To be done betwixt readings, many readings. Most important, digging out the old instep crampons, sharpening them, tightening the bolts, finding straps, and taking a hike!

They were my parents, and are older than I am. They work very well, and 24″ Voile straps are perfect. Course, if BD made some out of no-stick stainless that’d get my attention.

Next up, the pack. While I was re-sewing the strap attachment I figured that I might as well bite the bullet and put a better belt on. Starting the Parcour I had around 30 pounds, and the webbing belt did fine, but it was a pretty compact, stable thirty. More gangly loads, like carrying skis, ski boots, and ski shit on a long day, feels heavier even though it isn’t. No good.

While I was at it, I sewed on an upper tab to allow for a diagonal ski carry.
Here the pack is test loaded with a tarp, a full trad rack (2.5 sets of cams to 3.5″, nuts, and 2 dozen draws), and a down coat.
Even thought the diagonal puts the weight of the skis further away from one’s COG, it seems more stable, and is certainly quicker to load and remove. It also promises to definitively not thwack me in the back of my calves when I hike, but the jury is still out on that.

Opinions? Eric?

In the background of the above you can see a mini-project, the addition of a bunch of red reflective tape to the Takara. Don’t get run over by hog farmers, ya’ll.

Back to the belt. I had an old one from an ancient Mountainsmith bag I bought for pennies at the used gear store last year. A design I’ve always liked, the wide all-fabric deal. I added a piece of thin foam (yoga mat) to the lumber region, then removed all the extraneous straps (removing back tacks, woopie!!), and sewed it to the pack only on the sides.

Brown tacks, below, are the only points of attachment.
Having it not sewed along the back panel does allow the rig to sag a bit under load, but also allows for a good amount of give during action (esp. leaning forward). I think it will be a good feature, but we’ll see. This pack is a learning opportunity, and will likely never be totally finished. In the future, I may or may not add pockets to the new belt.

Yesterday I did get out for a loaded pack and crampon test.
This time last year we had finally lost the good, low altitude snowpack that made close-to-town outings possible. Unless our fortunes change, that isn’t in the cards for this year, and means that a good 30+ minute drive it required to access good turns.

I thought I saw some Bill tracks in Crazy Canyon.

Missoula in the winter is pretty cool, nice moments to be found amongst the haze.

Of course, there’s always something around to tempt you with the other side of the argument. Winning is impossible.

PS:
It should be noted that the blue coat in the above self-timer shots is the new Primaloft One Patagonia DAS, got with the gift card I received when I returned my down anorak after one of the baffles unraveled. It’s great, a super tight low CFM shell fabric, and the P-One is crazy warm for it’s lack of bulk. After Sunday’s outing I was soaked, between butt sliding down icey trail and sweating uphill in 30 degree snowfall, and the parka soaked up little of the moisture, and dried freakishly fast. More on this as the winter progresses, but I’m psyched!