“I say, beware of all enterprises that require new clothes, and not rather a new wearer of clothes. If there is not a new man, how can the new clothes be made to fit? If you have any enterprise before you, try it in your old clothes. All men want, not something to do with, but something to do, or rather something to be. Perhaps we should never procure a new suit, however ragged or dirty the old, until we have so conducted, so enterprised or sailed in some way, that we feel like new men in the old, and that to retain it would be like keeping new wine in old bottles.”
Henry David Thoreau, Walden
Gear You Don’t Need
I recently saw an article on my Facebook feed titled, “Seven Day-Hiking Essentials.” The author admits to be “as guilty as anyone of obsessing over gear,” but that after “28 years of playing outside…I’ve learned that it’s not all about the product.” I couldn’t agree more. And I really appreciate people pointing this out, especially given how commercialized the outdoor industry has become. But what surprised me is immediately following this point, the article continues: “Let’s take hiking, for instance. Hiking, specifically a day hike, is just about the simplest, most approachable outdoor pursuit. Hell, it’s really just walking in the woods. Here are the seven things you need to start doing just that.”
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Uh, “Seven things you need”!?
Let’s look at the seven things he recommends: hiking shoes, backpack, hydration bladder, wool socks, snacks, hiking pants, mapping app. If we took his recommendations and purchased them it totals ~$300. So for someone new to the outdoors, interested in trying “just about the simplest, most approachable outdoor pursuit” they need to spend $300 in order to do it? The author admits “it’s really just walking in the woods”…think about how long humans have been walking through the woods. And now think how long hydration bladders and mapping apps have existed. John Muir didn’t have (or need) a hydration bladder.
#vanlife fail
I think the Thoreau quote above resonates with me because I ignored it once. In early 2016 I was working a well-paying job that I didn’t love. Like many millennials I dreamt of #vanlife, life on the road. So what’s the first thing I started doing? Researching the best rooftop storage systems, tents, sleeping bags, coolers, and more. I was planning my trip through the stuff I was going to buy. Sure, I also looked into where I wanted to go, what climbs I wanted to do. But the pursuit was largely imagined through the new things I was going to buy and use. I owned a tent, a sleeping bag, a car—plus more gear than I could even fit into my car (so obviously I needed a rooftop storage unit!). But the new and better stuff was what I needed to define my trip, instead of letting my trip unfold, change me, and inform the things I needed. I was doing exactly what Thoreau warned against.
Check out our trip report: Climbing Half Dome via Snake Dike
This point really first hit me on the afternoon of July 24th, 2016. I’ll always remember it because I have a picture of my tent bent sideways from the winds. I had been on the road for almost two months. Before leaving on this trip I had sold the tent I owned (“too small”, I thought) and bought a giant REI Kingdom 4. It was summertime and we were at 8000 feet elevation in the Colorado Rockies. It was a clear morning at a beautiful campsite. The Kingdom 4 looks majestic. But anyone who has spent a summer day in the Rockies knows what’s coming next. The afternoon thunderstorm hit and our tent was sideways, poles permanently bent. The ironic part is that the tent I previously owned (a 3+ season tent) would have easily survived the storm.
Still a struggle
Recently, while planning a longer day of climbing, I found myself thinking, “But that’s too much blue.” In imagining my clothing layering system, backpack, and other gear, I realized that my shoes, backpack, vest, and hat were all going to be blue. I can’t be the only one to think this kind of thing. Now, I’m all for planning an outfit to look good, but I had to laugh at myself. I had plenty of gear to be able to safely accomplish my goal. Yet I still wanted more. I wanted a new backpack (the one I have isn’t a “cool” brand), a new vest (is mine too feminine?!), and new pants (honestly, just bored with them)…like it was about the gear, not the joy of climbing that mattered.
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Don’t buy before you try
Walden was published in 1854, so this is nothing new. Before any of this fancy outdoor gear existed, Thoreau saw the same thing happening. The tendency to buy new things in order to try new things. “If you have any enterprise before you, try it in your old clothes.” The clothes might be different, but the issue is the same. I like to imagine it going all the way back to cavemen wanting a new animal skin before going on a hunt.
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The things you absolutely need
So what are the things that you really need? I’d argue there are just two: common sense and a spirit of adventure. And guess what? They’re both free. Now, this doesn’t mean you should be unprepared—make sure you read up and know the Ten Essentials. But that new outdoor activity you want to try…don’t wait, just do it in your “old clothes.” What are you wearing now? Can you safely walk through a forest in it? Grab a water bottle and maybe a banana. Just go.
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