Hi folks just a heads up for anyone interested.

we have become the UK dealer for revelate designs. we will have gear available soon. (cheeky I know)
Andy

Couple of shots of Slugwash and I on the El and back Bearbones outing… Not quite to Elan for us.
First Bivvy of the year and hopefully one of many.

Post Saturday night bivvy after a long search in the freezing night for a decent spot and shortly before I had the pleasure of frozen boots!

Slugwash enjoying a Welsh bog

I have lurked with interest on this thread up till now, as I’m not strictly a bivi-er (sp?), but instead I’m a road tourer. I have an interest in light things that do the job well!

This (see below) caught my eye, obviously its pretty mahoosive but hopefully future iterations will get lighter and smaller. What does the collective think? Anything similar on the market?

http://www.biolitestove.com/campstove/camp-overview/features/#sub

I saw one of these in Cotswold outdoor just before Christmas – I think it was priced at about £80.

The USB output is rated at 2W / 5V so it’s 0.4A. Charge-time of more high-powered devices will take a good few hours, which means a good amount of dry fuel needed and hours of poking little sticks into the fire.

Edit: Having said that, it looks relatively cheap given what it does and the amount you can spend on ‘normal’ stoves.

Planning ahead for the spring 🙂 Tarp arrived today and I’m now looking for light weight telescopic/ segmental tarp poles. any ideas welcome. previously taken my walking poles, buy they are a wee bit heavy and excessively large. cheers

Use your front wheel at the back of the tarp and your saddle rails with seat post as high as possible for the front. No need for poles

Planning ahead for the spring Tarp arrived today and I’m now looking for light weight telescopic/ segmental tarp poles. any ideas welcome. previously taken my walking poles, buy they are a wee bit heavy and excessively large. cheers

A few pole ideas

Using a pole will gives you more set-up options than just relying on your bike.

Set-up ideas

Any one used one of these?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/DD-Tarp-Ultralight-Compact-Multiple/dp/B005FLNSIU/ref=cm_cr_pr_sims_t

Not that particular one but I have used DD tarps before. Have you seen the weight? Not really ultralight and that’s before you add the stupid heavy steel pegs and cord.

Spend a few quid more and either buy:

AlpKit Rig – about the same weight but much, much bigger and with a smaller pack size.

Integral Designs Siltarp 1 – about the same size but less than half the weight/pack size

Cheers still s8tannorm, that link to your review was spot on. Didnt enjoy lugging Walking poles around last yr. If it is blowin a howly can you just pull together 2 of the sections on the ultralight outdoor one so you can halve the height of the rig?

Does anyone know where else you can buy those handy wee wire carabiners – http://www.alpkit.com/shop/cart.php?target=product&product_id=16304&category_id=250- for a similar price?

I need to put some hours in reading back through this thread. Bikepacking is on my “must do” list this year…

Mini carabiners: eBay

Started reading this thread right back to page one last night, despite having followed it for 2 years. Before I knew it, was way past bedtime, and I had 20 odd tabs open for different kit/myog and stuff!.

This thread keeps on giving.

How do those tarp clips work then?

Found what look like the same alpkit ones- not as cheap obviously!

http://www.backwoodsdaydreamer.com/products-page/metal-hardware/

Hey nobeer – http://theultimatehang.com/2012/05/rigging-a-tarp-for-a-hammock-with-hardware/

Scott of Black Rainbow Project’s custom English Cycles bikepacking bike, built for the Great Divide

My knees hurt just at the sight of that bike!

Couple of shots from our February ‘one a month’ bivvy last Saturday night.
No bike though, sorry.

The view from my pit Sunday morn

Tea time

Slugwash took the necessary fording very seriously 🙂

Shinythings – that looks like dartmoor, that near lucky tor? looks awsome and very cold!

looks….. very cold!

You’re not far wrong. 1.7 degrees Centigrade, so almost frickin’ freezing! No way I could be smiling for the camera in those conditions ….

And yes, near Lucky Tor (the one on the River Dart, AKA Eagle Rock)

Weekend Dales Bivvy trip by Riders Cycle Centre, on Flickr
http://www.flickr.com/photos/yorkshirebiking/sets/72157632850958751
http://riderscyclecentre.com/?p=1342 A blog ride report.

kudos!
had checked out Lucky Tor a few weeks back, thought it looked a nice place to bivvy when it got a bit warmer!

Well done anyone who gets out in the winter. If I go camping at this time of year, I take the tipi and woodburning stove!

I think I’ve just about managed to gatther enough kit to go for a maiden voyage in the next few weeks once I finish my nights. I had a dummy run of packing everything onto the bike but noticed that when I strap my dry bag to the bars there seems to be a lot of trapped air inside which makes it unstable.

Its a 15ltr bag being held on with two cargo straps, being new to all this is there some cunning technique to this that I haven’t grasped yet or is it just par for the course? I have considered making a harness of some desciption for it as a more secure option.

You can get a proper harness for it, like this one:

Now on sale at backcountrybiking

I’ve had some success using a rolled up piece of sleeping mat(karrimat) inside a dry bag in order to give it some shape and rigidity. The mat is also useful as something to sit on 🙂

I’ve seen similar things but its the cost that puts me off, just cant justify #80 given the amount of use its liable to get.

I’d been thinking of something along these lines using cordura with 20mm webbing and something as an insert to help give it some form. I’m kinda stumped on what to use as the binding around the edges of the main section though.

Chilly February bivi for me the other week. Rime ice on everything in the morning at 594m ABSL!
[/url]
Feb_Bivi-7 by 99percentchimp, on Flickr[/img]

I had a similar chilly experience at the end of February. I camped up high enough to avoid the worst of the overnight frost but found no running water as a result. No water. In Scotland!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/druidh2000/sets/72157632952060048/
http://www.blog.scotroutes.com/2013/03/oopsi-almost-did-it-again.html

Made one a few months back. Not had chance to use it –

Made from XPac so is tough and light.

Looks good unsponsered, I had a look at XPac which I may go back to its just I have some Cordura kicking around indoors.

Out of curiosity what have you used to bind the edges and have you used any kind of padding?

Bit of a P.S.A.

Lidl are doing that Rocktrail 2 man tent again, in blue this time.

Saw it on this thread ages ago and bought a green one, went past a Lidl today and they have them again.
2000mm Hydrostatic head, single skin, 1.5kg, 2 person, £15ish.

Cheap, the door has a flyscreen so should be more midge repellant than a bivi bag/basha/tarp.
Steel pegs, spare guideline in mine, well packed in a zippered pouch, ditching the pouches/spare bits changing the pegs should bring it down to 1.2-1.3kg. Fairly compact pack size, nice size for a single person and gear.

Seen them crop up in the background in pictures on here so a few on here got them last time round.

🙂

OK I’ve googled XPac, and all I get is wrestlers.

What is it?

2000mm Hydrostatic head, single skin

I would not trust that to keep me dry at all…

My first bivi ride of the year.

Overnight on Sunday as Gisburn and down to minus 3

great photos – should bag a night this week but its been a hard start to the wild camping year thats for sure!

matt outandabout

🙂
Might keep you dry in the desert in summer with no rain, maybe not an english summer.

Taking a some ideas and inspiration from this tread I got round to doing my first bivvi ride last night. It was a very clear and cold night, but I survived and got a good buzz from it. Even woke up covered in frost. I’m amazed at how little kit I needed to do it, just a 20l bag, sleeping bag on the bars and a saddle bag. It was worth it keeping the kit to a minimum, the bike still rode like normal and I enjoyed the riding as well as the overnight aspect. I headed out after work, rode til it got dark, slept then rode home. Very cool.

Cheers for the tips / inspiration, this truly is the tread that keeps on giving.

Tucked away on Thursday night

P1050486 by ScotRoutes, on Flickr