Friday, December 30, 2011

So Much To Do!!!

I feel overwhelmed! There is so much to do and I truly don't know where to begin. I have done a couple of the most unsavory things. I tackled the collection of crap I have accrued under my bed! That was at one time a demilitarized zone, in the future, just DMZ! I went in there and went through everything, not many things escaped the garbage bag. For each item, I had to think, do I need this? What will I use it for? Where will I put it if I take it with me? Like I said not many things made it. I do have a soft spot for books. There will always be a need and use for books. I feel that most of my shipping weight wil be taken up by books LOL! After the under the bed DMZ was tackled, I went in to the worst DMZ area, "The Closet" I cannot fathom how in the hell I procured so much crap! There were things in there I forgot I had! I put out so many trash bags, I lost count. I did put a huge dent in that project, but not done yet! I have one box that is a tangle of coax cable, category 5 cable, power cords, telephone line, you name it, it's in that box! I need to figure out what I'm going to use for boxes to pack my stuff in? What I'm going to try and do is build a pallet of boxes to ship to Alaska. I want to take one pallet and stack in an, efficient manner, those boxes up to about 4 feet high. A normal pallet is 40" X 48" and in this case stacked to 4 or 5 feet high. My plan is to get everything I want to bring into those boxes, then plastic wrap them several times to keep them stable and unable to shift in transit. If anyone has any experience in using boxes for for long distance shipping, I would sure appreciate it! Everyone have a blessed and safe New Years!!!

God Bless

Jeff

Thursday, December 22, 2011

A Few More Ramblings!

I forgot to mention that I had received my snares from The Snare Shop. I received some qualified advice, and I chose a builders kit of 1X19 3/32". The builders kit I bought is here. I think for $68, it was a great deal, and it's a store that I will return to. I have made some headway into cutting down and throwing out alot of the crap I have collected that I will not be taking with me. I think I have thrown away about the same weight as the gear I have bought so far LOL! That literally means I haven't lowered the shipping weight a bit, and that is a big priority! Weight is money! I will be shipping my belongings by freight, I really haven't priced it yet, so I'm not even sure what the costs will be. Okay, I think that's it for now. I will talk soon!

Jeff

Waaagggonnnnsss.......West!

Well Folks,

Here I thought that this blog was going to have a year or more of boring posts with gear updates and different thoughts. I have to say, that's not going to be the case! My new family is assisting me in getting things together to make the move possibly, as early as March 2012! Putting this into perspective...I have 2 months to throw out crap, thin out my belongings, and freight the rest to Alaska! I still need to get some gear before I leave. I just emailed an awesome knifemaker I know here in Connecticut, I asked him if he would make me a drop point hunting knife. I need to buy a hunting knife and a caping knife. I also need to get a set of those Carhartt Arctic quilted bibs and the Arctic quilted Jacket. I will be wearing clothes underneath, so they recommend a few sizes higher, so I figure a 44 waist and 34 length for the bib. Here is the "Bib" I was looking at the jackets, and I guess there is a difference lol! A "Coat" is long and hangs lower than your waist, while a "Jacket" hangs at your waist. Hmmmm...learn something everyday...I'll store that somewhere in my brain! I figure an Extra Large Arctic Quilted Jacket will accompany the bib, and here is the "Jacket" I might also throw in an Arctic quilted hood to round out the set! Here is the "Hood" I also need to pick up some of the black Banta Mickey Mouse boots. Well there is more to come soon!!! God Bless!

Friday, December 9, 2011

A Small Dent in My Gear List

Well this blog is off to a slow start, but hey, I promise it will get exciting as we move forward. I have been corresponding with a couple of families that live up in the bush of Alaska. They have been a valuable resource for alot of the things that I would've never thought of! Well, so far this is what I have procured: An Alaska Gazetteer, very valuable! An Outdoor Research Polartec Fleece Balaclava, Military Gen III ECWCS Level 3 Fleece Jacket. For those of you who don't know, the military has an extreme cold weather system that allows the soldier to use layers to attain protection down to -50F degrees. ECWCS stands for Extended Cold Weather Clothing System, it is design to utilize some of the layers by themselves, depending on the outside temperature.

I plan on buying gear to utilize this system. Continuing onward! A set of Mechanix coyote Gloves, Renegade Pro Series Neoprene Ice Fishing Gloves, 6 pairs of 71% merino wool polar extreme thermal boot socks, 2 pair of Fox River cold weather mid-calf wool boot socks, XTRATUFF rubber insulated plain toe knee boots, Princeton TEC Apex Extreme LED Headlamp, Polartec Coyote colored Fleece hat, Polartec silk weight power dry long underwear and shirt, and a military ACU 3 piece modular sleep system, which will keep me warm down to -40F degrees! I also took a more serious step and made a purchase from "The Snare Shop" It is an awesome place for those that trap or want to learn how! They have tutorials and a ton of trapping gear at great prices! Well, so far that's it, I will add more as I develop my plans and move forward!
God Bless

Jeff