Good afternoon, its been a while since I updated this blog. Without going into detail, suffice it to say that life just sometimes gets crazy, and you cannot always accomplish everything you want to do, so you make sacrifices where you can. This was one of them. But, I want to put something in here, and TRY to post monthly. I had asked a question on the ETS forums regarding the use of alcohol stoves in below freezing weather. Well, I decided to take it upon myself instead, and do a practical test. This is by NO means a definitive one-this is simply something that I wanted to try & test out to gather some general data. I am using the following equipment for my test:

a GSI 1L cookset-filled consistently with 16 oz of water (measured from my nalgene bottle)

A Snowpeak Gigapower piezo stove, with a small gas canister (full for this test)

A homemade cat stove

A Mini-Trangia brass stove

A Minibull Designs mini Atomic stove

A Pepsi Stove

The first of the two tests I am doing is the control test. What I did was simply boil 16 oz of water on each stove, and timed the stoves until it reached a rolling boil. Note; yours may vary. The fuel I used was standard denatured alcohol, that was about a year old. I also picked some up for this test, as I only had enough left to test indoors. Which means that the outdoor test will be done with relatively fresh fuel (canister stove being the exception.). I measured out the 16 oz of water, for each test, using a standard nalgene bottle, filling it up to the hash mark. I used tap water, cold, for each test. Additionally, I cooled the cookpot in between each test, so as to minimize possibly skewing the results with a warm pot (I simply ran cold water into it each time, until the pot was cold again-nothing fancy). Here are the results of my indoor control test:

Gigapower canister stove-reached rolling boil in 3:56. Of course, thats the advantage of these types of stoves-a rolling boil, fast. This was by FAR the quickest of all boil times. The fuel is isopro, so I am anxious to see what the outside performance will be, as they traditionally dont operate well at low temps.

Homemade cat stove-reached rolling boil in 10:42. I used a heat reflector shield with this as well. The design for the stove is simple-its an empty cat food can, with holes punched in it. You fill it with alcohol to the bottom of the row of holes, light it, and set the pot directly on the top. The boil used ALL the fuel for this-I suspect that, when doing this test outdoors, it may not reach boiling, due to the lower temps. But, right now, that is only a suspicion.

Mini Trangia-reached rolling boil in 10:46. This only consumed roughly 1/3 the fuel in the stove. This is the standard brass Trangia alcohol stove, that has been in use for damn near ever. Honestly, these are my favorite alcohol stoves, due to their heavy duty build. And, you can keep alcohol within the stove itself, with its lid. This also came with a simmer lid, which I find completely useless, as I am of the mind that cooking, while hiking, consists of boiling water & adding it to the dehydrated food. But, again, this is personal preference. Your experiences may differ. The simmering gizmo is simply a lid that restricts some of the heat output, by limiting the amount of jets being used.

Pepsi Can Stove-reached a boil in 5:23. This was a LOT faster than I expected! I used a pot stand for the test, as this type of stove isnt a sit-on-top kind. It took about 15 seconds for the jets to ignite. Used about a 3rd of the way up for fuel, which seemed to be maybe just a little too much, by about a minute's worth of burn time.

Minibull Designs mini Atomic-reached boil in 5:34. This was surprising, as I expected it to hit boil before the pepsi can stove did. The first time I tried, I didnt add enoug fuel-its hard to judge how much you put in it without graded measuring lines on your fuel dispenser. So, the second time, I filled it with more than I thought I would need, which worked (I cooled the pot off in between too-in fact, I ate dinner between the first & second tries).

My control experiments left me with a few thoughts-first, canister stoves are quick & easy. But, that is expected. The downside is that you need to pack out empty fuel canisters, which are still heavy (comparitively speaking). Also, if they break, you are pretty much SOL, if it cannot be fixed immediately.

Alcohol stoves can be lightweight, and with the correct design, are within acceptable boiling times-comparable to my canister stove-at least inside. We will see what changes, if any, to boil times outside, in the cold. The great thing about alcohol stoves is that they are simple-pour fuel in, light, and go. No moving parts, nothing to clog. Fuel I keep in an empty soda bottle. They are delicate though (with the exception of the Trangia), and can be easily crushed if stepped on. Of course, if you can find another one, and have something small to poke the jets through with, you can make another one. The design is insanely simple. From everything I have read, the downside is that these will not work in sub-freezing weather. I have no first hand experience with that-which is what I will be testing this coming weekend!

Look for another post shortly after the coming weekend with post-outdoor test information.

New items for review next weekend!

I recently received a few new items in the mail, that I plan on testing out next weekend. Three things specifically; a minibull stove, a custom outsdoors knife, and a sparklite from TAD gear. More to follow on this, including pics.

As promised, a review on the DVD Prepared to Survive

First off, I have to apologize for not getting this done sooner. I came down with the evil flu, that took me down a couple of days, I had some bagpiping engagements I had to take care of, and I had an army buddy visiting this past weekend. So, its been a crazy couple of weeks, but I DID get to watch them (plan on it again soon too).
First, the packaging. The DVD set (two DVDs) come packaged in a standard plastic type case. The front picture is gorgeous: a mist covered mountain. The back is a quick overview of the contents, and the bios of the 4 authors: Gretchen Cordy, Doug Ritter, Buck Tilton, and Rich Johnson. Reading these quick bios, these are some heavy hitters in the world of preparedness. You have a USAF survival instructor, a leading authority on survival, particularly small aircraft safety, co-founder of the Wilderness Medicine Institute for NOLS, and an ex-special forces soldier, who regularly teaches outdoor survival tehniques, and writes for several outdoor magazines. So, these are your instructors; needless to say these are some heavy hitters!
The DVD set is broken down into two disks; the first one is basic concepts, in depth topics, and profiles. This DVD goes into a LOT of the mental state of a survivor; they pull on some real life scenarios, and have interviews with some folks who had survived several days snowed in on a mountain in CA. There is alot to take in; the DVD is over 2 hours long. They show a little demonstration, using some lost hikers, or basic things; a quick lean to using plastic sheeting, carrying a whistle, little things like that. This DVD mainly touches on the preparedness part of it; skills you should know, and some of the thought processes one goes through. There are quite a few concepts that are discussed, and the narrators pull from personal experience to illustrate some points. It is not dry; all 4 narrators are presenting information that, although it may not be fresh, new ideas for some of us, is certainly alot of the things people overlook, such as the boredom of your situation, the Rules of 3, and the fact that, by the time most people admit they are lost, it is dark. These are things that arent normally discussed, or are at best brushed over, in alot of the books out there. So, it is nice to see someone touch on these things (I have carried a deck of cards for YEARS in my survival kit, for just this purpose!).
The second DVD is bonus materials. They go into some of the things one would want in their kit, as well as some knife selections. This is nice, as they point out the pros & cons of some of the equipment, but dont seem to endorse any particular brand (so it doesnt really feel like an infomercial). With the knife selection section, they go over what to look for in a good sheath knife, showing several different models. Again, as these folks are professionals, they keep it well on track (no Rambo style knives). Gretchen does a section on knots; this part I found sort of lacking. She went over a timber hitch, and a square knot. IIRC, that was about it. Personally, I think that this was sort of glossed over; I would've liked to see some other basic knots reviewed as well; classic ones like the figure of 8, bowline, girth hitch and a reef knot would have been nice. Not sure why only 2 knots were covered, but, dont expect much.
The last part of the 2nd DVD is scenery; I must admit, I didnt look at these as of yet. However, I believe most, if not all, of this DVD was shot in the Pacific NorthWest, so, I am SURE it would be gorgeous.
Overall, I think that this is a worthy addition to any outdoors library. It isnt campy, they arent pushing a particular product on you, it isnt a military-style movie; it is just 4 experts sharing their knowledge & experience with the rest of us. My suggestion would be to pick this up if you can!

DVD review coming soon to you!

So, I placed an order from Lifeview Outdoors last week, and received a brochure for a DVD set: Prepared To Survive. I thought, oh, goody, another thing for me to order! Doug Ritter contributed to this, so I figure it HAS to be good. Well, I was going to wait till next month, but I needed (wanted) a couple of other items, namely, another mora knife, and a PSK for my nephew. So, they were actually having a special over at their website; $54.99 for the DVD set & a PSK. So, I slapped the mora order on there, and they are on their way! I plan on reviewing this this weekend, should it get here in time.

Friendly Reminder

Dont forget to change meds & bandages in First Aid kits, as well as batteries in flashlights & smoke detectors! New year, time to change things!!!

A new year for me!

So, after getting soft for the past 4 years as a civilian, I decided that I need to whip my fat ass back into shape. I was never ripped, mind you; I am short, & stout (like a teapot?!?!). However, I was solid, at my peak. My recent snowshoeing trek showed me how unfit I really am; 5 hours of snowshoeing shouldnt have resulted in soreness for a few days. When I was active in the Army, it seemed I could walk indefinitely (and a few time, it seemed like I actually did). Although I am older now, and know I will not get back the fitness level of my younger days, I can still do what I can to get back into shape. I have put on about 20 lbs or so as a result of working a desk for the past 5 years, and this will adversely affect my health. I am aware of this, and am making the concious decision to control it. So, I joined my local gym today, and will start on a "getting back into shape" program on Monday.
I have never been a fan of the gym; however, I realize that I cannot do this alone; I have tried (I usually run for about a month, then find something else to do). So, I am hoping that by making this part of my daily regimen, much like it was when I was active (when we werent deployed somewhere), and this should help me keep on track. Time will tell; my goal is 30 lbs by June, or 2 waist sizes (which is more realistic). Time will tell!

Winter hike 2009

So, today I decided to do a little snowshoeing. I havent done it in a couple of years and, frankly, since I have gotten back from a year in Cuba, the cold just isnt for me anymore. But, we got over a foot of fresh snow this weekend, I had today off, so I decided to take a little walk. My INTENTION was a short hike, maybe an hour or so, where I wanted to test out anew stove type (more on that below). Well, I packed a small daypack, with my essentials for "just in case", and off I went!
It was gorgeous out there today! Weather was about mid 20's or so, partially sunny. I started off with a med weight thermal base layer, goretex pants, my TNF fleece top, wool watch cap, and glove liners with ragg wool half mitten thingys (the kind that you can pull the top of the mitten off, flip it back & velcro it, so you can use your fingers).
My daypack consisted of the following:

Pack: Camelback MULE

Outside:
Military poncho
Mora knife/leather sheath, firesteel
Garmin GPS60CX
Bandana
small carabiner (non safety, key fob like)
about 6' of paracord type cordage

Main pocket:
1L british issue canteen, with metal cup (better suited to any situation, as opposed to the bladder the MULE came with)
3 1 gallon ziplock bags
2 leaf bags (large trash bags)

Top pocket (all in ziplock bags):
3 Clifbars, 1 granola bar (absent, instant coffee packets)
notepad & pencil
Spare AA batteries
Wooden nickels (I geocache, and this is what I leave in my finds)

Bottom pocket:
50' paracord (may be more, I cut this off a spool from my units armory)
Gerber hand saw
Heatsheet
Brunton orienteering compass
Princeton Tec LED headlamp (repaired with duct tape, incidentally, from my kit)
Tinder (cotton balls with petroleum jelly)
Adventure Medical Kit Ultralight (pretty standard, I only swap the medicines out, add Advil, and put an irrigation syringe in it)
PSK

PSK contents:
waterproof tin container
necklace with small compass, LED flashlight, and Fox40 whistle
15' of small cordage (the stuff that came in the RSK PSK)
handfull of strike anywhere matches in a small ziplock bag
tinder (again, the little things that came with the RSK kit)
small roll of duct tape
plastic see through disposable lighter
fishing/sewing kit (2 lures, 4 hooks, 6 sinkers, 2 needles, 4 safety pins, 20' of fishing line wound around the outside of the tube)
roll of thread
signal mirror
fresnal lens
snare wire
ferro rod w/striker
surgical blade, sealed
micropur water purification tablets
tin foil
survival pamphlet


That weighs in at about 11 lbs, almost non existent as far as weight goes. I left the poncho behind, and strapped on my goretex jacket. I also snapped the paint can stove to the small biner.

So, about 45 mins into the hike, I decided to bust brush to find a nice secluded spot to test this stove out. With a little over 2 feet of snow, find a LEVEL spot was a bit of a test. So, anyway, I found a nice place to test it out.
I stomped a flat area as best I could, then dug down with a snowshoe. Got it fairly level. Then, I went to find tinder. Easy task, as this is a mixed growth forest. Within 5 minutes I gathered what I thought was a good amount of fuel. So, on to the stove...
First, one thing I advocate wholeheartedly; ALWAYS carry cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly! These are the BEST firestarters one can use! They catch a spark instantly, and burn for a good minute.
So, I get the stove started. Got a good base of wood burning. Then, decided to test how long it takes to get water to a boil. I filled my canteen cup about halfway, and put it on the stove. It worked, but with a fair amount of fidgeting. It took about 15 minutes to get it to start forming bubbles, at which point I stopped the test. It was hot enough for coffee. The reason it took so long is that you have to constantly feed the fire, and remove the cup in doing so. This method isnt the greatest, but, hey, its a wood stove, essentially! I have seen other designs with s smaller can attached horizontally...but, well, I like quick & easy! And this stove does exactly that, with no fire scar afterwards.
Ok, the design of the stove is stupid simple; get an unused 1 qt paint can from your local hardware store. Take a tailors tape measure and make marks along both the top and bottom of the can at 1" increments. Now, drill out those marks with a 1/4" bit. Thats it, you're done!
The idea behind it isnt so much a stove, as a controlled fireplace. Word of warning; paint cans have a lining on the inside, so, when firing this up for the first time, let it ALL burn off. Takes about 10 minutes, give or take. After that is done, it should be fine.
When you are cutting fuel, think SMALL. This is a small wood burning stove; nothing larger than your index finger will fit into it. Hence, the constant need to stoke it. But, again, as long as you have access to stuff to burn, you are fine. It just takes a little longer, thats all.
So, done with the stove testing, I pack up, and start my trek home. I decide to cut through the woods. Well, I got some fantastic pictures, but, a shortcut it was not. I wouldnt say I was lost; I could always backtrack. I COULD say I took the scenic route back to my jeep though :). It was a nice day for a walk anyway! 4 hours longer than planned, but, hey, that sometimes happens, you know?
More photos here

Gear Testing this weekend

I am tsting out some new gear this weekend, namely a new stove & cook system. The cook system is a GSI Soloist, and everything, including the fuel canister, fits inside it. I am also trying out a giga power stove as well. I just tested the stove in my kitchen, and achieved a rolling boil at 4:20. I will check boil times out in the field this weekend. I am also introducing my nephew Josh to lightweight backpacking. We will get some pics this weekend, and post them here. More to come soon!!!

Foraging in New England

Well, I've decided to add some foraging to my weekend outings. I picked up a book called "Foraging in New England", which is a nice field guide by Alpenguide. There are color plates in the middle, and descriptions of the plant, time of year to harvest it, where its found (the book is broken up into regions; coastal, wooded, cultivated land, waste land, etc), and even how to prepare it.
So, I went up to my local woodland, Groton Town Forest, and went for a walk. I have modified my packing list somewhat. I now use a Maxpedition pack, which is sort of a shoulder pack. In it I have the following (off the top of my head); military poncho, tied to the bottom, nalgene water bottle, with a stainless steel cup, Gerber hand saw, a battery operated chemical light thingy (looks like the military chem lights, but it run off of small batteries), compass, small emergency bivy sack, first aid kit, 50' of paracord, flight gloves, a survival tin, and my Mora knife with flint & steel. It sounds like alot, but, it weighs just under 5 lbs, and, for the summer, and warm weather, there's enough there to get me through a night or 2. Additionally, there is a zippered pocket, behind the main one, that I slipped this field guide into. So, knowing what I have, I'll go over what I learned!!!
I found about 4 different species that I could easily identify. I found common plantain, wintergreen, bunchberry, and burdock. Granted, I know what most of these were. Also, with the exception of the wintergreen, most species were WELL past their harvesting time. Which is fine; my goal is to become familiar with these. I also additionally tentatively identified a few more; stinging nettle, pineappleberry (which, when I was young, used to crush, ust to smell them), canada goldenrod, and queen anne's lace. All in all, a good, productive day. If you regularly spend time outside, I'd HIGHLY recommend getting a field guide, similar to mine, and spend the time outside learning. Its amazing how you look at the woods, after you start learning so much about them!

Been a long time!

Sorry, its been a LONG time since I've logged on this site! Some updates; I havent been outside as much as I wanted to be lately. Life got crazy. I got let go from my old job, which sucked anyway, and started a new one. My commute is a LOT longer now, which limits me going out whenever I want. Also, I am currently in a relationship, which also limits my outdoor time. Lastly, I took up the bagpipes a year ago or so, and this takes up a HUGE amount of time. I still do get out occasionally, and recently picked up a book called "Foraging in NEw England". I am going to go out this weekend and try some of the things in there. I will keep you posted.

caching this past weekend

Well, it's been over a month since I last posted. Lets see...most recently, I participated in my first geocaching tournament, called the great northern tier geocaching tournament . I took my nephew, Josh, and we had an absolute blast! We camped out 2 nights, and met some wonderful new friends. I slept out in my hammock, which alot of folks thought a little odd...but, I slept like a baby. First night we had a good thunderstorm....didnt get wet at all...and even got to watch it out over the pond through my tarp. It was truly amazing. Now, on to the caching...
First day, we linked up with Scout98, and went out. We didnt intend to compete at all, but, after the first day, we had an amazing 22 caches, in one day! Then, on to the night caches....there were 8 in all, and, after a great dinner o BBQ chicken, potato salad, corn, and other fixings, we were off at dusk to grab 8 more. We finished up about 8:30 or so that evening, and called in a night.
One thing I forgot; the night we arrived, Friday, I went out ad did a few local caches with some people there for the event. I even got to FINALLY log one of my DNFs, at Lyons falls. My plan was to hit 300 caches this weekend, and I didnt count correctly, as I only counted the ones from the tournament. This threw my count off a little, but, thats ok. Anyway, on to day two...
The next morning, we got up and, much to our surprise, Scout98 was in the lead for single cachers! Well, without even trying, he pulled ahead! We set up a game plan for caching that day, and didnt stick to it. That happens. We grabbed a bunch more, including a few in areas where tournament ones were, and I finally hit 300 at Shore of Wicket Pond. After that one, we decided to hit one more, and call it a day. Again, mind you, I had forgotten about the "other" caches I did outside ofthe tournament.
So, we get back, and they tally up the totals for the day. It turns out that Scout98 missed making best by ONE CACHE!!! we were literally 1/10th of a mile away from him winning. Ah well...there's always next year.
As an aside, I did the whole weekend kilted, and it was EXTREMELY comfy! This I ill definitely be doing kilted from now on...
I have attached a couple of pics here, to share both my 300th cache & a small prank played on us by fellow cachers. You'll see the kilt on me. It is made by Freedom Kilts, and I was VERY happy with it. It most definitely took a beating, much as Steve (the maker) told me it would.
So, here are the pics:

Update

I know I havent posted anything in a while. I have done some geocaching as of late, & recently passed the 250 mark. I have about 8 left within a 10 mile radius of me, which I plan to finish up tomorrow (hopefully). But, that isnt the biggest news. The Big news is....(insert drumroll here)...
I've started on the bagpipes!!
This is a culmination of an 18 year old dream. The opportunity to start playing kinda fell in my lap. I started the end of May, and have been practicing diligently since. I now have two tunes down, one by memory, the other, well, I'm working on it. This has taken up most of my free time, as I hope that, by this time next year, I'll be playing with the local band. This wont take away my love of outdoors, naturally. But, it is something I ALWAYS wanted to do, and, well, I simply couldnt pass it up! And, well, not to toot my own horn, but, in May, I couldnt even read music...now, I have two tunes, and soon to be a third. I will not be on the actual pipes until around christmas, at which time I'll buy a set (they are expensive, you know!!).
This week, I am headed to NEw Orleans, so, I'll post some pics when I get back. Take care, and thanks for reading!!

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First overnight with the hammock

Well, I had an extra day off this week, so I decided to do an overnighter in my local area. I was going to drive out west to Mount Greylock, but where I had planned on parking is closed until 2009. The closest area to park was about 9 miles from where I wanted to be, so, I decided on an easier plan.

    Instead, I did part of the wapack trail, about 6 miles in. I weighed my pack before leaving, and, with food for 3 days, and 4 liters of water (water can be unreliable, once you get into the hills), I topped 35 lbs. A little too heavy for an overnighter, and a LOT heavier than where I want it to be normally, but, it wasnt too bad. I had the following (to the best of my recollection):

pack-Golite trek

hennesy asym hammock, with tarp, & underpad

Golite rain jacket & pants

patagonia R4 lightweight fleece

longlseeve nylon flyfishermans shirt

extra pair of socks

wool cap

glove liners

flipflops

small paperback book

my journal

pencil

compass

map

first aid kit

bandana

msr miniworks water filter

Kifaru Woobie synthetic blanket

3 Liter platypus

1 liter bottle for water

metal cup (goes on the bottom of the bottle)

titanium cooking pot 2L

titanium spoon

clikstand stove cover & windscreen

pepsi can stove

1/2 liter of alcohol for the stove

princeton tec micro headlamp

battery powered glowstick

Mora knife with sheath and firesteel

camera

    As you can see, I had quite a bit. I could have easily pared the weight down, but, as I was only out for an overnight, I figured I could pack the extras. So, anyway, off I went, about 11 yesterday morning. I hiked up to Nuuting Hill, then began my journey northward. It was about 75 degrees, sunny, with little breeze. A pleasant day to be ouside, to say the least. I had decided that I'd take my first pack off break at the last reliable watersource bfore I hit the hills. This is located just north of Binney Pond, and I made it there in about an our (just about 3 miles). So, I got to the spring, took out my filter, topped off platypus, and filled the extra water bottle for cooking. It was a little past noon at this time, and I wasnt too hungry as of yet, so I decided I'd hit the top of the first hill, Pratt Mountain, for lunch. I knew there was an excellent overlook of the pond, and I thought that that would be a great place or lunch. So, having topped off, I started up the hill.

    About 20 minutes later, I got to the top. Dropped the pack, and broke out lunch. Lunch consisted of a raisin bagel with peanut butter. I had mixed up some gorp as well, but, the heat destroyed it. I was stuck carrying a baggie of melted chocolate with nuts & coconut in it. Ah well.   

    So, I finished lunch, then broke out the map. Looking at it, I saw that my final destination wasnt that far away, maybe another hour. My trek would consist of walking the current ridgeline, giving up some elevation, then climbing to the top of New Ipswich Mountain, which was my destination for the day. Looking at the map, I thought that there may be another spring in between the two mountains, as it was a fairly steep draw. 30 minutes later, I hit that draw, and, sure enough, a small stream!! Now, this will, in all likelihood, be dried up in a couple of weeks. But, for now, I took advantage of it. I sat down, drank a liter of water at a leisurely pace, topped off the bottle again, then began the final climb of the day. took about 20 minutes to get to the top.

    So, finally, I am at my destination. I begin looking for a place to set up camp. Hanging a hammock makes this MUCH easier. I locate two old apple trees, and string up between them. I set up camp, then settle in & start reading my book I wanted to stretch the lines a little, then tighten them up again when I crashed for the night.

    So, a little while later, I start dinner. Now, I havent tried this stove out before, but am familiar with alcohol stoves in general. I also never tried the clikstand before now, so I was kind of experimenting. I fill the stove all the way to the top, & lit it. I filled my pot to the 1000ml line, poured the macaroni in (only time I ever eat mac & cheese is hiking), and put it on the stand. So, about 5 minutes later, its boiling away. Too much fuel. Also, too much water, as I had to drain quite alot of it out. Other than that, dinner was uneventful. I had some awesome views of the valley though. was nice to sit there & eat, looking out over miles of countryside. I had mount monadnock as a backdrop, which topped it all off.

    I finish eating, clean up, then fart around camp for a bit. I decide to rig my tarp up, just in case. I got everything all set up, crawled in, and read some more. I finished reading about 8:30, and it was still light out. The breeze picked up quite a bit, so I rigged the tarp up to keep it to a minimum. Finaly settled in for the night. I found myself constantly sinking in the hammock. Not realy a big deal, as I was never uncomfortable at all, like I would be sleeping on the ground. I just woke up several times, and stretched out again. The night temps were in the 40s, and I had on only boxers & a T-shirt. I later added a wool cap, as my ears got a little chilly. The combination of the underpad, tarp, and woobie kept me well warm. In fact, I constantly vented to keep from overheating. And, forutnately, I DID set up the tarp, as we had a light rain all night up in the hills. It was all fog in the valleys, and a light rain above that. My pack got wet, but, everything inside it was in a garbage bag, so the stuff stayed dry.

    I awoke next morning, expecting the stiffness I normally experience when sleeping on the ground. Nothing! I wasnt even sore from the walk in! Needless to say, I was quite surprised. I was also completely socked in with fog. I decided that, instead of cooking for breakfast, I'd have another bagel. So, I packed everything up, and ate. I also took a look at my water situation, and decided I could make it back the 6 miles on what I had. Even if I ran out, I knew where I coul locate it, as I passed many streams in the valley on my way up. So, off I went.

The walk back out was completely uneventful. But, walking along a ridgeline, at 6:30 in the morning, with fog banks offering only glimpses of the valleys below you, are truly breathtaking. I tried to snap a coupe of pictures, but I truly dont think they do it justice. It was a surreal feling, standing there, looking down to where the valley is, and only being able to ee a few hundred feet in front of you.

    By the time I got back down into the valley, the fog had lifted. I made good time back to my jeep, as I didnt stop at all with the exception to take pictures. My water situation stayed fine, and I didnt have to stop to filter more. It was a great experience, and a good gear run. I decided though that I need a bigger tarp. Maybe next payday. Please check out the pcitures in the photo album when I post them up (should e tonight). Take care, and I hope you enjoyed reading this!

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Overnighting tomorrow

Well, a REAL brief update; I am going to head out tomorrow night, for at least an overnighter on a local mountain. I want to test my new hammock out. I also picked up a neat little gadget for my alcohol stove called a clikstand.

This little thing folds neatly into my pot, providing a potstand, and windscreen, all without taking any additional room. I will snap some pics of my camp tomorrow afternoon. I plan on leaving right after work. So, it will be an evening hike up the hill, followed by a little relaxation, dinner, and maybe a book. I will also weigh my pack & post if for everyone, so you have an idea what I'm carrying. I try to go lightweight, but am not obsessed about it. Anyway, more later!!!

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A fine spring day

Well, as it was again a wonderful day, I decided to go out geocaching all day. I didn't hit as many as I normally do, which is about 7, but I got a couple of good ones, so it paid off. I started off with a new local one, hear a baseball field. However, with so many folks around, I gave up on it, leaving it for another, less busy day. So, I went off in earnest for others.
I started in on Birch Hill WMA, but only did part one. The second part will require a little planning, as there is no access to it road wise. I'll have to break out the topo, using my maptech program, and work it out from there. So, I went on & did a couple easy ones, and topped the day off doing Spirit IN the Falls and Doanes Fallies. Both were awesome, and memorable. The Spirit in the Falls one, had an awesome view from the first waypoint, and was well worth the hike up to the ridge. See the picture attached to this.
Doans Fallies was a double treat, as, first, this is one of my favorite local places, and second, I came upon a beaver swimming lazily in the pond! I, of course, snapped off a few pictures...unfortunately, only one came out. But, hey, that life, right?
Both of these caches are muliticaches, and required quite a bit of hiking. Which, again, was fine, as it was a nice day.
Then, this evening, I went fishing with my oldest nephew & my brother in law. My nephew, Josh, was the only one to catch on tonight, despite several strikes on everyone's bait. He caught a large mouth bass, but has never taken one off the hook before. Well, I showed him how to do it, and told him he was on his own next time!
One last thing; I am currently trying my hand at two home made items; one will be an alcohol stove, and the other will be a homemade firesteel. I picked up two firesteel blanks recently online, and will be making a handle for one out of black birch. I plan on taking several pics during construction of the firesteel, so stay tuned!!

Odd day out

So, its a beautiful day outside, I have the day off, and decide to go for a little walk in the local wildlife management area. I decide I'm gonna take my hammock, as 1), it hasnt really gotten any good sleep time in it yet, and 2), I was up WAY too early this morning, to bring a buddy to the army barracks, so he could ship out to Iraq today. So, as it was nice, I decided to take my nap outdoors.
A little background of this area; It is located behind a maximum sercurity prison. The area, the size of a small town, used to house inmates that were mentally deficient. It was a small town-like community, and they had the inmates work farms. There used to be massive housing facilities, several the size of mansions. IN addtion, they also had huge tracts of land to farm. They produced fruit & vegetables, as well as dairy & meat products, for the local communities.
In the 70's the state stopped funding the program, and all of the inmates were transferred to traditional facilities. TRhe community was effectively abandoned. It was taken over by the state wildlife commision shortly after they were shut down, and part of it was (and still is) used for training of police and corrections canines, and some national guard training, for fighting in urban areas (the buildings used for these were finally condemned & razed in the mid 90's). The vast majority is now just a wildlife management area (hunting & fishing allowed, no camping), where they are allowing the forest to reclaim itself. Walking in this area is a treat, as you are on some paved roads, that end abruptly, will be walking through the woods, and find an old fire hydrant in the middle of nowhere, a line of telephone poles through a copse of trees, odd things like that. But, all in all, it is a gorgeous area (no vehicle traffic allowed here at all).
So, anyway, this is where I spend the majority of my time wandering. Today, I walked to where I thought was WAY off the beaten path, to set up my hammock, & just relax. Well, I fall asleep, & wake up several times due to snoring (my hennesy is arguably more comfy than my bed). Finally, I doze off good. Then, I hear a truck. In the middle of the woods. Well, come to find out, there is an old paved road about 100 yards from where I was. In it were 3 cops. They ask me if I were living there, which, of course, I wasnt. I explain what I am doing, they are amicable, we exchange niceties, I even turn one of em on to the hennesy website, and they leave. Well, naps over, I pack up, and leave myself.
I dont take a direct route, instead, I wander some old footpaths, heading in the general direction of my jeep. I notice a police helicopter, doing lazy eights over the whole area. Now, I figure its one of two things; a pilot training, or somethings going on. So, I head back to a paved road, to make a beeline baqck to my jeep. I figure, if they have a chopper up, its serious.
Well, I run into the same cops that came across me napping earlier. It seems that a 24 year old decided he wanted to take his own life. He had left a note at his home, stating he was going to overdose with drugs in the woods. They asked if I had seen anyone fitting the description, which I hadnt. I told him of several other folks I came across out for a walk today though, and roughly where they were. They graciously offered me a ride back to my jeep, but I wanted to walk. It was a little less than a mile back, no big deal. The whole way back I kept calling out the kids name, hoping he'd respond. Unfortunately, he didnt.
As of this time, I do not know the status of the situation. I, for one, am hoping for a good outcome, and that maybe this was a call for help. I would hate to think that his life could be so bad that suicide would be the only answer. I sincerely hope he is found. There are LOTS of places one could go to do the deed in this place, and quite possibly never be found. That, IMHO, would be the absolute worst, as the family would never get true closure. Its sad that, on such a gorgeous day, someone elected to attempt to take their own life. My heart goes out to him, & his family.

Recent WA trip

I recently went out to Washington State to visit my brother. This is quite possibly the most beautiful state I've yet been to. I was only there a few days, but I enjoyed every minute of it. I had the opportunity to go to the Point Defiant Zoo on Friday, see a Beluga whale (simply amazing), a 3200 lb walrus (graceful underwater, not so much on land, I'm sure), and several other animals. They had a fantastic wildlife exhibit, although it was only a "practice run" (not tourist season yet). Got to spend lots of time with my niece & nephew there.
Saturday, my brother took me wheeling in his jeep. We went to some place near Mt. Rainier, in a forest harvesting area. I will post a pic up here; feel free to check my album link though. And, before someone harps on the cruelty of deforestatiuon, I want to point several things out; first, the company that owns most of the forestry industry in the PNW does the environment pretty good. They buy the land from the state, harvest the trees (mostly pine & hemlock, I think), then plant 2 trees for every 1 tree cut down. On top of that, they then GIVE the land back to the state, to allow the forest to re-grow. Being softwood, they grow to maturity in about 40 years or so. This allows land to be harvested, left alone for several generations, then re-harvested. This is actually good for the environment, as it allows smaller plants to grow, providing food for the abundant wildlife. Now, on to a couple of pics. Enjoy!!

Another beautiful day

Well, I got a chance to get outside yesterday & do some caching in New Hampshire. I did several in a couple of local forests. Nice areas. Weather was cool, winds gusty, about 45° or so. Trails were a combination of frozen ground, wet snow, compacted snow, ice, & mud. But, despite all that, I still managed to grab 7 (seems to be my average on a day out lately). All that being said, The second to last cache I did, called Conversville Cache, was my favorite. I got a chance to get a few pics, which will be posted shortly. In particular, I got some of a few wood ducks, both floating around & taking off into flight, a nice picture over the pond, with a local hill as a backdrop, and, my favorite, I got a pic of a beaver lazing around on the ice. He was too far off for me to eye him, so, I whipped out the camera, zoomed in, snapped a pic, & hoped. Sure enough, when I downloaded the pics, it was definitely a beaver. I was kinda proud of myself. See the link to my album above. I am loading them as we speak.
Well, thats all I have today. LAtely I've been getting out a lot more with caching, and hope to continue that into the spring & summer.

A beautiful day to be out

Well, spring is finally here! As it was such a nice day outside, I decided to do two geocaches that were a bit of a hike. The first one was MA Ghost Town. This is in the Quabbin Reservoir area, which was originally the site of several towns, until they evacuated them all to make room for Boston's water supply. A good site for the history of it can be found here. The walk in was great, with the warm sun, the snow melting, and a pleasant stroll through the country. The cache itself was a virtual, which, technically, they cannot list anymore, so the hider placed a physical cache with the coords to the final (and other areas) in a can, that you can log after you make it to Dana Common.
Walking up this old road, one has time to ponder (it IS a 2 mile walk, after all) how much effort it must have taken these people to build towns back then. All that was made was done by manual labor; the rock walls New England is famous for, old cellar holes, dug by hand, foundations, with stones weighing more than the people moving them, even the wood was gathered locally. I cannot begin imagine how all these townfolk, from all the towns they were forced to abandon, must have felt to be relocated from what they built with their own hands. There were churches, schools, cemetaries, inns, as well as the farms & dwellings. There was even an old railroad that ran by here. But, their sacrifice has given us a beautiful place to walk, a controlled area for both forestry & wildlife, and has probably spawned more than a few ghost tales.
The second cache I went after was Harvard Forest. A more complete history of the forest can be found at this website. The walk, again, was about 2 miles one way, but well worth it. The route takes you around the pond, following a road. The road was a mix of dry forest floor, mud, slush, and combinations of the last two. This one also took about 2 hours to complete, but, I am a slow walker, and paused for several pictures.
Well, thats about all I have for now. I decided to take the day & do some caching instead of homework, so, now, I am once again behind. I am thinking that, this week, I will compare my two gear setups (ultralight & bushcraft) and post them here. So, until then, get outside!

Hammock experience & a camera

Well, I purchased a hamnmock from DD hammock last week, & got it in the mail Wednesday night. Needless to say, I was excited to try it out. Well, yesterday (thursday) was a gorgeous day, about 45 degrees outside, perfect for a trial nap. So, I throw the hammock, tarp, sleeping bag, mat, & canteen into my daypack, & head off into the woods.
I also brought along my new camera, and Olympus something or other. I figured I'd give two new items a try today :)
I find a nice spot, next to a beaver pond, with good, stout trees to set up. I get the tarp up, in about 5 minutes (with fiddling). Next, I string the hammock up. Get everything nice & set up, get the bug net up, then am about to get in, when I notice that there is a ripped seam. Disappointed, I take everything down, pack up, & head for home, to email the maker.
So, I email DD hammocks, and they ask that I ensure it is actually torn, as some folks confuse the two layers of nylon (to slip a sleep mat between)with a tear. I write back that, no, I am not confused, and take a picture of the tear. Upon further inspection, I see that, it is in fact not a tear, but the machine had missed stitching about a foot's worth of material (in the picture). So, as it stands currently, I am awaiting a response from them. In the interim, I've ordered a hennessy asym, and will review that as soon as I get it.
Oh, and the camera kicks ass ;)