Camping and Ukulele

haolejohn · Mar 26, 2009

I go camping the other weekend with an intent of filming a video for Bornagainjeeper's contest and I tried but you could not hear the ukulele b/c of the sound from the waterfall and the distance away. My brother-in-law was not as crazy as me (jumping in chest high mountain river on the first weekend of march) and he would only film from the bank. After I quit in frustration I realized that I loved taking my uke camping but I don't like carrying out the 6 stringer or the solid koa one so I bought me a Kala soprano. Now I am going hiking/camping in two weeks during spring break. I want to log about 50 miles of the Bartrum Trail/AT in Georgia. Anyone ever hiked distance with a uke before? I will be carrying food and supplies for 5 days so weight is an issue. The uke is a laminate so I am thinking of just throwing it in the pack inside the WP bag if it rains and if clear jsut wherever.

bt93 · Mar 26, 2009

y dont u take a sopranino...much easier to carry and will fit directly into your pack

PaulGeo · Mar 26, 2009

Sounds like a great chance to learn the harmonica

. I take my flea camping, but I don't think I would take it backpacking.

haolejohn · Mar 26, 2009

brad32593 said:
y dont u take a sopranino...much easier to carry and will fit directly into your pack

Don't like the sopranoino. I can't even barre a fret without fingers overlapping into next fret.

The soprano fits. I got a big pack and I am a minimalist exceopt this trip b/c wife is coming along. I actually bought a tent. Just don't want to ruin my new investment.

hoosierhiver · Mar 26, 2009

I've backpacked alot with ukuleles.I'd often tie the uke with hard case on top of my pack for easy access and less damage of it getting squished inside the pack.If it's just a short hike you can even carry it without too much hassle.Be careful about moisture and humidity,have an extra plastic garbage bag in the ukecase in case of heavy rains.I wouldn't take any uke that you can't live without,a cheaper laminate can sound pretty good when that's all you have to play with.

haolejohn · Mar 26, 2009

hoosierhiver said:
I've backpacked alot with ukuleles.I'd often tie the uke with hard case on top of my pack for easy access and less damage of it getting squished inside the pack.If it's just a short hike you can even carry it without too much hassle.Be careful about moisture and humidity,have an extra plastic garbage bag in the ukecase in case of heavy rains.I wouldn't take any uke that you can't live without,a cheaper laminate can sound pretty good when that's all you have to play with.

I agree with you but I am definately not carrying a hard case 50-75 miles and that case would become a home for some varmit. I bought the laminate for this reason. I own four solid wood ukes for other type of adventures

BTW hoosierhiver isn't that mainland your baby? I played one of those over at Ukerepublic's house. WOW!! Talk about impressive.

Ukulele JJ · Mar 26, 2009

Hmmmm... To save space, I bet you could loosen the strings a bit and store random things like socks in the body of the uke. It would take a bit more preparation to "unsock" it and tune it up for playing, but still... cubic inches are precious, right?

JJ

haolejohn · Mar 27, 2009

Ukulele JJ said:
Hmmmm... To save space, I bet you could loosen the strings a bit and store random things like socks in the body of the uke. It would take a bit more preparation to "unsock" it and tune it up for playing, but still... cubic inches are precious, right?

JJ

That is a great idea. LOL I am seriously thinking about buying my lab one of those dog backpacks and make her carry her food and water.

Stosh · Mar 27, 2009

I posted this in another thread about ukes and the snow, but I have snowshoed into a yurt in the mountains in the wintertime with a guitar in a gigbag.

My wife, our dog and I used to snowshoe into the yurt for Christmas. We each had backpacks and we each pulled sleds with our gear. I would strap the guitar to the outside of my pack. It was a Martin LXM so it is smaller than a regular guitar but still larger than a uke (and much, much heavier.) Our dog has his own pack to carry his food and a collapsible bowl.

It was a lot of effort but I think it was really worthwhile. I wouldn't even think twice about bringing a uke. I would probably buy a drybag at REI to put it in, then strap it outside my pack. Garbage bags work too but a little air in a dry bag will cushion your uke in a fall.

I say go for it.

Stosh · Mar 27, 2009

By the way, which model Kala did you get? How do you like it?

uke5417 · Mar 27, 2009

I try to take a uke that I won't cry over if it's destroyed. I have several nice ones that I bought busted and glued back together for about $15. I just bungee it to the back of my pack and carry a plastic bag in case it rains. Under 10 ounces and well worth the weight. Here's a uke vid I shot on top of Yosemite's Half Dome: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDutbV17F2g&feature=channel_page

Ahnko Honu · Mar 27, 2009

Here's a cheap waterproof ukulele:
http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-50s-MAU...5|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50

Ukuleleblues · Mar 27, 2009

I like to take my uke when I go out in the woods. Not really backpacking, I'll take lunch and some stuff and my uke and my wifes uke. I hate stuffing it in the backpack so I've been thinking I am going to sew some rings on my backpack and some velcro and tie a lite gigbag to the backpack on the outside. I think the velcro will keep it from moving around when I walk and the D rings will keep it from falling off all the way. But I figure if I tie it loose and if I slip and fall It might break away from the velcro and that would provide a little decelaration cusion to the uke.

haolejohn · Mar 27, 2009

Stosh said:
By the way, which model Kala did you get? How do you like it?

The WP bag is a water proof bag that we used in the Marines. Way better than anything at REI though it is slightly heavier. That is what I think I am going to do.

The Kala I bought was the mahaghany laminate. Not sure of the model number. I had owned a mango tenor from Kala and loved it and got most of my students to purchase the makala sopranos and I finally decided to get me a Kala. It sounds great for the $50 that I have invested in it and I wanted a soprano for my hiking and wilderness trips.

haolejohn · Mar 27, 2009

Ukuleleblues said:
I like to take my uke when I go out in the woods. Not really backpacking, I'll take lunch and some stuff and my uke and my wifes uke. I hate stuffing it in the backpack so I've been thinking I am going to sew some rings on my backpack and some velcro and tie a lite gigbag to the backpack on the outside. I think the velcro will keep it from moving around when I walk and the D rings will keep it from falling off all the way. But I figure if I tie it loose and if I slip and fall It might break away from the velcro and that would provide a little decelaration cusion to the uke.

This is a good idea. I have taken my nice ukes out before but never on a long trip. They are all tenors. Last week when we went camping I had my six stringer and I put it inside my WP bag and jumped in. It was a little scary b/c I did not want to fall all the way down. I also only had to carry it for 2 miles to get where I wanted to go.

Uke5417-That was great. I loved the video.

ProgUke · Sep 6, 2013

I have a Diamond Head DU-100 that a picked up a local music store for $30. I wanted a "car uke"; one that I could leave in the car, play during my lunch hour, and take to the beach and hikes without having to risk one of my nicer ukes. This DU-100 does not sound wonderful, but with a set of Aquillas on there, it's passable. The action is not bad. It is light, but is built like a tank. It is made of cheap laminate and has a very thick coat of paint. When i first got it, I sprayed a generous amount of lemon oil inside the sound hole in an effort to coat the interior. The result is a ukulele that seems nearly impervious to temperature and moisture extremes. It has been in my car for 4 months (through 125 degree days and extreme rain storms), and still shows no sign of warping. I need to tune it each day, but that is to be expected. I am going to be doing a 1 night AT hike in a few weeks, and this little beast (also known as the Guaculele due to it's rich green hue) will be joining me. If if it is damaged, I can go around the corner and pick up a brandy new one for $30. No worries.

sirwhale · Sep 7, 2013

I would recomend the clearwater ABS concert, I really like mine

Camping and Ukulele

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