Are the wolves climbing trees now?

Hi, I bought an X-Mid 2 silpoly but haven't had a chance to use it yet. Any single wall tent will have issues with condensation. My last shelters have been TarpTent single-walls and condensation has always been my biggest complaint. The benefit to both silpoly and dyneema is that they won't "wet out ...

arrgghhhhhh! Does the Voyageur ferry materials for operations at Windigo, or is the Ranger a critical link in the supply chain for that?


My understanding is that Ranger provides all provisioning, staff transport, mechanical transport, and trash backhaul for the entire island. Without that ship ...

Well

This was an April fools joke. But I hope the same Jerry!

Edited: I didn’t realize this may actually become a true story if the Ranger gets stuck in port this year due to illegal firings, buyouts and hiring freezes. 2026: Isle Royale National Park, brought to you by PepsiCo.

backwoods doc wrote: Tue Apr 01, 2025 8:24 pm Not funny

Cruel and unusual, even!

The Park Service announced today that Isle Royale National Park will not open for the 2025 season due to significant staff cuts. Rangers will be redistributed to other, more-visited locations and normal service is expected to resume during the 2026 season.

I've gone ahead and ordered a bear cannister. I figure if nothing else, it gives me the encouragement to go ahead and get out West a bit, as well, to try some of their terrain. At 2 pounds, 4 ounces, it's not light, but it's also not going to be what keeps me from accomplishing any of the things I ...

I’ve read that the Ursack is vulnerable to small critters, not quite waterproof, and if something gets ahold of it the food ends up crushed.

I do think a 10ft hang is overkill on the island. I usually hang mine from a board in the shelter or keep it in the tent with me. I did have a ground ...

Having used both Bear Bag hangs and a bear canister, I am team canister now. There have been times when it’s taken 30 minutes plus to find an “OK” branch. With my canister I just have to close the lid and find a bush to put it away from water and cliffs. Plus it serves as a little table or seat ...

Doing some AT section-hiking isn't off-limits to me after the bubble heads north this summer either.

Areas of the AT in NC were catastrophically hit last fall by Hurricane Helene, but I haven't recently followed the AT clean-up efforts. Just in case you weren't aware, be sure to double check ...

Thanks everyone for the suggestions! It's hard to plan in advance so places with months-long reservation lists are probably out of the question, but I do see the Sylvania Wilderness is first-come-first-serve until Mid-May and again after mid-October. I've wanted to do the Porkies for a while so I ...

Does anyone have a favorite long-weekend (think 2 night/3 day) loops or out and backs in the MW? I'm in Chicago and looking for a decent backpacking weekend that isn't a park campground. I've heard the Ice Age Trail is OK, but also that it has a lot of road walks and I'm not sure about the campsite ...

It’s cool that you can pitch the XMid without the fly! Condensation isn’t a picnic—one of my backpacking mates negates the weight she saves by sleeping in a single-wall trekking pole tent by lugging along a humongous towel to wipe it off with. But my bigger reservation is that if the fly and the ...

We've used a Zpacks triplex on several trips, but pretty much all single wall tents will condensate in the right conditions. I have no real complaints but I sleep better in a hammock.


Zpacks Duplex is a dream tent for me but I'm not ready to drop $700 on one just yet (even if it weighs only 1lb ...