I was inspired by Madgaz and his pic of his daypack and what he manages to cram into it - and let's face it - we all love looking into someone else's pack... Anyway, I've been spending a lot of time in the woods near my childhood home lately, basically to look in on my Mum and Dad more often, as they're getting a bit frail. TBH the woods are a great escape from conversations with carers and all the stuff that goes with ageing parents. My Dad used to come down into the forest with me, and I feel closer to him there sometimes than when I'm in the actual room with him, seeing him hooked up to tubes and lines and not even able to recognise me.
But to the pack - well I've now retired my 25 year old Berghaus Roc, which has travelled all over the planet and has seen its fair share of dust ups. Great pack, but I always hated the fact that it was basically one single big bag - even if you wanted a drink of water, you had to stop, get it off and unclick the top. It bugged me for years. Well, I bit the bullet in my middle age and bought a Lowe Alpine Strike. After the Roc, I had used my issue PLCE bergen for a few years, but without webbing it was a pain in the ...back. The Strike was a bit of a breeze - first of all, I stopped throwing in all those little bits of kit which I bever actually bloody used, and secondly, it was so dinky and comfortable. AND, I could stick stuff in easy-to-get-at side pockets. (The stuff that should go in your webbing I suppose.) Anyway, it's been brilliant, over the course of three weekends. I still use far more stuff than I should, or than I really need to, but the difference now is that it's all comfortable and more portable.
As far as the kit breakdown in the pic goes, the bivvi bag is a 20 year old survival aids one. The sleeping bag I bought in the States a long time ago, and even though the zip has gone, it's so good you can use it like a duvet well into negative temperatures. (I'll get it fixed - if I ever camp out in Norway).
The tarp is a rubberized Austrian army poncho which I've had for decades, and is peppered with campfire spark-holes - but I love it. Water never, ever gets through it.
There's also a hobo stove - Ikea's best, with a 10cm zebra inside it, a wee meth burner for when I can't be arsed gathering twigs, a pot holder and some scrubbers - it all goes in a handsewn bag. The plastic bag used to contain underpants, but now houses my brew kit, which includes soups and jerky.
I've recently tried out a Spork; to be honest, I think the old tin spoon is better - you don't need anything else really. The water bottles are a 1965 nato type, which I was issued in 1988, and nicked, and a swiss army one with integral aluminium mug, both of which are brilliant. I often brew up in the mug over just a few twigs and cones, and it works superbly - but you have to stick on some duct tape lip-guards.
The old army water-bottle pouch holds six bungees, six tent-pegs, and 10m of para cord, plus a few sundries. The tin box holds my tinder - the really dry stuff, as opposed to the stuff I pick up on the way to camp.
The belt goes on over my good old smock - it's US - the Brit one is too stiff in my opinion - it takes my laplander, a brilliant little pouch off e-bay which houses my DC-4, firesteel, and a torch (Cree - also e-bay - so cheap you can't believe it - from Hong Kong - less than £2! - knock off or not - it works brilliantly - and I have no connection with the company yada yadda)
The axe is Bahco, does me just fine, and on balance I find it works better than a golok, which I've also used. I keep it as sharp as your average kitchen knife.
I always carry an opinel (No8), which I think are brilliant - also super for getting sparks off the old firesteel. And I carry a condor bushlore - my difficult child. Used to carry a Mora, and it did everything it said on the tin, but was ugly as sin. So, purely for aesthetic reasons, I got the bushlore, and while I love it in a vaguely similar way to Gollum and his ring, it has been absurdly difficult to sharpen. It's like trying to sharpen three different knives at once. I've got it to very sharp, but not quite to hair-shaving. A work in progress. Plus, the Bushlore really needs a big drink of linseed oil when you first get it.
Anyway, the only things left out of the pic are a small radio, the food (I go for spam and crackers, big-time), and a hip flask full of some malt whisky which is old enough to have a driving license.
That's pretty much it. All comments, suggestions, derision, and wolf whistles much appreciated.
But to the pack - well I've now retired my 25 year old Berghaus Roc, which has travelled all over the planet and has seen its fair share of dust ups. Great pack, but I always hated the fact that it was basically one single big bag - even if you wanted a drink of water, you had to stop, get it off and unclick the top. It bugged me for years. Well, I bit the bullet in my middle age and bought a Lowe Alpine Strike. After the Roc, I had used my issue PLCE bergen for a few years, but without webbing it was a pain in the ...back. The Strike was a bit of a breeze - first of all, I stopped throwing in all those little bits of kit which I bever actually bloody used, and secondly, it was so dinky and comfortable. AND, I could stick stuff in easy-to-get-at side pockets. (The stuff that should go in your webbing I suppose.) Anyway, it's been brilliant, over the course of three weekends. I still use far more stuff than I should, or than I really need to, but the difference now is that it's all comfortable and more portable.
As far as the kit breakdown in the pic goes, the bivvi bag is a 20 year old survival aids one. The sleeping bag I bought in the States a long time ago, and even though the zip has gone, it's so good you can use it like a duvet well into negative temperatures. (I'll get it fixed - if I ever camp out in Norway).
The tarp is a rubberized Austrian army poncho which I've had for decades, and is peppered with campfire spark-holes - but I love it. Water never, ever gets through it.
There's also a hobo stove - Ikea's best, with a 10cm zebra inside it, a wee meth burner for when I can't be arsed gathering twigs, a pot holder and some scrubbers - it all goes in a handsewn bag. The plastic bag used to contain underpants, but now houses my brew kit, which includes soups and jerky.
I've recently tried out a Spork; to be honest, I think the old tin spoon is better - you don't need anything else really. The water bottles are a 1965 nato type, which I was issued in 1988, and nicked, and a swiss army one with integral aluminium mug, both of which are brilliant. I often brew up in the mug over just a few twigs and cones, and it works superbly - but you have to stick on some duct tape lip-guards.
The old army water-bottle pouch holds six bungees, six tent-pegs, and 10m of para cord, plus a few sundries. The tin box holds my tinder - the really dry stuff, as opposed to the stuff I pick up on the way to camp.
The belt goes on over my good old smock - it's US - the Brit one is too stiff in my opinion - it takes my laplander, a brilliant little pouch off e-bay which houses my DC-4, firesteel, and a torch (Cree - also e-bay - so cheap you can't believe it - from Hong Kong - less than £2! - knock off or not - it works brilliantly - and I have no connection with the company yada yadda)
The axe is Bahco, does me just fine, and on balance I find it works better than a golok, which I've also used. I keep it as sharp as your average kitchen knife.
I always carry an opinel (No8), which I think are brilliant - also super for getting sparks off the old firesteel. And I carry a condor bushlore - my difficult child. Used to carry a Mora, and it did everything it said on the tin, but was ugly as sin. So, purely for aesthetic reasons, I got the bushlore, and while I love it in a vaguely similar way to Gollum and his ring, it has been absurdly difficult to sharpen. It's like trying to sharpen three different knives at once. I've got it to very sharp, but not quite to hair-shaving. A work in progress. Plus, the Bushlore really needs a big drink of linseed oil when you first get it.
Anyway, the only things left out of the pic are a small radio, the food (I go for spam and crackers, big-time), and a hip flask full of some malt whisky which is old enough to have a driving license.
That's pretty much it. All comments, suggestions, derision, and wolf whistles much appreciated.
