There Are Pandas, and Then There Are Pandas.
And this isn't either of them! The Pandas we're talking about here, are watches, not bears. And what got me thinking about them (again) was a link posted this morning by @cm.rook who pointed a few of us to the very attractive (and not terribly priced) Yema "Rallygraph" Panda which, in it's most traditional arrangement, looks like the one on the left, but can also be had in the version on the right: The model on the left is a true Panda, while the model on the right is called a reverse Panda. The reason for that distinction is clear--Panda bears, only come in the first arrangement. Now at this point, everyone should be thinking about the most well-know Panda, The Rolex Panda, which is actually a Daytona, and among Rolex Daytonas, the most famous of which is the Paul Newman Daytona, which was famous first, because it was Paul's, and second because it sold at auction for $17.8 million (US Dollars). The story of that auction is well-known so I'll only...
Nov 8, 2019
then leave the boots at home. Seriously. For most trails in most places for most of the year you could wear sandals (thru hiked the Smokies and Shawnee SF in Xero Shoes z Trail sandals ~6oz for the pair).
Sometimes boots really do help (its rare, as in just the summit shoulder of Mt Washington- its a boulder field). on those occasions pick the lightest ones that have a stiff sole and are NOT waterproof. Merrill Moab Ventilators have done well for me in places like that (1.71 lbs for the pair). Get “Yanks” elastic shoe laces. The boots will be plenty tight enough on the boulder fields and will slip on/off super easy for those midnight walks (wink). No more lacing/unlacing. Keep ‘em on or not for stream crossings. They’ll walk dry in a couple miles.
I know, this is some heretical stuff... but if youre feeling bold, give it a try on a short local hike and go from there