My husband and I went camping at the local state park with all our gear that we'll be using this summer. We loaded up our packs and hiked for 2 miles in our new boots and set up our tent, used our stove, and the clothing we plan on taking. Wow, now I can see why you all stress so much about going out and getting some practice before you actually go out in the wilderness! My pack was comfortable, but my legs were sure sore the next day even though I've been working out regularly. Obviously no excercise will get us ready for this better than just hiking with packs on. It should take us about 5 minutes to set up our tent, but we must have taken 20 minutes or more just trying to figure out how everything goes! It got down to 27 degrees that night and I got cold in my sleeping bag and had to add more layers, but it warmed up a little at around 1 or 2 a.m. and I was comfortable for awhile till the temp dropped again. It's really good to know all this stuff now. Thanks to everyone for advising us to go out and practice with our gear in cold weather, I'm alot more confident that when we go, we'll be ready for this. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />