Weekend and a Day

[decorum]

I had a chance to get out and about this weekend ~ something which has been sadly lacking in recent times . Added to this unexpected opportunity was the extra bonus of visiting a wood I hadn’t previously been in .



The Invite.

The original invite had mentioned a five minute walk to the pitch, so I opted and planned for a somewhat lighter approach than I usually opt for with Meets. It would still be a heavy walk in as the weekend’s water needed to be carried in.



The Accidental Discovery.

And then I found out that parking was _a whole lot closer_ than I’d thought ~ so I opted for a bit of comfort and swapped the kip-mat out for a camp cot and a chair was added to the kit list. The rest of the kit choices stayed the same as I’d originally planned on using.



The Senior Moment.

Are you one of those people who are ‘helped with packing’? You know ‘Have you got …?’, ‘Have you packed …?’, ‘Aren’t you taking …?’

I am.

Deadly, isn’t it!



Route Planning.

Google Earth is not your friend! I’m not very familiar with the site’s location so, although I knew its approximate location, I used GE to try to plan the best route. And then, when I’d stopped laughing, I dropped a note to my host asking for his advice



Arrival on Site (aka The Importance of Remembering The Seven P’s).

Arrival on site saw me setting up quickly and efficiently ~ because I really needed to make a quick trip home

.



Second Time Lucky.

Having returned to the site and now having the huge advantage of being able to make use of a sleeping bag

. The reason for leaving it behind is down to four reasons ~ a change in routine[SUP]1[/SUP], having packed a second item of similar(ish) size, shape and colour[SUP]2[/SUP], and assuming[SUP]3[/SUP] that everything was as I thought[SUP]4 [/SUP]and lastly, it had been moved because 'It was in the way'.


Had I been travelling out of area I would have had to purchase a replacement ~ the forecast was for cold and low grade damp. And it was reasonably accurate.

[SUP]1[/SUP] My sleeping bag is usually carried inside my pack, this time it was going to be carried strapped to the lid of my pack.
[SUP]2[/SUP] Second item was the water carrier ~ a 20L Swiss water carrier, in essence a big black rubber bag.
[SUP]3[/SUP] Never assume ~ it always makes an bottom out of you and me (an old and sometimes accurate, phrase)
[SUP]4[/SUP] In the words of my first works supervisor ‘Don’t think, know! Think gets it wrong. Know has been and checked!’



And Relax!

So, having made the unexpected trip home and now having returned with the errant item, I now set about enjoying the ambiance and experience of a new wood.



A couple of pics ~ not many as the camera didn’t appreciate the conditions

My set-up for the weekend




Cook kit ~ stove off of the cold damp floor to give the gas a bit of help against the cold. The pan resting on the stove is an old SIGG pan ~ the inverted lid sits securely thanks to its stepped shape




The bit of brew kit missing from the shot above ~ pouch contains a zip-loc bag of DrinkMe Chai





Leather flask, taken for a trial run. Still need to get round to making a proper stopper .





Full moon on Saturday and no tripod

Thank you to my host for the weekend :notworthy .
In his words 'You told some good jokes. Pity the others missed them!' It was a one in a life time opportunity ~ and you lot missed it!

And thank you for taking the time to read and look.

 

[TinkyPete]

Looks like you had a real good time eventually.

 

[MartinK9]

Looks good Phil.

 

[Toddy]

Sounds like a good weekend .........but you *know* you're *never* going to live down the sleeping bag

Thanks for sharing

cheers,
M

 

[Mesquite]

Sounds a great weekend Phil... just wish I could have come along as well. Still there'll be other times

As for your jokes... your host is still a youth to them... when he's been out a few more times he might change his perception of what's funny

Sounds like a good weekend .........but you *know* you're *never* going to live down the sleeping bag

 

[udamiano]

As for your jokes... your host is still a youth to them... when he's been out a few more times he might change his perception of what's funny

 

[Shewie]

Nice bit of glamping Phil. thanks for sharing the piccies

 

[Elines]

Glad it went well - looks great

 

[decorum]

Sounds like a good weekend .........

It was . Weather was a whole lot kinder to us than we'd expected ~ and it howled it down after I'd come away .

Mind you, I did find a cleg on my tarp whist I was pottering about on Saturday afternoon :bluThinki ~ splat!

but you *know* you're *never* going to live down the sleeping bag

Thanks for sharing

And it was admitted to knowing that I'd get ribbed

My own opinion is that, in general, a decent level of experience gives you enough nouse to be able to blag a resounding fail into a glorious victory ~ and this really would've been easy to blag*. I keep seeing 'Am I good enough?' concerns expressed in Meet threads and I think a self imposed perceived *inferiority* of newcomers is something which may be preventing some people from coming along top Meets. It's the same with the _perceived_ bushy uniform ~ 'Will I be accepted if I don't have x,y or z?' ~ and when people come along they suddenly realise that, as long as they're happy and safe, we really don't care what they're using or how experienced they are.


* Faked phone call, 'need to pop out to sort a,b or c' blah, blah, blah. Then go home, pick the bag up and come back. No one would be the wiser


And yes, I still know that I'll get ribbed for it

Sounds a great weekend Phil... just wish I could have come along as well. Still there'll be other times

We're already talking about a prospective date in January


QUOTE=Mesquite;1006743] As for your jokes... your host is still a youth to them... when he's been out a few more times he might change his perception of what's funny [/QUOTE]

You know me. If I've got the same as everyone else, I have to give it a twist to make it my own. Same goes for my sense of humour .


And it isn't my fault if your sense of humour can't keep up with mine!




Thanks for the kind words.

 

[Elines]

......My own opinion is that, in general, a decent level of experience gives you enough nouse to be able to blag a resounding fail into a glorious victory ~ and this really would've been easy to blag*. I keep seeing 'Am I good enough?' concerns expressed in Meet threads and I think a self imposed perceived *inferiority* of newcomers is something which may be preventing some people from coming along top Meets. It's the same with the _perceived_ bushy uniform ~ 'Will I be accepted if I don't have x,y or z?' ~ and when people come along they suddenly realise that, as long as they're happy and safe, we really don't care what they're using or how experienced they are.


* Faked phone call, 'need to pop out to sort a,b or c' blah, blah, blah. Then go home, pick the bag up and come back. No one would be the wiser


.

Spot on there

 

[Toddy]

Quote, Decorum........."I keep seeing 'Am I good enough?' concerns expressed in Meet threads and I think a self imposed perceived *inferiority* of newcomers is something which may be preventing some people from coming along top Meets. It's the same with the _perceived_ bushy uniform ~ 'Will I be accepted if I don't have x,y or z?' ~ and when people come along they suddenly realise that, as long as they're happy and safe, we really don't care what they're using or how experienced they are. "


Yep that's a sticky worthy quote

cheers,
M

 

[Man of Tanith]

Must say before my first meet i wondered if i would be accepted without having assorted bits of kit or if my level of experience/skills would be suitable to attend a meet.
My perceptions were blown out of the window how friendly and welcoming folk were to me, although i had been knocking about on here for a couple of years before i went to a meet so i had developed a bit of banter or online interaction with folk first.