That's right, Super Ultra Heavy backpacking! How heavy is SUH? Well, an 80 lb pack qualifies I think. Here's an engaging in-depth primer on the subject in eight parts:

Backpacking System Extended Stay by Nutnfancy

Now don't get me wrong, I like Nutnfancy, I think he's probably a decent guy and I really like his knife reviews. I just thought some of you might enjoy watching his backpacking series as his approach is the polar opposite of the ideas we generally embrace here.

G

I am amazed. Scared even. HYOH...slowly and painfully.

LOL!!!!LOL!!!!SPOOF!!!!!Which BPL member is trying to fool us? Nice production..... This can't be real? No way Jose....

Edited by Creachen on 09/04/2009 22:48:03 MDT.

I think the knives he carries are probably heavier than my my baseweight. Surely he doesn't carry ALL of that?

And oh, for all his talk of capabilities ... I can stay warm and dry, well-fed and hydrated, with 6-8 lbs of gear. I can also cover 25+ miles a day if need be. I can reach places he never will with that kind of pack. I like my capabilities better.

Yes, he's carrying a huge load, but as he says in the video, that's the way he likes to do it. He respects other people who hike differently.

He doesn't say "Hike my way or you're doing it wrong".

Do I respect his CHOICE to carry that load? - yes.

Will I ever understand why he feels he needs 6 knives? - oh heck no

I do think the video can be misleading - in reality this is all of his gear and not a single trip gear list.

It's still alot of heavy stuff, and I am still afraid ;)

He says in his 1st introductory segment that his time tested system is not for a thru hike. It's to hike in 8-15 miles and camp out for a while, staying in the same spot. It's a "smell the same roses til they die" style rather than "smell new roses every hour of every day".

I carry 80-100 pounds on a regular basis AND I still post here :)

Wow! That's a lot of gear... I do get, though, that he's just going in to set up a base camp and he's not going anywhere else. Even for that purpose it's too much for my taste.

I'm not saying what's right for anyone else! I'm just saying that for me that wouldn't work. I like UL. One of these days I'm going to get around to posting my gear list. :)

Come on Kendall--Time to post the Gear list---Lets check it out---Its all good!!!

Hahahaha! It's coming, Jay. :)

I look forward to checking it out. That NUTNFANCY gentleman is a little over the top...How many knifes do you really need?

-Jay

He kept talking about having a tactical advantage! What is this? Afghanastan!?!?

Not to mention that of his 6 knives a couple of them looked like they could easily serve the same purpose.

SIX KNIVES!!! LOL

Edited by socalpacker on 09/06/2009 21:27:15 MDT.

To be fair, I doubt he ever packs more than four or five knives for any one trip...

*facepalm*

I seem to recall Bill Bryson in "A Walk In The Woods" came across a macho military type who was carrying around 120 lbs on the AT. He claimed he was going to make it even though he had to stop and rest every quarter mile or so.

WOW, man he's gonna put his chiropractors kids thru Harvard! I bet we could put all our packs together and he'd still have ten pounds on us.
Why do you need more stuff to hold still?

If I remember right Backpacker Magazine did an article on this "new wave" of our sport.

I was hiking the West Coast Trail once and came upon a guy with a bag of raw potatoes hanging off the front of his pack. This was the 22KG pack.

Great job, Larry, on "Backpacker Heavy"!

Once I came upon two college kids with enormous packs during a rain shower at a permanent tarp site in the White Mountains. One pulled out a coffee percolator and a stove and proceeded to make two cups of coffee. He next pulled out a big bag of fresh vegetables, said they had too much, and asked us if we wanted a pound or two of broccoli, onions, etc. We'd been out for four nights eating mostly home-dried food and were very happy to oblige. We had a great stew that evening, full of fresh veggies.

So there's something to be said for heavyweight campers, at least the ones who take too much food and are willing to share!

I think nutfancy is taking the shock and awe approach to backpacking. I also like the way he refers to himself in the third person, like a boxer. However, each to his own I say, as long as you get out there who cares how.

On Stewart Island (New Zealand)this year we met a guy (who we called the Axe Man). He had a fully stuffed 70 litre plus sack, a large bag for each hand, and a hatchet on his belt. He told us he was out for three weeks. He seemed to be taking a break every 20 minutes to eat one of his many cans. The thing that amused me was that he was wearing trail runners.