Info on camping

[Lover of the forest]

Hi all,

can anyone tell me the basic equipment i need for going camping alone for 4 months. I've always wanted to do it and i'm hopefully going in the next year or so. Need info.

Dan

 

[pierre girard]

Need more info. Camping in one spot - or hiking or canoeing? Most basic need is a way to renew food supplies. Will you be fishing, hunting, snaring? Primitive camp or "caravan": park? Will you be able to access stores or will you need to enlist someone's help to make "drops?"

Basic camping gear needed for four months is not much different than camping gear needed for one week. I'd throw in some thread and needles, some seam sealer for tent or tarp seams, and whatever you need to repair equipment that might wear out during that period of time.

Camping out for that period of time is a sure way to find out which pieces of gear are essential - and which have little use.

PG

 

[Lifthasir]

The best way to answer your question and prepare for 4 month's camping
is to get as many weekend camps in as soon as possible. There's a huge
choice of equipment out there, but only by seeing what works for you will
you know what to take with you. Practise really does make perfect.

If it's any help, when I started backpacking I found that a lot of the kit was
overpriced and not really necessary nor suited me. I ended up with a cheap
as chips fleece jacker with a knitted outer and a North Cape rhovyl base layer
and found this kept me very warm even down to minus 8 or 9 in the UK when
carrying a 75litre pack. Don't underestimate how hot carrying a large pack will
make you, especially if hills are involved. In summer, I just used the rhovyl base
layer with the neck zip down and sleeves rolled up.

Practise practise practise...

 

[william#]

good point
i have bought expsencive kit only to realise really could of bought a much cheaper version .

 

[Brixton]

At the risk of sounding patronising there's only IMHO 2 items that you must have
1 a switched on head
2 well cared for feet

Without item 1 it doesn't matter what else you've got
without item 2 you'll not get home

All the other stuff is buskable.
Tents? you can improvise
sleeping bag? you can sleep in your clothes etc. etc.

Having said that I normally take a Coleman Nevada tent - not the lightest but well robust and big enough to move around and sit up in ( 4 months is a long time without space)
Plus a Goretex bivvy bag inside the tent. Every tent I have ever had ended up leaking and wet is much or erm - wet in the middle of the night.

However my secret vice is this
a blow up pillow that I bought from Morrisons for £1.50
Yes I could improvise it but "Oh the luxury"
better than sex (if I can remember that far back)

 

[Damascus]

:yelrotflm I think most of you guys have got it about right the only thing you may have to cater for is what time of the year you are going, summer/winter which boils what clothes to take. The luxuries, mine is a self inflating air bed (cos I'm old) and we all have them.

So practice practice practice and find out what you use and what you don't. The only thing you won't use till you need it is a repair kit and then you wish you hand't skimped on it, so make a good one.

If you do go ahead after four months you will be amazed how little you actually need and what you do use normally has more than one use. I have a neck/head scarf which I recently replaced cos the other fell to bits and that got used as a tea cloth, to wrap round the handle so my finger didn't get burnt, hankie, container of bits and bobs and not forgetting a wrap for your head in the summer.

So I wish you luck on you adventure

regards
d

 

[william#]

oh dont forget your lap top and gprs card so u can keep in touch
lol

 

[Nemisis]

I would say the most important thing has to be your clean water supply and how you'll maintain that.Obviously boiling all water would be accessively fuel heavy so a good filtration system would be the best option,so a little research on the various types and systems before you start out.
Dave

 

[C_Claycomb]

Talk about open ended questions.

Come on Lover of the Forest, you are asking people to sit down and spend their time giving you advice, the least you can do is wait till you have the time to sit down and write a proper question.

People's answers so far should give an idea of the additional information you could give.

In the meantime, check out

http://hikinghq.net/

Its a great resource.

 

[Lifthasir]

The original question reads to me as though the asker hasn't had much
camping experience - I maybe wrong on that.

If you haven't had much camping experience i.e. backpacking experience
then basically forget about reading and browsing and surfing. You've got to
get out there and get some days and nights in. It's the only way.

I know a lot of campsites are closed during the winter, so stay in B&B and
get out in the hills all day Saturday and all day Sunday. Start carrying stuff, start
wearing stuff. Try your boots out - get them broken in or changed before it's
too late. Try different socks, base layers, shells etc..

You will however find out little things about yourself, about the way your body works and how your mind works.

 

[bambodoggy]

Please don't be offended by what I'm about to say and if I am wrong then I am sorry.

I agree with the others, it's far to open an ended question and I fear leads to reflect your level of experience. If you really have to ask what you need to take with you then maybe a four month trip is a little over ambitious for you.
Granted you haven't said anything about your camping location and if you plan to spend four months in a tent in your back garden then fine but if you are thinking of going off alone into the wilderness for four months and you need to ask what to take camping then you are an accident waiting to happen.

Sorry to be so blunt but better that than a poor SAR team having to spend weeks looking for you....or worse your body.

On a brighter note, there's sound advice from the other guys here, start doing lots of weekends and then weeks and build up...in no time you'll have a better idea of what you need and also what you can do and then you can safely go off alone for four months

I genuinly hope what I have said helps and doesn't offend you

Bam.

 

[redflex]

So it is being silly because to asked advice before going out camping, I thought it would be better to do that then go out with no experince.

I think anyone starting out should go to a meet up, learn and see what is what then they can go out alone with some knowledge and understanding.

 

[william#]

does seem a bit mad having no experiance then heading straight out for 4 mths
the chaps here have highlighted the first thing really get out and practice now you may decide its not for you and any romantic ideas you had will pass.
the thing is with camping no matter how good your skills it gets hard sometimes .
strangley enough im planning to be out for at least 4 mths this year though i am going to use a camper van as a base camp , i love being out in all weathers but expeeriance has showed me there are times when yu need a bit of comfort and just to not have to carry everything is a luxury

 

[Wayne]

Please don't be offended by what I'm about to say and if I am wrong then I am sorry.

I agree with the others, it's far to open an ended question and I fear leads to reflect your level of experience. If you really have to ask what you need to take with you then maybe a four month trip is a little over ambitious for you.


Sorry to be so blunt but better that than a poor SAR team having to spend weeks looking for you....or worse your body.

Bam.

Harsh but esstentially Bam is right. I don't think anyone should be dreaming of trips in to remote regions of the world without having served a decent aprenticeship learning skills and techniques back home. Everyone should have bombproof naviagtional skills. Kit need not be expensive but it needs to be tested before taking out into areas where failure could be life threatening.

there is no such thing as a dumb question. Only those that are unasked.

However over ambition can be dangerous and everyone needs to know their limitations.

Get out and enjoy the great outdoors as much as you can. the big trips will come.

 

[C_Claycomb]

Chaps, I would wait until Dan has been back and filled in a bit more information before you spend any more time on him.

He has not provided enough information for anyone to give him more advice than that already posted.

He has been eliciting a lot of information from people, but hasn't made much input to the discussions himself.

 

[Biddlesby]

I'd think you'd probably want to take some food with you.....

Seriously, how will you sustain yourself for four months?