I have completed sewing a silnylon version of my 10 x 10 tent (actually 3 x 3 metres) out of some 1.25 0oz/yd2 (43 gsm) silnylon I sourced from China for US$2.50/metre. The key to understanding how it works is where to put the tie-outs. The photos below show it erected as a tent (for […]
I made a sub one ounce hand saw for this purpose, but this is even easier than sawing a branch to length: You can cut approx 10″ (25 cm) of 1″ (25mm) poly pipe to join two hiking poles like this. I used standard ‘rural C’ grade poly pipe because we have it lying around
‘It is no trouble to light a fire with a large magnifying glass when the sun is shining in a clear sky, but it is a different matter if the lens is small or if only brief, occasional gleams of sun come through gaps in the clouds. It can be done quite easily, however, by
I have often seen folks spend lots of time (and oodles of money) selecting a backpack in a camping store. Almost inevitably they end up with something very heavy and very uncomfortable (for a long walk) and have spent so much money they are going to just go with it – and suffer! But, as
27 grams as pictured. I have been using this pillow every night now for months. It has been the most comfortable pillow I have ever used. It started its life like this: You should have a go at cutting down a pillow or mat to size yourself. Unfortunately the valve on this cheap pillow was
This is a gem from yesteryear. So much useful survival knowledge is all-but lost: ‘Fire Without Matches: More nonsense has been said and written on the subject of lighting fires without matches than on any other—except, of course, the birth of the kangaroo. How can one tell, by reading what a man has written about
You might have noticed it in the cover picture below or this post, that I seemed to have something hanging from my pack as we walked in to Pangboche: It is a DIY mobile clothes line which I am drying one of my handkerchiefs on. If you walk the EBC some time you will find
I have been working on my page’s speed once again. This time I have really succeeded, so I hope you appreciate my efforts. It has taken days and days (again!)- but in the end, like many things it was simple, and the ‘experts’ were no help at all – quite the reverse! Here are Google’s
This is my ‘Poor Man’s Satellite Phone‘ after two weeks at between 3.000-6,000 metres elevation during our recent EBC trek. As you can see still 94% charged. ‘Normally’ such battery devices would be pretty much flat after just one day (even without use) – as I found out on my first time on the EBC
Preventing Batteries From Going Flat at High Altitudes: Read More »
A complete topographical map of Australia is available free in 1:250,000 scale. This is quite adequate to find your way and prevent your getting lost. You can download the maps, copy them to a storage file on your phone and then open them with PDF Maps Or Avenza – if you want to be restricted
