GaryHW
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Last weekend I had a few days off so thought I'd do my month overnighter, thinking back to threads on this forum I thought I'd write it up with kit lists etc for those who, such a NKari et al, have asked about such things. I hope that's OK. Enjoy.
With my monthly overnighter on the cards and having two new (second handed traded knives to play with) I packed my kit and headed off to my favorite spot Dartmoor. Its a regular site I use as its off the beaten track and provides everything I need by way of fresh water and fire wood.
When I arrived I was saddened to find someone else had been there before me and left quite a mess. I can understand why land owners get ticked off when people do this, but I tidied it up and carried it out with me when I left, it wasn't heavy so i cant understand why the owners couldn't clear it up and take it home, they carried it all in after all.
Anyway, once the site was tidy I went about setting up.
My shelter is a old ex germen army poncho (I tend to have it set up with a central ridge line and guys off the corners - I raise and lower it as the weather changes obviously the worse the weather to lower the shelter) and my sleep set up is a down sleeping bag (luxury I know but it packs down small!) and a British army bivi bag. I also had a inflatable mat but after much huffing and puffing I discovered it had a hole in it from last time I used it - so that meant I was sleeping on the ground! (note to self check all kit before leaving home!)
Having cleaned up someone else's mess I figured I'd re-use the rocks they had as a fire circle and rebuilt these into a small fire base on which I could use my Kelly kettle base and pots (so no scorched grass) I had a flask of hot water with me so I made a brew and then fired up the stove to get more hot water to refill the flask. Top tip here is I never carry a water bottle unless its really hot weather, instead I carry a one liter flask with either hot or cold water in, it also means I have a handy cup too.
Left is the set up I used - although I normally use a billy can and either a gas stove or a camp fire and after this weekend I will go back to that - however as you can see from the right picture the kelly pot stand made a nice trivet when I got fed up with messing around and went back to using a camp fire instead.
By now it was getting dark and with twilight creeping up I thought I'd best start some food. I used my axe and saw to gather loads of standing dry dead wood from a fallen tree and split these down into sections small enough to fit the Kelly's base and once done carved a few feather sticks and got the fire going. Cooking on the Kelly means you need to fill the base with embers so its a bit of a fiddly operation but once the ember bed is established cooking on it is ok.
Night fell and I hit the sack. I slept for a straight 12 hours ......
Next day I crawled out my maggot (sleeping bag) and when through the whole cooking routine again, I don't often use the Kelly kettle and now I remembered why, without the chimney its a real pain, but it was all I had so I persevered. Breakfast of Beans and coffee finally attached near lunch time I did the dishes and then dug out my toys.
The two knives I had traded were a Karesaundo Galten or Saint? And a Woodjewel Survival knife both lovely knives and as I usually just use a Opinel no9 a bit of a luxury. What can I say both preformed well and considering the price difference, the Galten RRP's at about £199 while the Woodjewel RRP's at around £35 there wasn't much in it. The Galten felt better in my hand and I wasn't taken with the Woodjewel's ground out notch for fire steel striking as it was near the tip of the blade and I'd have liked it nearer the handle. Both knives would do in a pinch but I still feel a Mora Companion would be just as good and a lot less pricey.
Anyway I passed the day playing and being graced with a rare sunny Dartmoor day also took the chance to catch a few rays before doing the whole Kelly routine again for dinner.
Last day I spent tidying up and packing away for enjoying a few hours wandering around the moors as I meandered my way back to the car.
For those who are interested I'll add a couple of picture of my kit below, here's a list of what I took.
In my pockets I always carry the following,
Folding Saw
Ceramic rod and sharpening stone
Wooden Spoon
Torch
Tinder pouch
Notebook and pencil
Compass and Whistle with a Fresnel lens
First aid kit and a Mylar sheet
Opinel no9 or on this occasion a S.A.K
Work gloves and liners
A woolly head over.
And my woolly hat if I'm not wearing it.
My pocket kit is designed to have enough "stuff" that push come to shove, I could survive the night with just those items. (I actually did this once in Sweden at Minus 10 for three nights as a test as I have enough there to provide fire and shelter - water would be questionable without a boiling vessel but in Sweden that wasn't a problem, although there are puritabs in the first aid kit so a birch bark container could be a back up plan)
In my rucksack goes the following,
Bank Line or paracord
Snare wire and a sewing kit
Water filter
Flask
Rations and brew kit
Mosi head net
Wash kit
Sleep system inc bivi bag and mat
I use a orange survival bag as a rucksack liner and it has the added advantage of being an emergency shelter/signal etc
Poncho with guys and pegs
Hatchet
And my cook set.
Well guys, those of you still awake, I hope you enjoyed my little write up. Over all I had a great few days and look forward to next months adventure!
With my monthly overnighter on the cards and having two new (second handed traded knives to play with) I packed my kit and headed off to my favorite spot Dartmoor. Its a regular site I use as its off the beaten track and provides everything I need by way of fresh water and fire wood.
When I arrived I was saddened to find someone else had been there before me and left quite a mess. I can understand why land owners get ticked off when people do this, but I tidied it up and carried it out with me when I left, it wasn't heavy so i cant understand why the owners couldn't clear it up and take it home, they carried it all in after all.
Anyway, once the site was tidy I went about setting up.
My shelter is a old ex germen army poncho (I tend to have it set up with a central ridge line and guys off the corners - I raise and lower it as the weather changes obviously the worse the weather to lower the shelter) and my sleep set up is a down sleeping bag (luxury I know but it packs down small!) and a British army bivi bag. I also had a inflatable mat but after much huffing and puffing I discovered it had a hole in it from last time I used it - so that meant I was sleeping on the ground! (note to self check all kit before leaving home!)
Having cleaned up someone else's mess I figured I'd re-use the rocks they had as a fire circle and rebuilt these into a small fire base on which I could use my Kelly kettle base and pots (so no scorched grass) I had a flask of hot water with me so I made a brew and then fired up the stove to get more hot water to refill the flask. Top tip here is I never carry a water bottle unless its really hot weather, instead I carry a one liter flask with either hot or cold water in, it also means I have a handy cup too.
Left is the set up I used - although I normally use a billy can and either a gas stove or a camp fire and after this weekend I will go back to that - however as you can see from the right picture the kelly pot stand made a nice trivet when I got fed up with messing around and went back to using a camp fire instead.
By now it was getting dark and with twilight creeping up I thought I'd best start some food. I used my axe and saw to gather loads of standing dry dead wood from a fallen tree and split these down into sections small enough to fit the Kelly's base and once done carved a few feather sticks and got the fire going. Cooking on the Kelly means you need to fill the base with embers so its a bit of a fiddly operation but once the ember bed is established cooking on it is ok.
Night fell and I hit the sack. I slept for a straight 12 hours ......
Next day I crawled out my maggot (sleeping bag) and when through the whole cooking routine again, I don't often use the Kelly kettle and now I remembered why, without the chimney its a real pain, but it was all I had so I persevered. Breakfast of Beans and coffee finally attached near lunch time I did the dishes and then dug out my toys.
The two knives I had traded were a Karesaundo Galten or Saint? And a Woodjewel Survival knife both lovely knives and as I usually just use a Opinel no9 a bit of a luxury. What can I say both preformed well and considering the price difference, the Galten RRP's at about £199 while the Woodjewel RRP's at around £35 there wasn't much in it. The Galten felt better in my hand and I wasn't taken with the Woodjewel's ground out notch for fire steel striking as it was near the tip of the blade and I'd have liked it nearer the handle. Both knives would do in a pinch but I still feel a Mora Companion would be just as good and a lot less pricey.
Anyway I passed the day playing and being graced with a rare sunny Dartmoor day also took the chance to catch a few rays before doing the whole Kelly routine again for dinner.
Last day I spent tidying up and packing away for enjoying a few hours wandering around the moors as I meandered my way back to the car.
For those who are interested I'll add a couple of picture of my kit below, here's a list of what I took.
In my pockets I always carry the following,
Folding Saw
Ceramic rod and sharpening stone
Wooden Spoon
Torch
Tinder pouch
Notebook and pencil
Compass and Whistle with a Fresnel lens
First aid kit and a Mylar sheet
Opinel no9 or on this occasion a S.A.K
Work gloves and liners
A woolly head over.
And my woolly hat if I'm not wearing it.
My pocket kit is designed to have enough "stuff" that push come to shove, I could survive the night with just those items. (I actually did this once in Sweden at Minus 10 for three nights as a test as I have enough there to provide fire and shelter - water would be questionable without a boiling vessel but in Sweden that wasn't a problem, although there are puritabs in the first aid kit so a birch bark container could be a back up plan)
In my rucksack goes the following,
Bank Line or paracord
Snare wire and a sewing kit
Water filter
Flask
Rations and brew kit
Mosi head net
Wash kit
Sleep system inc bivi bag and mat
I use a orange survival bag as a rucksack liner and it has the added advantage of being an emergency shelter/signal etc
Poncho with guys and pegs
Hatchet
And my cook set.
Well guys, those of you still awake, I hope you enjoyed my little write up. Over all I had a great few days and look forward to next months adventure!
