Posts by aucuparia
I'm considering starting to use a bivvy bag/tarp combination for solo backpacking in the UK (read: no trees where I'll be walking!) Most people seem to use trekking pole(s) for rigging these up wh...
I have a high-end gore-tex jacket and my wife has Paramo. I also have Paramo trousers. They are quite different: Gore-Tex is designed to be a physical barrier that prevents water getting through,...
A large part of this is personal preference as other answers have stated, and it really does depend on what you will be doing. For non-winter conditions then lighter more flexible shoes are more c...
Using canoe paddles to rig tarp shelters seems to be a common practice (e.g. see here or here). I would rig them as in the diagram below - as for an A-frame tarp shelter. I would expect you would...
I used to really enjoy climbing (almost all indoors). I was bouldering around V2-3 and leading at 5+. The mismatch was all down to fear of falling - I would repeatedly bail or fall from routes th...
I'm assuming you mean whether long and thin things should go in vertically or horizontally, or folded clothes go in horizontal or vertical layers. The advantage of packing vertically is that more ...
I've read a lot on the many running sites about training. The consensus seems to be that you should have a mix of: tempo runs (20-40 mins at e.g. 20 sec/mile slower than 10k race pace) long slow...
It's not the fall that gets you, it's the sudden stop at the end. The most detailed data on the effects of large accelerations (or equivalently, decelerations) on the human body comes from researc...
The European Death Knot is commonly used for joining two ropes for an abseil. I would not say it is "not considered safe" - e.g. the British Mountaineering Council's website lists it as a possible...
I have a new water filter, which removes bacteria and protozoa. It's tempting to imagine that I can now go around drinking from whatever revolting-looking puddles I come across, but I'm mindful th...
I've used OS 1:25k and 1:50k extensively in the UK. I also have a little experience of using 1:40k Harveys maps (Lake district, for mountain marathons). I have been impressed with the Harveys: in...
If you mean a watch which will last 20 days while continuously tracking GPS, I think it unlikely. The lowest-power GPS modules (e.g. this one) run at about 20 mW. For 20 days' continuous use th...
Your pack is substantially heavier than I would be happy with for 2-3 days. For two days I take 7kg including food and water filter. Many of the other answers have good suggestions; I think there...
