papijoe2002
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- Oct 2, 2015
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I wonder if we know which of those is a smoker?28 Missing Person Exclusions
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This gent has standard backpacking equipment. Backpacking was a whole different adventure back in the day. You took a lot of stuff! It was bulky and heavy. Interestingly, he had fuel for max a week of cooking (depending on size of canister and what he wanted to cook), but 20 packs of cigs. That's one heavy smoker!
Jansport backpack.... Jansport is now owned by Vanity Fair, which also owns TNF, Smartwool, and Altra, all companies that ain't what they used to be. IIRC Jansport has always been a backpack company. At this moment, their backpacks are serviceable (but not remarkable or particularly robust). Back in the day, they were excellent external frame packs for backpacking. I owned one, especially designed for travel. Loved it. IIRC they didn't make it into the revolution towards internal frame packs (led by Gregory) or the specialized women's designs.
IMO this UID is an old-school backpacker. I think he'd had his equipment for a while, and perhaps his way of doing things, maybe back to the early 80's. Eureka tents were very popular then, too. Lighter tents were just coming in. He's old-school about the canteen thing. The filter would have been a new purchase (before that, we generally used iodine). The Sweetwater was newish in early 2000's: I forget, but I own one, purchased in 2005 or so. Nifty thing, and light as things went back then.
There's a lot of consternation ^^^ about the canteens. I attach little significance to them at all, except they're dated. It would not be rare to be carrying that much water for a tough hike; we also don't know how far away the water source was, or whether the UID had a system where he filled the bottles with dirty water and then pumped.
All that stuff? It would all fit in that pack of his, because the sleeping bag, mat, and tent would be strapped onto the outside.
A poncho in any conditions in mountainous Colorado is totally inadequate. It's possible he didn't know that, in which case, he's not from out West, but maybe visited years prior.
I'm thinking he got caught in a blizzard and had to hole up in his tent.
Yes, Jansport continues to make daypacks. You must have one from the good ol' days, because they've lost their verve, at least in the last decade.I remember you and I and a couple of other people having a long discussion about his equipment a while back, prossibly through messages because I couldn't find it here on a quick thread search. We identified a couple of things he didn't have with him that we would have expected from a more experienced hiker.
I have a JanSport daypack, with no frame at all. That dang thing is never going to wear out. Very sturdy.
I agree the blizzard theory is likely.
I once signed up for a backpacking trip in Montana mountains with the Sierra Club. 1987 or so. They wanted me to carry the same pack weight as everyone else.The leader guessed 60-70 pounds. As I pointed out to him, I only weighed 105. He said it wouldn't be fair for me to carry less than anyone else (no thought that I might actually eat a lot less than everyone else). I declined my spot on the trip: the "leader" was intolerant and inflexible.My memory growing up in the Montana mountains is that in the summer and early fall, a lot of people don't bother with rain gear because there's so little rain. A poncho to get you through a thunderstorm is about all we carried.
You're right about the big pack. I remember the general formula for how big your pack should be is "not more than about half your body weight. Less for woman." My former Marine buddy in the 70s carried 125 lbs. (aside: My Jansport is from the 90s.This one: Vintage 90's Jansport Classic Day Backpack Black Nylon Made in the USA | eBay)
The sleepy cat in the drawing feels like a clue.
I'm reiterating this point after Carbuff's loving experience with his/her Jansport daypack. It's, what, coming up on 30 years, @carbuff ?Just a reminder to everyone to think carefully and get expert advice and fitting when you buy gear: you are likely to have it for YEARS.
Also with no car found and his affinity for Sleepy Cat Peak I'm convinced that he's a local with no family of his own.I don't detect any passion between John Doe and Lib. I wouldn't tell my wife that I'd like her to claim the body (of course she would). He spends time mentioning his trip in the glider with Lib instead of telling her how much he loves her.
I'm convinced Lib is his sister.
As a kid I remember going to Sleepy Cat guest ranch in the 60’s.Also with no car found and his affinity for Sleepy Cat Peak I'm convinced that he's a local with no family of his own.
Or maybe he's an overseas traveler who wanted to visit the parkAlso with no car found and his affinity for Sleepy Cat Peak I'm convinced that he's a local with no family of his own.
He could have hitched. Otherwise, he'd have had to leave his car at the trailhead for an extended period. Aha! Amtrak train station in Glenwood Springs, which is the closest town?Also with no car found and his affinity for Sleepy Cat Peak I'm convinced that he's a local with no family of his own.
The gear is American, and I believe he'd had it for quite a while, except for a few items, like the filter.Or maybe he's an overseas traveler who wanted to visit the park
I would second everything that @RickshawFan has to say here. And I would add, the same thing applies to boots. There is nothing more miserable than getting two miles into a three-day mountain trip and finding out that your spiffy new boots have a funny seam on the inside that five minutes of walking around the store would have revealed.I'm reiterating this point after Carbuff's loving experience with his/her Jansport daypack. It's, what, coming up on 30 years, @carbuff ?
I'm also developing my point a bit. In the old days, when we did a pack fit (pre 2006), if we were an expert pack fitter, we could even bend the stays of a big internal frame pack to fit the contours of your back. Now, many people go on the internet and pick out a pack because they like the color, someone told them it was the right size, it got "great reviews". This is not a pack fitting. Nor is measuring your back according to someone or other's instructions (you can flinch, and end up 2" off). A pack fitting is when you go to a gear store with trained pack fitters, who may spend and hour and a half with you to get the right fit on a pack that corresponds to what you want to use it for (no more, no less). This is an art and a skill. And the fit is very individual. There are few stores that have this kind of personnel.
Same with sleeping bags: get it properly fitted. Same with a tent: if you're tall, it's hard to find a lightweight tent, 'cos, yes, they like to shave ounces!
This may cost you a bit more than if you simply order something on the internet, but having a pack that fits is a whole different pack experience. And yes, you could have it for 30 years, or, no pack fit and you could be miserable a whole trip.
But, then, consider this poor UID's equipment, and see how it's survived all those years in very harsh conditions. Other than likely mice holes, much of it looks like it might still be useable today.