Sweet indeed. I may be able to get Joan to make me some if I am nice. 😉

If you ask most of our key government decision-makers about how they get outdoors they might tell you about their golfing exploits, if they get outside at all. Awesome.

Those folks will never see a desert or forest or mountain as anything other than a blank spot on the map that has not yet been exploited for economic gain, whether that’s a golf course or luxury hotel or energy/mineral extraction.

All a “regular Joe”-type person can do is keep volunteering, keep speaking up, and try to get as many young people as possible out into the natural world. In the best-case scenario they will be the future bulwark against this stupidity; in the worst-case scenario they will at least have a memory of what used to be.

Just took delivery of some AD90 jogger bottoms from Critter Mountain Wear. 4.4 oz in size Large! Pretty sweet. They worked with me to put together a bit lighter version than their usual. I figured I didn’t need pockets in a base/mid layer, and I’ve read that Alpha is a poor fabric for pockets.

My grid fleece bottoms are 7.9 oz, and my expedition weight capilene bottoms are 8.4 oz, so this is a pretty good weight savings — and probably warmer. Can’t wait to try them out in the Sierra later this summer. The bummer is that it is so stinking warm in the high country right now that I may not need them. I’ll probably bring some silk bottoms (3.9 oz) to sleep in case it’s just too hot for AD90. We’ll be camping anywhere from 10,000 feet to 6,000 feet, so I’ll need to be able to handle temps at high and low elevations.

Hope all is well,

HJ

10/4. Appreciate the info. Thanks Paul!

Hey Pete! For hiking, I haven’t worn liner socks in years. Even in the boots I wear for trail work and similar, I just use lighter boot-length socks.

For Nordic skiing, though, where I’m wearing what are essentially heavy leather boots, I still use the old-school combination of ragg wool socks and liners.

https://pmags.com/whatchya-wearing-nordic-touring

This can not be overstated. You make an important point that goes completely unmentioned by many ul zealots. I’d narrow it down even further from “three-season” to “one-season per place”

I listen to some UL PCT influences say it almost never rains in the Sierra, and ground insulation is barely necessary. My reaction is “Ah. You’re only there in July and August.”