Once you reach Pangboche you are definitely out of the trees and the vista changes utterly. The absence of softening vegetation makes the panorama seem larger and harsher – and of course the colours change. You start to see lots more snow and ice, as well as vast shiny grey scree slopes as the Himalayas […]
There are some amazing wilderness areas in Victoria. Some maybe only a half dozen living eyes have seen. Such as this. People have been forbidden to venture here since c1955. This is the junction of Falls Creek and the Yarra River forwarded to me by an anonymous reader. Falls Creek is seen entering from the
This pad is available on Massdrop (https://www.massdrop.com/buy/klymit-insulated-static-v-lite?referer=EJ89BQ) for US$59.99 (so about A$100 delivered) just now. It has a very good 4.4 R rating and is 23” wide! Just what you need to keep those elbows warm! I do not need it to be so long as this but can probably cut approx 6” (15 cm)
Some of these would make an interesting stocking filler. Whilst nowhere near as Ultralight as my own http://www.theultralighthiker.com/ultralight-pen/ some of them are quite interesting. Being able to have a pen handy on your keychain is a good idea, as is the pen which expands to full size when needed; http://www.lamy.com/eng/b2b/pico https://www.massdrop.com/buy/tec-accessories-picopen-keychain-pen?referer=EJ89BQ http://www.thewritingpenstore.com/c-121-wallet-and-keychain-pens.aspx Beta Inkless Keychain
A canoe (or better yet, a pack raft) can get you to many spots which would be almost impossible with a 4WD or just on foot (even just across a swollen river, or much further along a lake), and it can get you (and your quarry) out again with a minimum of effort. See: http://www.theultralighthiker.com/sambar-stalking-101/
You can make a lighter non compliant PFD which you fill with other inflatable items, eg Platypus bottles (I carry a 1 and 2 litre bottle, pillows (I carry the Exped Ultralight), wine bladders (who doesn’t have a few of them lying around?) and etc. Here is the link to Mountain Laurel Designs ‘Thing’ or
PFDs are often pretty heavy. Alpacka have this one http://www.alpackaraft.com/product/astral-v-eight-pfd/ at 554 grams which is (I imagine) about as light as they get. I discovered that inflatable PFDs you buy from boating supplies shops have an airline PFD inside them. When I stripped one down it weighed 282 grams as shown and should be adequate
It’s summer already, so time to get out and about and get wet all over. I want to suggest some interesting pack rafting that you can do by public transport (eg from Melbourne). Some of the following you can mix and match a bit, but I hope they give you some ideas. I need to
As one of us was a year older, we took the day off for a leisurely stroll on this lovely nearby walking/riding track which stretches between the delightful Gippsland towns of Boolarra and Mirboo North. You can park your car at the beginning of the trail between the Brewery and the Recreation Reserve in Mirboo
We had a programmed ‘acclimatisation day’ at Namche and another at Dingboche. Tully had decided we would use these days to climb up to the next 500 metre ‘step’ and then descend again to sleep. This proved to be a good preventative for altitude sickness as was taking half a Diamox twice a day starting
