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Showerthought: My whole approach to packing changed after a rainy night in the Adirondacks
I was up near Lake Placid last fall, and the forecast said a 30% chance of light showers. I packed my usual 40-liter pack with a basic rain shell on top. Well, that 30% turned into a solid 8 hours of cold, wind-driven rain that started right as I was setting up camp. My shell got soaked through in about an hour, and everything in the top of my pack was damp because I hadn't used a pack liner. I spent a miserable night in a wet sleeping bag, shivering. Now, I always use a trash compactor bag as a pack liner (the heavy-duty kind), and my rain gear is a proper hardshell, not just a windbreaker. That one trip made me totally rethink how I judge weather risks and organize my gear from the inside out. Has anyone else had a trip that made you completely overhaul one basic piece of your system?
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