Fundraiser Goal Exceeded! Hike Support Donations Welcome!

It took me a while to pick a charity but I decided on the Cancer Research Institute and set a goal of $1,000 to be raised as a donation to this charity via per-mile sponsorship. 8 people have since pledged and I exceeded that goal and currently stand to donate roughly $1,200 to this organization (on behalf of the donors) at the completion of my hike!

And through this fundraising I got a number of emails asking me if there was a link where people could fund me. At first I was hesitant but I figure now that I have raised the target money for the cause, I am happy to take donations and put them towards the hike itself. So (Kathryn, Joe, Al, Liz, John and others) I have edited my page to include a place to accept donations for trip expenses such as gear replacement, resupplies, etc. So if you'd like to donate to me personally, you can do so directly via paypal here :)

Thanks for following along with me!

PCT Modifications to my Granite Gear Latitude Vapor Backpack

First project: Modify the top of my slightly too-big pack to be more compact. This is something I've thought about for a while and I had several ideas in mind. I thought about an elastic cord attached to parts of the top and also considered a small flap (preferably a waterproof one) to pull down over the top and use to compress the extra bag fabric. In the end, the solution sort of presented itself...

You've probably heard me talk (brag) about my bag. I just love it. At 2 lbs 10 oz the bag is pretty light weight (light enough) and very comfortable. The best parts of the bag are the double front (suitcase-open) zippers and the comfortable back pad and hip belt. But it is, admittedly, a bit too big for what I need.

On the inside of the bag there was one feature I decided to cut out. Inside the double zip there was a second cross-bracing system (which you can see in the shot below) which I've never found necessary, considering the outside straps have always held things in with no real problems. So as you see in the  picture I cut those straps out, and I used the straps to add to the front.

I tried to make a little square patch area to sew the straps onto the bag. And again, if you are easily upset by bad sewing skills, maybe just stop here and assume all went well...

 The finished modification takes the top of the bag and folds it down and clips it so that the bag has less awkward excess bag material at the top of the pack, and it also gives me another place to strap something (like a soggy wet tent) to the outside of the bag.