Cheers Tom. I had a great time.
Dinner was Jungle Curry using a shop-bought pre-made paste. Very powerful but has yet to manifest any after-effects.
Had fun trying out the Swiss Army Volcano Stove procured from uncleboob. Great piece of kit - particularly with the ring reducer on top to allow cooking in a billy or a frying pan - but it needs looking after and constant feeding. Not as impressive in sheer performance terms as your wood gas stove, but it was fun and I will hang onto it for now.
I also thought the Bushlites performed quite well. Very nice gentle light and easy to use.
The trip has spurred me to start saving for a Luxe Mini Peak II (
http://http://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/shelters-1/WF101.html) as a replacement for my tarp and Quechua Arpenaz tent combo (although I might lug the tarp along when it gets a bit wintery), and my kind Brother-in-Law bought me some vouchers for Cotswold Outdoor which I plan to spend on a new sleeping bag (
http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/vango-serenity-single-sleeping-bag-82410180?id_colour=98) to replace my Czech Army bedroll. So hopefully my pack weight and size should start to lessen soon. I'm carrying far too much stuff as it stands. Actually, the problem is not so much about weight for me, it's more around the ungainly physical volume of the stuff I carry and the time it takes to set-up and pack down which is a drag at the moment.
Anyway, really great to meet with you. We'll do it again sometime soon.
Cheers,
Matt.
