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The speed at which you go when you are doing something like running, hiking or swimming. It is better to move at a slow but steady pace than to move very fast and then stop a lot because you are tired. Like the Tortoise and the Hare, slow and steady wins the race!
Trail that runs through the mountains from Canada to Mexico along the west coast of the Untied States. It takes months to hike from one end to the other, but some people do it every year.
Tough cloth used to make backpacks. Pack cloth keeps out water completely and does not rip easily at all, even if you are very hard on it.
Tool used to move a canoe or a kayak or raft. If you are not used to using a paddle, a long day paddling a boat can give you blisters on your hands! If this is the case, it is a good idea to wear gloves or put medical tape onyour hands to keep it from happening.
paddle
(say PAN-ner)
Bags attached to a bike that let you carry enough stuff to live on your bike for a number of days. The panniers get attached to the back of the bike, over the rear wheel. After a day of cycling, you can unpack your tent and sleeping bag and have dinner.
panniers
Heavy coat used for cold and snowy weather. Parkas are good for walking around town in the cold but not very convenient for trips into the backcountry. The best way to dress in the cold in the backcountry is to use layers, so you can take them off and add them to stay comfortable. A parka would make you very hot but taking it off would not leave you with enough layers!
parka
Sam as col. The low point between two mountains.
Highest point on a mountain. Same thing as a summit.
Permanently frozen land that you find in places in the far north that are very cold and have short summers.
(say PEA-tahn)
Metal piece of equipment used in rock climbing. A piton is stuck into the crack between two rocks and used as an anchor.
piton
Way to slow yourself down when you are skiing. By pointing the tips of your skis inward, you make a shape like a snow plow plowing a street, and you slow yourself down so you don't go out of control and wipe out!
Way to walk down a steep hill in deep snow. It is very easy to fall when you are going down a steep, snowy hill because gravity pulls you down. When you plunge step, you take big exaggerated steps and stick your heels hard into the snow so you can keep yourself under control and not fall.
(say polly-PRO-pa-lean)
Very important cloth for the outdoors! It is nice and soft and keeps you very warm even when it is only a thin shirt or pants. Polypropylene is very light to carry and it dries quickly after getting wet. Also, it is good to use when you are exercising outdoors because when you sweat the sweat goes through the cloth to the outside air and you stay nice and dry inside.
Rain jacket you throw over your head. Ponchos are very cheap to buy but have one big drawback in the rain: their sides are open, so if it is windy and rainy, the rain can get in at you too easily.
poncho
Person who carries some or all of your gear on a long trip in the wilderness. People who take trips to places like Nepal or Africa sometimes hire porters to carry their equipment around so they can walk without having to do it themselves.
To have a leg sink into the snow up to your thigh. Postholing is a problem in spring in the mountains, when the weather gets warmer and the snow gets soft. You have to be careful to step on stronger snow, but sometimes it still happens!
Deep breathing technique that let you get more oxygen into your body when you are on very big mountains.
Testing the snow in front of you with a long object to be sure that it is strong enough to hold you.
To clean water so you can drink it. You can use a filter, chlorine, iodine or boiling to purify water so that you don't get sick from drinking it.
Short for Poly Vinyl Chloride. PVC is a sort of rubbery plastic that is good for clothing to keep you dry in the rain. It is also cheap and pretty tough--you can use it a lot and it won't fall apart. The only problem is that when you sweat it traps all of the mositure inside of itself, so you can become pretty wet and uncomfortable pretty quickly.
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