GOING AFOOT
[Illustration: EMBLEM OF THE LEAGUE OF WALKERS]
GOING AFOOT
A Book on Walking
BAYARD H. CHRISTY
Published for
the League of Walkers
BY
ASSOCIATION PRESS
NEW YORK: 347 MADISON AVENUE
1920
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Special acknowledgment is gladly made to the respective publishers for
permission to use the following copyrighted material:
Quotations from the Journals of Henry D. Thoreau, copyright by Houghton,
Mifflin & Company; “Trees,” by Joyce Kilmer, copyright by George H.
Doran Company; “Uphill,” from “Poems,” by Christina Rossetti, copyright
by Little, Brown & Company, Publishers, Boston; “Overflow,” by John
Banister Tabb, copyright by Small, Maynard & Company; “The Lake Isle of
Innisfree,” by William Butler Yeats, copyright by The Macmillan Company.
None of the above material should be reprinted without securing
permission.
COPYRIGHT, 1920, BY
THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF
YOUNG MEN’S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATIONS
To
GEORGE J. FISHER
AT WHOSE INSTANCE, AND WITH WHOSE
KINDLY AID, THESE PAGES WERE WRITTEN
CONTENTS
I. HOW TO WALK 1
Posture--Wearing Apparel--Equipment--Care of
Body and Equipment--Companions.
II. WHEN TO WALK 39
At What Season--The Hours of the Day--Speed
and Distance--Stunt Walking--Championship
Walking--Competitive Walking.
III. WHERE TO WALK 63
Choice of Surroundings--Nature of Country--The
Goal and the Road--Maps--Walking by Compass.
IV. WALKING CLUBS IN AMERICA 79
The Appalachian Mountain Club--The Green Mountain
Club--Wanderlust of Philadelphia--Walking Clubs
of New York--Some Western Clubs--Association of
Mountaineering Clubs.
V. ORGANIZATION AND CONDUCT OF WALKING CLUBS 103
The Activities of a Walking Club--Rules
for Hiking--A Club Constitution--Juvenile
Clubs--League of Walkers.
BIBLIOGRAPHY 141
HOW TO WALK
I have met with but one or two persons in the course of my life who
understood the art of Walking, that is, of taking walks,--who had a
genius, so to speak, for sauntering, which word is beautifully derived
“from idle people who roved about the country, in the Middle Ages, and
asked charity, under pretense of going _à la Sainte Terre_,” to the
Holy Land, till the children exclaimed, “There goes a Sainte-Terrer,” a
Saunterer, a Holy-Lander. They who never go to the Holy Land in their
walks, as they pretend, are indeed mere idlers and vagabonds; but they
who do go there are saunterers in the good sense, such as I mean.
Some, however, would derive the word from _sans terre_, without land
or a home, which, therefore, in the good sense, will mean, having no
particular home, but equally at home everywhere. For this is the secret
of successful sauntering. He who sits still in a house all the time may
be the greatest vagrant of all; but the saunterer, in the good sense,
is no more vagrant than the meandering river, which is all the while
sedulously seeking the shortest course to the sea. But I prefer the
first, which, indeed, is the most probable derivation. For every walk is
a sort of crusade, preached by some Peter the Hermit in us, to go forth
and reconquer this Holy Land from the hands of the Infidels.
--Henry D. Thoreau, “Walking.”
I
HOW TO WALK
Observe the vigorous man as he walks: the stride is long and free; the
feet come surely and firmly to the ground, without twist or jar, toes
pointed straight ahead; the pelvis, swaying easily, carries an erect
body; the arms swing in alternate rhythm with the legs; the head is borne
free over all; breathing is deep and long; the blood courses strongly.
Every member shares in the activity.
WEARING APPAREL
It must be the pedestrian’s ideal, when he comes to consider the matters
of clothing and burden, in the least possible degree to interfere with
these full natural bodily motions: Clothing, while serving its purposes
of protection, must not bind nor rub; it may help to maintain, but it
may not disturb normal circulation. Burdens must be so imposed as to be
sustained with least effort, and to leave the limbs unincumbered.
_Footgear_ is of first importance. If one is to walk comfortably,
pleasurably, effectively, the muscles of the feet must have free play;
there may be no cramping, straining, nor rubbing; no unnatural position.
In Japan the elegant people toddle along in rainy weather upon blocks of
wood which raise their dainty slippers above the mud; but your rickshaw
runner splashes through the street on soles as pliant as gloves. Shoes
and stockings serve but one purpose--that of protection. If roads were
smooth and clean, people who live in temperate climates would go
barefoot.
When one walks long and hard, the blood-vessels are distended and the
feet increase appreciably in size. More than that, in the act of walking,
the forward part of the foot is constantly changing in shape: the toes
alternately spread and contract, bend and straighten. The whole supple
member is full of muscular activity.
The pedestrian accordingly will not advisedly clothe his feet in cotton
stockings and close-fitting shoes, however well made. The consequences
of so doing would be rubbing and blisters, impaired circulation and
lameness. Nor will he put on canvas shoes, nor heelless shoes, nor
rubber-soled shoes, nor shoes with cleats across their soles, such as
football players wear.
The best material for _stockings_ is wool, and for shoes, leather. The
preference for woolen stockings is not primarily because of warmth--even
in hottest weather they are preferable. It is because the material
is elastic and agreeable to the skin. In winter, warmth is an added
advantage; and, when one’s footgear is soaked through with water, there
is far less danger of taking cold in woolen stockings than in cotton.
Stockings should be bulky and shoes roomy. The layer of knit wool between
foot and shoe leather is elastic; it gives the exercising foot free
play, cushions the weight of the body, and, by filling all the space,
prevents rubbing. The rough bulky stockings known as lumbermen’s socks
are excellent. If their coarseness is harsh to the skin, finer socks
(of cotton, if preferred) may be worn beneath. If the woolen stockings
available are light, wear two pairs together. Never wear a stocking so
small or so badly shrunken as to draw or constrain the toes.
_Shoes_ should be roomy. They should when put on over heavy stockings
make snug fit about the heel and beneath the arch of the foot, but
the forward part should be soft and wide, to give the toes full play.
The “sporting” shoes of shops are to be let alone. The army shoes are
excellent, both of the Munson and of the Hermann lasts; they have been
carefully designed for just such service as the pedestrian requires,
and they are most successful. It has just been said that shoes should
be large; they should be considerably larger than the wearer’s ordinary
city shoes, both in length and in width. It is not sufficient to find a
shoe which is comfortable in the shop; the shoe may be wide enough, but
unless there be some allowance in length, one’s toes will, after ten
miles of hard walking, be squeezed till they are tender and blistered.
A man who ordinarily wears a 9 B, for example, should buy a 9½ D. There
should be as much allowance as that, at the least. A roomy shoe, its
looseness well filled (though not packed tight) with bulky, springy,
coarse wool, coarsely knit, is the very best foot covering. An additional
advantage should be mentioned: a tight shoe, retarding circulation, may
in extreme wintry weather increase unduly the danger of frosted feet.
Heavy stockings and roomy shoes are free of that defect.
There are no water-tight shoes, except in shop windows; and, if
there were, they would at the end of a long walk, have become very
uncomfortable.
A pair of army shoes should, with proper care, last, without resoling,
for 200 to 300 miles of walking--depending on the roughness of the way,
and whether one is “hard on his shoes.” If one is planning a longer
tour than this, he should provide two pairs of shoes, and wear them on
alternate days--a plan which, but for the added weight, would in any case
be preferable.
Some men prefer to walk in knickerbockers, others in long trousers (see
below). Most of those who prefer long trousers wear shoes with _high
tops_, reaching to the middle of the calves, and covering and confining
the ends of the trouser legs. Again, bad conditions of footing--such as
deep snow, for instance, or bog land, or low dense growth--may render
high shoetops advantageous. Low shoes are not advisable under any
conditions. For the open road, shoes of ordinary height are best. They
should be laced, not buttoned.
For certain kinds of service, shoes should be specially adapted. _Rubber
heels_ are excellent on macadam roads, but it should be borne in mind
that on hard wet surfaces rubber slips. The value of rubber heels is
greatest when walking through level, well-settled regions. When they are
worn, it is well to carry an extra pair.
_Hobnails_ are to be used only when necessary. Any attachment to,
and particularly any excrescence from, the sole of the shoe, is
disadvantageous. Iron hobs add appreciably to the weight; and they
tend to localize a pressure which should be evenly distributed over
the whole sole. For walking in level or in moderately hilly regions,
for such simpler mountaineering as consists in traversing highways and
mounting wooded slopes, one does not require hobnails; the soles of his
shoes should be of plain leather. One should let alone the rubber hobs
and inlays, the small scattered spikes, such as he sees attractively
displayed as part of the golfer’s outfit. To the pedestrian these things
are not worth the fancy prices asked; indeed, they are worth nothing to
him. Hobnails, then, must justify themselves in advantages which outweigh
their disadvantages; this they do in difficult mountaineering. Worse
than useless on the level, they become in the high mountains practically
a necessity. For climbing steep slopes, the rock faces and the dense
short turf of mountain tops, for scaling precipices of “rotten” rock,
for traversing snowfields and icy ledges, one needs to be “rough shod.”
In the Alps the soles of the mountaineers’ shoes are studded all about
their rims with _flügelnägel_--great square-headed hobs of iron, with
“wings” overlying the edges of the soles. Soft iron proves to be the very
best material to give purchase on rock surfaces, whether wet or dry, and
on ice and snow, too, it is best. These _flügelnägel_, known as “edging
nails,” and round hobs for the middle of the sole, called “Swedish
hobnails,” may be had in this country from dealers in sportsmen’s goods.
For mounting icy slopes, steel spikes in leather carriers, called
_crampons_, are secured to the feet over one’s shoes. These, it is
believed, are not now procurable in this country.
For snowshoeing a soft-soled shoe is preferable. Deerskin moccasins are
not serviceable for, unless protected by some outer covering, they soon
become water-soaked, and then they are worse than useless. Shoepacks
are good, and “Barker” shoes better. Barker shoes are made with vamp of
rubber and upper of leather. On this subject, see “The Snowshoe Manual,”
compiled by the Snowshoe Section of the Appalachian Mountain Club.
Special footwear is provided for other particular pursuits: The duck
hunter on the tide-water procures hip-boots of rubber; the ski-runner
wears shoes of special design, and so does the skater. But here we are in
realms of sports other than walking.
Footgear, then, must be comfortable, durable, adequate.
Sufferers from weak or falling arches will wisely modify these
suggestions, according to the advice of a reliable orthopedist. Indeed
it is well for any one who goes seriously about walking to have his feet
examined by a competent adviser, that he may guard against latent defects
and prevent difficulty.
_Clothing_ should afford necessary protection; should be light in
weight, should be loose, and should be so planned that, as one grows
warm in walking, the superfluous may be taken off. It is best that the
temperature of the body be kept as nearly even as possible, and there
is danger of chill, if one stands in cold wind--as on a mountain top,
for instance--while his underclothing is saturated with perspiration.
Ordinarily one’s clothing will (besides shoes and stockings) include
underwear, shirt, trousers, coat, and hat.
In summer, _underwear_ has no value for warmth; it should be of cotton,
sleeveless, and cut short at the knees. If, however, one is walking in
the mountains, or at a cooler season, he will do well to carry with him a
flannel undershirt, to wear at the end of the day, when resting. In cool
weather light woolen underwear covering both arms and legs is best--and
when the thermometer falls low or one is to endure unusual exposure,
the underwear should be heavier. Some pedestrians will leave cotton
underwear out of account altogether, wearing, by preference, light wool,
and, on a very hot day, none.
The _shirt_ should be of flannel, light or heavy, according to season. In
milder weather, cotton shirts, such as the khaki-colored ones worn in the
army and procurable at army supply stores, are good. On a summer walking
tour it is well to provide one’s self with one cotton shirt and one of
flannel. The collarband should be large; collar and cuffs should be of
one piece with the shirt.
In the matter of _trousers_, one man will prefer long ones; another,
short.
_Knickerbockers_, for summer wear, should be of khaki (or of one of the
various close-woven cotton fabrics which pass under that name; a material
called “cold stream duck” is good), or of jean; for winter, they may be
of corduroy or of woolen goods. The army breeches, narrowed at the knee,
and laced close to the calf of the leg, are riding breeches, really;
and, while fairly good, they are not of best design for walking, since
they restrain somewhat free movement of the knee. Knickerbockers should
be full at the knee, and should end in a band to buckle about the leg
immediately below the knee joint. Such walking breeches may be had of
dealers in sportsmen’s goods.
_Leggings._ If knickerbockers are worn, the calf of the leg should be
properly covered. In spite of such disadvantages as those incident to
travel on dusty roads and over burr-grown land, long stockings secured
at the knee are best for summer wear, without more. Spiral puttees are
good in cool weather; in summer they are uncomfortably hot, and even
when carefully put on, are somewhat confining. They have one notable
advantage: when used in deep snow they prevent, as no other leggings
can, melting snow from running down the legs and into the shoes.
For ordinary service the canvas puttees worn in the army are better
than the spirals--indeed these canvas puttees are on the whole more
satisfactory to the pedestrian than any other covering applied over
shoes and stockings. Leather puttees are unnecessarily heavy, and their
imperviousness is an actual disadvantage. It is only when traveling
through dense undergrowth and briars that leather puttees are really
serviceable--and that sort of wear is very hard on the puttees. High
shoetops, too, become under such conditions useful, as has already been
noted.
In wearing breeches laced about the calf, and in wearing spiral puttees,
care should be taken that they do not bind. Many of our soldiers in the
recent war suffered from varicose veins, and this was attributed in part
to the emergency, that many men unused to physical labor had to carry
heavy knapsacks. But it was attributed in part, too, to binding too
tightly the muscles of the legs.
For one special service heavy leg covering is desired: To the hunter
traversing the swamps and palmetto-grown plains of Florida, there is
some danger of snake bites. Ordinarily, apprehensions about snakes are
to be laughed at. The feet, ankles, and legs to a point two or three
inches above the knees, should be protected. This protection may be
effective either by being impenetrable, or by being bulky and thick,
or by virtue of both these characteristics. One expedient, now on the
market, consists of leggings having an interlining of wire gauze. Another
may be improvised: a bulky wrapping of quilted material, incased in tough
leggings of leather or canvas. Care must be taken to protect the ankles
below the reach of an ordinary pair of puttees. Any covering such as here
suggested must in the nature of the case be heavy and uncomfortable,
and will not be worn unnecessarily. One can only say for it, that it is
better than a snake bite.
_Long trousers_ should be of smooth close-woven material, not easily torn
by thorns, and, for winter wear particularly, resistant to penetration
by wind. The legs of the trousers should be confined within shoetops or
leggings. Long stockings are not required, only socks. In long trousers,
the knee movement is quite free. This rig is particularly good for rough
work.
Some men prefer to wear a _belt_; others, _suspenders_. The drag of long
trousers is greater than of knickerbockers, and, generally speaking, the
man who wears knickerbockers will prefer a belt; and the man who wears
long trousers, suspenders. The belt, when worn, should not be drawn very
tight. The best belt is the army belt, of webbing; it should not be
unnecessarily long.
In summer a _coat_ is needed only when resting, or as protection from
rain. On one summer tour, the writer found himself comfortable without
a coat, but in its place a _sweater_ and a short _rubber shirt_,
fitting close at neck and wrists and with wide skirts, to cover man and
knapsack together. Such a rubber shirt, called in the supply houses a
“fishing shirt,” may be had of willow green color, or white or black.
A sweater is so convenient to carry, and so comfortable, as to be all
but indispensable; but, as protection from rain, the rather expensive,
and for all other purposes useless, fishing shirt is by no means a
necessity; a canvas coat or the coat of an old business suit will
answer well. One does not walk far in a downpour, and the slight wetting
of a passing summer shower will do no harm. In the Tyrol where, before
the War, walking as recreation was developed as nowhere else, many
pedestrians carried neither coat nor sweater, but a long full _cape_ of
heavy, close-woven, woolen material; when not needed, the cape is carried
hanging over the knapsack. Such a cape serves, in some degree, the
purposes of a blanket.
A convenient mode of carrying a coat is described by Mr. William Morris
Davis, in “Excursions around Aix-les-Bains” (see Bibliography). Mr. Davis
says:
“Clothing should be easy fitting, so that discomfort shall not
be added to fatigue. Even in warm weather, a coat will often
be wanted on a ridge crest, or mountain top: it can be best
carried as follows:--Sew the middle of a 30- or 35-inch piece
of strong tape inside of the back of the collar; sew the ends
of the tape to the bottom of the arm holes: pass the arms
through the loops of the tape, and let the coat hang loosely on
the back; it will thus be held so that nothing will fall from
the pockets and the arms and hands will be free.”
For winter wear, one will dispense with any such garment as a fishing
shirt, but will require both coat and sweater. The sweater should be a
warm one, and the coat should be, not heavy nor bulky, but windproof
rather.
A valuable garment for cold weather is the Alaska “parka,” a shirt-like
frock, light, windproof, and it may be made storm-proof. Made of heavy
denim or of khaki cloth and worn over a sweater, the parka is very
satisfactory. Description in detail will be found in _Appalachia_, Vol.
XI, No. 3, page 287.
The _hat_ should shield a man’s head from a driving rain, and, if it be a
bald head, from the sun. If the man wears spectacles, the brim of the hat
should shield the glass from rain and from the direct rays of the sun.
The hat should be small enough and soft enough to be rolled up and tucked
away when not needed. An old soft felt hat will do; the crown should be
provided with ventilation holes of generous size; a leather sweatband
is uncomfortable, particularly in hot weather, and may sometimes cause
bothersome infection of a sunburned and abraded brow. The writer has
found a white duck hat, its brim faced with green underneath, very
serviceable in summer. In tropical countries the familiar pith helmet is
an almost necessary protection.
One who wears eyeglasses should be careful to provide himself with
_spectacles_, preferably metal-rimmed, and on a long tour will advisedly
carry a second pair, and even the prescription. See further regarding
spectacles, under the caption, “Colored glasses,” page 22.
The choice of _clothing for cold weather_ may be governed by these few
simple rules: (1) The objective is maximum warmth with minimum weight.
(2) The trunk of the body--the spine, particularly--the upper arms,
and the thighs should be most warmly protected. (3) Let the clothing
be soft and bulky within (of wool chiefly), and externally let it be
substantially windproof. The hoods worn by the Eskimos are made of the
skins of water-fowl, worn feathered side in. (4) Have no crowding of
clothing under the arms. (5) Do not wear long coat-skirts; let the coat
be belted at the waist. (6) Protect the ears, when necessary, with
a knitted “helmet,” or with a cap having an ear-flap which, when not
needed, folds across the crown. (7) Woolen gloves or, better still,
mittens should be worn, and, outside of these, if it be very cold,
loosely fitting leather mittens. (8) Except in extremely cold weather, do
not wear leather garments, nor fur. Even a fur cap is intolerable when
one becomes warm in walking.
The _color_ of clothing is not unimportant. Whether as naturalist or
sportsman one desires to be inconspicuously clad, or as a mere wayfarer
on dusty roads he wishes to conceal, so far as may be, the stains of
travel, he will choose khaki color, or the olive drab made familiar
nowadays in the uniforms of the navy aviators. Gray flannel trousers, a
white sweater, a bright-colored necktie, for wear in the evenings, are
good as part of the equipment. But to that subject the next chapter will
be devoted.
In planning an extended hike one will ordinarily have to reckon on some
railway traveling. City clothes may be sent by express to the point
where walking ends. Then the return journey may be made comfortably and
inconspicuously.
The foregoing notes for men will be found sufficient to indicate what
is a suitable _costume for women pedestrians_. With a woman’s needs
particularly in mind, it should be said that skirts should be short,
hanging at least six inches clear of the ground; shoetops may be
accordingly higher; and all garments should be loose. When walking in
remote regions, many women will prefer to wear knickerbockers rather than
skirts, and in mountaineering knickerbockers are requisite. Even bloomers
are objectionable. In such case a woman’s costume more nearly approaches
that of men.
A girl, writing of a tour upon the Long Trail in Vermont (see page 84),
says: “Khaki riding breeches are best, as they are of light weight and
briars do not catch on them. I can’t picture any one taking the Trail in
a skirt.”
The Appalachian Mountain Club prescribes a climbing outfit for women in
the New England mountains, as follows: High laced boots with Hungarian
nails; woolen stockings and underwear, light weight; woolen or khaki
waist, skirt, and bloomers; felt hat; leather belt.
And the Alpine Club of Canada publishes this among other notes upon
women’s costume: “It is the dropping of the waist line down to the hips
that is the secret of a woman’s wearing her knickerbockers gracefully.
The top of the knickerbockers should hang on the point of the hips, with
the belt as loose as possible. This makes discarding corsets, which of
course is absolutely necessary, most comfortable.”
These notes on costume are intended to cover the subject, and to serve
as reminder and advice to those contemplating walking tours of all
sorts. But the practice of walking as an art and recreation does not by
any means require such elaborate preparations. Otherwise, the devotees
would be few. For an extended tour, or even for a holiday excursion, one
may well give consideration to these many matters; but for a Saturday
afternoon walk, it will suffice to put on proper footgear, leave one’s
overcoat at home, carry a sweater if need be, use forethought about
details, and be ready to betake one’s self from office to highway, with
assurance of comfort and enjoyment. And beyond this, there still remains
to be spoken of the daily round of walking from home to work and back
again, from office to restaurant at noon. This daily regimen of walking
requires no special costume--admits of none, indeed. It may be that as
one is thoughtful to take more steps on the routine path of life, he will
give more careful attention to the shoes he buys and to clothes. But
let no one close his mind to the subject with the too hasty conclusion
that walking requires an impossible amount of special clothing. Any one
who cares to, can make any needed modification of his ordinary business
costume, without making himself conspicuous, and probably with gain in
comfort and consequent well-being.
EQUIPMENT
On a one-day excursion, a man will walk unburdened; and, on exceptional
longer trips, pack-horses may carry the baggage from one camping ground
to another; but, ordinarily, on a tour continuing day after day, one will
carry on his own back all that he requires. Should his route lie through
settled country, where shelter and bed are to be found in farmhouse or
wayside inn, the man will travel with lighter load, and with greater
freedom and enjoyment; if he must carry his blanket, too, walking becomes
harder work. It may be that one will spend his vacation in the woods,
and journey partly afoot, partly by canoe. In that case, a good part of
his walking will be the arduous toting of _impedimenta_ (canoe included)
across portages, from one lake or stream to another. Proportionately as
his burden is heavier, the sojourner in the wilderness will be disposed
so to plan his trip that he may stop for successive nights at favorite
camping places. From these he will make shorter trips, and, unencumbered,
climb mountains, perhaps, or explore other parts of the country about.
The bulk of what is carried should be borne on the back. Drinking cup
may be hung to the belt; knife, watch, money, and various other small
articles will be carried in pockets; map-case, field glasses, or fishing
rod may be slung by straps from the shoulders or carried swinging in
one’s hand, ready for use; but, for the rest, everything should be
carried in the knapsack.
In case the pedestrian is traveling in settled country and is not obliged
to carry a blanket (and such is by far the freest, pleasantest way to
go afoot), the best _knapsack_ to be found is of a kind in general use
in the Tyrol. It goes under its native German name, _rucksack_. It is
a large, square-cornered pocket, 20-24 inches wide and 16-18 deep,
made of a light, strong, closely woven, specially treated fabric, of
a greenish-gray color, and all but water-proof. The pocket is open at
the top, slit a few inches down the outer face, is closed by a drawing
string, and a flap buckles down over the gathered mouth. Two straps
of adjustable length are secured, each at one end to the upper rim of
the sack at the middle point, and at the other end to one of the lower
corners. When the filled knapsack is in place, the supporting straps
encircle the shoulders of the wearer, the closed mouth lies between the
shoulder blades, the bottom corners extend just above the hips, while
the weight of the burden, hanging from the shoulders, rests in the curve
of the back. Genuine Tyrolean knapsacks are, since the War, no longer
procurable in this country; good copies of them are, however, to be had
in our sporting-goods shops. The army knapsack is fairly good.
In case the pedestrian makes his tour in some remote region, where
lodging places are not certainly to be found, he will be obliged to carry
his blanket, and probably some supply of food. In such case, he will
choose a larger knapsack. The sack known as the “Nessmuk” is a good one;
and another, somewhat larger, is the “Gardiner.” These sacks are neither
of them large enough to contain both blanket and the other necessary
articles of camping equipment; the blanket should then be rolled and
the roll arched upon and secured to the knapsack after the latter has
been packed. Grommets sewed to the knapsack afford convenient means
for securing the blanket roll in place. A still larger (and heavier)
knapsack, large enough to contain one’s camp equipment, blanket and all,
is called the “Merriam Back Pack.” It is recommended by an experienced
camper, Mr. Vernon Bailey, chief field naturalist of the U. S. Biological
Survey.
In hot weather the knapsack becomes uncomfortably wet with perspiration.
_Wicker frames_, sometimes used to hold the sack away from the back to
allow circulation of air beneath, are bothersome and uncomfortable.
For carrying heavier burdens short distances, as when making portage on
a camping trip, a _pack harness_ is used. Its name sufficiently explains
its nature. An additional device, called a _tump line_, may, if desired,
be bought and used with the pack harness. The tump line is a band which,
encircling the load on one’s back, passes over the forehead. With its use
the muscles of the neck are brought into play, aiding the shoulders and
back in carrying. It is astonishing, what an enormous burden a Canadian
Indian can manage with the aid of harness and tump line. These articles
may be bought at sportsmen’s stores, and at the posts of the Hudson’s Bay
Company, in Canada.
The equipment for a summer walking tour, on which one is not obliged
to carry a blanket, should weigh from ten to twenty pounds, according
as one carries fewer or more of the unessentials. It is impossible to
draw up lists of what is essential and what merely convenient, and
have unanimity; one man will discard an article which to another is
indispensable; the varying conditions under which journeys are taken will
cause the same man to carry different articles at different times. The
ensuing lists are intended to be suggestive and reasonably inclusive; for
any given walk each individual will reject what he finds dispensable.
_Requisites carried in one’s pockets_: Watch; knife; money; compass;
matches; handkerchief.
_Requisites carried in the knapsack_: Change of underclothes, stockings,
and handkerchiefs; toilet articles; mending kit; grease for shoes.
_Articles which, though not necessary, are altogether to be desired_:
Second outer shirt; second pair of walking shoes, particularly if the
tour be a long one; sweater; pair of flannel trousers, light socks and
shoes (gymnasium slippers are good), and necktie for evening wear;
medicaments; notebook and pencil; postcards or stamped envelopes; a book
to read.
_Articles which may be requisite or desired, according to season or
circumstance_, to be carried in pocket or knapsack or, some of them,
slung from the shoulders ready for use: Colored glasses; pajamas; head
net, as protection against mosquitoes; woolen underclothing; gloves or
mittens; knitted helmet; naphtha soap, for washing woolens; map case;
canteen; culinary articles; whistle; clothes brush; flashlight.
An indefinitely long list might be made of articles which a man will
choose, according to taste and inclination. A bird-lover will carry
a pair of binoculars; a collector, his cases; the fisherman, rod and
fly-book. Some member of almost every walking party will carry a camera.
Notes upon some of the articles thus far enumerated will be useful:
The _pocketknife_ should be large and strong, with one or two blades;
leave in the showcase the knife bristling with tools of various kinds;
see that the blades are sharp.
Let the _watch_ be an inexpensive one; leave the fine watch at home; do
not wear a wrist watch, particularly not in warm weather. At the wrists
perspiration accumulates and the circulating blood is cooled. Any surface
covering at that point, and particularly a close-fitting band, is in
hot weather intolerable. But, regardless of season, a wrist watch is in
the way, and is sure soon or late to be damaged. For the pedestrian its
disadvantages greatly outweigh the small convenience it affords.
The best _moneybag_ is a rubber tobacco pouch; a leather bill-folder and
its contents will soon be saturated with perspiration.
A _compass_ is a requisite in the wilderness, but not elsewhere.
Regarding compasses, see further pages 75 and 116.
_Matches_ should be carried in a water-tight case.
_Toilet articles_ will include, at a minimum, soap, comb, toothbrush and
powder. A sponge or wash-rag is desirable. A man who shaves will, unless
journeying in the wilderness, carry his razor. The soap may be contained
in a box of aluminum or celluloid; the sponge in a sponge bag; the whole
may be packed in a handy bag or rolled in a square of cloth and secured
with strap or string.
_Towel_ and _pajamas_ are not indispensable; because of weight, they
should be classed as pedestrian luxuries.
The _mending kit_ will include thread, needles, and buttons, and here
should be set down safety pins, too, an extra pair of shoestrings,
and--if one wears them--an extra pair of rubber heels. A small
carborundum whetstone may be well worth the carrying.
The best dressing for leather is mutton tallow. Various _boot greases_
of which tallow is the base are on the market; one, called “Touradef,”
is good. There are lighter animal oils, more easily applied; a good one
is called “B-ver” oil. Mineral oils are not so good; “Viscol,” the most
widely used of these, is sold in cans of convenient size and shape.
_Medicaments_ should be few; a disinfectant (permanganate of potassium in
crystalline form, or tablets of Darkin’s solution), a cathartic (cascara
is best--it may be had in tabloid form, called “Cascaral Compound”),
iodine, a box of zinc ointment, a roll of adhesive tape, and a small
quantity of absorbent cotton will suffice for casual ailments. If one
is going into the wilderness, he may well take a first-aid kit--with
knowledge, how to use it--and medicine to deal with more violent
sickness; ipecac and calomel. In malaria-infested regions, one should
carry quinine, with directions for administering. Talcum powder and
cocoa butter are, in proper time, soothing. Citronella is a defense
against mosquitoes; another repellent is a mixture of sweet oil or castor
oil, oil of pennyroyal, and tar oil; spirits of ammonia is an antidote to
their poison.
As to _reading matter_, each will choose for himself. The book carried
may be the Bible, it may be “The Golden Treasury,” it may be “The Three
Musketeers.” Again, it may be a handbook of popular science or a map of
the stars.
Regarding _map_ and _map case_, see page 75.
_Colored glasses._ On snowfields, on the seashore, where light is
intense, the eyes should be screened. The best material, carefully worked
out for this purpose, is Crooks glass. Its virtue lies in this: that it
cuts out both the ultra-violet rays and the heat rays at the opposite
end of the spectrum. Crooks glass may be had in two grades: Shade A and
Shade B. Shade A, having the properties just described, is itself almost
colorless; Shade B is colored, and cuts out, in addition, part of the
rays of the normal spectrum. Goggles may be had of plain sheets of Crooks
glass, and these will serve merely as a screen; but, if one wears glasses
anyway, since two pairs worn at once are difficult to manage, it is well
to have one’s prescription filled in Shade A, and (if one is going to
climb snow peaks or walk the seabeach) then a second pair in Shade B.
Ordinary colored glasses will serve a passing need; amethyst tint is best.
A _canteen_ is requisite in arid regions and when climbing lofty
mountains; elsewhere it is sometimes a justified convenience.
The writer well recalls the amazement of two Alpine guides some years ago
when, on the top of a snow peak, hot coffee was produced from a thermos
bottle. He hastens to add that the thermos bottle was not his; he regards
such an article as a sure mark of the tenderfoot.
Even though one be traveling light, the pleasures of a summer holiday may
be widened by providing one meal a day and eating it out of doors. In
order to accomplish this, one needs to carry a few _culinary articles_: A
drinking cup, of course--that is carried in any case, conveniently hung
to the belt. Then one should have plate, knife, fork, spoon, a small
pail, perhaps a small frying pan, canisters of salt and pepper, a box of
tea, a bag of sugar, a receptacle for butter. Most of these articles,
and some toilet articles as well, may be had made of aluminum. Do not
carry glassware, it is heavy and breakable. Don’t carry anything easily
broken or easily put out of order. But even here make exceptions. For
example, a butter _jar_ is better than a butter _box_. The writer, for
one, despises an aluminum drinking cup; when filled with hot coffee it is
unapproachable, when cool enough not to burn the lips the coffee is too
cold to be palatable; he, therefore, in spite of its weight, chooses to
carry an earthenware cup.
A _whistle_ will have value chiefly for signaling between members of a
party.
A party of two, three, or four will carry more conveniences than a man
journeying alone. For illustration, in the party, one camera is enough,
one map case, one pail, one butter jar; and these may be distributed, so
that, while carrying only part, each member of the party may enjoy all.
With a camera in the party, a supply of films will be stowed away in a
knapsack; a light, collapsible tripod may be worth the taking, if one
cares to secure pictures under poor conditions of light.
Two usual items of an amateur equipment, better left at home, are a
_hatchet_ and a _pedometer_. A hatchet is of no value, except in the
wilderness, and not always is it worth carrying even there. Ordinarily a
stout, sharp knife will answer every purpose. When one is on a camping
trip on which he makes long stops, he will care for something better than
a hatchet--a light axe. Regarding the uses of a pedometer see page 116.
If the contemplated tour lies through the wilderness, and accommodations
for the night are not to be had under roofs along the way, one must carry
his _blanket_. The blanket should be selected with lightness and warmth
in view. The army blankets are fair, but softer, lighter, warmer ones may
be had. Blankets should be of generous dimensions. A large double blanket
should not exceed eight pounds in weight, and single blankets should
weigh half as much. The Hudson’s Bay blankets are justly famous.
A blanket enveloped in a windproof _blanket cloth_ is very much warmer
than if not so shielded. Herein lies the virtue of a sleeping bag.
Similarly, a tent--particularly a small one, for one or two men--keeps
out wind and retains warm air. With the use of a tent, the weight of
blankets may be less. The blanket cloth serves both to keep the wind from
penetrating the blanket and also to keep the blanket dry. It prevents
penetration of moisture from the ground; and, if one is not otherwise
protected, it shields one from dew and from light rain. The blanket
cloth, too, must be of the least weight consistent with service. Because
of weight, rubber blankets and oiled ponchos are out of the question.
Better light oilcloth, or, better still, the material called “balloon
silk” (really finely woven, long-fiber cotton) filled with water-proofing
substance. “Tanalite” is the trade name for a water-proof material of
this sort of a dark brown color. A tarpaulin seven feet square made of
tanalite is, all things considered, the most serviceable blanket cloth.
With blanket and tarpaulin, one’s pack should not exceed 25-30 pounds in
weight. A mode of rolling blanket and tarpaulin and of securing the roll
to the knapsack is suggested on page 18.
_Blanket pins_ are worth carrying. By using them one may keep himself
snug, nearly as well as in a sleeping bag.
A small cotton bag, useful in a pack, may be stuffed with clothing and
serve as a pillow.
A satisfactory _sleeping bag_ will hardly be found in the shops; those
that are serviceable are too heavy for the pedestrian. And yet the idea
embodied in the sleeping bag, the idea of attaining maximum warmth from
the materials used, jumps precisely with the pedestrian’s needs.
The difficulty with the sleeping bags on the market is that they are
made for gentlemen campers, and not for those who take up their beds and
walk. For one thing, the gentleman camper has abundance of clothing, with
changes of all kinds. But the pedestrian sleeps in his clothes. Of course
he does. It would be folly for him to carry in his pack the equivalent
of what he wears on his back. His day clothes should be serviceable
as night clothes, too. All he need carry is the additional protection
required when he is resting on the ground in the colder night hours.
And, in addition, he will have a change of the garments which lie next
his skin; but no more. If when sleeping a man is not wearing all that he
carries, then he is carrying more than is necessary. He may, indeed, have
stuffed in his pack woolen underclothes, for night wear only. For another
thing, in making choice between one material and another, the weight of
the material is important in far greater degree to the walker than to
the gentleman camper. With these considerations in mind, the pedestrian
contrives his sleeping bag of the lightest material available to serve
the ends in view.
Essentially, a sleeping bag is a closed covering of two layers: an inner
layer of heat-insulating material, and an outer layer of water-tight,
wind-tight material. Even the gentleman camper, scornfully referred to
above, chooses the lightest, warmest blankets he can find; the pedestrian
can do no better. However, he does not take so many. But, respecting the
outer covering, the pedestrian refuses the heavy water-proofed duck of
the ordinary sleeping bag, and selects instead water-proofed balloon silk.
The simplest sleeping bag may be made by folding a six by six wool
blanket within a cover of water-proofed balloon silk and sewing together
the bottom edges, and the side edges, too, from the bottom upward, to
within a foot or so of the top. The bag measures approximately three feet
by six, and should not weigh more than five and one half pounds.
Instead of the blanket, other material may be used. Men differ in the
amount of covering they require; and then there are the inequalities of
climate and season to be reckoned with. A suitable material, lighter than
wool and affording less warmth, is sateen; a somewhat warmer, somewhat
heavier, substitute for the wool blanket is a down quilt. When still
greater warmth is needed the blanket may be double, or blanket and down
quilt may be combined.
A rectangular bag, such as that just described, may be criticized in
two particulars: for one thing, it is not long enough for a man of good
stature, and, for another thing, there is waste material in it. It would
be just as warm and just as serviceable if, instead of being three feet
wide at the bottom, it were at that point only two feet wide.
The specifications of an excellent sleeping bag for pedestrian use
are given in a pamphlet published by the Appalachian Mountain Club,
“Equipment for Mountain Climbing and Camping,” by Allen H. Bent, Ralph
Lawson, and Percival Sayward, and with the courteous assent of the
designers, are here incorporated.
A bag made on the dimensions given is suitable for a man five feet eleven
inches tall.
A strip of the material for the inner layer is cut to the pattern
indicated below. It is 87 inches long, and at its widest point 32½
inches across. The widest point is 45 inches from the foot. At the foot
the strip is 20 inches wide, and at the head, 21 inches. The sides are
outwardly curved. This is the _under_ strip.
[Illustration]
A second _upper_ strip is, in over-all dimensions, a duplicate of the
first, but for the fact that it is 9 inches shorter. From the foot up and
for a length of 78 inches it is identical with the first strip, but at
that point it is cut short. A face opening is cut in the upper edge of
the second strip, 10 inches across and 11 inches deep.
[Illustration]
These two strips are superposed and their overlying edges are sewed
together. All edges are properly hemmed or bound.
As the user lies in the bag, his feet just reaching the bottom, his face
is encircled in the face opening. The excess length of the under strip
then becomes a flap, to fold over his head. Buttons and buttonholes may
be provided, as indicated in the drawings, to secure the flap in such
position.
The material for the outer layer is cut to the same pattern, with
sufficient enlargement of dimensions to allow the outer bag to contain
the inner bag and cover it smoothly.
The outer material will preferably be water-proofed balloon silk
(“tanalite”); the inner material may be sateen, or blanketing, or down
quilt. The designers suggest still another material: Australian wool
wadding, encased in sateen. They say, “a brown sateen material is the
best covering, as a very finely woven goods is necessary to keep the wool
from working through. The bag does not need to be quilted, but should be
‘tied through’ about every six inches.”
The balloon silk outer bag should weigh about one and one-quarter pounds;
the bag of sateen should weigh about two and one-quarter pounds. C.
F. Hovey Co., 33 Summer St., Boston, and the Abercrombie & Fitch Co.,
Madison Ave. and Forty-fifth St., New York, have made bags to these
specifications.
It remains only to add a word respecting the outer cover of balloon silk.
Balloon silk, which in reality is a fine-woven cotton, is, relatively
speaking, a delicate material, and furthermore it is not perfectly
water-tight. The great advantage of lightness justifies its use. But the
bag must be carefully handled, and after hard service the cover must be
renewed.
Dr. Charles W. Townsend, of Boston, an experienced camper, writes:
“The sleeping bag is a home-made affair, that takes up only
a small part of the room in a rucksack, and weighs four
pounds. It is made of lamb’s wool wadding, lined with sateen,
and covered with flannel. It is about six and one-half feet
long and tapers, so as to be wider at the mouth than at the
foot. With ordinary clothing, I have slept warm in it with a
temperature of forty degrees. I have also a balloon-silk cover,
which can be arranged to guy-ropes, to make a lean-to tent over
my head, and gauze curtains for insects. I think that weighs
two and one-half pounds.”
A _tent_ will be carried when the route lies through unsettled country.
In a sparsely settled region, one will run the risk of heavy rain for
a night or two, rather than bother with a tent; but in the wilderness,
a tent is a necessity, for even such a tarpaulin as has been described
as a suitable blanket cover, is not perfectly water-tight. One cannot
sleep out in a driving rain storm. At a pinch, of course, one can make
shift, and perhaps under rock ledge or shelter of boughs keep fairly
dry; but after a wet night in the open, one needs assured protection the
second night. The lightest tents are made of balloon silk; they weigh
four pounds and upwards. Two men traveling together will have a tent in
common and will distribute and equalize their burdens. As has been said,
a tent affords warmth (particularly when carefully pitched, with a view
to making it wind-tight) and, accordingly, blankets need not be so heavy.
Though water-proofed balloon silk is not perfectly water-tight, one may
keep perfectly dry in a balloon silk tarpaulin or sleeping bag, within a
balloon silk tent.