My favorite tent was my first one and I will never forget it (sound familiar?). It was the REI Crestline Expedition. I purchased it in the mid 1970's and used it well up into the 1990's when I sold it to a friend and upgraded to a dome tent. That REI Crestline Expedition served me well near Mount Washington in the winter, along the Outer Banks of North Carolina in the summer, on a through hike of Pennsylvania's Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail, and in West Virginia's Dolly Sods Wilderness in fall, winter, and spring. It was an A-frame with thick aluminum poles, slept two to three, rainfly, vestibule, two doors, and a half circle in the floor that zipped open to cook on. They just don't make tents like that anymore.  ... View more

Visit https://lnt.org/about/ for great information and ideas. List the seven LNT principles on a map or brochure of the area. ... View more

I think I have had to replace all my round laces with flat cotton laces. As tight as I tie them, round laces seem to eventually come lose and untied. Flat cotton laces seem to hold the knot/bow almost all day. ... View more

I have to agree with hikermor. I have used a Garmin to mark waypoints I may want to find later, but a GPS unit, Garmin or otherwise, is no replacement for good map and compass skills, a hard copy map, and a decent compass. ... View more

It sounds like you are looking for a combination day pack and book bag. I think you will not find either with a breathable mesh back unless there is some sort of internal frame, which most small packs do not have. I used to use the REI  Flash 18 (9 oz, 1,100 in³) as both a day pack and a stuff sack when backpacking, but have since upgraded to the slightly larger REI  Flash 22 liters (13 oz,  1,343 in³ ). I have been happy with them both but the Flash 18 has been redesigned since I purchased it a few years ago.  I used  to use a day pack as a book bag, but not since I needed to carry a laptop and wanted the padded compartment and shoulder strap option as well as wearing it as a pack. I think both outdoor Research and Osprey make a small pack with laptop sleeve, pocket with dividers for pen & pencils, and the capability of stuffing the shoulder straps into the bag and using a single, larger shoulder strap. ... View more

The Good To-Go single serving Pad Thai https://www.rei.com/product/126366/good-to-go-pad-thai-single-serving is better than some Pas Thai I have had in some Thai restaurants. ... View more

Another MSR Pocket Rocket II user here. It is small and compactable enough for it and a small fuel canister to fit in the titanium mug I use to put water in to boil water. I like to keep it simple with no frills and the PR II fits that bill. ... View more

Consider the REI Grand Hut 4. https://www.rei.com/product/128687/rei-co-op-grand-hut-4-tent I purchased it for many of the same reasons. I am 5'8" and can set it myself. ... View more

Also my question. ... View more

The weeklong ACA Intro to Road Touring trip was around Williamsburg, VA.  There is also one in the Florida Keys. I think they move the trip around every other year, but COVID may have thrown a wrench in that. In the Intro to Road Touring trip I participated in, we ate breakfast together and then left each morning after breakfast whenever ready. We were on our own for lunch. We then met up at our designated campsite late in the afternoon and ate together and camped together each night. We generally followed the same route, with some options for side trips, but we were not compelled to ride together. Some rode solo. I tended to ride every day with the same group of two to three other cyclists similarly experienced and tempered. ... View more

I took some repair and maintenance class through REI and also Park Tools and did all my own maintenance for the first six years I had my bike. I finally took it into a shop for "professional" tune up, including replacing some drivetrain parts. When I rode it for the first time after the maintenance, it felt like I was riding a new bike! I will probably have it professionally tuned up again  in another five or six years. But between those tune up, I regularly clean and lube the chain and occasionally clean and lube the rest of the bike. ... View more