Gemini Chaos

It took me about 36 hours to get over my failed attempt to backpack in Hoosier National Forest, but over two months to get back out there and try again—this time in my home state, a little over an hour away.

Fall foliage has been sweeping across New York State. I went on a day hike in the Catskills a few of weeks ago when it was just getting into its prime, and have wanted to try backpacking again amid these beautiful views and nice weather. One lesson I’m learning about this hobby (lifestyle?), however, is that it can actually be pretty hard to squeeze in an overnight trip, especially when you live at least 90 min. from anything above sea level. I’ll get to more lessons later though. First, the trip!

The plan

I found a lake in Harriman State Park where people have reported here and there that they’ve camped, though it may not technically be allowed. There are multiple hiking trails to get to it and, having been sufficiently intimidated by my first backpacking attempt, I chose the shorter more moderate path. My mission for this trip would be to complete it and make it through the night, not yet to test the limits of my ability to carry a heavy pack over long distances.

The good news about backpacking in the fall: I knew I’d face far fewer bugs, and that I wouldn’t dehydrate quite as quickly as in the hot summer. The bad: the sun sets earlier, the weather just turned so temperatures would drop to freezing overnight, and apparently, this is a dry season in New York—so dry that there was a brushfire in this very park last week and fire warnings throughout the state. The fire was to the south of where I went, though.

I brought a 10 degree sleep system this time, anticipating the cold, and more insulation layers, gloves, a buff, etc. And learning my lesson from last time, I was determined not to let a lack of water be a problem. So despite hearing about a creek at the south end of the lake, I carried four liters of water in and cameled up before I hit the trail.

All of this, plus a bear can, amounted to a heavier pack, though I don’t know how much heavier because I misplaced my scale. I was only hiking three miles in and two miles out, however, so I wasn’t worried. Generally, I was pretty calm going into this because the psychological safety of being in a familiar region of the country and also because pretty much anything is less scary to me than bugs, which were my greatest fear going into my last trip.

Getting there

The drive from the city to any mountain upstate this time of year is really beautiful. I drive a roadster with a manual transmission built for these winding, hilly, tree-lined roads that take me past glistening lakes. The drive itself made my weekend.

One thing about hiking and backpacking anywhere near New York City: there will always be a ton of people everywhere you go. When I got to the trailhead mid morning there were only a couple of parking spots left and two groups (not backpackers) were starting a hike around the same time. Still, this was a much quieter trail than others in the region.

The trail was pleasant; one fairly steep but fun scramble downward, and some easy hills past varied, mostly rocky terrain with no views. Aside from one peak I was mostly descending to the lake area. The weather was cool and crisp, perfect for just a hoodie.

Setting up camp

The first thing I came upon as I approached the lake was a campsite, where people have built fires. It was a little elevated from the lake shore so it had a panoramic view.

I noticed another camper a short distance away at another viewpoint to my left, so I walked further down the trail to see if I could find another site. I didn’t, though I did note that the creek that I’d heard about was there with some water flow.

I decided to go back to the site I’d found because I liked the view. The weird thing about having a neighbor was, I wasn’t sure if I should have been more frightened or less. On one hand, there would be a witness if anything crazy happened. On the other, whoever was in that tent could be the originator of said crazy thing. I figured the odds were in my favor.

As I put my stuff down and set up my tent, some day-hikers walked into the campsite and then off to the side to enjoy the view from some rocks. They were nice and asked me about camping in the park on their way out. They seemed impressed with my whole setup, and it may seem silly, but that helped boost my confidence a little because they could have just as easily made me feel out of place and incompetent. Yes, yes, I probably need therapy. Don’t we all?

I also set up my sleep system and got everything arranged inside my tent except for my chair and bear can, which I kept outside near the area I intended to cook.

Cooking my first camp meal

This is the point I reached last time, and didn’t get past. Progress! I rewarded myself with cooking my first dehydrated meal on the trail (I had no idea what it would taste like) and a hot cup of coffee. I don’t know if I was just in a good mood, but the pasta was great! The portion was pretty huge, almost too much; but if I’d hiked six or more miles instead of three, it would be perfect.

Things to do at camp

Once I finished my coffee and proudly surveyed my situation: I had a great campsite, with a great view, and still had hours before sunset despite my leisurely hike. I had plenty of time to relax and enjoy myself.

One of the things I feared when I initially thought about backpacking, was whether I’d be bored out of my mind at camp. I considered bringing a travel watercolor palette, a book, a journal, string to make bracelets, or even my travel Freewrite. I settled on my Kindle and a journal, so spent some time journaling by the lakeside.

As things got chillier I went inside my tent and tried to do some reading. I quickly realized the book I’d planned to read was going to be bad, so I gave up on that and took my camera outside to snap some photos instead (they’re not uploaded yet). Time was actually flying because I had reception there and was answering a lot of text messages from concerned friends who’ve known me all my life to be the opposite of an outdoors person.

Nightfall

The only thing I wondered about, more than what people do at camp, is what people do at camp at night.

Surprisingly, my tent and sleeping pad and quilt were super cozy, especially after I changed to my sleep clothes. It was hard to get out of the cozy down as the temperature continued to drop—but I wanted to see what it looked like outside with everyone gone but the other camper, and a new moon which seemed promising for seeing stars.

I’m glad I put on my jacket and went outside. I’d never been in the woods after dark like this before, it was beautiful, serene and a little bit eerie. It wasn’t scary.

Back in my tent, I debated taking the one gummy I brought for the trip. I knew it would help me sleep and probably be fun in this setting, but I was also scared of what I’d yet to encounter in the woods a night. What if I’d need to defend myself? My mind briefly flashed to thoughts of the unlucky people who’ve become rare victims of serial killers in the backcountry. I took to my favorite backpacking discussion group on Facebook to ask for advice.

I didn’t take the gummy. Instead, I frantically Googled things like “what to do if a bear is outside your tent” and any other scenario I could think of. I positioned my bear spray to be in easy reach. I tried not to imagine that forest creatures, ranging from cute to scary and creepy, were surrounding my tent outside the rain fly beyond my visibility. I had to actively tell myself I was being ridiculous.

To my relief, the night was uneventful. I barely heard any sounds from nocturnal animals, just a few gusts of wind that rustled my tent and the surrounding leaves that made me jump. I think I did hear some rustling in the distance, but only a few times. I drifted in and out of sleep the whole night and woke up at dawn, listening to a progressively loud chorus of birds come to life. In hindsight, I could have taken the gummy. But I’m glad I didn’t because I have a sober benchmark!

The next morning

I brought a little temperature and humidity monitor that told me it had dropped to the 20s overnight, and was still 26 degrees as I woke up. I really couldn’t tell, as I was toasty and warm the entire night, even a little too warm in my Zenbivy ultralight system. So the investment wasn’t a bad one!

I took my hiking clothes and jackets into my quilt with me to warm up as I plotted what to do for the morning, and decided I wanted another view of the lake before the sun was high so I layered up and went outside first. The moment did not disappoint.

My tent was frosted over but the cold wasn’t unbearable. I felt pretty well equipped from a clothing and shelter standpoint, despite not expecting temperatures to drop that low.

I went to check on my bear can, which contained my toothpaste, breakfast, and coffee, and found it was also frosted over, but in tact and where I left it.

Another lesson learned: cold fingers and bear cans do not mix. It took me way too much time to get this thing open, and I now know why someone invented a bear can key. I’m definitely going to get one!

Coffee in the morning alone at a quiet lakeside.. chef’s kiss. Many people have questioned my motivations for wanting to try solo backpacking, and if I could bottle this moment up, it would be my best explanation.

This breakfast on the other hand, not so great. It was too sweet and too much. I also realized that I can make my own oats combination that would taste much better.

Breaking down camp wasn’t bad it just… wasn’t fun. It was frustrating that everything seemed harder to stuff back into its rightful place. I ended up just shoving the quilt in the bottom of my bag, though I did neatly roll up my sleeping pad because I didn’t want to damage it.

The toughest thing was trying to get the tent to roll up while wearing gloves—the fabric was slippery and kept popping out of the stuff sack faster than I could push it in. In the end just angrily shoved it in without caring if it was folded and rolled. By the time I was finished putting everything back, my oversized bag that technically could carry way more looked totally full, because of all the sloppy stuffing work I did.

Technically, based on the stuff I packed, I’m pretty sure I could fit it all into a more ultralight style bag. I’ve seen others do it. But I’ll save that mystery for another trip.

The hike out

The hike out was pleasant and uneventful; it was also blissfully free of other people because of how early lit was. All in all it was a great easy little trip and I not only feel accomplished for my first overnight in the woods, but also enjoyed it even more than I imagined I could!

What I learned

Packing

• Too much hydration stuff: Because I carried in so much water, the water treatment systems I brought were all redundant. I probably could have gone with just one, given how short the hike was. But I don’t intend for hikes to always be this short, so not sure if I can realistically cut that from my pack in the future.
• Too much food: I packed three meals (lunch, dinner, and breakfast) and snacks for the trail, but the hike wasn’t that long so I didn’t really need the snacks and I’m realizing I don’t really get hungry while out in the wilderness. I don’t know that I’d bring too much less, just in case I need the energy, but I could probably do with a little less.

• I want to ditch the bear canister: Bear cans seem to give the most peace of mind compared to all of the food storage systems out there, in part because I also want to keep rodents out and I’ve heard that Ursacks can still be chewed through by small animals. But the extra weight and space they take up is pretty brutal. I want to test an alternative.

Conclusion

Now that I’ve actually stayed in the woods overnight, the most important lesson of all is that I actually like it! This sounds ridiculous to people who’ve been doing this for years, but less than a year ago, the thought of sleeping in a tent was the most ludicrous thing I could imagine for myself. I want to go again, and I’m just sad that it’s going to take me weeks to find another opportunity, at which point it will be winter. Can I handle that too? We’ll find out!