NeoAir Trekker Salvage

I recently obtained a damaged Thermarest NeoAir Trekker, size Regular, which had been deemed trash-worthy by someone else.  Apparently it had a leaky valve, and the previous owner didn't want to undertake a repair.

So I did a quick valve replacement using the Thermarest Valve Repair kit.  This was a simple process and took no more than 10 minutes.

I inflated the mat, and left it overnight to test if was airtight.  Morning proved that there was still a leak, so I dunked it in some soapy water and found a small pinhole in the top surface of the mat.

A judicious application of Seamgrip should remedy the pinhole.  This repair is still curing, so I'll report on the results after another overnight test tonight.  Fingers crossed.

Pending Epic

Following a disappointing summer, namely due to how things didn't work out in Slave Lake, a possible spirit-raiser is on the horizon.  A couple weeks ago my sister-in-law sent me a text asking if I would be interested in going to Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland.  More specifically, she was in the process of getting a reservation to do the 'Long Range Traverse', a 35+ km map-and-compass route across the high plateau of Newfoundland's west coast.  After a brief period of deliberation, just long enough to confirm that I really couldn't afford to travel and take a week off from work, I decided to go for it.

Now comes the inevitable debating over gear selection, weather conditions, footwear, etc..  Initial online searches have turned up a few well-documented trip reports:

http://www.edir.org/gm05/gmpre.html
http://www.clubtread.com/sforum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=14671

From what others have experienced, we'll be well advised to plan for significant rain and wind, as well as many deceptive dead-end trails left by countless previous hikers.  Given that the ecology of the area is delicate sub-arctic tundra, subject to extremes of weather due to elevation and latitude, it would seem to me that Parks Canada might want to consider creating a definitive trail in order to reduce the impact of countless errant footsteps.  Perhaps my opinion will be better informed once I've been there and experienced the environment firsthand.  Ongoing gear and food lists to follow I hope.