Yellow Flowers, Speckled Leaves...What Is It? ©

 

A field of red trillium, on the Valentine Flats trail, photograph by the author.  For a trail map go HERE

Because of COVID-19 and the schools being closed, Boy Scout Troops can’t meet, and so for my readers who are Boy Scouts in the United States, this article can help you with the plant identification requirements for First Class – Author’s Note

Have you ever been walking through the woods during the early spring and saw a flower or plant and wondered what its name was?  Wouldn’t it be more fun if you knew what it was called and a little bit about it?

It annoys me when I am out in the woods and I see something that I can’t identify.  So, here are five plants, that I have learned to identify over the years.  Four, that I saw this spring, while I was exploring the “Valentine Trail”, in Zoar Valley, outside of Gowanda, New York.  And one, that I last saw in Algonquin Provincial Park, alongside the “Big Pine Trail”, off route 60, two years ago.

 

Trout-lily (erythronium americanum), photographed in Zoar Valley on the valley wall, by the author.

 

Range map of the trout-lily, from United States Department of Agriculture.  States are colored green where the trout-lily may be found.

Trout-lilies are also known as fawn-lilies or dogs-tooth violets, and in Canada, they grow in Quebec, Ontario and in Nova Scotia.  In the United States they can be found from Maine, west to Minnesota and then south to Georgia. 

The trout-lily is one of the earliest blooming wildflowers that you will find in the hard wood forests of northeastern North America.  Even before the ground is fully thawed, the leaves of the trout-lily are emerging into the Sun, pushing through the matted leaves of the hardwood forest, that they call home.  The trout-lily can be found in the woods from the first thaw to when the trees of the forest come into full leaf, which depending on your latitude and elevation is from March to June.

Trout-lilies are perennials flowers that will come up each year, and they can be recognized by their brown mottled leaves, which are said to resemble the spots on the trout found in the woodland brooks.  The trout-lily has no stem, except for when it flowers, then one flower and a stem push up from the underground bulb.  Trout-lilies are often found in large colonies, which can be hundreds of years old, since, although they produce seeds, they spread mainly from underground bulbs, that have “budded” from older bulbs.  Unfortunately, these plants are slow to spread as the bulbs are sterile up to their seventh year and in that year, they only produce one leaf and no flowers.  When the bulbs are fully mature, they will produce two leaves and a single yellow flower each year¹. 

 

Red trillium, trilium erectum L., photographed in Zoar Valley on the valley wall, by the author.

 

Range map of the red trillium, from United States Department of Agriculture.  States are colored green where the red trillium may be found.

Red trillium or red wakerobin or bethroot², as it is also known, can be found in the forest of northeastern North America from April to May, depending on your elevation and latitude.  Red trillium can be found in the rich, moist soils of Manitoba, east to Nova Scotia, and south throughout Ontario, Canada.  In the United States, they can be found from Georgia and Alabama, north to Illinois and Michigan, and all the way to the east coast.  They favor drier areas of open woodlands.  They are also perennial flowers that come up each year.  Red trilliums are interesting flowers, that do not have nectar and so they do not attract bees, however since they are deep red and have a disagreeable smell, similar to rotting meat, they attract carrion flies, which then pollinate them.  Red trillium flowers produce only a single reddish-black berry each season.

 

Great white trillium (trillium grandiflorum), photographed in Zoar Valley on the valley floor, by the author.

 

Range map of the great white trillium, from United States Department of Agriculture.  States are colored green where the great white trillium may be found.

Great white trillium is a perennial wildflower which has a wide range across eastern North America.  In Canada, it grows in the deciduous or mixed coniferous and deciduous forests of southern Quebec and Ontario.  In the United States it grows in woodlands from Maine, west to northeastern Minnesota and then south along the Appalachian Mountains to Georgia.  Interestingly, even though the great white trillium is the floral emblem of Ontario, Canada, this flower is not found in Algonquin Provincial Park, and according to Wildflowers of Algonquin Provincial Park, this is probably due to the Park’s higher elevation.  The great white trillium blooms, from April to early June, depending upon latitude and elevation. 

Northern blue violet, (viola septenrionalis), photographed in Zoar Valley on the valley floor, by the author.

 

Range map of the northern blue violet, from United States Department of Agriculture.  States are colored green where the northern blue violet may be found.

Northern blue violets are perennial wildflowers, which bloom from April to June, depending on elevation and latitude.  In eastern Canada, northern blue violets are found in Quebec, Ontario and Nova Scotia.  In the United States it is found from Maine, west to Minnesota and then south along the Appalachian Mountains to North Carolina.  There are several types of wild violets which can be found in the woods of northeastern North America and the northern blue violet is commonly found, particularly in sunny meadows and open coniferous woods.  The petals of this flower can range from a deep blue or violet to a pale lilac, and it has heart-shaped leaves.

 

Indian Pipe, (monotrope uniflore L.), photographed in Algonquin Provincial Park, alongside the “Big Pine Trail”, off route 60, by the author.

 

Since my picture of the indian pipes is not as clear as I would have liked, here is an extract from Wildflowers of Algonquin Provincial Park.

 

Range map of the indian pipes, from United States Department of Agriculture.  States are colored green where the indian pipes may be found.

The indian pipe or as it also known, the ghost pipe, is a rather sinister looking flower that grows throughout most of the United States and Canada, apart from the Rocky Mountains.  It favors deep shady woods at low to moderate elevations.  Indian pipes have only one flower per stem, with five-part flowers, and the stems are about four to eight inches (10 -20 cm) tall with small scale like leaves.  These plants are usually found in clusters but are sometimes found alone.  Indian pipes bloom from June to September, depending on the elevation and latitude.  

This deathly-pale plant is a parasite and is white due to a lack of chlorophyll, which is a substance that plants use to turn the Sun’s energy into carbohydrates through photosynthesis.  Indian pipes steal nutrients and carbohydrates from myccorhizal fungi in the soil, which in turn parasitizes adjacent tree roots.

Oh, and just in case it needs to be said; look, take pictures, enjoy, but don’t pick the flowers.  A century ago, New York State was heavily farmed, and today over fifty percent of the state is abandoned farmlands, that are returning to forest.  But while the trees and shrubs have made a comeback, the wildflowers have been slow to spread.  In fact, it has taken seventy years for some wildflowers to spread just 33 feet, or 10 meters³!

I hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me on YouTube at Bandanaman Productions for other related videos, HERE.  Don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE, and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube.  If you have questions, as always, feel free to leave a comment on either site.  I announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.

That is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!

Notes

¹ Trout-lilies are edible and while the author of Edible Wild Foods, “Trout Lily, Erythronium americanum” discusses how slow to reproduce these flowers are, he or she also writes about how to harvest and enjoy the, cucumber-tasting bulbs of these plants.  Personally, since these flowers are so slow to reproduce and since the bulbs of trout-lilies are small, measuring only ¹/₈ to ½ inches (about .3 to 1.3 cm) long, providing very little food value, and since they can cause vomiting, if you eat to many; it is my opinion that it is best to leave them be.

For more information on foraging for trout-lilies go HERE and HERE

² The root of the red trillium has traditionally been used to help with childbirth, which is why it is sometimes called “bethroot”, a corruption of “birthroot”.  Native Americans made a root tea from this plant to help with menstrual problems, to help with labor and to induce childbirth.  The whole plant could be made into a poultice, which would be used to treat inflammation, ulcers and tumors.

Mark Pistrang, “Red trillium (Trillium erectum L.)”, Plant of the Week, U.S. Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture

³ From the Wildflower Restoration Project, a project run by the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, which notes that “These plant species appear to be limited by their slow rates of dispersal. Their seeds are only able to travel short distances, and have an extremely low chance of survival.” 

Wildflower Restoration Project, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry,

Sources

DeLay, Chantelle; “Ghost Pipe (Monotropa uniflora L.)”, Plant of the Week, U.S. Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/monotropa_uniflora.shtml, accessed May 9, 2020

Edible Wild Foods, “Trout Lily, Erythronium americanum”, [EdibleWildFood.com, Copyright 2020], https://www.ediblewildfood.com/trout-lily.aspx, accessed May 9, 2020

Pistrang, Mark, “Red trillium (Trillium erectum L.)”, Plant of the Week, U.S. Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/trillium_erectum.shtml, accessed May 8, 2020

Strickland, Dann and LaVay, John; Wildflowers of Algonquin Provincial Park, [Friends of Algonquin Park, Whitney, Ontario; 1986], pages 2-8

Stritch, Larry; “Great White Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)”, Plant of the Week, U.S. Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/trillium_grandiflorum.shtml, accessed May 8, 2020

The 3 Foragers, “Trout Lily Identified”, Monday, April 15, 2013, http://the3foragers.blogspot.com/2013/04/trout-lily-identified.html, accessed May 9, 2020

United States Department of Agriculture, “erythronium americanum”, https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=ERAM5, accessed May 9, 2020

United States Department of Agriculture, “monotrope uniflore”, https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=MOUN3, accessed May 9, 2020

United States Department of Agriculture, “trilium erectum”, https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=TRER3, accessed May 9, 2020

United States Department of Agriculture, “trillium grandiflorum”, https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=trgr4, accessed May 9, 2020

United States Department of Agriculture, “viola septenrionalis”, https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=VISE5, accessed May 9, 2020

Wildflower Restoration Project, “NYS Wildflower Identification Guide”, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, [Syracuse, New York; Copyright 2020], https://www.esf.edu/restorewildflowers/NYS%20Wildflower%20Identification%20Guide.pdf, accessed May 6, 2020

Wildflower Restoration Project, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, [Syracuse, New York; Copyright 2020], https://www.esf.edu/restorewildflowers/, accessed May 6, 2020

How Heavy is Too Heavy? ©

 

A picture of the author in 1981, in Algonquin Provincial Park, when I weighed a little under 100 pounds (45.5 kgs).  I was carrying a pack that tipped the scale at about 70 pounds (32 kgs), which was about 70% of my body weight.  From the Gerry L. Reynolds Collection, used with permission.

How heavy will the packs be?  How heavy should they be?  How heavy are the canoes?  How heavy is too heavy?  These were the questions that several members of Boy Scout Troop 285 asked me.  They are planning an expedition to Algonquin Provincial Park and were concerned with how heavy the packs and canoes would be and how heavy was too heavy.  I gave them the quick and simple answer that you can carry about 30% of your body weight, without becoming overly fatigued, and that if you carry more than 50% of your body weight, you would become fatigued and you would have a higher risk of injury.

After I got home, though, I got to thinking; maybe there is more to this question than I answered.  So, I did some research and here is what I found out.

 

A picture of the author in 1981, in Algonquin Provincial Park, carrying a 17-foot Coleman Ramflex canoe, which weighed 85 lbs. (approximately 39 kgs), this canoe was over 80% of my body weight.  From the Gerry L. Reynolds Collection, used with permission.

 What Determines How Much You Can Carry?

There are two key factors which determine how much you can carry, your body weight and your level of physical conditioning.  There is a direct relationship between body weight and someone’s load carrying ability: the larger the person, the greater their fit-body weight, the more they can carry.  Also, in general, the better shape you are in, the more you can carry.

How Much Can You Carry?

According to Major Townsend’s thesis, The Factor Of Soldier’s Load, you can carry up to 30% of your body weight, or for an average American male¹, about 48 to 52 pounds (22 to 24 kgs) without becoming fatigued.  For every additional 10 pounds (4.5 kgs) that you carry, above 30% of your body weight, you will become increasingly fatigued and experience, approximately, a 15% decrease in your agility, strength, speed, reaction time and endurance².  Fatigue is the result of exercise or exertion and to recover from fatigue you will need to rest.  The greater the exertion, the greater your level of fatigue and the more rest you will require.

If the load that you are carrying is greater than 45% of your body weight, which for the average American male is a weight of between 72 to 78 pounds (33 to 35 kgs), then you will become fatigued.  Additionally, you will lose more than 35% of your agility, strength, speed, reaction time and endurance and you will be a greater risk of injuring yourself when carrying these loads³.

You can carry loads of up to 59% to 94% of your body weight, which for the average American male is between 100 to 150 pounds (45.5 to 68 kgs), for short distances of 12-1/2 miles (20 kilometers) a day for several days. However, you will be significantly fatigued, and you will lose between 75% to 100% of your agility, strength, speed, reaction time and endurance.  In addition, you will be at a significantly greater risk of being injured while carrying loads of this weight⁴.

 

A picture of the author in July 17, 2017, on the Kioshkowi Lake to Little Mink Lake portage, carrying canoe, which weighed 72 lbs. (approximately 33 kgs), this is about 40% of my body weight, used with permission.

Things to Keep in Mind...

First. when the researchers talk about body weight, they mean “fit-body weight”.  If you are carrying a few too many pounds, these pounds will count against the total weight, that you can carry on your back. 

Second, this information was created from data gathered by researchers from route marches, marches that lasted from several hours to a day in length and covered up to 12-1/2 miles (20 kilometers) per march.  This is an important thing for people to keep in mind, there is a difference between portaging between lakes and hiking all day long: “long-carries” versus “short-carries”.  From personal experience, carries of less than an hour, are quickly recovered from, even if you are carrying above 30% of your body weight.  However, having said that, multiple small-carries, i.e. portages, have a cumulative effect over the course of a day and will cause you to become increasing fatigued.

 

Excerpts from Foot Marches, FM 21-18, p. 5-5

Third, “load training” can only increase a person’s ability to carry weight by 10% to 20% over the maximum that they could carry before the training began.  In other words, you can learn to carry, based on the weight of the average American male, an additional 16 to 34 pounds (7 to 15 kgs) without becoming fatigued.  Beyond this point, the researchers state, no other increases in load carrying without increasing fatigue are possible.  Additionally, the American military historian and researcher, S. L. A. Marshall advocated “load training” only up to 30% of your body weight or slightly higher.  Other researchers have found that aerobic activity, such as running, calisthenics and weight-lifting exercises are not good training for “load carrying”⁵.  Instead, it was found that the best way to train to carry weight on your back, was walking while carrying weight on your back.

 

A picture of the author in July 17, 2017, on the Kioshkowi Lake to Little Mink Lake portage, used with permission.

For more information about how to carry loads over a portage see “Algonquin Portaging 101 ©”, found HERE.

I hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me on YouTube at Bandanaman Productions for other related videos, HERE.  Don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s Journal Online and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube, and if you have questions, as always, feel free to leave a comment on either site.  I announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.

That is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!

Notes

¹ Townsend, Stephen J., Major; The Factors Of Soldier's Load, p. 15

Major Townsend wrote an excellent thesis, which I highly recommend reading: it is a summary of several military field manuals and research reports.  According to Major Townsend, average American males weigh between 160 to 171 pounds or 73 to 78 kgs.

² Ibid, p. 15

³ Ibid, p. 16

⁴ Ibid, p. 16

⁵ Ibid, p. 81-82

Sources

Townsend, Stephen J., Major; The Factors Of Soldier's Load, [Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, 1994], p. 15-16, http://www.themilsimperspective.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/a284389-THE-FACTORS-OF-SOLDIERS-LOAD.pdf, accessed 02/02/2020

Foot Marches, FM 21-18 [Headquarters, Department of the Army, Washington, DC, June 1990], p. 2-7

The Infantry Rifle Company, FM 3-21.10 (FM 7-10) [Headquarters, Department of the Army, Washington, DC, July 2006], p. 11-4, https://www.bits.de/NRANEU/others/amd-us-archive/FM3-21-10%2806%29.PDF, accessed 2/3/2020

The Buddy System ©

 

The frontispiece from The Boy Scout Hike Book, by Norman Rockwell

The Boy Scouts Of America have been teaching the “Buddy System” for various outdoor activities since 1910.  As a Scout Master for over eleven years and a Birchbark Expeditions Senior Guide for more than five years, I have taught a great deal of young men about the buddy system.

Over the years, I have noticed that quite a few adults, those that were never part of Boy Scouts when they were young, have no idea what the buddy system is, what it is for or why it is important.  So, on the off chance that you have never heard of it either, here is what the buddy system is, what it is for and why it is important to you today as you travel through the wilderness.

In the original Boy Scout manual, The Handbook For Boys, the buddy system was used only when swimming, page 199 states “Scouts should always swim with a buddy”.  Over 100 years later, this is still important advice that can save your life.  Never swim alone!

“So a buddy system for getting the job done seems natural enough”, an excerpt from page 126, Field Book For Boys And Men, 1967

Over fifty years later, in the 1967 Boy Scouts Of America, Field Book For Boys And Men; they had expanded the uses of the buddy system to include cooking, gathering wood or water, cleaning and hiking over rough terrain.

“On rough or unfamiliar trails, hike in parties of at least three so that two can help a disabled hiker”, an excerpt from page 242, Field Book For Boys And Men, 1967

I have always taught the Boy Scouts and the adults that I have trained to use the buddy system for all of their outdoor activities, from setting up tents to gathering wood and water, cooking, cleaning up and hiking in the wilderness, and even when they are simply walking from one area of a Scout summer camp to another one.  For most of these activities, company simply makes the task more enjoyable, but just as with swimming or hiking it also makes the activity much safer.  Also, a more experienced person can be paired up with a less experience one so that, as the 1967 Field Book For Boys And Men states on page 126, “on-the-job training” can take place. 

If you are in the wilderness by yourself and you get hurt, quite literally, you are own your own and you will have to rescue yourself.  If you had a buddy or two with you, the situation would be very different.  With the buddy system, if you got hurt, your buddy could provide first aid or other emergency care and if necessary, help you get to safety.

 

The frontispiece from Field Book For Boys And Men, 1967

A two-person buddy system is good; however, a three-person buddy system is even better.  As it notes in the 1967 Field Book For Boys And Men, you should “…hike in parties of at least three so that two can help a disabled hiker”.  If there are three people in your buddy system and one is injured, the other two can give emergency care or one can give emergency care, while the other one goes for help.  I recently took a survival class taught by Craig White, a Canadian survival expert, who used to train the Canadian Military, and he emphasized that you should always be in a three-person buddy group, instead of a two-person buddy group.  The problem with the three-person buddy group, is that the person going for help is travelling through the wilderness alone and has no “buddy” available to help him or her if there is an emergency on the way.  A four-person buddy system, two sets of two buddies, is the best, because if one person is injured, one can stay to take care of him or her, while the other two can safely travel to summon help.

The buddy system isn’t only for the spring, summer and fall, or for camping or hiking; it is also for canoeing and portaging and it is critical to safe adventuring in the winter wilderness.

“Two people employing the ‘buddy system’ can periodically check each other for telltale white spots on their faces…Frostbitten feet are best thawed under the warm clothing of a partner”, an excerpt from Survival In Antarctica

During the winter, it is even more important to have a buddy with you, because they will be able to check you for the early signs of frostbite and help you rewarm frostbitten extremities.

And as a guide with Birchbark Expeditions, I always teach the three-canoe buddy system, since we usually travel in groups of three canoes.  This is because in Algonquin Provincial Park you are only allowed to have nine people per campsite and since we usually put two packs and three people in the canoe; three canoes make a total of nine people.  A three-canoe buddy system means that all three canoes stay together so that each can help if one of the canoes has an emergency.  And since there are usually three people in each canoe, when we get to a portage, the members of each canoe become buddies for the walk to the next lake or river.  This keeps everyone safe on both the water and the land.

So, Buddy Check!  And the next time you venture out into the wilderness take a buddy or two.

I hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and my videos at BandanaMan Productions and don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s Journal Online and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube, and if you have questions, as always, feel free to leave a comment on either site.  I announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.

Sources

Boy Scouts Of America, Field Book For Boys And Men, [New Brunswick, NY, 1967] frontispiece, p. 126 and 242

Cave, Edward; The Boy Scout Hike Book, [Doubleday, Page & Company, Garden City, NY, 1920] frontispiece

https://books.google.com/books?id=B3NLAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA57&dq=mess+kit+cooking&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiQv9vR7u_cAhVtx1kKHRhMAkQ40gEQ6AEIRTAG#v=onepage&q=mess%20kit%20cooking&f=false, accessed 8/15/2018

National Science Foundation, Division of Polar Programs Survival In Antarctica, [Government Printing Office, Washington D.C., 1984] p. 8

The Boy Scouts Of America, Handbook For Boys, [New York, NY, 1916] p. 199

Portaging 102: Troop 48's 2017 Algonquin Park Expedition

Algonquin Portaging 101 ©

 

An outtake from the July 17, 2017, Kioshkowi Lake and Little Mink Lake portage video, part one, photo by the author.

Have you ever wondered what it is like to portage a canoe or a pack, between two lakes, anywhere in the northern wilderness?  If you have, watch the video that my cameraman shot on July 17, 2017 on a 635 meter portage between Kioshkowi Lake and Little Mink Lake, in Algonquin Provincial Park, HERE or HERE.

The portage in the video was a successful portage, in that it was a “one-trip” portage, meaning we travelled between the lakes just once and therefore, we spent the least amount of time and travelled the least amount of distance possible, on that portage.

What are the secrets to having a successful one trip portage?

First you have to match the number of people in the canoe to the number of things being carried across the portage.  For example, if there are three people in the canoe and you have two packs, plus the canoe, then everyone has one thing to carry.  Providing that they can physically carry their item, then you should be able cross the portage in one trip. 

An illustration of a “one-trip” portage, drawing by the author

However what if your canoe has two people and two packs, not to mention the canoe?  Well, in that case, you are going to be forced to make a “two-trip” portage.  The problem with a “two-trip” portage is that you actually have to spend three times as long and cover three times as much distance as you would on a “one-trip” portage.

An illustration of a “two-trip” portage, showing you crossing the portage three times, drawing by the author

Why “three times” you ask?  Simple, there are three items and two of you; one the first trip across the portage you each carry one item, then you walk back across the portage to the starting point and get the last item: you have walked the portage three times and have taken three times as long as you would on a “one-trip” portage. 

What if you have enough people to carry everything, but the packs are too heavy for one of the people to carry, or maybe you are trekking in the wilderness with a child or young adult?  What is the ideal weight of a pack and when is the canoe too heavy for someone to carry?

You should always try to match, whenever possible, the weight of the packs and the weight of the canoe to the people who will be carrying them.  REI, Inc. recommends that the ideal pack weight should be 20% of your body weight and other experts recommend 25%; Stephen J. Townsend, in his thesis that used S.L.A. Marshall’s data from The Soldier’s Load and the Mobility of the Nation, suggested that a sustainable, comfortable load to carry is about 30% of your body weight; further he cautioned that you run the risk of injury, if you repeatedly and frequently carry more than 45% of your body weight.  Additionally he wrote that, occasionally overloading someone to between 65% and 90% of their body weight for up to twenty kilometers, or twelve and a half miles, for several days is possible, however the person carrying the overload has an elevated risk of an injury and it will travel slower.

How much can be carried by your body weight, by the author.

                                                Percentages of body weight

                                                and weight to be carried

                Body Weight          25%         30%         45%

                        180 lbs            45 lbs      54 lbs      81 lbs

                        150 lbs            38 lbs      45 lbs      68 lbs

                        120 lbs            30 lbs      36 lbs      54 lbs

                          90 lbs            23 lbs      27 lbs      41 lbs

                          60 lbs            15 lbs      18 lbs      27 lbs

So have fun and I hope that you enjoy your “one-trip” portages.

 

An outtake from the July 17, 2017, Kioshkowi Lake and Little Mink Lake portage video, part one, photo by the author.

I hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and my videos at BandanaMan Productions and don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s Journal Online and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube, and if you have questions, as always, feel free to leave a comment on either site.  I announce new articles and videos on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.

Sources

Townsend, Stephen J., Major, USA, “The Factors Of Soldier’s Load”, [Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, 1994], p 15-16, https://usacac.army.mil/cac2/CSI/docs/Gorman/06_Retired/03_Retired_2000_11/22_09_SoldierFuture_Jun.pdf, accessed 8/6/2019

Pasteris, Joe, “How Much Should Your Pack Weigh?”, [Recreational Equipment, Inc., 2019], https://www.rei.com/blog/camp/how-much-should-your-pack-weigh, accessed 8/6/19