Archive for 2007

Rab’s stunt-double arrives at BG Towers

Posted by on May 9th 2007 in Car stuff

The nice people who supply courtesy cars on behalf of my insurance provider phoned yesterday to say that they would be delivering a car of "similar size and performance" to Rab, my poorly Octavia vRS estate. "A Ford Mondeo" was what they said I would get. A few hours later, they turned up and handed me the keys to this:

 

Excellent.

I might just let the good people on OM know about this, seeing as they all like 4x4s 😉

Bacon Risotto

Posted by on May 7th 2007 in Dehydrating

Here’s a variation on that easy risotto recipe. The process is the same, it’s just the ingredients and the order of addition that have changed:

1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 stock cube
850ml / 1.5 pints boiling water
250g / 9 oz risotto rice (risotto, arborio, carnaroli are best, long-grain will do at a push but the results aren’t as good, any other rice just doesn’t work. I’ve been using dirt-cheap 10 oz packs of “Italiamo” Risotto Carnaroli bought from Lidl – these packs have extra bits of veg. etc. in them, to lend a bit of variety)
250g / 9 oz rindless bacon, cut into 1” pieces
1 large cupful of frozen peas
large knob of butter
1 pinch of salt (optional)
Some freshly-ground black pepper (optional)

Nuke it as follows:

Put the onion, the garlic, the stock cube and a ½ pint of boiling water in a large microwaveable bowl and stir well. Cover (cling-film is OK for this, or use a casserole dish with a lid) then microwave on High for 3 minutes.

Stir in the rice, the bacon and another ½ pint of boiling water, cover it again then microwave it on High for another 5 minutes, then stir it again, then nuke it for yet another 5 minutes.

Stir in the frozen peas and the last ½ pint of boiling water, cover it again then microwave it on High for another 4 minutes.

Check that the rice is cooked (nice and soft), if it isn’t, another 1 minute of cooking should sort it out.

Leave the bowl to stand for 1-2 minutes for the liquid to be absorbed, then stir in the butter. Add the salt and pepper if desired, and stir it all up.

Now weigh your creation and record the result.

You should dehydrate the food immediately to prevent bacterial growth in the rice. Drying usually takes about 8 hours.

When dry, weigh it again to calculate how much water has been lost, this is the amount that’s needed for rehydration.

After you’ve bagged it, freeze it. I divvy it up to make 3 or 4 bagged meals.

Rab’s got a bit of a headache!

Posted by on May 7th 2007 in Car stuff

Rab (the Red-Arsed Bastard) got seriously injured today when somebody reversed into him while waiting to park at Go Outdoors, Coventry. Me and Ella were a bit shook up but otherwise unharmed, as were the occupants of the impacting vehicle. Not exactly what I needed when I'm off wildcamping next weekend - let's just hope that the courtesy-car arrives in good time.

Here are a few pics for all you car-haters to gloat over:

 

 

 

Another a**hole with more money than brains

Posted by on May 3rd 2007 in A bit of a rant, Driveway-blocking feckwits and piss-poor parkers

For your viewing pleasure: One New Landrover Discovery, cherished registration W222SJM, grey, parked across the pavement and blocking access to my driveway. Apparently, if you've got enough dosh, you can be exempted from the provisions of the Highway Code.

Being a good citizen of the realm, I've sent pics and a report to the local police.

 

Wildcamp route planning just about finished

Posted by on April 30th 2007 in Great Escapes

While other hardy souls are slogging it out across Scotland on the TGO Challenge, we'll be taking it easy. We've decided to do a weekend mini-tour of the Far Eastern Fells, primarily because Chris has been wanting to walk along the High Street for some time now.

I know that there are many people out there who would consider this to be just a long day-walk, but we'll be taking things easy, the pace will be leisurely and we intend to savour the experience, not dash across the hills in a race to the next waypoint. The main route takes in:
  • Howtown
  • Bonscale Pike 1718ft
  • Arthur's Pike 1747 ft
  • Loadpot Hill 2201ft
  • Wether Hill 2210ft
  • High Raise 2634ft
  • Rampsgill Head 2581ft
  • Kidsty Pike 2560ft
  • High Street 2718ft
  • The Knott 2423ft
  • Rest Dodd 2278ft
  • The Nab 1887ft
  • Angletarn Pikes 1857ft
  • Any pub in Patterdale or Glenridding
Optional add-ons from High Street include Thornthwaite Crag 2569ft (just to see that magenta sky again!) and Mardale Ill Bell 2496ft. Wildcamping spots and water-gathering opportunities have yet to be finalised, but such trivial matters should sort themselves out soon enough 🙂 I'll have to get this lot plotted into Memory-Map to see what sort of totals it comes up with, then when we've done the graft I'll do a comparison with the route as recorded by the Geko 201. It'll be interesting to see if there are any major differences. It should be a good weekend if the weather is good.

OM Eskdale Meet 20th – 22nd April 2007

Posted by on April 24th 2007 in Great Escapes, Lakes Escapes
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Another excellent meet. A curious blend of good company, mixed weather and excessive alcohol consumption, with some walking thrown in just for good measure.

The drive-up on Friday with Sam was punctuated with several stops, first for a piccy session just after leaving the M6, second came a mini shopping-session at Ambleside (where we met Kate) and finally we had a mini-break at Hard Knott, where Kate told us how to cheat death if lazing about in a laconicum.

Sam and Kate at Hardknott Fort

 

After we finished pitching the tents, Kate looked up to the local peak and announced that it looked like there was a nipple at the top. According to Wainwright and the O.S., said height is named Great Barrow, but henceforth it will be referred to as Kate's Nipple, in honour of our learned friend.

Kate's Nipple (AKA Great Barrow, Eskdale)

 

Friday evening was spent at the pub and later we grouped around the campfire to talk shop (and sheep).

Despite having great plans for Saturday, Messrs Guinness and Glenfiddich conspired to afflict my morning, so I had an excellent chill-out half-day on-site with Ian and A instead.

Too much alcohol! (thanks to Jamie Bassnett for the piccy)

 

Unusual cloud formations over an unseen Scafell Massif

 

Mike tempted us up to a windswept and desolate Devoke Water for an afternoon stroll, which was enough to purge the alcohol from my system.

Ian and A take a break at Washfold Point

 

After another short pub session we got back to the campfire to exchange tales of the day's exploits, then retired as the rain started.

All plans for Sunday were washed away by the rain. It was tempting to walk through the gloom but we didn't fancy walking miles to get to a cairn on a hill without a view, so we went back to the gear-shops of Ambleside and then headed home.

Ironically, the weather was glorious at my place, so I managed to dry the tent etc. before taking Sam to the station for the final leg of his journey home.
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