New Dawn Fades

My childhood has given me a great love of camping, and recently when we were choosing a new two man tent I picked up a Vango 100. Given that it weighs less than a bivvy bag/tarp combination, and straps perfectly to the top tube it was a no-brainer. Some say that a tent is less social than a bivvy bag, but the point of my venturing out into the wilderness is to be out there on my own listening to the curlews. It has been a great impulse purchase and I’ve loved just riding out into the wilds on a Saturday night. Nothing to think about except when light fades except whether to head down to the pub, big meals and pints of beer in the village in the valley, or kip down behind the nearest wall?

The choice is easy, especially when I’m carrying a couple of measures of home-made blackberry gin.

Not shown: tent, mat, sleeping bag

The List

For completeists, and as an aide-memoire to myself when packing up – I have no wish to repeat the trip where I discovered halfway round a rocky trail that I’d left the minipump at home, thereby increasing the thrill factor of the rocky descents a little more than I had intended – here’s a list of the items I take:

• Vango 100
• Kimm sac – no sily external pockets tempting you to carry uneccessary crap, just enough to secure wallet/phone and contact lens case.
  For those who sweat the details it’s a KIMM sac 1, at 30 litres capacity, not the larger 35 litre KIMM sac 2. 35 litres – what are you putting in all that extra space?
• Thermlite 3/4 length military sleep mat. Small. Light. Cheap.
• Coleman sleeping bag
• Camping Gaz stove & butane – cheap, as light as more expensive stoves, and it gets lighter every trip
• Camping Gaz lightweight aluminium pan & handle
• Turboflame – not light but I feel I could weld a cracked frame back together
• Plastic fork
• Karrimor gilet. It’s years old now but it’s a perennial favourite.
• Endura Stealth waterproof jacket
• Karrimor thermal bib tights
• Road Rash Kit first aid kit + 2 squares bog roll
• Leatherman Wave
• 1 helping pasta, kids helping of pasta sauce
• oats for breakfast
• pack of nuts/raisins
• miniature of blackberry gin
• Camelbak bladder in the Kimm sac
• Chewing gum for cleaning teeth
• Breo sports watch – to tell the time when the mobile is switched off
• Camera in CCS case
• Wallet with cash for a cafe breakfast
• Mobile for emergencies. The rest of the time it’s off.
• Whistle – some things are so drummed into you by the Polaris challenge that you can’t shake them. Survival bag? I’ve got a tent.
• Contact lens case – optional

The whole shebang comes in at 13lbs according to the Wii Fit.

I have used everything bar the Leatherman. I can only reduce weight and volume now by spending silly amounts of money.