Gear List for new planters

[Seabass]

Planting Gear List


1/ Tent - preferably 3 season and with a vestibule

2/ groundsheet

3/ tarp to cover tent - make sure it is larger than your tent as overhang is good. You can use it to extend/create a vestibule and any excess on the sides can be buried or held down with rocks/logs to further keep your tent and contents dry.

4/ a good sleeping bag - probably rated to -10 or so unless you also want to bring blankets. It gets cold at night.

5/ thermarest - it costs more than foam but you'll be grateful for it at night.

6/ duct tape - don't buy the cheap stuff, go with 3M or something. It's more useful than you think.

7/ bug dope - watkins brand works pretty well, especially the creme.

8/ goldbond - feet and crotch will love you for it at the end of the day

9/ dry bag - sealline is really good. you can get them at MEC and it will keep your stuff dry when it rains on the block, unlike a backpack which will get soaked through in no time.

10/ gaiters (optional) - will help keep your feet dry in swampy/wet areas

11/ good boots - if you don't need steel toes, Zamberlan Vioz, Gronell Klondike are full leather hiking boots which can be bought from MEC. If you need steel toes, don't buy the cheap Wal-Mart ones, plan to spend around $150 or more on them (the hikers start around $230) and remember to break them in by wearing them for a few weeks before you get planting. There is nothing worse than the blisters and loss of speed/production you will get otherwise. Cheap boots will also blowout quickly, mainly at the seams. Remember to take care of your boots by cleaning them and applying waterproofer on a regular basis. Let them dry naturally and not in front of artificial heat sources to make them last longer. Another option is the orange caulked chainsaw boots. Regardless of what boots you purchase, make sure that they have a vibram sole and not compounded rubber or some other crappy sole. The vibram is made to last and will not disintegrate or fall apart during the season. Any boots worth their salt will have a vibram. If you're unsure if they do or not, ask an employee. If the employee doesn't know, you're probably at the wrong store.

12/ boot waterproofing agent (explained above)

13/ large tupperware container - make sure it's large enough to at least hold 2-3 sandwiches and maybe an apple, orange, lunchtreat cookies.

14/ personal first aid kit - bandaids, alcohol, moleskin to avoid blistering (you apply it BEFORE you get blisters in the spots that are susceptible to blister formation.)

15/ sunscreen

16/ toiletries (toothbrush/toothpaste, brush, deoderant for day off, maybe shampoo/conditioner for day off too)

17/ ibuprofen - get a fair sized bottle of it too

18/ waterjug - you want at least 6L of water during the day and probably more when it is hot out. A few nalgene style 1L bottles are good as well.

19/ hard hat if you're in Ontario; baseball hats and/or bandanas if you're not

20/ Penatan - eases chafing... you can find it beside the diapers usually and it comes in a small circular blue tin.

21/ camera - unless you hate the recording of memories

22/ mp3 player - DO NOT wear headphones in your land, especially if you are a rookie. Your crewboss and the vets do not want to be yelling at you and unable to get your attention. Headphones around the neck aren't bad because you can still hear a bear or crewboss and are aware of your surroundings. Actually, as a rookie, leave it in camp or your bag for at least the first half of the season.

23/ a few books - don't take a whole lot because you can always find more at a convenience or thrift store on day off if you want more

24/ flashlight and extra batteries

25/ towel

26/ plate, bowl, mug, eating utensils - don't bring glass if you can avoid it. Melamime plastic camping stuff works well and is inexpensive. A lot of planters also eat off serving dishes as there is more space and sometimes compartment separation.

27/ a notebook and a pen - you should be recording how many trees you planted each day, how much you were paid per tree that day, and a quick blurb about your land/weather conditions to remind you which piece(s) you planted that day. If you don't keep track of your numbers and your crewboss writes your numbers down wrong (it happens occasionally), you will have a harder time having changes made than if you have your numbers written down on a daily basis and can show your crewboss/supervisor in case of a discrepancy. Also, it does happen that a crewboss can lose a day's numbers, so you need to have them somewhere just in case. Basically it is for your benefit. You should also bring paper, envelopes, stamps if you wish to mail anything to friends or family, though stamps can generally be purchased in town on a day off.

28/ cheap wristwatch - self explanatory I hope, but you need to be responsible for keeping track of time during the day.

29/ pocket knife/leatherman - good if you got them but you may not ever use it, so don't bother buying one if you don't already have it; someone else will have one kicking around anyway.



Clothing


1/ try to avoid cotton as when it gets wet it also gets heavy and will not keep you warm. Wool and polypro are your friends. You can pick up good merino wool sweaters for under $5/each at a thrift store and polypro isn't all that expensive either. MEC has short sleeves for around $20 and maybe $30 for a long sleeve. The benefits over cotton are enormous. Fleece is golden as well.

2/ wool sweaters - 2 of them should do

3/ polypro shirts - again, 2 or 3 is good

4/ an old belt - you will lose some weight, so it's needed

5/ MEC rad pants are pretty awesome and dry quickly. If you can't/don't want to get them, cotton pants are ok but remember they will be heavy and cold when wet and do not dry quickly. Polyester pants are good too. 2-3 pairs of pants should be suffice.

6/ socks - again, avoid cotton. get the wool work socks (probably a dozen or so pairs) and a few sets of polypro socks

7/ toque

8/ rain gear - don't buy cheap stuff - plan to spend at least $50 on a jacket and another $50 or more on pants (if you even want them). The cheap stuff will last 5 minutes before it's ruined and you're soaked.

9/ shorts are nice on the hot days, especially when combined with gaiters

10/ 2-3 cotton tshirts

11/ day off clothing (you don't need a whole freaking wardrobe either. If you won't wear it all in 1a few days, don't bring it)

12/ shoes and/or sandals for day off and kicking around camp


As a rookie you will most likely overpack, but this is the basic, minimum list of stuff that's needed. Anything more than this is just excessive and most likely not needed. Even the rain gear isn't needed if you have good fleece/wool/polypro clothing. If you know you will have time in the town you are being picked up in, it saves a lot of space in your bags if you purchase the water jug, tupperware, duct tape, and goldbond there. The same goes for batteries, you can buy them at a store if you have time.


Random tips:


1/ Regardless of what you use to hold your water, remember to clean the containers on a regular basis to avoid mold forming. If you notice a build-up of black stuff inside the bottle or on the lid, that's not dirt, it's mold and needs to be cleaned before you drink.

2/ A cheaper alternative to the moleskin for avoiding blisters is to double up your socks. My system is that I wear a light pair of polypro socks as the base then a pair of wool socks over them. Cheap polypro socks are $5/pair at MEC.

3/ If you need to supply your own shovel and bags, workwizer makes quality shovels that can be customized before you receive them. Avoid the workwizer bags like the plague and stick with the bushpro bags.

4/ The thrift stores are your friends and the best places to buy planting clothing. It's recommended to check them before buying new stuff as your clothes will be ruined by the end of the season.

5/ If you have room in your day bag, stuff your rain gear (if you have any) at the bottom every day. The weather changes in a matter of minutes and it quickly goes from being bright and sunny to dark and stormy. You don't want to get caught by surprise and with your rain gear in your tent.

6/ Dress in layers. I start with a polypro, t-shirt (short or long sleeve depending on the day), then a fleece or wool sweater under a jacket. Good rain jackets can be used as a general jacket and save on space as well as ensuring that you always have it with you.

7/ Have your boots/gaiters and stuff on before you arrive at the block to save time. A few minutes each day adds up to quite a few more trees by the end of the season if you spend that time planting instead of putting your boots on at the cache.

[skibum_]

good list. Just a couple things. Bama socks are amazing for certain types of boots. I usually wear a polypro layer, wool layer then bama socks. I have never had sore, wet, or blistered feet. The walmart disney watches are by far the best watches you can get for planting. Cost $5 and will last multiple seasons unless you lose it. Seriously, I have had a 'The Incredibles" watch for 3 seasons.

[Seabass]

I've never worn bama socks so can't really speak on them. My boots only have the one seam on the back and a full gore-tex liner built into the boot so I've been good with just the polypro/wool sock combo and gaiters. For my first 5 years of planting though I never wore gaiters but now it'd just be weird not wearing them. I know some guys who swear by their bama socks, so it's all personal preference like most clothing/equipment choices we make.

[Sebastian]

Ok, so who's got boots that are gonna last me solidly more than a season? I'm on my 7th, and I've worn a few Gronells, Raichles, and an assortment of random steel toes/vikings.

The Gronell's have by far been my favorites, and seem to be in the best shape by the end of the season, but I doubt they'd make it through a second.

Keep in mind I live in Ottawa though, and am gonna have trouble finding a good pair of La Sportivas.

And yeah, I'm a big fan of the leather boots with as few seems as possible; kinda seems to logically be the most durable option.

[Sebastian]

PS. that's a pretty solid gear list, good job on it

[jono]

...

[Seabass]

Ok, so who's got boots that are gonna last me solidly more than a season? I'm on my 7th, and I've worn a few Gronells, Raichles, and an assortment of random steel toes/vikings.

The Gronell's have by far been my favorites, and seem to be in the best shape by the end of the season, but I doubt they'd make it through a second.

Keep in mind I live in Ottawa though, and am gonna have trouble finding a good pair of La Sportivas.

And yeah, I'm a big fan of the leather boots with as few seems as possible; kinda seems to logically be the most durable option.

Zamberlan's rock! I liked the Gronells that MEC sold in the past, but a well cared for pair of Zamberlans will last for years. I'm also a fan of always having two pairs of boots. Switch them up every day, and wash, clean, dry, and treat your boots every day and they'll last for many years.

I've got a pair of Zamberlan Vioz that I bought last year and they're holding up amazingly well. The shiny exterior isn't so shiny anymore and they definitely look used but outside of that the only wear is that the toes are peeling a little, so I need to fix that before this season starts. Like Jono says, if you take care of them they'll last for years and are worth their weight in gold.

A small addition to the list instead of a water jug is a dromedary bag which you can buy at MEC. I think they have 4L and 10L bags, and they take up less space than a water jug.

[TheHamsterizer]

11/ day off clothing (you don't need a whole freaking wardrobe either. If you won't wear it all in 1 day, don't bring it)




What do you wear when you're doing laundry? The same day off clothes every time? I bring lots of extra clothes,it's nice to change out of your planting clothes as soon as you get home and shower.

Good list though, if you think of more stuff you could just keep editing the original post until it's got everything. I'd put sunglasses up there for sure. And weed, lighters, papers... Even though I never remember any of that stuff and am a shameless mooch for the first shift.

[cwmntgm13]

unless you're planning some traveling, skip the thermarest in favor of an air mattress from walmart/CT. Sure its a bit heavier, but it keeps you a foot off the cold ground and is only 20$. Pair it with a decent MEC sleeping bag and you are living the high life. Give it away or throw it out at the end of the season. I've never understood why more people dont do this, and instead settle on a pad thats only inches thick.

[TheHamsterizer]

unless you're planning some traveling, skip the thermarest in favor of an air mattress from walmart/CT. Sure its a bit heavier, but it keeps you a foot off the cold ground and is only 20$. Pair it with a decent MEC sleeping bag and you are living the high life. Give it away or throw it out at the end of the season. I've never understood why more people dont do this, and instead settle on a pad thats only inches thick.

More people don't do that because therm-a-rests are way better. What do you think is in that foot between you and the cold ground? Freezing cold air! Those cheap air mattresses suck the heat out of you, and are about as bad for your back as a waterbed. ...And they slowly deflate overnight which makes it worse. ...And they're huge and impossible to pack, impossible to clean, really hard to repair, and a bitch to inflate. They're worse in every way.

[skibum_]

air matresses are, in my opinion much more comfy in warm weather but horrible in cold. In cold weather they will suck the heat out of you and they will deflate by like 30%.

[Seabass]

bumping this for the new planters...

[steel8909]

unless you're planning some traveling, skip the thermarest in favor of an air mattress from walmart/CT. Sure its a bit heavier, but it keeps you a foot off the cold ground and is only 20$. Pair it with a decent MEC sleeping bag and you are living the high life. Give it away or throw it out at the end of the season. I've never understood why more people dont do this, and instead settle on a pad thats only inches thick.

More people don't do that because therm-a-rests are way better. What do you think is in that foot between you and the cold ground? Freezing cold air! Those cheap air mattresses suck the heat out of you, and are about as bad for your back as a waterbed. ...And they slowly deflate overnight which makes it worse. ...And they're huge and impossible to pack, impossible to clean, really hard to repair, and a bitch to inflate. They're worse in every way.

Last year I used a twin size air matress cuz it was on sale And yea it gets freezing cold on those things. I was sleeping in my hooded sweater, winter jacket, in my sleeping bag. Also eneded up stuffing extra cloths in there to make more insulation! Not fun! Though it was alright by the time jun rolled around. And surprisngly kept the air in pretty good, though it crapped out when I brought it up for camping later in August!

[landhammerer]

thermarest luxury deluxe, i have big shoulders and like the extra room. MEC Kilarney2 boots are cheap and durable hikers or if steel toes are necessary dakota 400 from marks work warehouse. They have a savage toe cap for screefing. Polysporn your clean hands every nite.... You cannot skimp on your back, feet or your hands..

[mel_eff]

Any army surplus store can hook you up with a CF issue thermarest. They are durable as hell and pack up small and quickly. I also notice that they don't deflate very much at all.

They are also excellent for day off Slip 'n Slide events as they dry quickly.

[swamper]

I would get a headlamp instead of or in addition to a hand held flash light. Once you get a headlamp you won’t go back to normal flashlight.
Other then that list looks good.

[Seabass]

I would get a headlamp instead of or in addition to a hand held flash light. Once you get a headlamp you won’t go back to normal flashlight.
Other then that list looks good.

I bought a headlamp a few seasons ago and couldn't agree more. Also found a really nice one that someone lost on a mountain outside of Rossland this year. Surprisingly it was in great working condition.

Scooter, any chance we can get this thread stickied?

[Scooter]

I'll keep an eye on it. If it starts getting too far down out of sight I'll do something. I've been trying to avoid stickies for the most part, but I can make an exception if necessary, for sure. If people keep posting here, it'll stay near the top automatically.

[MattW]

Great gear list. Has everything you need, and nothing you dont.

[ApexPredator]

The last two summers I found at a particular bushcamp a double mattress some other planter left. I put it under my tent (because thats gross) and it was fantastic! It was a sealy!