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Tesco bag looks very tempting. Any thoughts on how it performs? No winter bivi trips for me, but don't want to die from exposure in July for the sake of saving £60!!
Glad it went well Stu, Any pics of that climb?
That's not a climb 😉
Can't post pics but I'll email you one over.
Stu email me and I'll post them if you want 😉
Few folk had the down tesco bags on the wrt last year ... reckoned they were fine and no one died 😀
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A pic of "the climb" from Stuart
Tesco bag looks very tempting. Any thoughts on how it performs? No winter bivi trips for me, but don't want to die from exposure in July for the sake of saving £60!!
^ ^ ^
Huh! My Tesco down bag testimonial above not good enough for you then, petrieboy? 😉
Ah, doesn't do it justice ... most is 1 in 5 with a certain bit 1 in 3. When you're pushing up it feels like it's over 45 degrees! which I assume it is.
I hope the WRT is not passing through there????
I hope the WRT is not passing through there????
God I bet it does just my luck
Took my Tesco bag on the WRT last year and it got a bit hot to be honest, sleept in endura baa baa and shorts . Had to take Baa off as it was too hot.
What happened to all the trip pics then chaps?
I was the only one carrying a camera, the camera in question is rubbish. We we're pitched up in forests both nights (flatfish was swinging from the trees) and we didn't set up camp until after dark so not much to take pictures of really ... perhaps that should say, not much my camera would take pictures of!
We did get a nice picture of a warning sign ... it warned us to be careful of BEARS for the next 5 miles. I'm not making that up either 😯
So, the big question... Every time I go to my local Tesco I see those dinky cheap down bags, and every time without fail I get told to move away from the camping aisle by my wife. She's sick of me looking at things like that and then deciding not to buy it. That is possibly understandable.
Anyway, to the point now. Should I buy an Alpkit SH1000 or similar to replace my current Army-issue green bag? Not only do Alpkit make them in a long (thanks people!), but their bag will be hopefully both warmer and lighter than the abomination that fills my Bergan every time I go out.
Should I though? Will it be warmer? Too warm perhaps? (given that I don't go out in the dead of winter these days) HELP!!!
I'm definitely buying a mat from them though...
Get one bought ... you won't regret it and it'll last years if you look after it.
I know!!! But there are just sooooo many choices!
I just don't want to be too cold. Or too warm. Simply "just right".
It's got a full length zip, if you start to get too hot just vent it from the bottom.
I don't think I've had many nights in the UK where a 'lightweight, cheap, 1 season' bag would actually have been warm enough ... that might just be me though.
BEARS!
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[b]"****"[/b] I am making a bear bell tonight for the WRT 😯
You know how to tell if you have come across bear poo in Wales? It's the one with the bear bells/whistles in it 😉
Route 66..!! god I hope thats not one of the way points for WRT...
Right, what canoe do I need then??
I think I can borrow a sea kayak from a neighbour 😉
Anyone got one of these? any good?
http://www.gapyeartravelstore.com/Beyond-2-3-Season-Down-Sleeping-Bag-p-539.html
you would never guess Im looking at bags again, would this be a good coicee but maybe with a liner? its well small and cheap and with the summer just around the corner... 8)
http://www.gapyeartravelstore.com/Snugpak-Traveller-2-Season-Sleeping-Bag-p-391.html
you would never guess Im looking at bags again, would this be a good coicee but maybe with a liner? its well small and cheap and with the summer just around the corner...
http://www.gapyeartravelstore.com/Snugpak-Traveller-2-Season-Sleeping-Bag-p-391.html
It's the same one as mentioned above by me and Basil. You can get them for £25 post free on ebay. I've not tested mine as yet. I was going to this weekend but as the forecast suggests that Dartmoor will be freezing I'm taking a three season down one instead.
Anyone want to join the full moon sleep out party on Saturday?
didnothingfatal - Member
Best setup I found for gas is the Optimus Crux and would sooner invest in a setup like the Optimus Crux Weekend HE Cook System.
well my HE system has just arrived 😀
One of those boxes you take off the van man and think 'is there anything in it, feels kind of empty'
The burner mechanism is a work of miniature beauty, half full gas can boiled the large pan (indoors) in about 2 1/2 minutes - handles could be better if I'm being very critical, but the whole package is neat and the small lid pan could be used as a 'mug' saving even more space/weight.
Weather being kind I'm off on a full-moon bivvy-bag bonanza this Saturday in the vicinity of Hindhead Punchbowl so will test it 'in the field'
I've got the bivvy geek bug I think 😕
That's it blame me when it all goes wrong 😆
Enjoy the field test!
that looks a great cookset let us know how you get on with it 😉
hoping to have a trip over the Easter holidays when the tribe are away at the outlaws 😉
may go into the Afan forestry and scare bikers on the Sunday morning like stig of the dump 😀
A good addition to the Crux is the Primus Windscreen
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You don't get the advised 5mm clearance but it hasn;t affected mine this last two years.
I should be out over easter too valley daddy.
Ride from aberdare to glyncorrwg then back again.
Not that it's that far.
Yes I've done that a few times, there and back in a day easily.
Just always make the mistake if eating too much at the Drop off and suffering on the way back 😳
Ok flatfish maybe we can sort a trip out over Easter, I am sure Steve would be up for a local one too, assuming he can get out of family duties.
penny stove arrived today.
Fool I hear you say but i'm not one of those people who can follow instructions well. But now I've got one to copy so will be churning them out by the dozen.
The thing weighs nowt and burns really really well.
I'm Happy
The boss has just rang and i've had a pink ticket stamped for an easter overnighter.
should be up for that depending on what day - hopefully I won't get as many punctures as I did last weekend!
NOBODY can get as many punctures as you Steve. 😉
You should go tubeless Steve. Recently changed a pair of tyres that had worn out - on close inspection of the inside of the casing I pulled out 8 large thorns. First time I'd been aware of them as no loss of pressure.
Just finished my MYOG meths/solid fuel stove ready for this weekend's Dartmoor bivi trip.
It burns meths one way up, but flip it over (and insert a couple of old cut down spokes) and it becomes a solid fuel/twig burning furnace 🙂
Meths mode...
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Solid Fuel....
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All the bits + fuel...
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One fuel tablet gets it to boiling (without foil lid) in about 41/2 minutes. About the same for meths...
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It packs down small and fits discreetly in your handbag 😉
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Food for this weekend's trip (excluding coffee bags & Nairns Fruit Oatcakes). I'm using the freezer bag method of cooking http://www.trailcooking.com/ .....
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[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/8308384@N06/5536937313/in/set-72157626077847855/ ]Food Photo With Notes[/url]
And, for those of you who've been following this thread recently, I'll be throwing caution to the wind and testing the Snugpak Travel Lite sleeping bag 😯
Good stuff. The custard is a great idea, I was eating apple pie and custard last weekend ... doesn't half just warm you up before bedtime 😀
Actually, I ate the custard about half-an-hour ago.
Not to worry though, I'll pop into Sainsburys later and get some more when I pick up the coffee bags 🙂
Good luck with the Travel Lite! We're up onto Kinder Scout tonight and forecast is hovering zero even down in the valley. Alpkit PD800 for me, although I'm only on a 3/4 balloon bed so will loose a fair bit to the ground. It packs easily into 8L drybag so it's not a big issue.
Stove looks great, should one assume the pegs are ti? That looks like a lot of fuel for the amount of food laid out!
Stove looks great, should one assume the pegs are ti? That looks like a lot of fuel for the amount of food laid out!
Cheers! No, they're not ti. I took them from my bnggered wheel collectiom (105 hub/Mavic CXP33 Rim. a combination I'm never going to use again so I can afford to lose the odd sized spokes 😉 )
There's a lot of fuel there 'cos I'll be testing the set up in the field and boring my gas-stove cooking companions with back to back solid fuel vs. meths vs. elder twigs MYOG stove demonstrations 😉
I'm also on a balloon bed but have done a risk assessment regarding the weather ([url= http://www.dartcom.co.uk/weather/index.php ]Dartmoor Weather Station[/url]) and reckon my chances of survival are fair to middling with the Travel Lite (and a back up Vango Venom 150 as a liner if necessary).
We're plotting up down in a wooded 'ravine' next to the River Dart as we suspect that the open moor will be crawling with yoofs out on Ten Tor manouveres.
Enjoy Kinder 🙂
Slugwash
What is you're windscreen/pot support made out of (or have I missed it?)
What is you're windscreen/pot support made out of
A sheet of aluminium that shinythings (of this forum) gave me....
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Apparently, he used some on his boy-racer souped-up Audi Quattro engine to dissapate excess heat or something like that. Not exactly what you want your windshield to do 🙂
What a superb trip, Kinder was cold over night but warm blue skies today meant there was a lot of fun to be had. Someone else was enjoying it to, we arrived 11pm to the spot we had in mind to find 3 tents had already tucked up for the night!!
New 'Travel Tap' water filter- tested and great.
New 'Caldera Cone' stove- tested and great.
New 'Storm Matches'- flippin brilliant for lighting cold meths.
I weighed my complete 25L pack (all kit inside, we were yomping not riding this time) at 7.3kg. For my full on winter kit I was quite happy with that. Weight includes tent, -18' sleeping bag, food, water and filter, stove, & fuel, pots, down jacket, gloves/hat, and sundries. No camera though 🙁
Roll on the next trip.