Camping

Annotated Kit Photograph

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1 Aluminium foil wind shield – wraps in close around the stove for really windy weather
2 Stove board/stand – it protects the grass and makes a stable base for the stove.
3 Half aluminium wind shield – I bought a wind shield, cut it in half and removed a panel to make it fit better around this stove and mug
4 Vargo Triad XE Alcohol / Fuel Tab Titanium Stove with a copper mug support
5 MSR Titanium mug – mug and cooking pot
6 Aluminium lid for the mug
7 & 8 Small Beaker with lid – second mug when the titanium mug is being used as a pot. The lid makes it a useful storage jar and it is just big enough to rehydrate a 65g pack of noodles in.
9 Small Brew Kit
10 Army style tin opener
11 25ml bottle of dried milk
12 Refillable gas lighter – it has a stronger flame than a disposable lighter
13 2x fuel tablets – emergency fuel
14 Methylated spirits- in a clearly marked bottle – packed in a ziplock bag to protect the other equipment from leaks.
15 Washing up and Hygiene
– Alcohol hand cleaner – hygiene is essential when camp cooking
– 20ml Multi-purpose bio-degradable soap – for washing up, cleaning clothes or person. I decant some into a shampoo bottle that I got from a hotel
– 1/4 Pot sponge
– Hi absorbent cloth – for drying up
– Kitchen cloth
16 Plastic Cutting board – this is made from a plastic wall tile cut in half – 5cms x 12cms. Some kind of chopping board is often overlooked, having something to cut on saves other bits of kit, lids or plates getting damaged. I have several of these tiles in my camp box when one gets too badly scratched up I will replace it.
17 Victorinox Camper SAK – cooking knife, tin and bottle opener as well as an all round camp tool.
18 Paper towels in a small ziplock bag
19 Small LMF spork – this is a double ended utensil with a real fork at one end and a real spoon at the other. A true spork is not very good at getting the last drops of gravy out of a bowl or for hooking up a forkful of noodles.
20 Camp folding spoon and knife
21 Three section spice pot/shaker
22 GSI pot lifter
23 LMF ferro rod and striker
24 Spare gas lighter
25 1oz Single Malt Whisky
26 Stuff sack that holds most of this equipment
27 1l roll up water bottle with sports top for easy pouring
28 Selection of small pots and bottles to carry, dried milk, peanut butter etc
29 Coffee maker/tea strainer
30 Air tight canister for fresh coffee
31 600ml bowl with a clip on lid – this is large enough for the meals I make, but it also serves as a container for transporting more fragile food whilst walking.
32 1m square lightweight tarp – for putting on the ground and making a clean cooking area

Not shown in the photograph

  • Tea bags and sugar packets in the brew kit
  • 58 Pattern British Army water bottle
  • Plastic food bags with wire ties used both for food storage and for packing rubbish out

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Gear that worked – Gear that didn’t

Inflatable Pillow

I’ll start with the failure – the inflatable pillow. It started off alright, it was comfortable, but that soon decreased as the air slowly leaked out from the valve. Luckily it only cost me a pound. I dumped it in the bin before leaving the campsite – however I will be looking for a better quality inflatable pillow as the idea was good.

Peanut Butter

I have seen in other backpacking blogs that in the US peanut butter, in single portion packets, is easily available in supermarkets – I have found it online in the UK but not for a price that makes it a viable purchase here.

I have been on the lookout for some small containers to portion jam, honey and peanut butter in to, and last week I found these in Boyes, in Lincoln at 89p a pack of four.

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The pots have a very secure high thread so they can be filled to the brim. I filled two with peanut butter for this weekend and found one pot was enough for four crackers at lunchtime.

So these are a success.

Beaker or bowl

I have swapped the screw top beaker for a 600ml bowl with a snap top lid.

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It is much larger which was needed to make the sausage and mash dinner.

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I have gone back to carrying the lightweight beaker that fits inside my titanium mug, so I can have tea whilst cooking. The titanium mug with a lid still makes an excellent “one person kettle” and a mug. I can use the titanium mug almost straight from the stove – I have a GSI pot lifter to hold the handles in when I lift it from the stove (and to handle the lid and wind shield when hot) but by the time I make my tea or coffee in the mug the handles and mug lip are cool enough to hold and drink from.

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The Walk Back

I only plan a short walk today as I have to get back to the office to sort out a data back up issue for a client.

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It was a bright sunny start to the day, so after tea whilst still in my sleeping bag, it was breakfast outside by the lake.

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The titanium mug with lid kept the early morning bugs out of the tea water – I put it on the beaker afterwards to keep them out of the tea.

Breakfast was cereal bars and tea – Diana bought me something different – Apple and Oat bar made by “The Fabulous Bakin’ Boys”, they were very good and I will be using them again.

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The Walk Back Read More »