High Sierra Topix

Great topic, I need a watch, I've took my kids hiking at Catalina Island with thick fog. What woke me up was this loud stampeed with a heard of Buffalo. My watch has no alarm to wake me up, the animals did. I looked at my watch and said we have to go so we can catch the boat back to shore. A ten plus mile hike to the dock, a long way for a 9 year old and 11year old with lots of Bisons. We made it in time, otherwise my wife would be upset at me. I know how fast or slow I hike with my watch. I don't like jewery, but I will wear a watch. For me it is very handy.
Don

From about the age of nine, I have always worn a watch. Growing up, I was the kid who was always asked by others what time it was. If my watch is not on my wrist, I feel naked. So I wear my watch all the time, except while sleeping.

freestone wrote:I bring a watch because I want to know how much longer I have to stay in my sleeping bag after I wake up at 0230 hours to wait for the dawn. Of course, I don't have to be backpacking to do this, that's is just the way I sleep (or not!!)

Sadly, I'm right there with you.

On one trip 20 years ago, I was having my usual fitful-to-insomniac night, and I saw it was starting to get lighter in the east, so I decided to get up and watch the sunrise. Waited around for a while, and eventually...the moon poked over the horizon. I went back to bed.

That, of course, was before I was in the habit of bringing a watch.

I've gone without a watch and really missed it. I won't do that again. If you're all like me, I wake up a lot during the night when I'm on the ground. This time of year the nights get long. I like to know what time it is when I wake up. Sometimes I wake up feeling really rested and it's only 11pm. That's when I know it's going to be a long night!
Rehydrating meals is my second reason for taking the watch. I so dislike crunchy rice or pasta.
I don't really need it much to tell how much daylight I have left. Depending on the terrain there can be a sizable time difference as to sundown.
Baff

I always wear a watch as my job as a truck driver is always based on the clock. Whether it be a delivery or a pick up it is always on a appointment basis. To be without a watch would just feel wrong. I had a Suunto Vector but I was not impressed by it so I took it back. Now a good ol Swiss Army Watch does the job just fine off and on the trail.

All this talk about watches on the trail brings back memories of a spring hike up Kibbie Ridge in the mid 70s. We had been hiking on snow all day and made camp above Many Island Lake. Our dinner was some kind of dehydrated slop that needed to simmer. The first thing we did was burn the directions so there was nothing to refer to when we began to debate the length of time our gruel had to simmer. One of us argued for ten minutes, another said twenty. Tempers flared, snide remarks were exchanged, our meal was all but forgotten in a battle of egos. My friend Kirk calmed us all down by saying, "None of us has a watch so it doesn't matter how long the stuff has to simmer." Thank you Kirk.

I was a professional educator in more ways than one. I believe that more information is virtually always better that less information. The passage of time is real. We can't escape it. We can pretend that the passage of time doesn't matter, but it does. We're going to die whether we like it or not, therefor I have very little fear of something over which I have absolutely no control. Eventually I am going to die, weather I carry a watch or not. Explain to me why less information on a BP trip is better that more information.

freestone wrote:I bring a watch because I want to know how much longer I have to stay in my sleeping bag after I wake up at 0230 hours to wait for the dawn. Of course, I don't have to be backpacking to do this, that's is just the way I sleep (or not!!)

Amen to that! A light dose of Ambien helps. I also like a watch for timing my breaks to make sure I drink enough water. I used a Timex expediton for awhile, but the alitmeter would always need adjusting, so I gave up on it. The one on my Garmin is somewhat better, but that is going to start staying home to save weight unless I am going to be off-trail alot. I always bring map and compass anyway. Is there a watch out there that has a reliable altimeter?

richlong8 wrote:Is there a watch out there that has a reliable altimeter?

there is this thread: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=6840&hilit=altimeter" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks for the thread- it is helpful.