Back to basics to feel more connected

Like many backpackers and outdoor enthusiasts, I have all the latest, hottest, must-have gear that a gear junkie would want. I have and use a pair of ultralight carbon fiber trekking poles, titanium cookware, clothing made out of the newest wonder fabric, and a tiny, featherweight, silnylon tarp shelter with bivy. The latest, greatest, and lightest gear is hard to resist. It promises to make my adventures more carefree and enjoyable.

The trouble is that as I spend more time in the woods, I find myself gravitating back to the old-fashioned, tried-and-true, traditional gear. When I head out the door, I almost always grab a wooden walking stick and leave the carbon fiber trekking poles in the closet. There’s just something about the feel of a simple wooden walking stick. I don’t know what it is, but it just feels “right.” Recently I picked up a wool jac shirt, and I find that I much prefer its feel to my more sophisticated Polartec® fleece jacket. The wool jacket may be a little heavier, but it seems to keep me warmer and does a much more effective job of blocking the wind. I also rest easy in the knowledge that it will not melt away at the first touch of a campfire spark. While we’re at it, why would anyone want to use a plastic line tensioner thingy for their tent’s guidelines when a good old-fashioned taut-line hitch is simpler and works better? Sometimes you just can’t beat the classics.

Come and Get It!
by Norman Rockwell

Who knows where this will lead? First thing you know I’ll be looking to trade in my trusty titanium “spork” for a plain old fork and spoon. Who knows, maybe I’ll even start cooking more on a campfire with real pots and pans. Trust me, the appeal of just adding boiling water to a foil pouch of freeze-dried food-like stuff loses its appeal after a few hundred meals. Give me real food cooked in a real pot over a real fire, and you’ll find me smiling.

Last November, on a weekend camping trip with our Boy Scout troop, I spent most of the weekend dressed in blue jeans and a cotton flannel shirt instead of my normal nylon zip-off pants and a shirt made of wonder wicking Capilene®. The weather was easy and I didn't have to worry about weight, but I realized by the end of the trip that I hadn't felt so relaxed and comfortable while camping in a long time.

Does all of this mean that I’ll give up the trekking poles, titanium cookware, and my silnylon shelter? Probably not. These ultralight wonders of engineering still have their place, and there’s certainly no virtue in merely being older or heavier. But there is a reason traditional gear is still around: It works, it works well, and it always will.

Perhaps I’m just becoming an old fuddy-duddy, but I think there’s something deeper here. I think there’s something intrinsically comforting about the feel of wood and wool that will never be matched by carbon fiber and polyethylene terephthalate. I don’t know what it is, but I also think there’s something naturally satisfying and connecting about cooking a meal from real ingredients over an open fire. And aren’t these feelings of contentment and connection why we go into the forest in the first place?

1960 Scouts Winter Camping