Das Gear

Written By Sarah Robison

Ladies and gentleman, please give me the pleasure of first introducing…my gearheads. My mentors. My universal guides.

I walked in looking for a wind-proof jacket but walked out with a uniquely persisting connection (along with the awesome windbreaker, of course).

His name is Joe, a retired Pittsburgh city school teacher turned avid hiker, who found joy in working in sales at REI post-retirement. “You look lost, what can I help you with?”, he asked on that fall day in 2018. I began to verbally spew. There was this bike trip that my friends and I were about to commence…I had a rain jacket but heard that I should have a separate wind-proof jacket?…is that a thing?…I’d like it to be black or grey…I wasn’t much for bright colors…the trail was a junction of a passageway and a towpath…over 300 miles…it went all of the way to Washington D.C.!!…had he heard of it?…

Not only had Joe “heard of it”, but he had ridden it to completion more than once. He was also fluent in it enough to follow with, “You aren’t riding that this fall, dear- the C&O towpath is closed in multiple sequences…the mud, it’s too treacherous and has washed out many portions, including the Conococheague Aqueduct.” Joe may have known that I wasn’t one for neon, but he didn’t yet know that he was staring back at the ringmaster of stubbornness…I mean, strong-will, herself. “No, we’re going, we’ve already taken off of work. Now, where is it that I can find your windbreaker selection?”.

The following year, Joe would have Katie and I over to his home to share Thai, a full-bodied Cab, and provide us with the tools that we would need to safely embark on our first backpacking trip. It was there that I learned the value of the Smart Water bottle, that a stove could fit in the palm of your hand, and that Joe and I would be friends for life. It was later that I digested that Joe had graduated from high school with my Father, Chartiers Valley Class of ‘65.

Talk about the circle of life.

As they say, the trail began to provide before I had even stepped foot onto it. In the outset of my thru hike preparation, I began to follow The Trek which led me to virtually “meet” a local who had completed her Appalachian Trail thru hike in 2019. By “meet”, I mean shameless Sarah straight up dropped into Elena’s DMs and weeks later we met for her to graciously let me pick her brain for knowledge over nosh and an IPA. Serendipity would have it that we only lived blocks away from one another. No surprise there. Elena has been integral in my preparation, patiently answering my inquiries in detail while coaching me to the starting line. She met me in my infancy of this idea and nurtured me to maturity with her kindness, understanding, and wisdom. I believed her when she told me that I was capable of walking from Georgia to Maine. I took her seriously when she said that it was more of a mental challenge than a physical one. I listened when she said, “Once the idea of a thru starts chirping at you, you can’t shake it. And it’s chirping at you.”

Elena is grit and grace.

Rewinding to our most recent section hike, Katie and I had found ourselves at Mountain Home B&B and “Cabbin” (yes, 2 B’s, not a typo) sharing a pizza topped with smoked sardines from our very 1st trial mail drop when we met “Skymall”, named for his affinity of the…electronics…the luxury items…the “just-in-cases”…a believer that comfort and security breed success, despite the pounds that these items may have added to his aching back (and successful he most certainly was, completing his thru on December 23, 2020). I was in “Camp Skymall”. All. The. Way. He was hiking Southbound (A.K.A. “SOBO”, from Maine to Georgia), and I immediately trusted him for his leniency on safety rather than happenstance. I admitted over dinner that I had this “itch” to thru hike myself, but the idea was probably too outlandish. Adam stared at me outright and said, “if you have the chance, you will never regret it. It will change your life, but you have to want it more than anything in the world.” I listened, yet again. Skymall hiked with Katie and I for days and we ultimately ended up offering he and his girlfriend a tent pad when they were in need, and he paid me a visit to Pittsburgh last week when I was in need of a pack “shakedown”, along with gobs of other text chains that he has supported me through over the past 5 months.

The trail F&$%#@g provides folks.


Then came John. Well, in actuality, my first interaction with John preceded my relationship with all of the aforementioned. A jack of all trades himself, he was working in sales at REI after leaving his teaching position to fulfill his calling to hike the Appalachian Trail. He took notice of my cycling swag and made mention that he had went on his own adventure earlier that year. “How long is the AT?”, I asked. I couldn’t believe my ears. I followed with a “WHAT?!?”. “It’s just a long walk kid. One foot in front of the other. That’s all.”, John replied.


I was invited to a thru hiking 101 talk at Grist House brewery the following year. Who was the lead? None other than…wait for it…wait for it…John. “Hey! I know him!”. I looked at him as if he were God himself, as I hung on his every word (and I have the archived outlined loose leaf to prove it). He had it all figured out. He was so confident. So capable. So strong. I all but genuflected when he sat at our table after his presentation. I told him that I was nothing short of obsessed with the idea of my own thru hike for the fearlessness that one must have to live outside of their comfort zone in this way. I sent him a Facebook friend request later that evening. He accepted. Weeks later. WTF, John?!? Years later, because of our virtual friendship, he learned of my decision to follow in his footsteps. Then it goes like this- he signed up for this very blog that you are reading then fired off an email to me detailing his support and belief that I was ready for this journey, despite barely knowing me. Kindred spirits, he felt that we were. He offered to meet to guide me through (and I quote) a “gear/soul shakedown”. I graciously accepted, and he was impressed with my selections (dab!!). We had an agreement that I could treat him to lunch to repay him for his kindness, and after too many hella good mussels and 2 Piraats, he wished me luck. 4 and a 1/2 short hours later he asked how things were coming along, and I replied with, “…so many emotions. I’m all turned around right now. It’s waterworks over here.”


John was at my front door 15 minutes later.


I let it all out. I’m talking, ALL. My anxious childhood attachment style to fears of waking up alone with tears frozen to my cheeks in the Smokies, most probably without cellular service and definitely with a severely fractured limb (the picture was VIVID). He made me laugh through the tears and reminded me that I’ve got this. He objectively told me exactly why I’ve got this so that I would believe him. Then we repacked my pack in a way that made better sense. In a way that gave me confidence. John saved me from myself that night.


The. Trail. Provides.


And now, without further ado, I give you Das Gear:

Shelter

Sleep system

Backpack System


Kitchen


Hydration


Clothing


Footwear


Toiletries


First Aid


Repair


Electronics (in dry bag)


Misc. 

  • Trekking poles: REI Co-op Flash Carbon Trekking Poles (item sold out online, unable to provide hyperlink. Item #108378)

  • Knife: CRKT Minimalist Bowie Fixed-Blade

  • Wallet: LiteAF Hiker Wallet

  • Credit card, Driver’s license, Medical insurance card, Vaccination card, Small amount of cash, Debit/ATM card

  • AWOL A.T. guide

  • Journal

  • Pen

  • Piece of kitchen sponge to clean pot

  • Extra zip lock bags

  • Mask

And my fair share of bracelets, tchotchkes, and charms. A girl’s gotta bring her mojo.

In 4 days, I will walk.

Aerial view of backpacking gear
Happy Backpacker

Joe Triebsch.

Waterfall on the Appalachian Trail

Elena.

Appalachian Trail Plaque

Adam “Skymall” Ciner.

Backpacking Gear Prep

John “Buddha” Inserra.

Packed and ready for backpacking
Sarah Robison
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