June 25, 2019
Ultralight backpacking - backlash
For some time, the way to be a "cool kid" was to embrace ultralight backpacking.
A recent phenomenon is people who once promoted it to start criticizing it.
Most of this is a perverse aspect of human nature.
The really cool people criticize others no matter what they do.
The "hipster" thing was always to say,
"Yeah, I was doing all that years ago before it was ever the hot thing."
So a lot of this is just hot air, but in the midst of all that, valid points
are raised. Ultralight backpacking is not an end in itself, but a means
to a greater end. Labels and weight categories are artificial.
It is good to bear all of this in mind.
So, some of the following discussion is worth pondering,
but take it all with a grain of salt.
Don't let it discourage you from reducing your weight and improving your skills.
Have any comments? Questions?
Drop me a line!
Tom's backpacking pages / tom@mmto.org