The cheap day pack I bought is working pretty well. I have been wearing it daily while walking the dog just to get used to a pack again. The pack has an upper outside pouch where I can put a wallet or other stuff I don't need to access while walking. It came with a detachable key ring which is not so useful, but I took a small snap ring and added it to the ring and can hang my keys from that. The keys hang inside an inner pouch that keeps them quiet.
The pack came with a Velcro strap at the top above the bladder pouch. It took me a while to figure out it was to hang the bladder from. There is some kind of elastic strap sewed to the hole where the drinking tube exits the pack, but I have not figured out what that strap is for. It seems kind of Velcro-ish, but does not seem to have a purpose, at least not one I can discern. The instructions (such as they are) that came with the pack and the bladder don't mention anything about the purpose of either strap.
I thought one of the outside pockets would be perfect for my cell phone, but it turns out that it's not reachable while wearing the pack and I like to take pictures with the cell phone while walking. I have been wearing a pair of shorts lately while walking that have no belt so it is not real secure on my waistline. I tried putting it in my pocket but that the cell phone pedometer function does not work well in the pocket.
The dog watering fiasco continues. I had a fancy dog water bottle with built in cup that I put in the outside water bottle pouch on the pack. The dog refuses to drink from it for some reason.
So I put it away and got an old lemon juice bottle and filled it up with water and put it in the pouch. Someone had given her a collapsible water bowl made of nylon of some sort that I rolled up and put in one of the outside loops on the back of the pack. She will drink from it, but does not seem to like it much. Neither is accessible while wearing the pack. I have been thinking about other possible arrangements, but nothing convenient comes to mind. It's not like it's that big of a deal to slip the pack off to get at them, although with the leash looped around a wrist, its not as easy as it might be. She seems to prefer drinking from mud puddles and creeks to the water bowl in any case. Having the lemon juice bottle filled with water means we can both use it though, so it is a backup to the bladder, which might turn out to be useful.
I have started to equip the pack. I added some wet wipes and bug repellent. I wanted some DEET lotion, but could only find aerosol or pump (I guess it is late in the bug season so the choices are limited), so got the pump. I thought I might need the bug repellent while hiking in the local state park on the horse trails, but the bugs have not been bothering either of us so I have not used it.
I got a small first aid kit at Wal-Mart. I think it was 97 cents. Mostly bandaids of various sizes and a couple wipes. It came in a nice little case though, and there is plenty of room to add more stuff. I really wanted the case as much as anything. I had previously purchased a waterproof pouch on eBay for this purpose, but it turned out to be too small to get my hand in. I figure if I need the first aid kit I need to be able to get into it promptly. I kind of had in mind using the plastic box as a repair kit of sorts and the waterproof pouch as a first aid kit, but for now the plastic box is the FAK, such as it is.
I added some duct tape, a hanky, and a roll of bags of the type I use for picking up after the beagle. They are pretty tough, yet fairly thin and light weight. I think they must hold about a quart and I use them like a glove to pick up after the critter. Often I grab unto grass or other plant material and yank it out of the ground and I have never had any of the bags tear or puncture on me (which would be kind of disgusting).
Last but not least is a combo whistle, flashlight, compass, thermometer (in Celsius), storage container, mirror, magnifying glass with lanyard. I got it from meritline.com. Not sure where I ran across them but they sell all kinds of cheap little novelties that I cannot resist. I get an email from them a couple times a week with their specials of the day. I think the 8 way combo whistle was $1.29 shipped from Singapore. I have bought other stuff for like 39 cents shipped from China or Singapore. I can't mail a postcard across the street for 39 cents but somehow they can ship me merchandise for 39 cents including shipping from China. Most of the stuff I have bought from them has turned out to be an outstanding value for the price.
9-4-10
Today we went to the park and the critter and I walked for an hour and 20 minutes. Most of it was on a horse trail, but perhaps a mile was on the road. I would guess somewhere between two and a half and three miles total. It got a little warmer while we were walking. I had started out with my sun glasses and wind breaker on but they ended up in the pack. No creek for the beagle. She loves creeks. She took a drink from a couple of mud puddles. She seems to think mud puddle and creek water is some kind of delicacy. I gave her some water from a water bottle, but I really think she wants creek water. My wife called my cell phone while we were walking but it did not come through and she left a voice message. I guess there is no cell service in at least part of the park. It seems odd given that there is no place in that park where you are more than a few hundred yards from a paved road, although with all the trees you cannot see much.
No sign of tiredness from the creek beagle today. It was between 65 and 70 degrees. She was raring to go and probably could have gone on all day.
Despite the relative smallness of the park, and my familiarity with it, it occurred to me it is pretty disorienting being in the woods where you cannot see more than 50 feet in any direction and the trails meander around a lot. Even knowing where the trails go, and they are very well marked, it is easy to lose track of where I am. This park abuts an Interstate so traffic noise is helpful for knowing what direction is what. I think I will print out a trail map and get a compass, just to do some map practice. I think my old compass must be with my old day pack because I cannot find either.
9-7-10
Was planning to take the dog to the park for a nice walk on some horse trails first thing in the morning, but I had left my hiking stick in my wife's car and she had gone somewhere and I don't like walking on those trails without a stick, so I decided to just go out in the neighborhood for a normal walk. I had on a tee shirt and pair of shorts, which was inadequate clothing and after I stepped off the porch the brisk wind and cool temperatures got to me. We ended up walking around the block and coming back home because I wimped out. Lesson learned - make sure your gear is available when you need it and adequate to the task at hand.
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