One of the trickiest things I have found since moving to a temperate climate zone from southern Africa is the seasonal variance in temperature and the fact that kit is REALLY important when it comes to being comfortable at night.
Although I’ve been sleeping out “in this neck of the woods” for 14 years and in various other exciting places in the World sleeping comfortably has become particularly important to me. This is partly due to the fact I am 36 and not as knock fit as I used to be; I tend to cram as much canoeing/walking/cycling as I can into the next day, as time is precious due to work and young family commitments; and if I am honest I genuinely don’t seem to be as warm at night as I used to when I was younger. Oh and there is the simple matter that when I’m not “marmallowing it up” with the family I am with the faithful dog and my trusty hammock. In no particular order of loyalty you understand.
The point was: I purchased a Woodlore / Nanok Golden Eagle sleeping bag!
http://www.raymears.com/Bushcraft_Product/64-Ray-Mears-Nanok-Sleeping-Bag-Golden-Eagle/
So much is said about the Golden Eagle’s cold weather attributes, which I trust and why I got this beauty. However not much is said about the rest of the year. For no particular reason I set off on my push bike last night to a distant wood down here in Somerset and strung up the Hennessy between a Hawthorn and a Hazel. I sat quietly by the fire; my guest for the evening: a badger with very similar face markings to mine and a cup of peppermint tea (ok two). Wrong beverage I know but it was a school night and I had work the next day.
Tired; as you might be, owning a beautiful wife who lets me out into the woods, an 8 year old “school’s out for summer” daughter, a nine month old “I’ll take you on Judo style if you try and change my nappy” daughter and a Springer Spaniel who is just simply my mate; I was in my hammock by 22:00.
Terrified I would dry up, dehydrated as a Butcher Bird’s worm, I settled into my Golden Eagle for the night. (Now this is the bit where I have to confess my story writing abilities don’t go beyond Kindergarten level and I have no way of concluding this story in an exciting fashion by any means.)
I slept extremely well. I was able to regulate a perfect temperature by closing or unzipping the CENTRAL zip. When the Sparrow Hawk family got me up at sparrows’ fart I was able to get up, out, and back into bed without the usual Saturday night World Wrestling Federation fiasco you get in hammocks. Got to say: why do they have left and right hand zips? Who ever joined their sleeping bag to their partner’s? Has anyone met anyone who has? I think it’s one of those “watch out for swans – they can break a man’s arm” scenarios. Go for a central zip – It is the way forward.
I’ll do my best to sleep out one frosty, snowy night and give you all a cold weather review one day on Woodlore’s Golden Eagle. I imagine this may happen some day this winter when I spend the family’s income on hobo stoves, skandis, more ingenious fire-lighting devices, GB axes, leather goods for men, various pointy things, more books on trees and associated fungi, moth traps “for the children I swear”, cattys and marbles, a beer making kit and the ultimate “if only someone thought of me for Christmas but as they didn’t, I bought it myself for myself present”: 101 Uses for Nettles. And ultimately get kicked out and have to wild camp for a true purpose.
Hoh hum. It’s going to be a great start to Lammas: We’re off to a human circus in Gloucestershire on Friday telling the story of a talented horse trainer. Better not tell Rihannon...................hc
Although I’ve been sleeping out “in this neck of the woods” for 14 years and in various other exciting places in the World sleeping comfortably has become particularly important to me. This is partly due to the fact I am 36 and not as knock fit as I used to be; I tend to cram as much canoeing/walking/cycling as I can into the next day, as time is precious due to work and young family commitments; and if I am honest I genuinely don’t seem to be as warm at night as I used to when I was younger. Oh and there is the simple matter that when I’m not “marmallowing it up” with the family I am with the faithful dog and my trusty hammock. In no particular order of loyalty you understand.
The point was: I purchased a Woodlore / Nanok Golden Eagle sleeping bag!
http://www.raymears.com/Bushcraft_Product/64-Ray-Mears-Nanok-Sleeping-Bag-Golden-Eagle/
So much is said about the Golden Eagle’s cold weather attributes, which I trust and why I got this beauty. However not much is said about the rest of the year. For no particular reason I set off on my push bike last night to a distant wood down here in Somerset and strung up the Hennessy between a Hawthorn and a Hazel. I sat quietly by the fire; my guest for the evening: a badger with very similar face markings to mine and a cup of peppermint tea (ok two). Wrong beverage I know but it was a school night and I had work the next day.
Tired; as you might be, owning a beautiful wife who lets me out into the woods, an 8 year old “school’s out for summer” daughter, a nine month old “I’ll take you on Judo style if you try and change my nappy” daughter and a Springer Spaniel who is just simply my mate; I was in my hammock by 22:00.
Terrified I would dry up, dehydrated as a Butcher Bird’s worm, I settled into my Golden Eagle for the night. (Now this is the bit where I have to confess my story writing abilities don’t go beyond Kindergarten level and I have no way of concluding this story in an exciting fashion by any means.)
I slept extremely well. I was able to regulate a perfect temperature by closing or unzipping the CENTRAL zip. When the Sparrow Hawk family got me up at sparrows’ fart I was able to get up, out, and back into bed without the usual Saturday night World Wrestling Federation fiasco you get in hammocks. Got to say: why do they have left and right hand zips? Who ever joined their sleeping bag to their partner’s? Has anyone met anyone who has? I think it’s one of those “watch out for swans – they can break a man’s arm” scenarios. Go for a central zip – It is the way forward.
I’ll do my best to sleep out one frosty, snowy night and give you all a cold weather review one day on Woodlore’s Golden Eagle. I imagine this may happen some day this winter when I spend the family’s income on hobo stoves, skandis, more ingenious fire-lighting devices, GB axes, leather goods for men, various pointy things, more books on trees and associated fungi, moth traps “for the children I swear”, cattys and marbles, a beer making kit and the ultimate “if only someone thought of me for Christmas but as they didn’t, I bought it myself for myself present”: 101 Uses for Nettles. And ultimately get kicked out and have to wild camp for a true purpose.
Hoh hum. It’s going to be a great start to Lammas: We’re off to a human circus in Gloucestershire on Friday telling the story of a talented horse trainer. Better not tell Rihannon...................hc
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