DAY OFF

My friend, Diana, wouldn’t allow me to go back into Chicago or even into Gary, IN to restart my journey. She was VERY concerned for my welfare in both areas, so I compromised and allowed her to drop me off in South Bend, IN.

I checked into the Quality Suites Hotel and started to reassess all of my gear. After getting an iPhone, I no longer needed neither my old phone and all its accessories nor my old iPod and its cable. Additionally, since the iPhone replaces both of these items, I could also "discard" all the other items that allowed me to connect them to my computer. This further lightened my load by at least another pound.

I guess this is as good a time as any to go over my inventory and compare it to what I had started with.

Present inventory:

(1) Pack; North Face

(1) Tent; Sierra Designs, one person

(1) Sleeping bag; Mountain Hardware, rated to 32 degrees

(1) Sleeping mat w/ camping chair converter; Big Agnes

(1) Camp pillow

(1) Jeans; Levi's

(1) Hiking pants

(2) Convertible pants

(3) Short sleeve "dri-fit" shirts

(3) Long sleeve "dri-fit" shirts

(2) Collared Shirts; Patagonia/Billabong

(5) Skivvies; Under Armor

(5) Socks; REI and Smart-Wool

(1) set Long Johns

(1) Fleece; North Face

(1) Jacket, wet weather; Mountain Hardware

(1) Pants, wet weather

(1pr) Boots; Asolo

(1pr) "Slippahs"; Locals

(1pr) Shoes; Sanuk

(1) Stove; MSR

(1can) Fuel; MSR

(1) Water Purifier; MSR

(1set) Camp pot/pan

(1) Lighter, butane

(1) Leatherman

(50 ft) Dura Cord

(1) Bugjuice

(1) Sunscreen

(3) Lip Balm

(1) Ukulele w/ songbook and tuner

(1 liter) Bottled water

(3 liter) Camel-bak

(1) Camp trowel

(1roll) Toilet Paper

(1 pkg) Anti-bacterial wipes

(1) First-aid Kit

(1 set) Hygiene Gear

(1) Camp Towel

(2 small) Trash Bags

(1 set) Sunglasses; Bolle

(1) Baseball Cap w/ Squaw Valley logo

(1) Backpacking Hat w/ friends and family signatures

(1) Neckerchief

(2) Handkerchiefs

(1) Watch; Timex

(3) Mosquito Coils

(1) Space Blanket

(1) Headlamp; Petzl

(1) Net Book Computer; Acer

(1) External Harddrive (500 Gb); Western Digital

(1) Flashdrive (8 Gb); SanDisk

(1) iPhone

Items I have discarded (mailed home):

(1 pr) Jeans

(1) Shirt

(1 pr) Underwear

(3 pr) Socks

(1) Book

(1) Nalgene Bottle (lost on the Missisippi)

(1) GPS; Garmin

(1) AM/FM Radio

(1) Digital Camera; Canon

(1) iPod

(1) Cell Phone; Blackberry

(1 pr) Hiking Boots (replaced)

I have stripped down to the bare essentials and all is working out well. I had initially overestimated what I might need and with the acquisition of an iPhone, I have been further streamlined. Now, the true test will be if the weather turns to a temperature below 50 degrees, but I am certain I will be fine with the gear I have.

So, with a lighter load, I look forward to continuing my adventure. See you out there!