The plan was magnificent. The Hat, High Altitude and Steve the (Bionic) Knee would form hiking entourage #1, and AXE, Whiskey Tottin' and "g" would form it's complement - both companies of men with iron legs would begin a 3-day backpacking trip from different trail heads miles apart. The goal being, to meet at the summit of Mt. Marcy for lunch on day #2.

Hiking entourage #1 would kick off their weekend at about 0600 hours on Friday morning, drive 2.5 hours, and hike an 8.6 mile trek (1200 ft. ascent) to a base camp at Panther Gorge. The guys who needed a pay check would leave at about 1530 hours, drive the same distance, and hike 2.1 miles from the ADK LOJ to a base camp at Marcy Dam. They agreed to set their Motorola WalkAbouts to channel 7, and beginning every 30 minutes at 1100 hours on day #2, try to make contact until both hiking troupes reached the top of Mt. Marcy. AXE decided to take his injured knee out for this test drive, omit the hike to Marcy, and assume the role of Chef DeBoot Blister for his woodsy-weary compadres after their 6-hour hike on day #2.

There was excitement in the air as the Boys prepared for their first backpacking trip of the season. "g" had scheduled plenty of field research for G-WeB on this first adventure. Going "light," with a total pack weight of about 34 lbs., "g" had carefully measured and weighed all of his clothing, gear and food options. He would be field testing his efforts to transform his pack into a water proof container, test a new super charged LED headlamp for night time hiking, check for day and night time visibility of his bear proof food canister with enhanced and multicolored reflective tape, limit his clothing allotment to the bare necessities, and take his yet to be proven bivy sack out for a ride! He truly hoped for some rain to test out his water proofed pack and life in a bivy sack.

Hiking entourage #2 took off from home on schedule. They would have a communication blackout with their counterparts until the next day. Whiskey Tottin' and "g" met at AXE's office to drive north together. AXE had prepared Saturday night dinner (ham with pineapple, wild rice, apple sauce, and a fine merlot) and Sunday morning breakfast (fresh blueberry pancakes, Vermont syrup and bacon).

The hike into Marcy Dam was easy. "g" kept pushing for a later start time to try and hike in the dark with his new headlamp. By the time they found a vacant site, and began to set up camp, it was plenty dark. TheBlack Diamond Zenix - HyperBright LED Headlamp performed better then expected.

After an evening snack, it was "food hangin' time"...that is, for AXEand Whiskey Tottin'. So, the threesome headed over to the food cables which were in terrible disrepair and working condition. "g" predicted their food would be gone by sunrise as it was hoisted a mere 10 feet off the ground. As for the carefree, what me worry about my food guy, "g" simply rolled his bear proof food canister into the woods... several hundred feet from camp (versus the 1/2 mile round trip hike to the food cables).

Then it started to rain. Really rain. "g" used his 4x5 ft. tarp as a community shelter. When his sidekicks easily retired to their comfortable and spacious portable shelters for the night, "g" operationalized the bivy sack plan! In the rain, protected by his umbrella, he removed his boots and stored them in plastic outside his shelter. His pillow sack was stuffed with dry clothing and his rain gear for the morning. His MP-3 player was strategically placed for an easy reach. After removing some clothing and storing it in plastic under his pillow, "g" honkered-down... or into... the sack... like a banana in it's peel.

OK. The truth. The bivy sack was cramped. "g's" wife referred to it as a portable MRI machine for the phobically inclined. But you know... it was perfect to sleep in. Once tightly enveloped inside, "g" played with the canopy adjustments to allow for just the right amount of cool air to enter the compartment. Since it was raining, the gap was marginal. Since the bivy sack was staked down in 3 places it didn't move as "g" rolled from side to back to side over the course of the night.

In the morning... it was still raining. With a great deal of finesse and balance, "g" unzipped the bivy sack, reached for his umbrella, stood up, and carefully balanced himself on alternating legs as he put on one boot at a time. Not very convenient to enter or exit, the sack did it's job - to provide protection from the elements. But, that's it.

AXE had been awake for a while. When "g" peeled himself out of the bivy sack, they scurried over to the community tarp. They made an executive decision to postpone AXE's elaborate blueberry pancake breakfast until a (hopefully) dryer next morning. So, it would be a BYO breakfast for Saturday instead of Sunday. By the time Whiskey Tottin' (who by the way... slurped on "g's" whiskey all weekend instead of brining his own) waltzed out of his tent, the water for coffee was boiling away. "g" had cooked up some Hot Sweet Rice and hot chocolate; the others had dry cereal, banana, non-refrigerated milk, and coffee... hmmm.