Recent content by BriFly

Microspikes rock I'll second what Oldmanwinter said. I can't say enough good things about microspikes. My only complaint is "Why did it take so long for some one to invent them!?" I bought microspikes for myself and my girlfriend a year ago. We now *swear* by them. They work for 80% (or more)...

Wow. So it only took you two days to go from Big Island to Chesuncook Lake House at a leisurely pace? I thought it would have been more like 3 or 4 days. My Dad was thinking we would do it in 6 days (with a day or two of staying put to relax and fish). Now I'm wondering if 4 or 5 days would be...

Hey there folks. My dad (retired) and I want to go on a camping / canoeing trip from Lobster Lake to Chesuncook Lake House this Summer. How long would that take (straight through, but at a leisurely pace)? Also, does anyone know how long the section of Penobscot River is that connects Lobster...

NY: Yeah, this will work too ... Creating a NY section won't solve this problem. (I'm not against a NY section, just thought I should point this out.) Doug's suggestion is a good refinement of my earlier post -- precede the title of the post with "NH:", "NY:", etc. As long as people use that...

Take the solution in your own hands TO ALL NEW YORKERS ... Regardless of how this debate ends up, you can still get what you want ... without any intervention from Darren. All you need to do is add **NY** to your posts that you feel are of interest to other New Yorkers. Use the EXACT text...

Same goal, different solution This 'categorization' problem is a common issue for sites like this ... Do you group by topic? Do you group by geographical location? How many forums do you create? How many nested levels of forums do you create? And so on. If you get carried away, you'll end up...

I'd disagree with you on the "much more versatile" part. I have real crampons and have only used them once this Winter, and in that case I really should have used my snowshoes instead. With points that are one inch long, crampons are overkill for most conditions I run into. Give me something...

Hi Roxi. Glad you liked the Kahtoola's. I've been considering getting a pair myself. Do you have the aluminum or the steel version? Klutz: Kahtoola makes a low profile crampon. http://www.kahtoola.com/kts_aluminum.html http://www.kahtoola.com/kts_steel.html

From the 'food' perspective, the woods are full of all kinds of animals, so I'm not sure why the smell of a dog would be more desireable than, say, a rabbit ... or, for that matter, a human. :eek: From the 'territory' perspective (brown bears and grizzlies), the smell of dog on your gear might...

I was about to buy Stabilicers until I went hiking with a guy who had them. We were hiking in mixed conditions (8+ inches of snow, some ice, and some exposed rock). At the end, each of his Stabilicers were missing 8 - 10 screw heads. He was casual about it, saying "Yeah, it happens all the time...

Thanks for all of the suggestions. Very much appreciated. I'll start reading up on these. -BriFly

Hey folks. My dad (just retired) is coming to visit in mid to late Summer this year. I was hoping to take him on a canoeing / camping trip in Maine -- in a nice secluded lake or cluster of lakes (preferrably where motorboats are prohibited). We would likely set up camp in one spot, then take...

I went to Sentier des Caps a couple of years ago. It was excellent. Both groomed and backcountry trails. You can make a nice 3 day loop and stay in cabins at night. They have great views of the St. Lawrence from up high -- really nice for sunset/sunrise photos. The cabins aren't manned, but once...

I'm brand new to VFTT and would like to get to know other VFTT'ers. Perhaps I can crash this party? :o My cooking skills are limited, but I can make a mean salad or a big batch of homemade Chex Mix. :D -Brian

Me too! New member here. This is my first post, so I'll try not to fumble ... ;) Jason, I'm glad you started this thread. I'm interested in taking a 3-day mountaineering course this Winter too. Maybe we could get a small group together (3 or 4) to get a better per-person price (?). -Brian