1.What should I pack inside my 5 gallon bucket?

Everything needs to fit inside your 5 gallon bucket except for small items in daypack, jacket, sleeping bag, pillow, and sleeping pad.  You can choose to bring your pillow on the bus or bundle it with your sleeping bag and sleeping pad. Your jacket,( other warm clothes items) sleeping bag and sleeping pad need to be put in a large garbage sack that will be provided through your ward  we will provide colored duct tape to place on your bag upon equipment dropoff to write your name.  This will be loaded in the transport trailer a day or two  before we leave for TREK. Your 5 gallon bucket and small day pack will be brought with you the morning of departure and buckets will be put under the bus.  Anything brought on the bus will need to be carried in the handcarts on day one of travel.

2. What could I pack in my small daypack/fanny pack? *** optional*** these could be in your bucket

■      Work gloves

■      Tissues or wet wipes

■      Sunglasses

■      Chapstick

■      Rain poncho

■      Water Bottle

■      Journal and pen

■      Insect repellant travel size

■      Sunblock SPF 30 or above travel size

3. What should I Bring with me to the church on Thursday morning?

■      Trail of Faith Achievement Sheet

■      Small backpack/day pack

■      your 5 gallon bucket

■      Water bottle filled with water

4. Are there more details about the Pioneer Attire for Women?

1-2 complete pioneer outfits, light colors are best.

An outfit would either be:

A complete pioneer dress about 6 inches from the ground in length. No denim.

OR

A long pioneer skirt about 6 inches from the ground with a modest long sleeve top. (no t-shirts)

Western style hat or wide brimmed floppy hat with chin strap to keep it from blowing away. Bonnets are ok but not recommended because they trap the heat.

2 pairs of bloomers or lightweight knee length shorts to be worn under pioneer skirts.  Scrubs work well (helps avoid chafing and bug bites). Do NOT bring leggings to wear under a dress as it will keep the heat in. The Trek missionaries stress this over and over in training. Countless girls make this mistake, and suffer heat exhaustion, don’t be one of them.

1-2 aprons with pockets.

5.  Are there more details about Pioneer Attire for Men?

2 pairs of pioneer style pants – Dockers type, light colors are best. No denim, camouflage, or sports type pants. Also, no shorts of any kind. 

2 shirts – long sleeve button up cotton shirts, light colors are best, no t-shirts

1 western style hat with strings to keep it from blowing away. A wide brim floppy hat would also be acceptable. Please no beanies, or baseball caps.

Vest – optional

Suspenders – optional

6- Do I need to purchase  Pioneer Clothing?

We want to avoid unnecessary expense, so we encourage making the dresses or skirts yourself if possible. It can be a great learning experience for your youth to take part in this and learn a valuable skill. Another option is to ask family members and friends who have gone on trek if they have clothes you can borrow. Finally, the D.I often has clothing that can be adapted for trek. Each ward will have a clothing specialist to help you.

7- Are there Patterns and Sewing helps you can direct us to?

There are many free patterns on Pinterest. You can also purchase patterns at the fabric store. You can also find out if someone already has one you could borrow. You can visit the How to Dress Like a Pioneer blog for free patterns and ideas.

Skirts:

Skirts are the most practical because tops can be changed to keep clean. Any fabric will do but a lightweight cotton blend calico or solid is probably preferable. Light colors are best. The dresses or skirts need to be about 6 inches from the ground to avoid tripping and tearing but long enough to be authentic. You can access a free pattern for pioneer skirt here.

Aprons:

Aprons with pockets are a great way to have your lip balm and other essentials near by.

Bonnets and Bloomers:

For girls, a bonnet or wide brimmed hat is required.  The Trek missionaries recommend wide brimmed hats because they reduce sun exposure on the forehead and neck of girls much better than a typical bonnet.  Their experience has shown that girls just don’t wear bonnets and in many cases they end up just wearing it around their neck and not on their head. If you want to be more traditional then a bonnet will be just fine also, it’s really up to each individual

Girls bloomers are also essential. They help protect from bugs and bites on your legs. Use a very lightweight fabric and keep the elastic loose enough to be comfortable around the knees. You can use a drawstring instead of elastic for the waste if you want. Be creative and have fun putting your pioneer outfits together. Please stay with the traditional skirt/dress styles. No split skirts or gaucho pants.

8- What additional details can you provide regarding needed shoes?

It is not necessary to buy expensive shoes for trek. Just be sure to have sturdy athletic shoes. They can be cross-trainers, trail runners or running shoes(mesh top shoes can let sand in and may need to be avoided).  You need good tread on the bottom of your shoes. You can wear hiking shoes but it is not necessary.  Shoes should be well broken in before trek to prevent blisters. Water shoes or old tennis shoes are ideal for river crossing. No flip flops or open toe shoes. The shoe size should be comfortably snug while wearing 2 pairs of socks. Too tight or too loose can cause blisters. 

Socks:

An excellent way to prevent blisters is to use a rayon or polypropylene sock (or nylon) next to the skin and a merino wool sock on the outside. This has shown to reduce friction between your shoes and feet. Cotton socks should be avoided.

9- What about that all important 5 gallon bucket? 

We’ve found that buckets that allow for screwing the lid on and off similar to those used in many food storage solutions work best. 

Buckets- Provide your own

• ULine  Bucket  $5.49   Lid $ 2.00  ($7.49)

• Home Depot orange- $4.04 ea  Lids $2.28  (in 10 packs)  ($6.32)

• Lowes blue- $4.98 ea Lids $ 2.78  ($7.76)

• Lowes white w/blue logo  $4.78 Lid $2.78  ($7.56)

• Industrial Container & Supply  $6.35 Lid $2.65 ($9.00)

• Anyone with connections to buy wholesale?

A great mutual activity would be to pad the lids to have a place to sit while taking breaks. This can make the buckets also serve as comfortable seats. There are online tutorials that can be helpful. 

10- What will the bathroom situation be?

Port-a-potties will be plentiful and available along the trail at break times throughout the day, as well as at night. There will be an adequate number of facilities at base camp and throughout the trek. No showers are available. 

11- What can I expect a day of Trek to be like?

Youth will be organized into trek families of around 8-10 "brothers and sisters" with a married couple serving as their Ma and Pa. Ma’s and Pa’s were carefully selected by the Bishops of each ward and will lead your Trek “family.” Each family will have their own handcart to pull together. Although we will be arranged in families, we will be trekking together and all members of the stake will be in close proximity to each other throughout the event. Trekking will be interspersed with breaks and activities that will help us feel connected to our pioneer heritage, to Heavenly Father and to each other. In the evenings there will be presentations, firesides, music, games and dancing, family bonding time and discussions, as well as eating together.

*Family Dynamics: Remember all families do not need to be the same.

Each family will have its own personality and will develop at its own pace. Take opportunities throughout the Trek experience to understand the thoughts, feelings, and personalities of each individual member or your Trek family. Make efforts to get to know them better. Take opportunities to share your feelings and personalities with them individually and collectively.