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PoddyMullet

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Camping gear

Something I'm keen to get into this summer is overnighters and paddles of a few days. Any ideas on camping gear that's SOT friendly (lightweight/compact) but can also survive southern weather?

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Perception Swing & Dagger Drifter II. Wouldn't one yak be enough?

11/Aug/2005, 8:27 am

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Cormorant

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Re: Camping gear

I do a fair bit of camping and hiking through the Snowy Mountains after trout, and the main bit of advice that I could give you is to get the very best sleeping bag that you can afford. I have a four season's sleeping bag that has literally saved my life in the past, and packs down to very little.

A Trangia stove is also a really useful bit of kit, as cooking on a camp fire leaves soot all over the bottom of the pans, which then end up all over you! Trangias use methylated spirits as a fuel, and are really clean. They are also extremely compact, which is pretty nice.

Tents are really good these days. Go for a self- supporting one that has the flexible poles - I got mine from Big-W for about $40. These tends don't rely on the pegs to stand up, so you can be more adaptable in terms of where you camp.

The other key tip is to get some of those sandalwood mozzie repellant incense sticks - and set a pair of them going before you start to make camp for the night.

Also carry at least 3 torches with you. I had my head torch fail on me on the weekend, which was a real problem trying to set up camp after a long paddle with the frost closing in - without the backup torches I would have been stuffed.

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Cormorant
Canberra ACT
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Australis Squid

11/Aug/2005, 10:25 am

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Ancient Mariner51

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Re: Camping gear

The "Instent" tent might be interested to you - 2 person, erects in seconds, packs away into small carry bag. There is an article on these tents in the Aug edition of the NSW Fishing & Boating Monthly. Some details also available at http://www.instanttents.com. Contact the manufacturer in WA (Black Stump) on 08 9574 1183 (Richard) for nearest stockist.

I have no affiliation with the company, just passing on the info.

Cheers

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Bob

Hobie Outback

14/Aug/2005, 10:12 am

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PoddyMullet

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Re: Camping gear

Thanks Cormorant and Ancient, both with some good suggestions for me to check out. My first impression of the stuff I checked out is that maybe looking at hiking gear isn't necessary as I won't actually be carrying it. Some of the one man tents looked pretty claustrphobic, so I'll keep on the hunt for a bigger size. emoticon

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Perception Swing & Dagger Drifter II. Wouldn't one yak be enough?

14/Aug/2005, 6:09 pm

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Cormorant

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Re: Camping gear

Yup, he one-mans are usually a glorified bivvy bag, and are made for extremely cold conditions where any free space = space to loose heat in.

They are really claustrophobic. I want for a 2-man model, which gives me more room and packs down into almost the same size as a normal tent.

By the way, one other thing that I forgot - spend a bit more on the sleeping mats, and get if self-inflating one if you can afford it, as these make a huge difference to both comfort and warmth!

You can definitely carry a lot more on a kayak than you can with a normal pack, but I also hike into small mountain streams so my gear has to do both. On the upside, this does leave more room for the beer!

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Cormorant
Canberra ACT
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Australis Squid

16/Aug/2005, 10:04 am

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keljad

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Registered: 02-2005
Location: Cooma, NSW
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Re: Camping gear

Macpac ultralight tent, Merlin softie sleeping bag with a silk liner, and Hexi stoves for cooking.

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James
(with the "little minnow")

20/Aug/2005, 2:48 pm

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PoddyMullet

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Re: Camping gear

Thanks gents, I just dropped a bit of loot on this stuff. I ended up with a 2 man tent big enough for my double swag on non yak trips, a self inflating matress, and a 4 season bag. A couple of extra shifts at work, and I'm all set. The stove will have to wait a bit, maybe a few hints around birthdays/christmas emoticon

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Perception Swing & Dagger Drifter II. Wouldn't one yak be enough?

22/Aug/2005, 7:12 am

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Cormorant

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Re: Camping gear

Great to hear that you went with that better gear. You will get a lot of good use out of it, and it will last a long time, so it is a good investment. Heaps cheaper in the long run. My four seasons sleepin bag is now over 10 years old, has been used for probably 20-30 nights per year at least.

You can get by quite easily without a stove for a while as long as you are sensible with your fire.

Have fun out there.

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Cormorant
Canberra ACT
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Australis Squid

23/Aug/2005, 12:01 pm

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