這篇文章是根據我在四月二十二日，由Appalachian Mountain Club, Delaware Valley Chapter 舉辦的Backpacking 入門講座的講稿寫成的。

登山鞋相當重要。好的登山鞋幫助你走過不同形勢的山道，度過多變的天氣變化。穿著一雙不合適的登山鞋，不但雙腳雙足容易疲累，且也大大助長水泡生成的機會。

我常常說，找一雙好的登山鞋好比找人生伴侶。聽起來似乎很戲劇化，不過，如果你有和合不來的同伴，一同旅行的經驗，那難受的經驗，還真是差相彷彿。

極端不建議在網路上購買或是郵購登山鞋。你需要試穿，直到滿意為止。沒試穿就買鞋，太冒險了。更何況，鞋子的尺寸列表，真的只是參考用的，不能太認真相信。甲廠商的八號鞋，和乙廠商的八號鞋不一定一樣大。更何況現在眾家廠商，將鞋子的製作過程推向世界各地，以降低成本，搞不好甲廠商的八號鞋之間也不一定就一樣大。

Sat-Sun, 05/20/2006-05/21/2006. 3C16. An overnight backpack in Big Indian Wildness Area, Central Catskills, New York. Peak-bag Balsam Mountain, Eagle Mountain and Big Indian Mountain (via bushwhack). Lots of ups and downs. Group size limited.

多岩和顛簸，是隊伍在兩天的backpacking之後，為Tuscarora步道下的註腳。不論往上爬，還是往下走，隊伍時時刻刻都得留心落足的地點。看起來堅固平實的岩石，可是會騙人的，等你一踏上去，馬上轉變成直直落的雲霄飛車。

就算坡度變得平緩了，也不見得能夠安心。大把大把的落葉，將岩石隱藏地不落痕跡，它們耐心地埋伏其下，準備出奇不意的襲擊。隊伍得小心翼翼，好比是穿越地雷區域。

I am advertising this workshop because I am the coordinator and also will be a speaker. The target participants are those who know nothing or little about backpacking and would like to get more prepared before they actually head out to the woods and spend a night.

Here is a brief introduction taken from the AMC-DV website:

Learn basic skills of backpacking. A full-day workshop for novice backpackers. Covers skills, gear, clothing, nutrition etc. If you’ve been thinking about trying a backpacking trip but aren’t sure whether you’re ready, this workshop will tell you everything you need to know before heading out on the trail overnight.

Date: April 22, 2006
Time: 9:00 - 3:30-ish
Fee: $5.00 for AMC members; $15.00 for non-members
Download: Tentative Agenda

If you are interested in this event, please send me an email (you can find my contact info in the About page.)

Related Article:
What If You Were a Beginner Backpacker?

Fri-Sun, 4/14/2006 – 4/16/2006. Tuscarora Trail backpack. 3C17/18. Will hike on Sec3 & Sec4 of the Tuscarora Trail, southbound, from Colonel Denning State Park to Hemlock Road. The trail is remote, perfect for people who would like to look for solitude. Group size limited.

Last weekend, several experienced backpackers from my club gathered together to discuss the agenda for the upcoming backpacking workshop in the spring. We fill up the one-day workshop with lecture-type sessions and hands-on practices. Lecture-type sessions cover topics which include gear introduction, map and navigation, personal hygiene, “leave no trace,” and cooking & nutrition. Hands-on sessions let participants have a chance to practice setting up a tent, lighting up a stove, treating water, and hanging a bear bag.

Our target participants are beginner backpackers, so we assume that they know nothing or little about backpacking and they’ve never taken part in any backpacking trip before. I really hope that this workshop will prepare them well so that they have a very good first impression of backpacking and will continue coming back to the trails. Therefore, I’ve put a lot of thought on how I could have done better to make my first few trips more pleasant so that they will not have to repeat my mistakes:

星期六，無風、晴朗、大太陽。恐怕是冬季登山，能夠要求到的最好條件了。只是，這樣的條件，可不適合那些到山林裡，品嚐孤獨滋味的野客們。拿我們一行人那天的經驗來說吧，一路上，就又遇到了另兩個大團體，好幾個獨行俠，加上一隻漂亮的狗。本來打算過夜的山屋，也早在中午前就被他人佔領了，逼得只好改變計畫。

世事就是這樣難以逆料。正想著可以到山野中，獨佔冰雪、山巔個兩三天，大自然偏偏就要把你從幻想中打醒。呀，從事戶外活動也有好一陣子了，難道不是早該學習到要有耐心、有毅力、有彈性嗎？這些與自然相處所訓練出來的特質，可不是他人可以搶得走的啊！

這個週末，又要帶隊了，在Catskills，是一個兩天一夜的登山健行之旅。當然，這次也不例外的，寫了一份行前計畫書。一邊寫，一邊想，也許應該來聊聊策劃戶外活動的過程，因此，這篇文章就誕生了！在寫這篇文章的時候，心裡想的活動型態，主要針對二到五天的backpacking行程，當然，一些基本的概念，對於別種活動型態，還是可以說的通的。

Sat-Sun, 1/28-29, Blackhead Range Wild Forest backpack. 3C/D10-14.

Will bag three high peaks: Thomas Cole, Black Dome, and Blackhead. Stay in a lean-to for Sat night. Winter backpacking experience/gear required. Group size limited.

I was out backpacking this past weekend to seek a break from civilization. A walk in the woods in late autumn will not be colorful, but I was looking for some crisp atmosphere obtained from freezing air – it should make my messy thoughts sink and my mind regain transparency.

The Old Loggers Path (OLP) was where the meditation took place. OLP is a 27-mile long loop, and its terrain is generally mild with some sections of short and almost challenging ascents and descents. Thoughts have chances to drift away and re-organize; legs have chances to train for strength and stamina.

It was autumn and winter was just nearby. Trees were bald, and leaves were stacked high on the ground. The rain clouds were heavy but looked far away; the sun was shy but it remembered to spray spirit upon the land once a while. The trail was lonely – we hardly saw another being other than our group. The trail was deadly quiet, every step on the dried fragile leaves sounded like thunder.

The first night the temperature dropped below zero, and as well dropped out of my expectation. With the constant shivering, I was almost sure that the stars blinked at me and tried really hard to deliver me heat but failed. I stared at them to show my appreciation until I couldn’t sustain the cold and crawled into my sleeping bag; the moonlight penetrated the tent as if I lighted up a lantern inside. It was still chilly though. I was on and off the whole night accompanied by lots of dreams.

I buried myself deep in the sleeping bag when I was sleeping, and the air I breathed out condensed and dampened the opening of my bag, but the worse part resulting from my odd sleeping pattern was that I got up too late because I couldn’t see the sun light. And I had to shake ice off the rain fly, and my water filter malfunctioned, and the blisters on my heels devastated. What an awesome beginning that was?!

The route of the second day was also a blessing. Ups and downs greeted to us more passionately, and the target length was longer. I kept thinking that I wanted to be beamed to the campsite, or create a LittlePo maneuver to glide to the end point. None of the ideas worked but daydreaming at least eliminated some stress. We were chased by the curtain of nightfall and were forced to camp about 1 mile from the target campsite. We got a warmer night as compensation. I slept well with equal number of dreams.

The next day, I couldn’t wait to check the place we were supposed to camp. Over there, two streams intersect and generate several mini waterfalls. A pool was formed at the bottom, which seemed like a nice play area for summer time. Larger-scale waterfalls waited to surprise me along the way before the trail turned away from the creek.

A couple hours after noon, we were out of the trail. For the whole trip, we only confronted two other backpackers. The next person we talked to was a server in a restaurant on our way home. “Can I get you something to drink first?” The voice dragged me out from my pondering. Oh, yes, we were back to civilization.