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A Tuesday top-up

Posted by BG! on October 29th 2021 in Great Escapes, Lakes Escapes

We needed a few items of outdoor kit, so we headed for Keswick.

Top of the priority list was boot proofing. Our final tin of Nikwak "proper" boot wax had expired and Nikwax no longer make the stuff, having moved over to some sort of spray gunk that softens leather, which isn't what my Scarpa SLs need. Advice was sought in various gear shops, each directing us to another. Eventually Chris relented and bought a bottle of the Nikwax spray gunk, that's fine, she can do what she wants to her SLs. I'll be changing brands to get my SLs a proper non-softening wax to be applied in the tried & trusted therapeutic "rub it in with a finger while sitting in front of a roaring log-fire" manner. Old-school, that's me.

I can't decide if I've lost my gear-shopping mojo or if I've simply got enough kit, but even after fondling some good stuff in the Alpkit emporium I still didn't splash the cash. I can't remember for sure which shop didn't allow us upstairs, but I did get a pic of the prohibition sign:

I'd have used "You cannot pass" as that's the wording in the book, but that might have offended "the wider public"

Soon enough it was time for elevenses. Or was it second breakfast? Or maybe luncheon?
Chris hadn't been in my favourite Keswick pub before, so it was time to put that right.

Cue the Bank Tavern pic:

We were a tad early to order food, so we had to kill time using the medium of Guinness. To be fair, after going without a pub beer for over a year, it wasn't much of an ordeal.

Game casserole wasn't on the menu, but the specials-board pie was a superb alternative:

Guinnesses, with two superb meals and a glamorous assistant for scale

Back at the cottage we got the fire going and settled down for a relaxing afternoon. A mix of blue skies and minor showers enhanced the views from the lounge window:

After dark we spent some time in the garden meteor-spotting, and then, after making a plan for Wednesday, we retired for the night.

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Wassat? #2 – 3 for the price of one

Posted by BG! on June 28th 2008 in Just for fun, Making stuff, New tricks for an old dog, Shiny new kit

Tags: Alpkit

OK, time for me to fess up. Last time I was out on a wildie, I lost one of my standard-issue U-Dig-It folding trowels. Well, actually, it's not really lost, it's within 20 yards of the summit of Kentmere Pike, but I'm damned if I'm going back for it. Anyway, I considered buying a replacement, but had second thoughts. You see, I'd been tinkering with a prototype titanium version for a while, but never got around to finishing the job (no pun intended). Then I got to thinking about those times when I want to go lightweight and give the Jetboil PCS a rest. Mike Bell had kindly distributed free samples of his beer-can stoves (pic) during the OM Beddgelert Meet, and I was keen to try out mine. The only thing missing was a pot-stand and somewhere to stash it. So I came up with this idea. A digging tool, stable pot-stand and windshield all in one. And just for good measure, it fits neatly into my Alpkit Mytimug, leaving plenty of room for other stuff. It's been suggested that it could be used as a mouse-trap, but frankly I fear for the sanity of anyone who could conceive such an idea. This prototype's made from 1mm aluminium alloy, cut with secateurs, folded over the doorstep, neatened up with a Brummie screwdriver and curved by forming it around the drainpipe on the side of the house. OK, so it's rough-and-ready, but it works well enough to prove that the idea's worth following up. The next version will be in a decent grade of 0.5mm stainless steel and made with proper tools. I'm not sure if it's worth wasting good titanium on a final version, but time will tell. Anyway, here's the pics and stuff, sadly there are none of it in use with the beer-can stove, as it's been terminated (I stood on it by accident):

Dig with the pointy end downwards. Use 2 hands. Think "SnowClaw" and you'll get the idea.

Stick the pointy end into the ground to stop it falling over. It's more stable than it looks.

A neat fit inside the Alpkit Mytimug.

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Alpkit goodies

Posted by BG! on April 5th 2008 in Shiny new kit

Tags: Alpkit

Today saw the arrival of a couple of Filo jackets, just in time for the snow that we've been promised over the next few days. These follow hot on the heels of the Hunka bivi bag which I put my name down for at the Outdoors Show. My thanks go to the Alpkit team for their commitment to customer service and for their never-fail next-day free delivery policy.

This influx of new kit has rekindled the outdoors spirit in Chris - all of a sudden, she's reminding me that we've still got to sort out our annual wildcamp together, and that we've got to get the kit lists sorted for our family summer holiday in Norway and Denmark.

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Alpkit Sale

Posted by BG! on April 3rd 2008 in In the News, Shiny new kit

Tags: Alpkit

Just in case you missed the heads-up from those nice peeps over at Alpkit - they're having a clear-out of their Filo down jackets, the clearance price is just £50. Grab 'em now while stocks last!

So, which colour do you fancy?

Chris will be Chilli, and I'll be getting a Rocket. So, nothing new there, then. 🙄

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Our OSOS08 Weekend

Posted by BG! on March 17th 2008 in Bloggers' Meet, Great Escapes

Tags: Alpkit

The arrival of Duncan at BHX heralded the start of our OSOS08 weekend and the start of the inclement, and probably appropriate, weather. After the "hail, fellow, well-met" handshakes at the terminal, we hiked through the rain to the vast car-park and, surprisingly, found the car quite easily in the midst of the sea of steel and glass that goes by the name of "Long Stay 1". After making sure that Duncan was awake (by nearly losing the car on a tightening left-hander (I blame the shift in the centre of gravity)), we escaped the confines of the airport site and ploughed our way through the orange-tinted drizzly gloom that had settled over the M42, M6 and M69. On arrival back at home, Duncan was introduced to Chris and Ella, vittles were consumed (including the gifted cloutie duff, thanks here to DM and his mum) and the chat went on into the night. The idea of wildgardencamping was abandoned due to the number of branches that were falling from our willow, so Duncan bagged himself a comfy(?) spare bed at no extra charge. We were up bright and early on Saturday morning, unfortunately the weather wasn't quite as bright but at least it wasn't torrential. The mad dash to the NEC was as dull as ever until I decided to ensure that the passengers were still awake by driving over the kerb at the entrance to the car-park. It was an accident, honest, I couldn't see the kerb from my seat. Anyway, everybody else in the car-park was alerted to our arrival by the grating sound of underbody on concrete, so I reckon that our guest was quite brave to volunteer to queue to buy the parking ticket (thanks for that, Duncan) while we got our packs out of the boot. After the trek past the lake and through the tent display area we left Duncan at the entrance so that he could meet Darren to pass on one of the tickets kindly donated by Lay, the Outdoors' Bloggers Forum admin. When we made it past security and check-in, Ella was in retail-therapy heaven. We wandered the stands and bought some bits and bobs before Chris queued to put Ella's name down on the waiting-list for a go on the zipwire. Meanwhile I wandered off to find the Alpkit stand and try to buy the Hunka bivy bag that I had fondled so keenly at the 2007 show. Sadly they were out of stock, so I had a gander at the latest incarnation of the Gourdon (the "20", complete with mesh pockets and bungee attachments) - I was tempted, but could only justify getting one if I parted with the "25" that I was already carrying. Sadly, the Alpfolk wouldn't do me a part-ex, so I had to walk away empty-handed (but not until I had tried on a few of their Filo down jackets - they look to be excellent value for 65 notes). I met George while I was there and we managed to communicate without an interpreter, despite his use of equatorial rhyming slang. Anyway, he was the bearer of good tidings - his missus is on the mend, that made him happy. Get well soon, Mrs. LBP.

Alpfolk - happy smiley people. We likes them, don't we, my Preciouss? Oh yes, we does

We parted company so that I could retrieve Chris and Ella, then we went over to the Gear Show Case area where Ella was disgruntled when she didn't nab any of the freebies being chucked into the audience. Undeterred, after the presentation she went and remonstrated with the freebie-chucker and was invited back to a later showing. Next to the Gear Show Case was the Gibbon Slacklining display stand, and the gymnastic side of Ella's persona just couldn't resist having a go at negotiating the tautliner straps. She did well but couldn't manage to emulate the jumping antics of the resident expert. Indeed, we were to return to this place a few more times during the day, but by the time we had decided to shell out on a set, their stock had all gone. Never mind, we'll get one somehow.

Tentative steps

Pro-Gibbon

Levitation

Then it was time for the Outdoors' Blogger Meet at the pub, where old acquaintances were renewed and new faces were matched up to names that had been, up until then, just virtual friends (I won't bore you with the full cast list). Sadly I missed Sally's killer butt, but hey, there's always next year. There were some deep and meaningful conversations to be had, with plenty of blox thrown in for good measure, and a good time was had by all. Andy tried to get some podcast material from me, but I had to decline. I'm not one for fame and fortune, you see... I'm the shy, retiring type. I did, however, condescend to appear in a group-photo of our bunch of happy campers, but alas the photographic skills of the bloke that I harassed into taking the pic left something to be desired. He has my thanks anyway, though, as this is the only group-shot we have so far:

Movers and Shakers... just like the cameraman

Of course, I was well down my second pint of dishwater (Cumberland Ale is excellent in it's natural habitat, but it doesn't travel well and it rebels at the evil concept of being served in tacky plastic plant-pots) when it was time for Ella to do her fly-over on the zipwire, so the pics are a bit wobbly, but nowhere near as wobbly as my legs would have been if I had dared to do the zipwire myself!

Cleared for launch

In-flight entertainment

We took in a few more stands to push the e-petition a bit further before going outside for lunch, then it was back to the show. Ella had a go on the bike at the Tourism Ireland stand, but she was never going to get far without that missing front wheel, and lifting the rear wheel was a tad unfair too...

Unicycling

After the mandatory visit to the Buff stand, where Ella got a cool Blue Fire, we nipped across the aisle to bag her some red sunglasses to complete the rebel adolescent biker look. Hall 3 and the rest of Hall 2 were toured quite quickly, there being little of interest to us there (we're not into water-borne activities or touring the world) so we repaired to Hall 1 where Ella chatted up some of the Royal Marines. I seized this opportunity to nip back to the pub to catch up on events, and soon it was time for the E-Petition meet-up in Hall 3, where the John Hee Steering Committee did a sterling job of drawing up a plan of action for the post-OSOS08 wildcamping-legalisation campaign. Chasrle popped in to join us, and I'm pleased to report that he looks nothing like his OM avatar. Then it was back to Hall 1 and a session of buying more bits and bobs (now don't laugh, but I bought a travel hair-dryer... it's for removing condensation from the scope optics, not for my lank locks and bristles. Honest!). Ella had been back to the Gear Show Case and had fluttered her eyelids and sweet-talked the freebie-chucker into throwing her a T-shirt and a hat. He got a hug from her as his reward. We met up with Duncan again and went to watch the fallers... sorry, that should be climbers... in their attempts to (occasionally) defy gravity and complete the testing route to the suspended car. Meanwhile, Ella had been queueing patiently for a go on the not-ice climbing wall, and watching her ascend the synthetic verglass I reckon she'd got the right idea. Looks like that's yet another set of kit to spend money on in future years, eh? 🙁

Front-pointing

Planting the pick

And that was it. After losing Ella yet again (don't go there!) and bagging a pressie for Annabelle (who was spending the day with Grandma) we made our way home, collected said pocket-BG, and sat in expectation of a relaxing wind-down evening and a tasty meal. But it was not to be... Our chosen Nepalese restaurant had cooked a fine selection of dishes for us, but had entrusted delivery of them to a bloke who couldn't discriminate between arse and elbow... several polite but firm phone-calls to the restaurant confirmed that the vittles had been despatched on time, but they arrived nearly two hours late (hmm... the restaurant is only five minutes away by car, 15 by foot) and the food was, well, tepid, despite claims that it was still hot. Duncan will vouch for the fact that I was just a little put out by this. Next time I will be serving my own dehydrated meals, or we'll invade their establishment and eat on the premises. After shooting the breeze until the small hours, we got some shut-eye before I had to ferry Duncan back to BHX for his return flight. Suffice to say that it stopped raining soon after he boarded the plane, and when his "I'm back home now" text arrived, the sun came back out. So, by way of a summary, we had a great time with good company, we made a few new friends, and we ended up richer for the experience, despite being poorer for the purchases. Top stuff!

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Ennerdale wildcamp post-trip kit report

Posted by BG! on October 11th 2007 in Camera kit, Great Escapes, My reviews, Wildcamping

Tags: Alpkit, Wildcamping

OK, let's start with the tent. I took the Vango Spectre for it's first wildie and it performed well, but then again conditions were good so it wasn't tested to the max. It was easy to put up, it took about 5 minutes, which I think is acceptable. In the morning there was a small amount of condensation on the underside of the fly, it would have been much less if there had been any sort of a breeze flowing through the end-vents, but there wasn't. I still need to replace the original guy-lines with Dyneemas. Oh, and I'll just take the right amount of pegs next time (14 Tikes, instead of the bag of 30 that I lugged around).

The pack. I was going to take a 40l pack but changed my mind at the last moment, opting instead for the Lowe Alpine Warp70 which allowed me to take the full camera kit. Features that I particularly like are the Torso Fit Duo back system (which suits me better than most other systems do) and the big external flap pocket at the back, which easily stores all of the food and drink for the weekend and which is so easy to access, being almost independent of the main body of the pack. I reckon that I had about 40l of walking kit and 10l of camera kit, so there was room to spare.

Navigation. As usual, I took the trusty Silva 15TDCL compass and A4 print-offs (printed at 1:12500) of MemoryMap maps stored in the A5 Ortlieb mapcase, backed up with the Garmin Geko 201. I hardly used any of that stuff, though, as I got by just fine with the O2 Xda with the inbuilt satnav working with the MemoryMap software that I have loaded onto the 2gig micro-SD card. I always got a good satellite signal and the positioning was fairly accurate and fast, plotting the positions directly onto the map overlay instead of having to transpose the position from Geko readout to paper-map. I started the walk with the Xda fully-charged, it was down to 81% when I got back to the car. I think that the Geko might be going on eBay soon, it's good kit but the Xda does the same job and much more besides (except the Xda's not waterproof, so I have to bag it in bad weather).

Cooking. The Jetboil performed impeccably, starting first-time every time, so there were no more beard-burning flare-ups. Fuel economy was acceptable - I had three hot rehydrated meals each day (pro-rata) and regular brew-ups, using just less than a quarter of a Coleman 100 canister.

Boots. Having got bad heel-blisters from the Raichle Fusion Mid XCRs on the Brecon Beacons meet, I went back to the Scarpa SLs and they were much better than they have been before, no doubt due to the liberal amount of zinc oxide strapping wound around my heels. The boots have now shaped themselves to my feet, so things can only get better.

Sleeping. I took the Alpkit AD700 bag, expecting the nights to be cold due to the clear skies that had been forecast, but it was too warm and I ended up using it as a blanket instead of as a bag. The mat was the InsulMat Max Thermo - it's light, comfy and packs down small. I've now got used to the fact that it needs re-inflating a bit just before use (when it's first inflated, the air inside is warm, but this contracts as it cools and needs to be "topped-up" to ensure the mat's fully inflated).

Clothing. I didn't bother to take a shell-jacket and over-trousers, opting instead for the Montane Featherlite Smock and Pants (Trousers), but I didn't need to use either of them. Most of the time all that was needed on the top half was a Lowe Alpine Dri-Flo LS top, with the Rab VR Climb for those odd post-effort chills.

Camera kit. This is an area where I didn't skimp on the weight. I took the camera and a couple of lenses (18-55mm and 70-300mm), a spare battery, cleaning kit, filters and a LowePro case to stash it all in. It added a fair amount (weight and volume) to the load, but I'm prepared to sweat that bit more if it means that I get some decent pics to help me remember the trip. I now know that I need a lens-hood for the 18-55mm kit-lens, and I reckon that a tripod would have been useful for the low-light and/or long lens shots.

Taken but not used: