The Lammers: Backpacking 101

So I have my first ever backpacking experience this past weekend and it went great! I discovered that it is a whole lot like camping but instead of driving to a campsite and getting all your stuff out of the car, you have to hike to the camping site so you have to carry everything. I suppose you could take whatever you want but you will have to carry it so I only took the necessities. I was told how I should have packed my backpack...fill the bottom with newspaper and then just my clothes on top so that my pack is super light and then let Rich carry the rest. Well that plan was thrown out the window when Rich came home and wanted to see how I packed and well...he kindly repacked it for me. After both of our packs were finished we were on our way.We met up with some friends in Salem and then headed over towards Marion Lake. It was so pretty! It was a short trip but that's okay. It made it feel more like a long weekend that way. As we were getting ready to hike back the 3 miles (!!!!) to the car, Rich informed me that we could probably switch packs if his was more comfortable because both packs weigh about the same! We didn't switch but I couldn't believe that we were both carrying 20-something pounds. CRAZY! We made it back pretty quick and came home and basically went right to bed. We were both SO tired. So overall, I think I had a great first experience. I had a lot of fun. Here are some pictures from the trip!