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  1. Chizuru

    Poles or No Poles?

    Hi Claire, Firstly, no matter what, have a wonderful adventure. In looking over the answers, the ones who are only so-so about using poles are the one-pole users which is probably because they don't get many benefits with only one pole. One pole is a crutch. It gives a false idea of stability on...
  2. Chizuru

    Sticks and Boots

    I always use poles for the many reasons already quoted so I won't repeat them all except to endorse all of those reasons. I was having a lovely birthday weekend with my husband in June and he suggested that we go on a nice little walk, one that we often do and always using poles. As I hadn't...
  3. Chizuru

    Wearing glasses when it rains

    I wear prescription glasses and I use the Hands-free Euroschirm. Yes, it is expensive and quite weighty, but it is sturdy, wide, and brilliant as a sun shield as well. It held up in very strong winds, and I even used it as a windshield on windy but clear days. I hate wearing hats when it is hot...
  4. Chizuru

    What was left unused? What can be left behind?

    Of course, if you stay at places other than albergues/gites, you can ditch the towel, pillow, sleeping bag, liner, and soap. I have only ever used them in albergues and gites. Sometimes the albergues and gites provide a pillow and blanket, but in a few that I have used I have been presented with...
  5. Chizuru

    What was left unused? What can be left behind?

    The trowel is needed to dig a hole if caught short with the trots! I usually pick up my number twos in a doggy bag along with my toilet paper but for the squits it is better to dig a hole and cover it all up as you can't scoop it all into a baggie.
  6. Chizuru

    What was left unused? What can be left behind?

    We carried a lightweight lunchbox (a reused takeaway container) which we used to carry lunch food and used its lid as a cutting board and plate. What did I carry and didn't use or would leave behind next time: a headlamp, and a water bottle that purifies the water. What did I love or wish I had...
  7. Chizuru

    How do you carry the important stuff?

    It is hard to pick a pocket that is hanging off your waist in front of you. My fanny pack (very light North Face bag) is strapped on first, my pack goes over the straps at the back, so can't be accessed from behind, and my pack straps go over the front straps and leave only the bag hanging right...
  8. Chizuru

    Quiet pole tips?

    Thank you. I had black diamond poles and replaced tips just fell off. I tried to buy BD ones but they were out of stock. I didn’t think of duck tape. I have a different set now so hopefully I can get standard rubber tips. For those irritated by the sound, just change your mind set and think of...
  9. Chizuru

    Quiet pole tips?

    I like your thinking.
  10. Chizuru

    Skirts and wool leggings

    People with fat thighs can’t wear shorts as they ride up. I only wear dresses and skirts but with chub rub preventing undies for my normal clothes. While walking I wear tracksuit style long pants. When it rains I pull the legs up to my knees and they stay dry under my poncho. I am intrigued by...
  11. Chizuru

    Have albergues stopped providing blankets since 2019?

    That is a nifty-looking device but it looks like it will take up a lot of room in your bag, though I know that you can stuff things inside it. It would certainly be great to boil some eggs for lunches and breakfast, boil water, steam stuff, and make soups, etc. If you are going to bring that...
  12. Chizuru

    Have albergues stopped providing blankets since 2019?

    On the Podiensis this year, we mainly stayed in Gites in private rooms or B&Bs which all had blankets available but in the Gites all needed our own towels. Hire of linen only provided a mattress cover and pillow cover, not a top sheet, and that was often a disposable one, so a silk liner was...
  13. Chizuru

    Multipurpose shoes for shower and town?

    I walk with plantar fasciitis and find that my Crocs are so wonderful for sore heels at the end of the day. They are perfect for the shower, perfect for sore heels, they are Great walking on cobblestones in the towns, they are very lightweight but they are bulky. The younger people add little...
  14. Chizuru

    I think I solved my sleeping bag/liner dilemma

    Of course I meant just about the same cost when you are sharing a room. If you are walking solo, then a Gite/Albergue is much cheaper.
  15. Chizuru

    I think I solved my sleeping bag/liner dilemma

    That sounds like a great idea and will give you some nice mattress padding in Gites/Albergue s where they provide a blanket. It would be good to know before you travel which ones don’t provide a blanket. We have just walked half the Podiensis, packed a sleeping bag, and only needed it one Gite...
  16. Chizuru

    Gaiters?

    Dirty Girls are great. As others have said, they are to keep those little grains of dirt out of your shoes, not to stop the rain, but on damp tracks, they are fantastic as this is when you get lots of fine grains of sand flicking up the back of your legs and into the back of your footwear.
  17. Chizuru

    Umbrella for sun and rain - buy good quality (expensive) or just use a cheap one?

    I walked the Frances this time of the year 2018. I carried a Euroschirm Telescope hands-free reflective umbrella and it was a lifesaver. We would start out often in the dark and by 10 it would be getting hot. My reflective umbrella was strong, wide and sturdy. I used it mostly for sun protection...
  18. Chizuru

    Ladies Osprey Packs

    I believe that the trick with sticky zippers is to rub a graphite pencil along the teeth, or lubricate it with some waxy substance like petroleum jelly, chapstick, crayon or wax candle. Rub it into the teeth then work the zip up and down a few times.
  19. Chizuru

    Ladies Osprey Packs

    I have just been looking at the Ladies version of the Lumina and am very impressed by the lightness and the comfort of the fit. Not as pretty as most of the Osprey packs but I will gladly drop the looks for a lot of weight saved!
  20. Chizuru

    Does anyone wear gloves for sweaty hands on hiking poles?

    I use leather palmed cyclists gloves when I use my poles to prevent sweaty slippage and friction with the grips and straps and also to keep the sun off my hands. When it gets cold, I switch to possum/merino blend gloves. When it rains and is cold I slip a large pair of rubber washing up gloves...

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