Backpacking & Blisters: A Hiking, Backpacking, and Adventure Show

Is it possible to make an episode about sleep...interesting? Derek and Carl take a crack at it. Why is it so hard for campers to get good sleep in the backcountry? While some legitimate suggestions are thrown out such as sleep patterns and environmental factors, somehow Derek manages to work in ideas involving styrofoam and wrapping one's head in cellophane. Also, a new Backpacking and Blisters contest is introduced. GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Is the establishment of a sort of 'user agreement' for a group backpacking trip really necessary? Are we establishing ground rules or simply trying to micromanage our friends and family? Derek and Carl each suggest 3 agreements you should consider when planning a group trip in order to make it the best possible experience. Have they gone too far? You be the judge. GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With all of the required skills to head out into the backcountry, how do you measure up? Carl and Derek have developed a fool-proof system (that might be completely subjective) to measure one's skill levels. Some essential (and non-essential) wilderness competencies are discussed with this strict evaluation system that enables one to earn the grownup merit badge. Also, Todd's challenge for Carl is now formalized via an mp3. Will Carl respond to the challenge? GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Derek and Carl are definitely not gear reviewers. However, there have been multiple requests to discuss the gear they use. Favorites, least favorites, and the most unreliable piece(s) of gear are intertwined into this conversation. Also, there are a lot of gear myths out there. Which are real and which are just a bunch of hogwash? Can you really trust the temperature rating on a sleeping bag? If you break in your shoes/boots, does that guarantee that you won't get any blisters? These, and others, are discussed. GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Are the freeze dried food companies price gouging backpackers? Or is it simply okay to call it a splurge if you pay $8 for mac and cheese? Derek and Carl address these questions along with providing food-related tips (not recipes) that just might be helpful. Carl also references a phone call he made to Mountain House Foods where he brings up a few issues with a customer service representative.  GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

 Some companies spend thousands of dollars to learn about their employees' personalities. Derek and Carl have an easier, cheaper way to determine what kind of person you are (specifically, your trail character). Narrowing it to just 8 questions, Carl designed a test that highlights the best and worst of our trail personalities. And...it's probably just as accurate as the rest of the personality tests out there.  GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Most of us go out into the wild to get away from it all, reset, gain perspective, etc. However, when we bring or encounter other people, inevitably there is going to be some drama. Derek and Carl have had fun creating scenarios in various episodes, but this one explores legitmate situations that either Derek or Carl (or both) have actually experienced over the years -- sometimes more than once. What are the best ways to handle these situations? Derek gives it a crack. How were these situations handled in the moment? Not always what you'd expect. GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

You can spend hundreds of dollars to shave a weigh pounds from your pack OR you can listen to this episode and shave weight for free! Who carries the trash, how to reduce your food load, how to avoid bringing redundant items, and more are discussed in this weight saving episode. Also, we include our first audio file listener question...and it's a good one! GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

If you've been listening to the podcast long enough then you know that Derek brings up 'going to the bathroom in the woods' all too frequently. In this episode we embrace the topic. While Carl tries to make it relevant to trail life with tips and tricks, Derek is more interested in one's general digestive health. Derek also brings up some of his other favorite topics like backcountry games and off-trail hiking. Also discussed are video saboteurs, leave no trace guidelines for peeing, and what happens if a Moose approaches you when you're going #2. GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Do you know your trail lingo? There is a lot of verbage out there that is unique to the hiking community. Some are more common thru-hiker conversations, some if you're simply an experienced backpacker, and some...frankly, Derek and Carl had never heard of. Who comes up with these terms? Derek and Carl try to create a couple of their own. In this episode you can score yourself at the "Trail Lingo Test" to see how you measure up. GET MORE CONTENT! Please support us at Patreon to get bonus episodes, videos, and priority invites to B&B "events!" It's a safe and secure way to support your favorite content providers. https://www.patreon.com/backpackingandblisters To react publicly or privately to any of our episodes post/message on our Instagram and Facebook pages. @backpackingandblisterspodcast https://www.facebook.com/backpackingandblisters or email: hikercman@netscape.net Backpacking Gear Best Backpacking Gear Backpacking Trip Planning Hiking Gear Best Hiking Gear Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.