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That is the very definition of heaven :D I am more partial to a double-fermented belgian style ale though, for winter! A few tens of bottles of which are currently conditioning near the bacon.

Yes, old-style 150yo farm building, they all came with massive basement rooms like that. Access from the inside of the house, down the stairs. A constant temperature almost throughout the year and very little humidity. Pity it's at the in-laws' in the continent

The best is home-made. Because you can make it any way you like, and you control what's in it. I always go for sweet dry-cured, plenty of sea salt and demerara sugar along with ground coffee, ground fennel seeds and black pepper, few days with draining the fluids and topping up salt & sugar till...

Hi John, I want to make more stuff in Loden (boiled wool, like the army blankets), but made a bit of a mess. Do you cover that in any book?

I've paddled past many times, but never visited! I have two little ones now, so I am sure there will be a lot of interest from them next time we are over!

Thanks to all for the welcome, and thanks John! I saw your books for sale, some interesting stuff there, I will be in touch about getting some! My latest project was making a copy of the '1942 reversible ski parka, fur trimmed'. I made it in double ventile, one side green, the other white of...

The XL DDs are wonderful hammocks. My top tips are; -For the temps you mention, I use a Carinthia Defence 4, layered with the Tropen in anything colder. You get much more bang for your sleeping bag's weight if you just drape it on top of you like a quilt; the hammock compresses a lot more bag on...

Totally. I tried 'hand saws', both with chain and with the serrated wire, dumped them in the bin. Since I bought a Laplander, I never bought any other saw, other than 2 more Laplanders and several spare blades for them (never needed to replace one yet actually!). By a country mile, the best...

For waterproofs, I go for a single layer with no insulation whatsoever, and I only put it on as a last line of defence if it gets rainy or extremely windy, or when static. On the move, a waterproof -no matter how 'breathable' it's advertised as- will likely be hot and clammy and you'll soon be...

I think you nailed the problems. Any 2-layer jacket, no matter of how 'breathable' the waterproof fabric is, will be too hot for anything but mostly static conditions. Add rain on the outside, and you are soon swimming in your own sweat. A single layer Ventile soon gets a bit uncomfortable...

My Bergans Rugged Mountain Pants And the Laplander... oh my god, Bahco absolutely NAILED it with that one. I have three (one in my bag, one in the car, one in my hut), and several spare blades. That thing is an absolute machine, it will go through anything like butter. The 'silencer' jet cover...

You are right in that it swells, but you may have got it wrong on the tightly spun part; ventile is actually extra long fibres with very little spin. Because the fibres are so much longer than 'standard' cotton fibres, they are strong with very little spin needed to make the yarn. It's that very...

It is a Swiss company that makes the fabric in Turkey and they market it as both their own brand and Ventile (a brand they bought, and which their fabric complies to spec-wise). It is very expensive, the materials to make your own smock are ca. £150-160 (I am XL) for a two-layer one with quality...

You can buy wool fleece in standard wool or merino. If you want to make your own stuff of course. Wool fleece is ca. £25/m roll, merino around £50/m roll, and you'd need ca. 1.8m-2m for a fleece jacket in XL. If you want to buy it ready made, your options are probably limited and I am not aware...

If you want to use them in places like the UK, it is worth noting that the US use standard vibram soles now on their all-rounder boots. See Danner etc. However, for conditions resembling jungle with mud, they are unbeatable and that tread is still used in the current US jungle boots. I can't...

Pros and cons, mixed, from owning two Special 6s (I think that's the name). It's way too hot for me to wear when moving, but is is a really good warming layer when you stop, good loft and very light for the insulation you get. The hood is a must if you want the insulation, it really keeps you...

I'll need to work out how to import pics, I can't see the option (newbie!) But I concur on the Skrama 80, really good piece, I have their pointed version and I will order a puuko from them next time I am in the continent. I have a couple of Fallkniven F1s, but I found that they tend to chip...

Hello all, I live in Scotland, in the sticks just outside the Cairngorms National Park, and love hiking, cycling, kayaking, bushcraft, camping, foraging, hunting, fishing, sailing... everything outdoors! Favourite places are Loch Tay / Loch Earn / Loch Awe, and anywhere in Sutherland and the...