Outdoor Gear Thread

[Eye In The Sky]

Also recently picked up a life straw. More for my truck than anything, but will use it for treks when they come.

I carry one on me at work and one if I am going anywhere's I *might* get lost.  $25 is worth it...haven't been able to justify the added expense of the steel (?) one for work purposes though...

Honestly, power tools have been taking up all of my time and spare cash. See the woodworking thread!  ;D

Making some shelves and stuff now?  8)

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Hell no. Where do you think the taste and texture come from.

I never really thought of food as having *texture* before!  :blotto:

 

[Scott]

Making some shelves and stuff now?  8)

I've inherited enough shelves over the years to satisfy two garages. One full unit the wife bought "in case" is waiting for me to get a shed built for a home. What I am making, largely, is a mess. But I love it!

I got a nice surprise recently: niece and nephew, from different siblings in-law, want to give backcountry camping a go. They were the ones who suggested going super lightweight and eating from bags. We're between the first site in Cape Chignecto, or Fishing Cove in Cape Breton. One is big into the scouting movement and has really grown through her experiences there; my nephew is simply into things like technical issues related to stoves, tents, blankets, etc. and thinks this might be a spark.

I am also close to starting the planning for my first ski trip. Thinking Killington again, thinking the same lodge again, and already have indications I'll save money versus last year by booking direct through the lodge. Yeah, I know it's still summer, but if some folks can flap off about Christmas coming then I can yap about skiing :-*

 

[Scott]

Gotta haul in the horns on the kids: they've both got prior events booked for the nominated weekend. Oh well, more planning for spring. Perhaps Pollett's with them is in order.

Meantime, since the wife now works one of them modified schedules and has that Friday off, we are going to load the yaks and head for Koojibowhack  Koogieboogiewack  Kuujiwoowoojiback  this fucking place.

She's there this weekend with a crew and reports it as stunning.

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

All right, Scott. Let's try this phonetically:

Say: Coup* - she - coup* - jew -ack!  pronounce those last two quickly as in a single sound.  ;D

*: as in a military change of political regime.

 

[Scott]

Beats my current Coup-gee-boo-quack

Thanks! 

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Stayed there once, at Côte-à-Fabien...site 31 I think.  Nice spot, had a great view for sunset-rise and a campfire.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

I've always been a 'canoe' type at heart, but recently I've thought about the kayak for the solo days/trips so I ended up picking up a used (but in great shape) OT Heron 11 for a coupla hundred.  A HECK of a lot easier to get on the roof racks and to the waterline alone than my Penobscot 164 is.

I've already placed some orders to add the gizmo's to it I thought were important;  knee/thigh pads, deck loops/bungee, paddle clips, replacement footbrace pedals, and a seat back pad. 

One of the other things I am thinking to do is to paint it, currently it is a combo white/light blue.  I'm wondering, though, is there a way to refinish the bottom to take out the roughness, smooth it out some?  Apply a resin or "something" to fill in the scratches and stuff before spray-painting and clear coating?  Is this even worth doing?  I'll sand it down some before painting but obviously not going to sand out the gouges/scrathes so the other option is to fill 'em in.

So far, I've been reading a little online.  https://kayakguru.com/how-to-paint-kayak/

Any thoughts/experience appreciated. 

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Hope everyone had a good Canada Day weekend.  Managed to get 20km of canoe time and a night in the backcountry;  pure awesome.

Couple of nods to some gear I've really been happy with.

Moque boots - worth every penny so far (had them 2 years now).  The soles are thick enough you don't feel the edges, points, on rocks and they're grippy enough on those slippery rocks if you have to line up a current.  My wife has the shorter version, and she loves them as well.  Awesome product.

Level Six Coastal long sleeve sun shirt - these are so friggin' comfortable and cool compared to any other tops I've worn paddling.  This Canadian company also has sales fairly regularly - last winter we picked up a pretty good amount of '2017' product line at (IMO) incredible sales prices;  my wife has several of their tops, hoodies and shorts and loves them all, especially the Aphrodite shorts.

ExtraSport PFDs; Evolve model - the AirComfort system and design of the back of these is pretty awesome.  I've never been so cool on a hot long day in the canoe as with this PFD and the Level Six top.  Really comfortable and just enough places to hook/store the things you want really close at hand.  My wife has the woman's Evolve and says it fits better than any of the other ones she tried (the MEC brand ones, Stohlquist BetSea, and a few Kokatat models).

Venture OutDoor Gear - Double Sling hammock, bug net and suspension straps.  This one gets a 5 out of 5 from me;  lightweight, packs up extremely compact and sets up/packs up in a minute, maybe 2; the straps have the loops sewn right into them that you just clip the hammock 'biners thru.  The bug net keeps biters off the bottom;  nice to not have to use a layer or air mat on the bottom on hot days.  You can get 2 people in it (each head at opposite ends with some leg crossing) but I'd never want to try sleeping that way.  I can have this out and up before the water is boiling. 

Hope people are getting some fresh air this summer!

 

[daftandbarmy]

Because I like to climb in the high alpine, and every ounce counts, my main effort this summer has been to remove items from my pack.

I always seem to come back with some things I've never used, so try to get rid of them when I can.

What have you 'thinned out' recently?

 

[dangerboy]

What have you 'thinned out' recently?

I don't know if it is thinning out but I have upgraded my cookset to a titanium one (https://snowpeak.com/collections/cookware/products/trek-900-titanium-cookset?variant=671149681. Right now am in the process of packing my ruck and as I am bringing my camera tripod trying to think of how cut down on weight to counter the weight of the tripod.

 

[Xylric]

I picked up a nice Coleman Lensatic Compass, in case I'm sufficiently far into the woods that even knowing the direction of North is unlikely to prove a benefit. Since in combination of marking trees, I'd be able to use it to properly orient my way back out, it's worthwhile to keep as a backup.

 

[daftandbarmy]

I don't know if it is thinning out but I have upgraded my cookset to a titanium one (https://snowpeak.com/collections/cookware/products/trek-900-titanium-cookset?variant=671149681. Right now am in the process of packing my ruck and as I am bringing my camera tripod trying to think of how cut down on weight to counter the weight of the tripod.

A guy I've hiked with before uses one of these: https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5057-569/Camera-Staff

Doubles as a hiking pole.

 

[cmandan]

I've always been a 'canoe' type at heart, but recently I've thought about the kayak for the solo days/trips so I ended up picking up a used (but in great shape) OT Heron 11 for a coupla hundred.  A HECK of a lot easier to get on the roof racks and to the waterline alone than my Penobscot 164 is.

I've already placed some orders to add the gizmo's to it I thought were important;  knee/thigh pads, deck loops/bungee, paddle clips, replacement footbrace pedals, and a seat back pad. 

One of the other things I am thinking to do is to paint it, currently it is a combo white/light blue.  I'm wondering, though, is there a way to refinish the bottom to take out the roughness, smooth it out some?  Apply a resin or "something" to fill in the scratches and stuff before spray-painting and clear coating?  Is this even worth doing?  I'll sand it down some before painting but obviously not going to sand out the gouges/scrathes so the other option is to fill 'em in.

So far, I've been reading a little online.  https://canoesurfer.net/best-canoes/

Any thoughts/experience appreciated.

I am fond of canoeing and I think it's way better than kayaking. There are many reasons for this and one of them is that it provides freedom to move around.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

I've been taking a look at "new gear!!" for 2020 recently, and went to MSR's website today, to their New 2020 gear page and found something I personally went "nice!" about.

Thru-Link™ Inline Water Filter - this basically just connects between your hydration bladder and hose.  Fill up the bladder and voila off to the races with this filter-as-you-drink system. 

I checked with MEC, where I do the better part of my shopping and they are carrying them. 

MSR is also making a home version of this product, the Home Emergency Water Filter.  I wasn't able to find any good reviews on either product yet (or purchased either myself yet...) but thought others might find either one of them useful.

My newest piece of kit worth mentioning;  Mora Eldris with fire kit.  I'm fond of Mora knives, having carried a Bushcraft Survival for years now in my helmet bag to supplement my 'required carry' flying kit.  I've also had a Companion for a while, but I wanted something alittle more compart and with a more secure carry option (the Companion sheaths don't let you 'lock/secure' the knife.  I saw the Eldris and it fit what I was looking for;  love how small and compact it is.

 

 

[MedCorps]

I picked up a Gränsfors Small Forest Axe (Lee Valley) before Christmas as a present to myself. Used it all day today in the bush. Wow, what an awesome piece of outdoor gear and I cannot believe that I did not buy a quality axe years ago. Perfectly balanced and a pleasure to use, even for difficult cuts. Might need to look at a bigger one now for next Christmas.

Forest axes | Gränsfors Bruk Sweden

Gränsfors Forest Axes are made to be used in the forest for everything from felling large trees to limbing small logs. The distinguishing feature of Forest Axes is a long, rounded edge…

www.gransforsbruk.com

Worth the money IMHO.

MC

 

[Eye In The Sky]

How do you find it in terms of "effort", with the lighter head? I've only got one axe for around the property, a Garant Canadian axe (2.5lb head) and I find I wish I would have went heavier at times.

 

[MedCorps]

It has a 1.5 lbs head and is well balanced with a short handel (50 cm) to allow you to get a good swing on it. I use it for limbing small annd mid-sized trees I have fell or taking dead branches off trees that are still standing. I will drop a small (<2") tree with it. I like using an axe for limbing as I feel safer using it than a chainsaw, even if I used a chainsaw to cut down the tree. I also don't really like using a chainsaw over my head to cut lower dead branches. It might be my marginal comfort on using a chainsaw from years of seeing chainsaw accidents in ER.

I like the size as it is compact and I can toss it on the side of my pack and it is more functional than a hatchet. It does not excel at splitting wood (other than small stuff) or felling larger trees. It also struggles a bit with taking larger (1.5" +) limbs off of trees which you have fallen.

For falling larger trees I use a 4.5 lbs axe which was my grandfathers. Agree I like the heavier axe for chopping stuff down.

They make a 2.2 kg / 85 cm handle for felling. A 2.3 kg / 80 cm axe for splitting and a 3.2 kg / 80 cm maul for spitting. I might check on of those out next Christmas.

Cheers,

MC