Selecting and Setting up Your Campsite

 Selecting the perfect campsite takes a bit more thought than noticing a pretty area to pitch your tent.  Without considering all of the important factors of setting up your campsite, you may find yourself in a dangerous environment or you could cause damage to the environment.  Exercising a little precaution when choosing and setting up camp will ensure a peaceful campsite that provides the right amount of shelter and convenience.

Evaluate Your Surroundings

Before deciding on the place to pitch your tent, take a careful evaluation of your surroundings. Look around the entire area where you are thinking of placing your tent, look above to be sure a gust of wind won’t bring any tree limbs down into your tent.  Consider where you would set up your cooking area and a safe place to organize your gear. 

Check for uneven ground, dirt hills, ant hills or wasp nests which could quickly ruin your camping trip. It is best to set up your tent on a vegetation-free, flat area of land that offers some shade and buffer from the wind.  Think about drainage in case it rains to avoid a soaked campsite. 

Keep Essential Supplies Close

Once you determine the best place to set up your tent for shelter, unpack your gear systematically and keep your essential items close by. It is a good idea to have a flashlight or headlamps in a pocket near your tent entrance for late night bathroom breaks.  If you are camping with children, giving each child a headlamp helps them to feel some level of control and gives them an important job to keep track of their light source.  You can even hand out color coded lamps so each person has their own and keeps it handy. 

Make sure you can quickly access your rain gear, insect repellant, dry clothes or insulative layers.  Make sure everyone knows where the first-aid kit is as well as food and water supplies.  You will want to keep your cooler a safe distance from the tent to drain water without soaking your camping area. 

Leave No Trace

Be mindful of vegetation and follow the guidelines of Leave No Trace to reduce any impact to the environment.  Be respectful of others when camping in public areas and allow enough distance from other campsites and trails. 

Cascade Mountain Tech offers high-quality camping and hiking gear to make your camping trip a total success.  Packing a quality roto-molded cooler will help to keep your ice for up to 10 days, greatly reducing your need to trek back and forth for supplies of ice.  Check out our quality trekking poles, with something for the whole family.  We’ll show you how to select the right hiking trekking pole for you and offer tips to use your trekking poles correctly for the most benefit.  Top it off with comfortable camping chairs and you are set to enjoy a camping trip to remember. 

Cascade Mountain Tech provides quality hiking and camping gear that is built to last.  We offer a wide selection of quality trekking poles, camping chairs, super coolers, camp bedding and more. Contact us with any questions on setting up your camp and for quality gear that will be a part of your camping memories for decades to come.

The Proper Way to Pack Your Backpack

 When packing your backpack for a mountain hike, there is a lot more to it than just throwing your stuff in a bag like you are packing an overnight bag.  Packing your backpack takes some planning and know-how to adjust your weight-load properly for comfort and to have your most important items accessible when you need them.  You do not want your pack to be heavier on either side as a lop-sided backpack puts added weight on one side, one shoulder and will leave you with muscle and joint soreness.

Adjusting the Weight Load of Your Backpack 

It is important to be sure that your weight is distributed evenly, especially for longer hikes.  You want to be sure that your heaviest items like water and food are packed as close to the middle of your back as possible. Lighter items like clothes and your sleeping bag are best located furthest from your back, so at the bottom and around the edges.  Be sure to even out any weight that you place on either side to avoid shoulder pain, back strain and even discomfort in your hip and joints from hiking with a lop-sided pack. 

Adjust Your Backpack Straps

Make sure that your straps are adjusted properly for comfort. The best way to do that is to first loosen all of the straps such as your shoulder straps, hip belt, sternum strap, load lifters and any other straps.  Place the pack on your back and you will feel all the weight on your shoulders. Next, fasten and adjust your waist belt, then adjust your shoulder straps to pull the backpack back up against your back.  Then clip the sternum strap, pull the load lifter straps out and down to shift the weight load from your hips to your shoulders, once you release both load lifter straps you should feel the weight shift to your hips. You will become more comfortable with adjusting the straps of any new backpack once you have used it for a while. 

You will want to place items that you may need quickly in your top compartment, like your compass, map, water bottle, first aid kit, rain jacket and snacks. 

Once you get your gear packed and ready, grab your trekking poles from Cascade Mountain Tech and you will be ready for a nice long, prepared hike.  Don’t forget a lightweight, packable backpacking camping chair to take the load off and enjoy the view. 

Cascade Mountain Tech offers quality camping and hiking gear including trekking poles, camping chairs, camp bedding, rotomolded coolers and more.  Our experienced staff can offer you more tips for successfully packing your gear.  Contact us with any questions and for quality hiking and camping equipment.

Your Guide for Hiking During Quarantine

 Hiking is a great way to stay active, maintain strength and elevate your mood and mental health. Most of us could use some mood elevation right about now, although in these unique times we cannot just grab our gear and hit the trail like we used to. With some planning and preparation, you can still get your hiking fix while protecting yourself and being respectful of others.  

Here are some tips to follow for hiking during quarantine:

Skip the National Park Hike

We have some beautiful National Parks in the U.S. and you might feel them calling your name if you have some free time on your hands.  We recommend that you keep your hikes local as much as possible and be aware that many National Parks are understaffed or not staffed at all to protect park employees and the public. Be sure to call the Ranger station and check the rules for the trails you plan to tackle. 

Stick with a Small Group

We already know that we should maintain contact with a small group and not be socializing with large groups of people.  With one or two people on the trail, you should be OK by most standards to keep your distance from one another and any other hikers on the trail.  Find a buddy and enjoy your hike but save the group hikes for later.

Choose the Right Trail

Avoiding large crowds goes for on the trail also, which means that you might be more comfortable and safer on a wider trail.  Try to go during off-times when the trail is less likely to be busy.  Try to find some off the beaten path trails that are not the most popular favorites most hikers flock to. 

Do Not Hike Right After a Rain

You should generally wait at least 24 to 48 hours after a rain before hitting the trail, to protect yourself from flash flooding or slippery paths and also to protect the trail from erosion.  Some trails will close after a rain for these very reasons so plan ahead and be sure your trail is open.

Get ready with quality hiking trekking poles, camping chairs, roto-molded coolers and more.  

Cascade Mountain Tech offers quality camping and hiking gear for the beginner to the advanced hiker.  We have all the gear you need for hiking during quarantine and any other time with quality camping and hiking gear built to last.  Contact us with any questions on how to hike safely during quarantine.

What to Look For in a Camping Chair

 The type of camping gear you choose is one of the biggest factors in creating a successful camping trip.  Quality gear is critical when in the wilderness, you need to know that your tent is not going to leak and your camping chairs are not going to rip or break.  Setting up camp for a peaceful getaway by firelight is only relaxing if you are comfortable. 

Here are some of the most important considerations when looking for camping chairs:

End use – are you car camping? Backpacking? When backpacking, packed size and weight are most important, comfort is what matters most when front country camping.  

Size and height – are your chairs for yourself, children or guests?  Do any guests need special accommodations like a wider size?  Low chairs are great for concerts or the beach but can be difficult to get out of for some people. High back chairs will be more comfortable around the fire and are more easily accessible. 

Design – some camping chairs come with 2, 3 or 4 leg options, suspension design, glider, reclining options and more.  Think about setting up camp and everyone’s comfort level. 

Backpacking Camp Chairs

For many hardcore backcountry hikers, camp chairs are a luxury.  If you can find space in your sack with a lightweight, packable camp chair it can really help you have some moments of comfort after a long day’s hike. 

Car Camping Chairs

When car camping, you can afford the luxury of packing a more comfortable camp chair like a high-back, ultralight camp chair.   You could even pack some high-back chairs for the campfire and some low-profile chairs to hang out by the water.  If you plan on doing day hikes and heading back to camp, stick a packable camp chair in your backpack to take a rest on the trail. 

The most important thing is to be sure that your chair accommodates your type of hike or camping adventure with size, weight, and performance.  Look for quality materials and weight limits, extras like sand feet if you’ll be sitting at the beach, and ease in folding and packing. 

Cascade Mountain Tech: Camp Chairs for Any Adventure

Cascade Mountain Tech offers high-quality camp chairs for any adventure, whether backpacking or camping with the family.  Our lightweight backpacking camp chairs hold up to 250 lbs. and weigh less than 2.5 lbs.  Choose the ultralight high-back camp chair for comfort and easy folding and packing, also with a 250 lb. weight capacity.  Don’t forget your trekking poles and check out the wide selection of quality carbon fiber and 3k carbon fiber hiking trekking poles from Cascade Mountain Tech.  

Cascade Mountain Tech offers a wide selection of quality camping chairs for any adventure, along with hiking trekking poles, roto-molded coolers, camp bedding and more.  Contact us with any questions and learn more about our quality camping chairs that are built to last.

How to Maintain Your Hiking Fitness Over the Winter

 When winter sets in and the days get shorter, the nights get longer and mountain caps in the Pacific Northwest are covered in snow, many of us choose to hibernate a bit.  Winter is a good time for snuggling up by a fire, enjoying a good movie and some holiday meals.  A little rest and relaxation is good for everyone, although taking too much time away from hiking can make for a rough transition in the spring. 

The best that you can do to maintain the stamina you have built up over the past year is to stay active. With a little effort and self-care, you can be ready to hit your highest summit when the weather breaks and explore more destinations. Here are some training tips to help you stay fit over the winter for a pain-free return to the trails. 

Stay Active to Maintain Hiking Strength

Just because you may not be able to get outdoors as frequently in the winter does not mean that you cannot find creative ways to stay active and maintain your strength.  One of the best ways to maintain your hiking strength is to, well, hike.  If you have not hiked in the winter, you might see if you can get a friend to go with you and follow these tips for Cold Weather Hiking from the American Hiking Society.  

Snowshoeing is a lot of fun but may not be for everyone. If you would prefer to hike on dry land there are many options for winter hiking in the Northwest without snow. You can find some snow-free trails in the Puget Sound lowlands most of the year except during extreme storms. Many other options exist to keep hiking down the coast and there is nothing wrong with heading south to keep exploring. 

Hit the Gym if You Can’t Hit the Trails

When you absolutely cannot get outdoors to hit the trails, make time to hit the gym, even if it’s in your living room.  Without keeping up with regular hikes, your muscle mass and stamina can decline quicker than you may realize.  Stay in shape with regular cardiovascular exercise, lift weights to maintain muscle strength, and stretch to maintain flexibility.  It might be easier to maintain a schedule with some classes at a gym combined with some home workout videos.  

Take the Stairs

Go beyond just taking the stairs when you have an option and seek out buildings with stairways that you can trek regularly.  This is not only great cardio but will keep your quads in shape with the next best thing to hiking up a mountain trail. 

Stay active during the winter months and you will thank yourself from the mountaintop come warmer weather.  Before you know it, you’ll be grabbing your trekking poles and hiking your favorite trails on warm, sunny days.  Get ready with high-quality hiking and camping gear from Cascade Mountain Tech.  

Cascade Mountain Tech offers a wide selection of trekking poles with ultralight and 3k carbon fiber, camping chairs, camp bedding and more.  Our experienced team is ready to help you choose the right trekking poles for you with pro tips to get the most benefit.  Contact us for more tips on maintaining your hiking strength and to be ready to hit the trails with quality hiking gear.