The Cast Iron Skillet They Made Me Carry
The story of how a church backpacking trip and a piece of cookware I never asked for turned into a philosophy I've carried ever since.
Est. 2026 · Mississippi · Hard-won opinions
Gear advice from someone who learned the hard way.
No sponsored content. No gear I haven't thought hard about. Just stories from the trail — and what I'd carry today instead of what I carried then.
Read the Stories →The origin story: A church trip leader once handed me a cast iron skillet to carry into the backcountry. I swore I'd never let anyone pick my gear again. This site is what happened next.
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We saw glowing orbs in the darkness. We screamed. We vaulted into the truck bed. It was dairy cows.