Tiny Containers: The search for small receptacles to stow various necessities is ongoing. My friend Meg loaned me these lovely aluminium ‘tins’ to evaluate. She uses them for some of her tiny art works such as her fabulous ear-rings & etc. The smallest one here is perhaps a 10 ml model (and weighs less than …
This is a genius idea of Rowan Reid’s for cheaply planting trees in sheep paddocks. It will also protect them from wallabies. You can plant cuttings of willow/poplar for example in situ and clearly you will have a pretty decent sized tree in twelve months time particularly if you start with a large cutting in …
This section and the next (to Hut Creek) are the best family canoeing opportunities on the river. When our kids were little (just a quarter century ago) we must have canoed them a hundred times. In the morning you can drop in at the Kingwell Bridge, spend two delightful hours on the river (much more …
Wonnangatta: Kingwell Bridge to Black Snake Creek Read More »
Corner Inlet (above Wilson’s Prom) is such a treasure. If you are walking from Phillip Island to Eden along the coast (which you must, one day) you can wander along its amazing foreshore bird watching etc for days and if you have a pack raft you can even manage to get across the few spots …
Yesterday was the first decent day of Spring: 28C and with enough water (1.73 at Licola – ideal) for a decent trip down from Basin Flat to Cheyne’s Bridge. This is one of the few sections of river that you can canoe alone (as you can readily hitch a lift back to your canoe after …
I am after some light waterproof fabric to make one of my new 10 x 10 Tarps and new versions of my Pocket Poncho Tent and my Deer Hunter’s Tent. I would like to source the fabric out of China (where most of it is made anyway) and have been trying and trying (with Alibaba) …
I guess every hunter dreams of some secluded valley where it feels like you are the first person to have ever trod – at least where the deer are as plentiful and tame as rabbits and there is no competition from other hunters. Where you can arrive at your camp after a couple of day’s …
I sewed the tie-outs onto the Tyvek tarp on Friday night and headed up the bush to give it a try-out on Saturday morning. Completed it weighed 610 grams. An acceptable weight for such a commodious and versatile shelter. In silnylon it would weigh under 350 grams. To reiterate (just in case you have not …
(Della) ‘yesterday revisiting Tongue Point and Fairy Cove at Wilson’s Promontory with friends. The beautiful spring weather, the good company and the 8 km walk were all very pleasant indeed, and we were warmly welcomed by the appearance of some winged luncheon guests at Fairy Cove (not actual fairies) as well as a killer whale …
It has been quite a while (over two years) since I first posted this. Time for an update. There are now over 100 ‘ideas’ to try out. Most will save you money or at least improve your outdoors experience; nearly all of them are my own ‘inventions’. Hope you find something useful to you. 101. …
Cheap, light, quick, simple and tough – and almost self-inflating. What’s not to like? Here are the two most outstanding features. Wonderful. 15″ x 5″ when deflated. 33″ x 72″ inflated. 3 lbs. Tubes 200 denier. Floor 400 denier. The nearest competition I guess is the Ultralight version of this one: https://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/01/02/new-diy-pack-raft/or Klymit’s Pack Raft: https://www.theultralighthiker.com/2016/04/23/klymit-packraft/ …
‘Snapped late yesterday as the cold front approached!’ (Della) In other developments the Ring-Tailed Possum I thought a victim to Brer Fox has moved his house from the plum tree (too wet) to a Macadamia behind it:
I know most people can’t sew (and probably don’t have much money either) so I suggest either of these two simple poly tarp ‘hacks’ for en excellent dry shelter (which you can also enjoy a fire out front with). They both also feature ‘stand-up’ room (at least if you are shorter than 6′) which I …
‘Our last little puppy went off to her new home yesterday. Farewell little Dot, now sporting the very grown-up name of “Stella” (melded from the names of her devoted Grandparents😀). The house is a little less bouncy and joyous this morning and Honey doesn’t quite know what to do with herself. Stella, however, has scored …
If you have made a ‘faux’ pack raft (as here and here) as I have you will have had the same problem with the paddle. The cheap (Intex) rafts come with a set of oars which need to be converted into a double bladed paddle (which will fit in a canoe drum!) I tried several …
The photo of me standing in the snow in front of the archway in the last post reminded me that back on 10th August 2005 we had this amazing dump of snow around here – South Gippsland and Southern Victoria in general. Much more snow and lower down than we ‘normally get – whatever that …
Which I built in a morning (for $27) over thirty years ago is no more. Back on 08/06/2014 I posted this about it: Invisible worlds: the archway: Straight outside our front door we have this archway: you’ve probably seen it before in family photos, as it makes an interesting backdrop. Around here we have often …
Things just keep getting better and better. I was impressed by the CRKT PDK knife but I am even more impressed by this 10.4 gram little beauty. I confess I may have a titanium fetish, and yes, I do think you could dress a sambar deer with one. I have used the CRKT on one …
Opinel make some pretty unique knives. I guess I came to the party a bit late on this one, but I have two of them in my hand right now and they are magnificent! First I bought the Opinel No 6: because a reader (Tim) recommended it (in this post), as follows: ‘Opinel #6 has …
A friend of mine coined the phrase ‘APC’ being a play on words for a major patent medicine of the 50s and 60s. Instead of the three chemicals which were its constituents (Aspirin, Phenacetin and Codeine – you just can’t get good pain relief cheaply any more!), her expression stood for ‘Armpits and Crotch’. A …
