Spring dog walk by the local lakes

Here are some pics of a nature reserve very close to the house I grew up. They used to be gravel pits many years ago.

I didn't trust my weight on these steps!

Beutiful day.

Deserted train carriage we used to play in.



A happy spaniel.



My new Crusader mug lid.

I recently bought an aluminium crusader mug lid from laundich1 from  http://www.bushcraftuk.com/ forum.  The quality is outstanding, and it reduces boil times dramaticaly.  This is it in action;

Also, I have figured out the ultimate meths solution for the stove (not a red bull stove).  My mod is cheap, super easy, and non permenent.  I'll be posting it up here when I can get some better photos.  WATCH THIS SPACE.

Walk in the woods

Heres just a few pics taken from my walk in the woods today.  I picked a small bunch of 'jack by the hedge' ready for dinner tonight.



King Alfred Cakes




Jack by the Hedge





1 man and his dog.



Cranberry Bannock Bread

I fancied a bit of bannock today, so here is the recipe I used:

1 cup flour
Half hand full of flaked almonds
A bit less then half hand full of dried cranberries
Milk (mix until doughnut consistency)
Demerera sugar sprinkled on both sides to caramelize.

Olive oil in pan.

I like using the trangia as it is good practice for the field.

Mix ingredients with a knife

Plenty of oil in the pan, get it nice and hot.

Add the mixture and use knife to flatten. 

Use knife to press the mixture flat. Tip: wipe the knife clean and add a bit of oil to it to stop the mixture sticking so much.

Flip the bannock over, add a bit of sugar.

Flip it a few times and make sure there is a bit of sugar each side to contact the pan and caramelize.



Add honey or maple syrup to taste.

 Enjoy!

Food for free

This is like the foragers bible.  It is surprising how much food there is in the countryside, you just need to know what to look for.  This book is starting to find its way into my rucksack quite often.

Some of the gear I carry.

This is just a small selection of the gear I carry on a trip depending on what I'm doing and where I'm going.

These go with me on every camp as they are bombproof and reliable.

A small selection of some of my torches.

Sweedish army Trangia along with a civvy version.  I have upgraded the army one with a smaller trangia burner, and the civvy one with a Tatonka burner. 

Trangia stoves with all there components



Primus and sigg fuel bottles of various sizes



First wild camp with my dog

My Mrs has the flu, my son has the flu, my brother in law has the flu.  So I did what any man in this zombie apocalypse would do- I grabbed my rucksack and my dog and went camping for the night!  I went to one of my favourite spots that had a car park nearby.  This is the first time I have been out the night with my dog Bruno so I needed a safety net if he was playing up all night.  Anyone that knows him knows he is crazy.  Energizer bunny crazy.  So when we got to the woods I set up camp and took him for a walk in an attempt to burn off some energy.  It worked, and I managed to get at least 6 hrs sleep.  He woke me up a few times as various animals were scratching around in the bushes, owls barking (yes owls bark!- scares the hell out of me every time).  But he stayed put, and was a very welcome guest.  Its fair to say that he will be featuring in many more camp photos.

Burning off some energy

Relaxing by the fire (sorry for the crap quality)



Got this mat on ebay brand new and sealed for a bargain £20

  

 

For all the kit junkies out there.  This is most of the kit I used



Ashes scattered, and rubbish taken with me- you wouldn't even know I was there.







iPOOD Shovel

Good tool but the catch needs improvement.  Still, its probably the best on the market.  My review for this can be found here: (not for the faint hearted haha) http://www.heinnie.com/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=0&P_ID=6467

Petzl Tactikka Head torch

Petzl Tactikka

This is a great wild camping head torch.  The red filter makes it dim for stealthy night hikes, and it is nice and quick to change to white by just flipping it up. In my opinion this is better then many newer torches that make you scroll through the various modes to change the colour or even just to turn it off.  Its lightweight, strong, and the batteries last forever.  When mine goes to the torch heaven in the sky I'll be buying another one.

My Rucksacks: Small, Medium, Large

Left to right: Karrimor SF Hydro, Karrimor SF Sabre 45, Berghaus Vulcan

Karrimor SF Hydro:  Great for day hiking as you can fit a set of waterproofs and some lunch in it with room to spare for gadgets.  It is also hydration bladder compatible.  Although it is 30litres it seems much smaller due to the shape so I bought the Sabre 45 for a little more load carrying capacity.

Karrimor SF Sabre 45:  Very comfortable on the back, and hydration compatible.  This pack is just big enough to hold everything you need for a spring, summer, or autumn camp.  This is now by far my most used pack. 

Berghaus Vulcan:  Well proven large capacity rucksack.  Holds lots of gear so is great for a winter camp.  The hard padding on the shoulder straps makes the load carrying very comfortable with the heaviest of loads.