What did you not buy today?

[balzaccom]

This is a companion thread to all the threads on gear on these boards. It is increasingly clear that consumerism is a driving force in the issue of global climate change. With that in mind, I am not suggesting that we avoid ever buying anything again, or even avoid buying anything that comes in plastic packaging, but I am suggesting that we should also have a thread here to celebrate NOT buying new gear.


The full article, including examples of scavenged, salvaged, and very long-lived gear is here:

https://www.backpackthesierra.com/post/ ... -buy-today


So what you have re-purposed for your backpacking gear? What solutions have you found for gear that is low-impact/no impact on our environment. What gear do you have that has served its purposed well for more than ten years…and doesn’t need to be replaced, perhaps ever? What practices have you adopted that are a significant step in the right direction?


Yes, this thread may offend some advertisers who want us to buy their gear. But I would hope that most of them would also see the long-term benefits of the discussion.

[rlown]

All I need to buy is white gas and food. Haven't seen an electric stove yet. Would like to be able to get steel ammo now that it is required to hunt.
My quivers are full for what I need.

[bobby49]

Haven't seen an electric stove yet.

We won't see electric stoves until we see stove charging stations along the trail and at campsites.

[wildhiker]

Didn't buy fancy new clothes for cross-country skiing. Still using the Army surplus wool pants, polyester long underwear top, and thrift-store acrylic overshirt that I bought in 1975!
-Phil

[Wandering Daisy]

I think I can get one more season out of my old gear. Three packs, all with patched holes and repaired seams; two pair of shoes, neither what I really want; plenty of useful but not ideal clothing; and tent that also is not my favorite; a 50-year old splinted fly rod and my husband's old sleeping pad since my pad leaks. I have been keeping an eye on internet sales, but so far, cannot justify the added expense. At my age, the years of use I could get out of new gear is another consideration. Makes more sense just to use of all the old stuff. Thankfully, my children give me some nice new stuff each Christmas!

My big guilt issue is gas cannisters, but they are so handy. I have two big boxes of cans with a few days fuel left and cannot get them used up for car camping; I do few overnight backpack trips. The pile grows bigger each year.

[JayOtheMountains]

Jackets.

A tent.

Upgrades for the vehicle.

Probably won't see a need until fall at the earliest. So I'll continue to make a shopping list...

[Jimr]

I wanted to buy a pony, but it farted too much, so I passed on it.

[balzaccom]

My big guilt issue is gas cannisters, but they are so handy. I have two big boxes of cans with a few days fuel left and cannot get them used up for car camping; I do few overnight backpack trips. The pile grows bigger each year.

Ha! Daisy, we used to have a lot of those, until I made a rule that every time we went car camping, we had to use up the old, partial canisters first. It took a little time, but now we only have a couple of them lying around...

[Wandering Daisy]

You obviously do a lot more car-camping than I do! I even use two nearly empty ones for 2-3 day backpacks, and still cannot use them all up. My standard trip length is 9-10 days, which is just a bit too much for one medium cannister and too much for two. I used to supplement with cooking fires but with restrictions nowadays, that no longer works. Do you know if once a hole is punched in the cans, is it legal to put in a recycle bin?

[balzaccom]

You obviously do a lot more car-camping than I do! I even use two nearly empty ones for 2-3 day backpacks, and still cannot use them all up. My standard trip length is 9-10 days, which is just a bit too much for one medium cannister and too much for two. I used to supplement with cooking fires but with restrictions nowadays, that no longer works. Do you know if once a hole is punched in the cans, is it legal to put in a recycle bin?

I don't--but I do know that most National Park campgrounds now have a bin for recycling them...