting a growing son. I appreciate that suggestion.

When we had a group that might get into backpacking, might not, I'd always send them down to Goodwill to find old Hawaiian shirts for them to use. Most of those shirts were polyester and loose enough to breathe nicely. Part of the fun of backpacking has been learning not to buy what the outdoors store sells per se, but to know what makes them tick, and see where it can be replicated on the cheap.

Just don't tell any outfitters that, or they'll hang an effigy of me...