Walking – Page 65 – Clive's Blog

Gear that worked – Gear that didn’t

7 May 2012 / Backpacking, Camping, Outdoor Gear, Walking / backpacking, coffee, lightweight backpacking, MSR titanium mug, outdoor gear, tea

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.

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.

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

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 pt2

7 May 2012 / Backpacking, Camping, Lincolnshire, Photography, VR, Walking / lightweight backpacking, Photos 2012, walking

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The Walk Back

7 May 2012 / Backpacking, Camping, Lincolnshire, Photography, Walking / backpacking, camping food, Photos 2012, tea

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.

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.

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 Evening at Woodhall Spa Campsite

6 May 2012 / Backpacking, Camping, Lincolnshire, Photography, Walking / camping, Photos 2012

It has been a good evening at the campsite – I cooked and ate my dinner outside.

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Walk to Horncastle

6 May 2012 / Backpacking, Camping, Lincolnshire, Photography, Walking / hiking, Lincolnshire, Photos 2012, walking

It was a cold bright morning (for a while).

I used the Spa Trail / Viking Way to get out to Horncastle, then through the town and back along the same paths.

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Dinner

5 May 2012 / Backpacking, Camping, Walking / backpacking food, lightweight walking, outdoor gear, tea

Dinner tonight – Sausage and mash and onion gravy, with a mug of tea and Jaffa Cakes to follow.

I am currently working on an ebook about lightweight, simple meals for backpacking and camping – I will post it on my Downloads page when it is finished and Diana has proof read it.

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Two Night Trip

5 May 2012 / Backpacking, Camping, Lincolnshire, Photography, Technology, Travel, Walking / backpacking, iPhone camera apps, lightweight walking, Lincolnshire, MSR titanium mug, outdoor gear, Photos 2012, walking

I had been planning a two night trip further afield – but the variable weather and the unseasonably low temperatures meant I changed my plan to a walk to Woodhall Spa. (I have been walking for about 30 minutes, as I write this, it was cold and grey when I set out, it rained, the sun came out, it rained and now it is grey again!)

I put my iPhone in the waterproof case at the start of the day, to protect it, so I can use it as a camera for those bad weather photos and so I can write this blog as I walk – wiping the rain drops from the screen so I can read what I write.

The plan is walk to Woodhall Spa campsite from Bardney using the Viking Way – tomorrow loop out around Horncastle using the Viking Way and other paths – then Monday back to Bardney on the Water Rail Way.

Two days food, extra fuel and some spare clothes has added to my pack weight – the starting load complete was 12kgs. One thing I do need to manage is the power consumption on my iPhone – so I have disabled the 3G and data function, whilst walking, to conserve power and no movies tonight in the tent – I also plan to turn on flight mode over night.

It has now hailed on me.

The path has been very muddy in places particularly two stretches that go through cow fields. I found a convenient bit of low wall for lunch – but sitting still I got cold very quickly – so lunch was a quick stop.

I got the tent up in the dry.

I have my new inflatable pillow with me – as I do not have enough spare clothes with me to make a decent pillow. You can see the two days worth of food to the left – the milk I got from the campsite shop.

Here you can see how useful the small tarp is for giving me somewhere outside the tent to sit – and my sleeping bag in the stuff sack makes a useable stool.

A pitch right by the lake in among the trees.

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