Ask A Thru-Hiker: Lint's Favorite Gear

Wes Ratko on the AT.

Once again it’s time for another installment in our ongoing series, “Ask A Thru-Hiker!”  Today’s question comes from Wes Ratko, a beginning hiker who loves the outdoors.  “I have been known,” claims Wes, “to walk all the way to the train station, even in a light rain.”

Our Thru-Hiker today is Lint, a Triple-Triple Crowner who has also hiked the Ice Age Trail, the Colorado Trail, the Arizona Trail, and the Florida Trail, and currently holds the record for Yo-Yo section hikes on the Appalachian Trail in Duncannon from The Cabin Strip Club to the Perry County Beer Distributor and back (143).

Lint's CDT Map: "Just because you have to carry the ink
doesn't mean you have to carry the paper."

Lint is known for his dedication to the lightweight backpacking ethos, so much so that he now uses maps tattooed to his body instead of the cumbersome paper versions or those found on heavy electronic devices

Today’s question from Wes for our Thru-Hiker: “What’s your favorite piece of gear?”

Says Lint: “I know it might come as a surprise to people who think of me as a lightweight hiker, but my favorite piece of gear is my car door.  Sure, a car door is heavy, but I’ve modified mine and stripped it down so that it comes in at a manageable 47 pounds.  And it’s such a versatile multi-use piece of gear that I think the weight is more than justified.”

Lint With His Backpacking Car Door

How does Lint use the door?

“Well, you know, the obvious things.  When it’s really hot out I roll the window down.  And when it’s really buggy out I roll the window up.  Cold wind?  No problem with a car door, eliminating the need to carry a wind shirt or windstopper fleece.  But I’m always discovering new uses for the door -- on the PCT in ’09 the rear view mirror kept me from being stalked by mountain lions, and also allowed me to promptly get out of the way of hikers overtaking me.  Which happened quite often, because, you know, I was carrying a car door.”

Not only is it a mindblowingly useful piece of gear on trail, gear that some have called “the Swiss Army Knife of auto body parts” -- but a car door also comes in handy during town stops.

“There are times when the only ATM in town is a drive-thru.  And you can imagine the stares I used to get just standing there, waiting in line with a car door in front of me and a car door behind, and me right in the middle, no car door.  Ridiculous.  Same with ordering food at a Sonic -- NOT leaning through a car window to order is just weird, and when the girl on the rollerskates shows up, she has nothing to pass your food through.  And I also feel safer in towns -- every once in a while I find myself in a sketchy neighborhood, and I just casually lean over . . . and press the lock down with my elbow.” 

A hiker suffering the indignity of no car door in town.

For those interested in a car door, you can find them in the desert attached to cars in places that seem impossible for a car to have ended up.

Seriously.  How the hell did this get here?

And for those still concerned about the weight, Lint offers the following advice:

“First, don’t think about the weight of the door.  Think about the weight of all of the things you don’t have to carry when you’re carrying the door.  DEET, bear spray, a bear canister, wind protection, rain gear, heck, my window is tinted -- I don’t even need sunglasses.  Second, try to keep in mind that everything is relative, and I can tell you from experience that it’s a whole lot lighter than carrying the entire car.”

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Photo Credits --

Lint's Legs: Warner Springs Monty Tam

Lint w/Door: Chase Nelson

Lint w/Car: Ryan Weidert

With special thanks to Lint Hikes and Pea Hicks!