Green Garden 028: It’s All Uphill From Here – GWC Mag gwcmagDecember 23, 2023061 views Podcast: Download (Duration: 29:00 — 29.4MB) Today on The First 40 Miles, The Top 5 Tips that will help you make it through the tough uphill climbs. On the SUMMIT Gear Review, we’ll show you a vast improvement to the humble hiking stick. For the Backpack Hack of the Week, noodles noodle everywhere. And we’ll wrap up the show with a little trail wisdom from Mr. Emerson. Opening Girls Camp prep Survival Skills the youth leaders will be teaching: Know when to use these knots: Square Knot, 2 Half hitches, Bowline 2 methods of purifying water How to signal for help (and contact local authorities) How to identify and prevent camp pollution at water sources 3 types of emergency shelters Sever Weather: Lightning, tornado, avalanche, flood Bedroll or emergency ground bed made of natural materials What will the real survival skills at Girls Camp be? Surviving with under 4 hours of sleep a night… Top 5 Tips for Backpacking Uphill Keep your pace, but shorten your stride Don’t be tempted to stop on the uphill Keep steady pace REMEMBER: Stopped is zero miles per hour. Exertion breath Breathing is an important part of pain management—or uphill management. A forceful breath out Try the Rest step Stand up completely with the leg that you stepped forward with, and let your knee lock briefly That gives your quadriceps and glutes a chance to rest on each step Even that split second rest, really helps as you climb the trail Try Trekking Poles Heather recently tried trekking poles Study on trekking poles: Muscular and metabolic costs of uphill backpacking: are hiking poles beneficial? The study says “By redistributing some of the backpack effort, pole use alleviated some stress from the lower extremities and allowed a partial reversal of typical load-bearing strategies.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11128857 M&Ms= Mantra & Music Mantras: Man versus mountain, one step at a time, I am strong, Whatever doesn’t kill you… Music: High energy, since your steps will be shorter, you can keep tempo with a faster song Structure Carbon Shaft Foam Grips which are edgeless, and comfortable, so no matter how many miles you go, they’ll feel great Wrist strap (security strap) made of wicking material and dries quickly Baskets on bottom are standard trekking baskets (you can remove them and the poles can compress down even more compact. Purpose of baskets (snowshoe concept) Utility Super compact, so you won’t be poking people if you put them away in your pack The push-button release mechanism that slides part of the pole into itself, and the rest pulls apart and folds Very easy to adjust, using their “Speed Lock”. Flip latch out, adjust to desired length, and flip latch back. Holds securely Mass Sold as a pair 14.6 oz for the pair 110-130cm (Micro Vario Carbo Lady goes down to 105 cm) Fold down to just 15.5″ Maintenance Wipe clean before collapsing so grit doesn’t get inside Investment Trial Trekking poles made me think more strategically Felt like jet packs on the trail Incredibly invaluable on uphill Not as noticeable on downhill Put my weight on wrist straps (aka security straps) Gave me crazy amounts of speed Any time you are doing a significant amount of elevation gain, bring your trekking poles Backpack Hack of the Week™: Rice Thread Noodles Rice or Bean Thread Noodles (no hot water needed) Inexpensive Can be found at most good sized grocery stores in the Asian aisle Just need water to rehydrate and soften Infinite recipe ideas! Challenge: Try these at home, and see if you can come up with a recipe that you can bring on your next trip! Trail Wisdom “Many eyes go through the meadow, but few see the flowers in it” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson Share the post “028: It’s All Uphill From Here”