A 1970s US army survival guide used to claim that you lost up to 50% of your body’s heat from your head. As the surface area of your head is only 10% of your body (though your brain uses a lot of your blood supply) this is almost certainly not true. However, not very much […]
Should I buy a Helinox Zero or just sit on a log? We have used the Big Agnes Cyclone Chair (at approx 170 grams) for years. It uses a sleeping mat to make a comfy chair with a supporting back-rest that you can sit in your tent with (in front of a warm fire in
I realise this is something of a ‘holy grail’ but sometimes you really do need to be able to saw some pieces of firewood down to size and you may need to have carried a saw to do so – or you are not going to be very warm tonight. This was (nearly) our situation
A reader (Paul – thank you) has gazumped me in the ultralight saw stakes after viewing my post Ultralight Saw Experiments with a ‘saw’ that probably weighs under 5 grams but could still be used to make Ultralight Tent Poles – or similar items of camp furniture. In his own words (and picture): “I have
Last week my friend, Brett proposed we walk out to Federation Hut and Mt Feathertop for an overnight trip. Though I had a bad cold and was not feeling very fit I jumped at the chance. There is just so much work to get done around the farm – I may be avoiding some of
I recently had a chance to try out this very nice Waratah Quilt from Neve Gear. They are priced from A$419 (May 2024). I have had it for some time actually, but the weather has been too warm so I had to wait until I could go somewhere it was going to drop below freezing
My friends Brett Irving (and his wife, Kim) walked Tasmania’s Overland Track back in February (2024) They were kind enough to share some of their (80+) photos and some memories of their experiences. It is one of the reasons why Della and I ventured down there for a ‘look-see’ last week. For example, here they
It’s Not My Fault: Self-help before you despair. I had this post The Parting of the Ways (Below) in which I hinted that not only may there be a small group of themes which inform our lives but that there may be a small group of delusions which drag them down. As an example of
No, it’s not the Helinox at around 800 grams ever so comfy as it might be – though I am still using my (approx 160 gram) Big Agnes Cyclone Chair and have been doing so for many years. I have just seen this interesting idea from the indefatigable Steve at Suluk Gear ie the Puttuck
After sampling the first day of the Overland track we headed around through Queenstown to have a look at the last day. We had intended to catch the ferry to Narcissus then take in Lake Marion and maybe Pine Valley (where there is a hut) too – but we were wildly over-optimistic. We allowed too
