Leave No Trace strictures vs Vandalism: There is a better way. I have been involved in land management for nearly seventy years and have planted thousands of trees, even this year when I am laid up with this ‘broken’ back. Surely most who read this have also thrilled to depictions of just the opposite, such …
(US$110.99 Today!) You have probably noticed before how much I have extolled the virtues of Thermarest’s wonderful sleeping pads. I particularly adore this one (the Noeair XLite Womens) as it as light as a feather (340 grams), ‘fits’ me perfectly at 20” x 66” (51 x 168 cm) and is superbly comfortable (moreso I think …
This looks like a great addition to your truck (at least if you are only a couple). They have a DIY kit for US$1995 (Aug 2018) PS: You have to supply your own ‘Lacey’. Good luck with that. Visit: https://www.topperezlift.com/ Videos: See this post for a cheaper alternative: http://www.theultralighthiker.com/convert-a-car-to-a-camper-for-50/ http://www.theultralighthiker.com/car-camping-scotland/ http://www.theultralighthiker.com/great-scot/ PS: …
Topper EzLift turns your SUV canopy into a camper: Read More »
Interesting things we saw on our Scotland trip. The massed cumulus clouds outside our plane window as we flew over the Nullarbor were the most breathtaking I have ever witnessed. They were miles high, yet somehow the lens does not do them justice. Just outside Edinburgh: hey have many beautiful weeds on the field verges …
I doubt anything else about camping has changed so much as sleeping. When I was a lad I always just slept on the bare ground. As a bit of a sissy, my only concession to comfort was to dig the traditional hip hole (which was derided by tougher-minded types) then maybe lean my head on …
We have recently been on a car camping holiday in Scotland where we wanted to stay away from people as much as possible on such a crowded island, and save on accommodation costs by sleeping in the rental car wherever we could find a pleasant spot. The car we hired turned out to be a …
One of Gippsland’s ‘hidden gems’. This sand track lets you access Venus Bay Beach about 8 km out from Tarwin Lower on the Walkerville Rd. You have to be really looking out for it, or you will miss it. At the beginning there is a gate (locked in winter I imagine) when the track would …
‘Go light; the lighter the better, so that you have the simplest material for health, comfort and enjoyment.’ So he said way back in 1884. A ten pound canoe way back then! There are so many treasures you can download for free from Project Gutenberg or the Internet Archive for example. I mentioned some others …
Hammocks, I have spent months of my life sleeping in them. This is an older post which I have freshened up with lots of hammock related links for readers who ‘came in late’. A plain nylon hammock with the addition of a rectangular inflatable mattress (such as a Thermarest Neoair) is all you need for wonderful …
Some folk like to lug around a lead sleeping bag. Might be useful in the event of a nuclear attack I guess. The bag I use is the Montbell Ultralight Superstretch Down Hugger #3 (-1C) which weighs about 600 grams. My wife has a Zpacks -7C sleeping bag which weighs even less than mine (400 …
This is the very first tick either myself or one of my animals has acquired in Southern Victoria – even though I hunted with hounds here for over thirty years and have owned as many as a dozen and a half dogs at a time. I used to see tiny ticks infecting the ears of …
Finding just the right conjunction of time, three days of delightful spring weather and enough water to make the river canoeable is harder now than it was before the bushfires years ago when the river height was over 1.8 metres on the Waterford gauge all summer. Now it rarely is. Last winter was quite dry …
How to prevent the rain from putting out your fire? I have been toying with this idea for some time. This week I decided to try out an ‘ultralight’ method. I constructed this 1 metre x 1 metre square of tyvek for that purpose, sewing gross grain ribbon tie outs on each of four corners. …
These will come in handy on the trail. Be patient…Pythagoras: This astonishing Pre-Socratic was a brilliant mind. I guess everyone knows his ‘Theorem” about right angle triangles. The saying below might not be quite so well known (or his enjoiner, ‘Eschew beans’! I think I know why!), but we can use some of the proportions …
Fishing in a hiking or survival situation is more about getting something to eat than fishing ethics or legality so you may want to make quite sure you do secure that piscine repast. These dual action fish hooks lock onto the fish with a pincer action once it has taken the bait. https://www.amazon.com/Survival-Janders-Inc-Utilizing-mechanism/dp/B01GT3Z3GM http://www.shomer-tec.com/product/survival-fish-hooks-1660.cfm …
Some time ago the shipping calculator disappeared from the main page of this wonderful site, so I have not been game to make a purchase because I did not know how much I would be charged for shipping. Eventually I contacted them and received this useful reply: ‘At this time the site is only able …
Good News: Della: ‘My steady return to fitness: After 5 weeks of cardiac rehab and a couple of weeks of mainstream fitness training (on top of our usual daily walks), today I tackled my first real bushwalk in 5 months. We checked out part of the Avon River Walking Track in the balmy, albeit blustery …
I have been posting my DIY things for quite some time now. Thought you might like to see a collection of my ‘creations’. There are now closer to 100 than 60 – but who’s counting? Best $5 Spent on Camping Ever Fire Umbrella DIY Dry Back Pack How to Carry a Saw Make Your Sleeping …
A year ago I thought this was the greatest head torch ever: http://www.theultralighthiker.com/let-there-be-light-great-new-head-torch/ Now, Black Diamond has a new model which blows it out of the water literally – being waterproof! Their new model boasts an incredible 350 lumens though it uses an extra AAA battery (4 rather than 3). It still has superb run …
I really liked the title of this guy’s website, apart from the interesting information it contains. Two selections: the world’s smallest, lightest gas stove, and how to refill hiking gas canisters: World’s Lightest Gas Stove – 25 grams: You can find this little guy available in a variety of places under different pseudonyms. I don’t …
