Lots of Stuff

Well gear lists are now starting to appear for the 2013 TGO Challenge.  It is with some trepidation that I make this post.  Other people's lists always seem to be lighter and smarter than mine!  But this is my current state of thinking.  I am sure some readers will be horrified by the base weight of 11.7kg. All I can say is that this is lighter than when I started planning!

I feel I need to justify some of the weightier choices, so here goes.  Firstly, my choice of pack.  Until recently I used a Golite Pinnacle but I have replaced this with the ULA Catalyst. This is probably of higher capacity than needed, although I reckon a fair proportion of the claimed volume is actually in the mesh outer pocket.  I purchased this pack because the XL size has a very long back length.  I am 6 foot 3 inches and the Pinnacle hip belt used to sit on my waist.  The ULA hip belt sits on the hips and this makes for far more comfort when carrying a large load.  Indeed, this is the first pack I have had which has fitted me properly since my fully framed Karrimor Randonneur pack which I had in the early 70's.

The other weighty item, by today's standards, that I will probably take is my Akto.  This is instead of the Trail Star, although I haven't yet come to a final conclusion about that. I want to have a few more nights in the TS before May and to use my as yet untested new Oook nest. Unlike the rest of the world I am still entirely unconvinced by this combination - I reckon that the TS and the nest simply lacks sufficient length for someone of my height to sleep comfortably, despite it having a footprint somewhat larger than the O2 Arena.  If my next few nights in the TS are not succesful I will be flogging it. I do not actually think the weight penalty of the Akto is that great once you add pegs and a nest  or bivi bag to the TS's sold weight.

I also know that there are some non-essential items in what follows, eg Exped Pillow and some bits of clothing. These may get whittled down nearer the time. Hope I haven't missed any essentials, though.

Oh and I forgot to include my Sawyer water filter in the list below - 122 grs with the large pouch.

So have a gawp, have a laugh but do comment!

Kit		Weight	Comments
		Grams
Pack
ULA Catalyst		1400
Packliner		146
Camping / Sleeping
Akto		1650
Sleeping Bag Rab Neutrino		760	In its waterproof stuff sac
Silk liner		120
Exped Pillow		81
Neo Air X lite large		485	Includes Neo Air repair kit
Duomat sit mat		150
Tent J Cloth		15
Polycro for porch		25
Kitchen
Stove, feet, windshield	Optimus	185
Pan	Evernew 0.9l	115
Pot cosy		28
Mug	Lifeventure titanium	65
Fuel		382	1*230gr cartridge
Steel		28
Matches		15
Fork / spoon		32
Long spoon		12
J cloth		15
Water container	Platypus 2 litre	37
	Platypus 1 litre	36
Swiss army knife "Classic"		22
Can opener		10
Purification tablets		10
Plastic food bags		10
Tiny sponge scourer		4
Health and Hygiene
First Aid Kit		160	Various dressings, wipes, pain killers, tick thing etc
First aid kit dry bag		26
Crepe knee bandage		45
Bisoprolol		10
Asprin 75mg		10
Hayfever tabs		5
Compeed		11
Ear plugs		2
Imodium		10
Gehwol Foot Cream		57
Chafing gel		40
Sunscreen		51	Chance would be a fine thing
Sudacreme		40
Toilet roll		70
Hand sanitiser		100
Wash Kit	Dry bag	30
	Toothbrush and paste	45
	Comb	6
	Dr Bronner's	60
	Spare Contact lense	4
	Contact lense fluid	65
Reading glasses in case		107
Midge repellant		110
Midge head net		50
Lifesystems towel		166
Trowel		61
P Bottle		62
Navigation
Silva compass		40
Maps		250	Weigh amount guessed here
Ortilieb Map Case		64
Watch		40
Smartphone / GPS	Galaxy 1	117	With Viewranger 1:50k
Spare batteries for phone		64	2 spare @32gr
Phone case		60	Aquapac
Phone charger		62
Accessories
Repair kit	Dynamee	40
	Duck Tape	15
	Shock cord	40
Whistle		15
Theadtorch	Petzl Tikka	80	includes its 3 AAA batts.
Notebook and pen		60
Waste bag (Yellow Pod)		38
Dry Bags		129	Xped Light L,M,S,XS + Standard weight S
Camera		270	Includes spare battery
Wallet		150
Rail tickets		10
Bus / train details		0
Cheques for B and B		0
Spare Clothes (Carried)
Pants	Rabs Meco boxers	72
Base layers	Merino top	285	Rohan
	Rab Meco long johns	148
Montane Prism Trousers		348	In stuff sac (16gr)
Spare socks		160	X sock extreme (60g) + smartwool 100g
Spare shirt		250	Paramo Katmai
PhD Minimus Jacket + Hood		478	In stuff sac
Lowe Alpine Waterproof Hat		81
Fleece beenie		68
Buff		38
Berghaus Jacket	Paclite	530
Berghaus Overtrousers	Paclite	250
ME Gloves		65
Seal  Skinz gloves		118
Total base weight		11676
Clothes etc (Worn)
Wicking pants	HH	88
Trousers	Montane	357
Merino Shirt	Rohan	286
Paramo Fleece		325	Micro fleece
Boots / trail shoes		856	La Sportiva Raptors
Socks		112
Gaiters		68	Shorties In stuff sac
Windshirt		350	Paramo Fuera Smock
Pacer poles (alloy)		650
Weight non pack worn items		3092
Food and Drink
Dehydrated food		900	Three main meals + 3 deserts
Total other food (3 days)	Tea bags
	Drink choc		1 sachet per day
	Condensed milk		Tube of Carnation - luxury item!
	Instant porridge
	Cereal bars
	Trail mix
	Chocolate
		1600
Hip Flask		288	88g empty. Assume 200ml contents
Water		1000
Total weight food / water		3788
Total pack base weight		11676
Total food and water		3788
Total worn and non-pack		3092
Total pack weight		15464
Total weight		18711

A walk around Llangollen (or why I need to learn to love Carol Kirkwood)

I wonder how many walkers, driving up the A5 to Snowdonia have glimpsed northwards as they race passed Llangollen and noticed Dinas Bran Castle on the other side of the valley on its steep sided, spectacular little hill and thought “I really ought to visit that Dinas Bran Castle, on the other side of the valley, on its steep sided, spectacular little hill” but have never actually done so?  Ah, the pull of the Ogwen Valley, the Glyders and the Carneddau.

I have done the same. Often.  I have even visited Llangollen, many times, but until yesterday I had never bothered to find the hour needed to walk from the town to the castle.  Yesterday I did so, as part of a longer walk, and the whole day proved most rewarding.  The walk was part of my, as yet sporadic, attempts to get fit for May’s TGO challenge in Scotland.

This fella looked so lifelike from a distance

The weather forecasters had promised what is now called a “weather window”.  That is what any normal person over the age of 40 would call a few hours of sunny spells in between bands of rain.  The weather forecasters were almost correct, not least because they had added that this particular "window" would get splattered by showers and that a hoolie would be blowing.  As an aside, has anyone ever noticed that the girl next door, Carol Kirkwood, and her ilk now also often refer to rain forecast to occur on “western upslopes”? What in Thor’s name is that all about?  What is a western upslope?  Don’t slopes go down as well as up?  Is a western upslope different from a western downslope?  And what do they mean by a “western” slope anyway?  Do they mean any old slope in the west of the country or do they mean a slope facing west?  I think they might be better using expressions such as “to the west of the Pennines” or similar and even refer to "orographic uplift" rather than pandering to the lowest common denominator.  But then I’m only an old pedant suffering from a chronic case of SKOD.   And another thing.  Ever since Michael Fish cocked up the hurricane warning in 1987 have you noticed how weather forecasters have to scare the living daylights out of us all so that no-one can claim that they weren’t warned?  Bad weather is hyped up (another under 40s expression, I believe) whilst predicted good weather is played down, unless it’s that woman who says “scorchio" all the time.  I like her, I do.  But don’t get me started on the use of the terms “weather event” or “wintery mix”. And, no, I do not need to be told by weather forecasters to “take my brolly” when they have said it is going to rain.



Castell Dinas Bran
A cautionary tale: be careful where you throw used matches

Anyway, the steep walk up to Castell Dinas Bran (for those who do not speak Welsh I should explain that this means  “Dinas Bran Castle”) was a joy.  It is situated in the most wonderful location, with glorious views.  The information board at the top explains that it only existed for 20 years in the 13^th Century before it was destroyed for good by fire.  The board doesn’t explain how the fire started, but I suspect it might have been that Edward I chap or one of his henchman who was to blame, rather than by a carelessly sited candle blowing in the wind.  Either way, I  imagine the Welsh prince who had built the place and who lived there wasn’t too happy, what with there not being much in the way of home and contents insurance back then.

From Dinas Bran I headed down and on to walk north along Offa’s Dyke Path. The path does not follow the Dyke hereabouts but runs, partly on a minor road and partly through open country, along the base of the spectacular limestone escarpment that dominates the hills in this area.  It makes for wonderful walking, until a bit of a muddy trudge down to World’s End Farm. I even passed a field of Highland cattle, setting me up nicely with thoughts of Scotland. The signs on all the World's End Farm gates here about ask you to close them as it is an organic farm and needs this level of bio-security.  Which sounds pretty flawed science to me.  How does a closed gate stop, say, the spread of TB?

Offa's Dyke Path north of Llangollen

 

After World’s End I headed back along lanes to Llangollen following in the footsteps of George Borrow, him of Wild Wales fame.   I like to think that on the occasions today when I did see local residents I didn’t talk such self-aggrandising, patronising b*llocks as he did when he met their predecessors.  I wonder if anyone has ever tried to recreate his walk around Wales?  That would be a great project… 

A poor excuse for a ford, so I walked through the deeper bit to wet out the trail shoes

Walk Statistics

Pack weight: 11kg (extra weight carried included several tins of soup and two litres of water to add weight as part of my TGOC preparation)

Distance: 20km

Height climbed: 920m

Time taken: 4hrs 45 minutes

Food consumed: One dry chicken sandwich, left over from Sunday lunch, two chewy bar things and an apple.

 

 

 

Preparing for the TGOC: Some Musings

 

If you like nice photos and pictures rather than words then I am afraid this post is not for you!  Nor is it for you if you do not want to read self-indulgent ramblings.  But that's blogging for you!

I am trying to ensure that I am fully fit for the TGO Challenge in May.  It’s my first attempt.  My route has been submitted, returned by the fabulous vetters for some minor amendments and has just received final approval.  I have not planned anything ambitious.  It is primarily a low level route from Mallaig to Stonehaven, linking various valleys and glens (is that tautology?).  If all goes to plan (I know it will not!) I will walk 298km, averaging 23km over 13 days of actual walking.  Height climbed will be modest, at 6244m, averaging 480m a day.  The longest planned day is 35km and the maximum height gained on any day is 803m. The shortest day will be a full day of rest in Braemar.  I only occasionally get to over 550 metres above seal level.  The plan is to camp out on 9 nights and B and B the others.  Despite the modest nature of this compared to the plans of many other challengers I am broadly happy with what I have planned for myself.   I know I will be taking in some fabulous scenery which I intend to appreciate as fully as the weather and my energy levels, aches and pains will allow.  I was also struck by a comment on the TGOC Message Board, or possibly it was on a fellow challenger’s blog, that exhorted us to remember that “this is your holiday – you are supposed to enjoy yourself not spend the time being uncomfortable, exhausted or scared”. Or wise words to that effect.

As a first time entrant I am no expert on planning and preparing for the event.  The TGOC Message Board and comments from other challengers have been a great help, but are no substitute for experience.  For some reason the other day I found myself musing on my elements of preparation, which were jumbled in my head.  It seemed, when trying to get some order into my mind, that they  can be divided into 3 groups as follows:

Planning and logistics:
Issues such as route plan, accommodation, buying any more maps and gear needed, travel to and from the event, re-supplying en route etc

Getting physically fit:
My feeling is that the nearer my attempts to get fit are to replicating the actual event the better they will be for me.**  Thus, I should be working on:

o   Being able to comfortably walk the average daily distances my route plan envisages, preferably on similar terrain (yesterday saw me unnecessarily fording two small streams in North Wales to experience the delights of walking with cold, wet trail shoes)

o   Doing this whilst carrying the weight of backpack I will have on me on the Challenge

o   Creating the time to actually do this rather than pontificating about it! 

Getting mentally fit:
This is the hardest of all and preparing for this is not easy:

o   Visualise and think through the things that I know will challenge my head as well as my body– eg fording rivers, facing killer cows and horses without the need to detour for miles, coping with the discomfort if it rains or snows every day

o   Living with uncertainty eg will there be a decent wild camping spot in the areas I plan to stay, will I have enough fuel, food etc?

o   Missing family

I suspect that mental stamina is at least as important as physical fitness on the event, but it is the hardest to prepare for.  To some extent you either have it or you don’t.  Experience brings more.  I think for someone like me, a first time, middle aged challenger, who is walking alone rather than with a companion or as a member of a pre-arranged group, it might be more of an issue.

This notion of experience bringing mental stamina and confidence was brought home to me when thinking about the simple matter of my kit list.  I pack my day pack without second thoughts as to contents.  I can plan a day’s walk in my usual Cumbrian stomping grounds casually, understanding through 40 years of experience of the area what the terrain will be like under almost any conditions.  I know in advance which routes are within my capabilities and which aren’t.  I am largely confident that I would be able to get myself out of most objective difficulties.

Yet a simple thing such as knowing what it is best to take with me vanishes as the planned experience changes to something well outside the normal comfort zone.  This has, ironically, been heightened by taking note of the views of others.  For example, two years ago I would have never considered anything other than traditional boots and tent for a backpack in the hills.  But I have recently started experimenting with other shelters and footwear, inspired by the ideas of others, read about in blogs and outdoor magazines.  That brings a bit of a dilemma.  Familiarity or weight?  Akto or Trail Star?  Boots or trail shoes? 

These dilemmas go on. Neoair or self-inflating mat?  Clothing to be worn and carried when the weather is so uncertain?  Send food parcels ahead or support the local economy?  Weight to carry versus comfort and safety?   Other worries follow.  Is my route sensible?  Are the foul weather alternatives good enough?  Will that recurrent leg problem re-emerge?  Will that 35km day with a full pack finish me off, especially when I see the sign to the railway station three quarters of the way through it?

And then just as my head starts to fixate on these issues I remember or tell myself that I am not alone in all this.  I remind myself that despite the fact I am now nearer 60 than 50 I am actually younger than the average challenger.  I remember that every year almost 300 people rise to the Challenge, and have such a superb time that many come back year-after-year.  And I get my mind back to the purpose of the event.  Yes it’s to walk across the fabulous Scottish countryside and get from west coast to east coast.  But it is also about the pure joy of the experience, about having fun and about meeting what appear to be an amazing bunch of fellow challengers. 

**It has been suggested that some Challengers believe that the best way to replicate in advance their likely Challenge experience as part of their training regimes is to spend large amounts of time swilling back beer and malt whisky.   I refuse to comment  on the grounds that they may catch up with me in Braemar. 

Caldera Cone Meths Drinker Tested

I have always cooked on gas whilst out in the field or on the hill but have long felt, for reasons that escape me, that I ought to try meths.  I want to like meths.  When I say "try meths" I mean use it in the Nigella Lawson rather than the Keith Floyd way ie as a cook and not as a drinker, not that I am suggesting that Keith Floyd ever reached for the purple liquid when he felt the need to rehydrate his body.  My hypothesis is that my fixation on the notion of cooking with meths is related to memories of childhood experiments using my chemistry set which had a small meths burner to heat up various chemicals which we used to mix at random.  Can these sets still be purchased, I wonder, or have risk assessments done away with them?

So after extensive research on various meths stoves ie reading a blog by Andy Howell and asking Robin of Blogpackinglite a question in less than 140 characters, I ordered a Caldera Cone that arrived on Wednesday of this week.  Thus, since opening the parcel I have had ample time to carry out in depth scientific testing both of the burner / windshield system by itself and also to undertake some comparative tests against the main competitor. Indeed, these tests took me over 11 minutes so you can see that "FellBound" could easily come to be regarded as a byword for "thoroughness" in the scientific community.

I am now pleased to be able to report on the findings, which would, no doubt, have been eagerly anticipated in the backpacking world if I should have announced the tests in advance.  Like a North Korean missile testing spokepserson I did not do so, but can now reveal the existence of the research and my conclusions to an open mouthed, drop jawed, stunned community of backpackers and any other people sad and bored enough to read my blog.

TEST 1: The Caldera Cone

Weight: 60 grms
Pot: Evernew 0.9 litre titanium
Quantity of water: 0.4 litres
Boil time: 3 mins 58 secs
Quantity of fuel used: 25 ml
Wind speed at time of test: 0 mph
Air temperature: 13 degrees centigrade

                                                                         
                                              Caldera Cone with Evernew 0.9 Titanium Pot


TEST 2 Electric Kettle (Russell Hobbs)

Weight: 1650 grms
Pot: Integrated with the heating device
Quantity of water: 3/4 of my "I  Love Cheryl Cole Mug"
Boil time: 1 min 14 secs
Amount of fuel used: One spin of that dial thing on the meter
Wind speed: 2 mph (Faster than above because I had to open the kitchen window to get rid of the smell of meths)
Air Temp.: 14 degrees (I think the Caldera Cone may have heated up the kitchen quite effectively)

 

 

Russell Hobbs Model 18256

CONCLUSIONS

The results of these tests must be interpreted with caution. This scientific research has yet to be peer reviewed and validated.  On balance I would suggest that the Caldera Cone would be more suited to backpacking and wild camping than the electric kettle.  The latter, however, is probably cleaner, and more convenient for making a cuppa for your spouse when having a Sunday morning lie in.  However, further research is advised to see whether these results can be replicated.

The meths, incidentally, tastes better with a dash of tonic and slice of lemon.*

*Warning:  Drinking meths indoors before 6.00pm is considered vulgar by all well bred people.  I am also advised that it might not be entirely healthy so take with a pinch of salt. This blog post, not the meths that is.

The strange case of the growing male appendage

When I was little, my father was 5’ 8” tall.  Now I am big (6’ 3”) he is several inches shorter than he used to be.   People get shorter as they get older.  I don’t know why.  For me this will have a plus point.  By the time I am in my late 90s I reckon I will be able to sit up in my Hilleberg Akto tent when I am heating up the water for the Ready Brek in the morning.  Nor will I have to contort myself into a hideous, hunched up shape when performing in the tent that function which most middle aged men  undertake in the middle of the night, sometimes several times.   It may also mean that I will not constantly brush the condensation dripping sides of the over rated Trailstar.  That shelter, incidentally, is to be the subject of another blog at another time, now that my prolonged field research (3 nights in it) is complete.

So whilst we get shorter, it is also, empirically at least, a fact that certain male appendages actually get longer with age.  Just look at the ears of old men.  They often appear to be of an enormous length.  Having done some extensive research on this subject,  which involved typing into Google the question “do men’s ears get longer with age?”, I find that Italian scientists have now proved that this is, indeed true.  They have discovered that the male ear will grow by about one inch in one hundred years.  Now this raises two important questions.  Firstly, why were Italian scientists working in imperial units rather than metric? And secondly, have Italian scientists nothing better to do with their time?

This brings me on to the matter of other male appendages which also appear to get longer with age.  I am, of course, writing about feet.  Being tall, and perfectly proportioned (apart from my nose being too big and my head too small), I have always had larger than average sized feet.  However, recent purchases of footwear for my hill walking activities have proved disconcerting.  30+ years ago, when I was in my early 20s, I used to buy shoes sized 44 and walking boots sized 45.  For any Italian scientists reading this I should explain that this means size 10 or 10 and a half.  Over the last 3 years I have purchased 3 pairs of expensive, size 45 trail shoes that I have given away to impoverished student sons  (I suspect they binned them once I had gone home)  as they had proved to be too small for me.  A year ago I bought a pair of Scarpa walking boots and ended up purchasing size 47 (that means size 12, Mr Italian).  They are a perfect fit.  Yesterday my new trail shoes, the discreetly coloured La Sportiva Raptors arrived, courtesy of the Royal Mail.  These, too, were in size 47 and seem to be a good fit.  This can only mean one of two things.  Either shoe manufacturers have altered their lasts and sizing policies; or my feet have got bigger.

Now any reader with a forensic mind will be seeing some linkages here. Scientists involved – Italian. La Sportiva Shoes – Italian. Scarpa boots – Italian.  If I was paranoid or a racist I might form a hypothesis that the Italians were playing mind games with British hill walkers.  This could be some Latin inspired plot to lower our self-esteem and make us think that we have over large and unstylish feet to go with our ill-fitting Next and Marks and Spencer clothes, and our poor personal hygiene.  But my first ever proper mountain boots, those size 45s, purchased when the old Tuff Workboots were no longer deemed up-to-the-job, were made by the then popular boot manufacturer Dolomite.  Also Italian.  So I can only conclude that my feet, as well as my ears, are growing with time.  I feel an experiment coming on.  I am off to measure and record the length of my fingers.

(I am sure that all readers will be gratified that I did not use any personal photographs to illustrate this post)