Posts by Sherwood Botsford
You stuff it into a bag that fits it reasonably. To small and it's a lot of work to stuff it. To large, and you don't have room for your other stuff. I prefer to use a bag that easily fits my sl...
Much depends on wave size. A sudden strong wind will kick up small white caps on a short reach. Not much to worry about. Give the wind 10 km or so of water to run over and it doesn't much wind to...
You don't mention what temperatures you expect to encounter. From experience temps of -5 to -10 C [ 23 to 14 degrees F] are 'safe' but unpleasant without a sleeping pad. You end up putting most o...
Bee keepers in central B.C. will use old school busses as portable bee yards. Each hive base is bolted to the floor, and a tunnel leads outside. They use a solar electric fence charger to charge t...
Find an old aluminum external frame pack. Remove the bag and discard. Lay the barrels crossways on the frame. Cut wedges that match the curve of the barrel. Fasten the wedges to the frame. (Th...
Stage 1. You come around the corner and see the strainer. Backwater. The technical term is a backferry. You want to move slower than the water. Move the stern over a bit in the bank you want t...
Don't worry about padding anything. I worked as the outdoor equipment manager for St. John's Cathedral Boys' School. We had 120 kids in the school with a 3 week canoe trip at the end of each sc...
I've been inquiring about lighting safety in general, and the more I read the less certain I am about anything. A: While boating incidents are a big fraction of lightning deaths, and deaths of fi...
The shape of the ring matters. If someone has stepped on it it will be flatter on that part and won't pinch the lid to the barrel rim as tightly. Check that. If the seal rubber is old it gets ri...
A sand filter won't take out bacteria, but will take out larger critters like giardia. Anything that makes the water clear will increase the penetration distance of sunlight. UV is tough on bacte...
Martin's answer is good. Adding a few tidbits: Most alcohol stoves will burn other alcohols. Denatured alcohol usually refers to ethanol with an agent added that makes it undrinkable. The 3 c...
I've seen these or very similar pics before. Did you ask on another site? I can't tell from the pix if there is mortar or just mud holding the stones together. In a similar question it turned ou...
Water resistance: Yes it affects washability. Water can't wet the surface. Soap helps. Gortex type coatings can get clogged pores, especially if not well rinsed. Read the owners manual with ca...
Depends on the activity. Depends on the time of year. Summer on the trail: Water. I don't bother with anything else. Salted nuts are part of my lunch and there is a salt shaker with supper. S...
I got into a 'discussion' with the vice principal of the school I work at. He was worried about the dangers inherent in our fairly extensive outdoor program. I pointed out to him that an analysis...
I've used wood, fiberglass and Mohawk paddles. My preference is for wood. A good blade can be made of ash or spruce. The latter will have a thicker shaft that may be uncomfortable for small hand...
More canoes are destroyed by flying off a car than are wrapped around rocks. (Western Canoe Company factoid) Best is if you have roof racks. A: Secure mid point of the canoe to the back of the ro...
I have one, and have used it for years. As a warmth device it works primarily as a air movement blocker -- you would get the same effect from a chunk of plastic. As a ground sheet it's wonderful:...
Two of my three dogs hate thunderstorms. (The third dog is a bit simple.) I can tell by their behaviour one to three hours before a storm hits that they want to go back to the house and stay insi...
In cold weather a simple thick scarf over face and nose is effective and reducing exhaled water by between a quarter and a half. On inhaling, the scarf is chilled. On exhaling, some of your breat...
Friend and I had this discussion, and came to no conclusion: Hiking in the mountains. Crossing a range through a pass. Peaks on either side are a good thousand feet higher. Are you at serious r...
I have never run into this regulation, but then I use the national/provincial forests and not the parks. But if I speculate: Subalpine areas have very low biological productivity. 3 foot high t...
It's reasonable to identify stages up to the start of shivering. But shortly after that judgement goes out the window. If you are traveling in a group, set up a buddy system. Each person has a ...
A reasonable compromise is any pop bottle -- one designed for carbonated beverages. They are several times as strong as the water bottles. I've never managed to break one. I have a polyethylene ...
Ignoring the valid criticisms on the design of this particular unit, the chief virtue of titanium is the strength to weight ratio. In principle you can cut the weight by half or so compared to a s...
