hiking / hill-walking

[Panache]

Thanks, Jamie. I usually put my keys, Swiss Army knife, and my iPhone into my sporran. I think it's the mobile that makes it a it too weighty for comfort. I'll try your suggestions.

As with many of your photos, you look very good but the background is much better looking! Would that be a sequoia?

Best wishes,
Jonathan

Jonathan ,

That is one of the mighty Redwoods at Henry Cowell State Park.

Due to the COVID 19 Disease, Santa Cruz County has not allowed visitors in from out of county. I was a little sad about this as HC is my favorite park. It made me very happy that this past weekend Santa Cruz County relaxed its rules on visitors (as long as proper safety protocols were followed ) and I could hike along the Redwoods again

Cheers

Jamie

For more information on HC

https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=546

[imbrius]

Late to the party here but nope. I don't do anything different with the sporran. I don't carry my phone when hiking so the only things in there are wallet and car keys. If you have a choice of sporran, I've found a simpler pouch style or larger "Rob Roy" style to be less prone to bumping around than one with a rigid back. But that's just my preference.

[Crazy Dave]

I guess I'm the odd man out. I trade my sporran for a fanny pack when I go on long hikes. I have a Sport Kilt one that I usually wear.

[grizzbass]

I have always worn it as normal and never had a problem.

[jthk]

Comrades,

Per suggestions, I decreased my sporran's weight from keys/knife/mobile to eliminate the mobile and indeed, the lighter weight made it more comfortable. I tried a Rob Roy style sporran and found that it bounced around even more than my D-shaped sporrans.

Hrm!

[imbrius]

Comrades,

Per suggestions, I decreased my sporran's weight from keys/knife/mobile to eliminate the mobile and indeed, the lighter weight made it more comfortable. I tried a Rob Roy style sporran and found that it bounced around even more than my D-shaped sporrans.

Hrm!

Glad something worked for you!

[Shinenotburn]

Wear it on your hip like a drummer.

[jthk]

Wear it on your hip like a drummer.

Thanks for the suggestion! I have tried to wear it on my hip towards the front and on the side of the hip. When the sporran is on the front of the hip, it bounces with every step and when it's on my side, my arms brush against it.

I think the best solution that I'm finding is a combo of other suggestions: either get rid of it; wear it higher AND lighten the load. That seems to work fairly well.

[Panache]

One of the great things about xmarksthescot.com is that no matter how much you know, you can still always learn something new.

Or at the very least, have new things to try.


Now I had posted a photo of my standard hiking outfit when I visited Henry Cowell State Park last week. This week my lovely Star and I were going on a longer hike (12 miles) at Big Basin State Park. The weather was going to be warmer and our trip twice as long as the week prior. So I pulled stuff out and thought about not making a good looking or traditional looking highland outfit, but making the most comfortable hiking outfit I could come up with. I also wondered about the sporran problem and was curious if using a more modern sporran with pockets (one of Stillwater Kilt's old "Nightstalker" sporrans) and such to organize my things would eliminate the need for an additional holster for my phone.

Taking Crazydave's suggestion I went with my Sport Kilt instead of my usual USA Kilt Semi traditional. The tartan is the Official California State tartan and it is based on the Muir tartan (in honor of naturalist John Muir) so it is a pretty appropriate tartan to go hiking in.



I changed my good looking (but old fashioned) khaki Messenger bag with something a bit more modern that would stay in place as I walked (and it had a small pocket on the strap that fit my favorite Gerber folding knife perfectly!)



The black work boots were replaced with lightweight trail shoes, I skipped the belt since I was carrying my phone in my sporran, and yes those are cheap soccer socks that breathe really well but fit snuggly enough to act almost as compression hose (and most importantly protect my legs from ticks and poison oak). I even changed out my market stick for a modern version.



Off we went on our hike through the redwoods









About halfway through the hike I determined that while my sporran didn't bounce because of the evenly distributed weight, it still was rather heavy. So I took Shinenotburn's suggestion and wore it at my side.

PERFECT!

It was so much more comfortable to hike with it on my hip.


Jock Scot (and other staunch traditionalists) if you are reading this post, know that this ensemble is not worn in anyway to represent traditional highland attire. I was looking for the most comfortable and efficient hiking outfit for Summer in California. I am really pleased with how comfortable I was





For the record we made the loop in 5 hours

My apologies to the Jonathan (the OP) if I'm hijacking his thread

Cheers

Jamie

[jthk]

Jamie,

Please, no apologies necessary. The thread is titled in a way that your adventures fall perfectly under its umbrella. Thank you for the detailed contribution and for the lovely photographs. It looks like a very good day! What a beautiful area!

When I go hiking, I aim for the most appropriate attire for the job. As of the past few years, a kilt is part of that outfit with full recognition of what I'm doing. I have the new-styled sporran from Stillwater and while it holds a useful amount of stuff and is built well, I find it one of the most uncomfortable sporrans to use on walks or hikes. This morning, however, I did wear it as you are wearing your red bag in your photographs. That was a very useful way to wear that particular sporran on an easy morning walk with the dog.

As always, I think of people in the past and what would they have done to make the job easier and more effective. Fully realising that -- at least today -- my climate and theirs would be very different from each other.

Thanks again, Jamie.

One of the great things about xmarksthescot.com is that no matter how much you know, you can still always learn something new.

Or at the very least, have new things to try.


Now I had posted a photo of my standard hiking outfit when I visited Henry Cowell State Park last week. This week my lovely Star and I were going on a longer hike (12 miles) at Big Basin State Park. The weather was going to be warmer and our trip twice as long as the week prior. So I pulled stuff out and thought about not making a good looking or traditional looking highland outfit, but making the most comfortable hiking outfit I could come up with. I also wondered about the sporran problem and was curious if using a more modern sporran with pockets (one of Stillwater Kilt's old "Nightstalker" sporrans) and such to organize my things would eliminate the need for an additional holster for my phone.

Taking Crazydave's suggestion I went with my Sportkilt instead of my usual USA Kilt Semi traditional. The tartan is the Official California State tartan and it is based on the Muir tartan (in honor of naturalist John Muir) so it is a pretty appropriate tartan to go hiking in.

The black work boots were replaced with lightweight trail shoes, I skipped the belt since I was carrying my phone in my sporran, and yes those are cheap soccer socks whose breathe really well but fit snuggly enough to act almost as compression hose (and most importantly protect my legs from ticks and poison oak). I even changed out my market stick for a modern version.

Off we went on our hike through the redwoods

For the record we made the loop in 5 hours

My apologies to the Jonathan (the OP) if I'm hijacking his thread

Cheers

Jamie