Chris H‭

I'm looking for easily obtained fuels for an open-cup stove, such as a Trangia, in case I need to top up while travelling. I have a small simple DIY open cup spirit stove, for boiling water when b...

1 answer  ·  posted 6y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 6y ago by Pastychomper‭

In most situations you should be prepared for a dunking, so you could hang around in the water and bail without getting too cold. Of course, if you're in danger (e.g. from hitting rocks) get yours...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 10y ago by System‭

I suggest using both the car and the tent together. A car will lose heat fastest through the windows, so use the tent to cover them (and the top). The windows are a thin single layer of glass, wh...

posted 8y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 8y ago by System‭

While there's a lot of overlap, a trail that can't possibly lead to anywhere to stay the night is unlikely to be called a backpacking trail, as backpacking implies multi-day trips carrying sleep ge...

posted 8y ago by Chris H‭

One thing you can do is close up the gap under the fly sheet on the upwind side using something you already have. That's easy for me - I go bike camping and my panniers are heavy duty dry bags that...

posted 7y ago by Chris H‭

I regularly cycle to the pool with limited time, and have found that the best option is trunks, but they don't have to be as skimpy as we tend to think of as speedos. Mine (similar to these but a l...

posted 6y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 6y ago by System‭

Do you have 2 split rings (keyrings) with you? If so, here's how to make a buckle like that (or rather its D-ring predecessor): Attach both split rings to the upper strap, where the old buckle is/...

posted 11y ago by Chris H‭

You can definitely go for one pair. I've actually been pleasantly surprised at the quality of the optics at almost the bottom end of the market, if you go for something common like 8x20. We've g...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭

If you carry the right layers and adjust them well, you can often get away with cotton with no discomfort let alone danger in benign conditions. But we shouldn't plan for only benign conditions a...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 9y ago by System‭

You might just get away with highlighting white water itself and rocks. Clear water wouldn't reflect the light in the right direction. But you'd need a very bright, possibly illegal and/or dangerou...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 7y ago by System‭

Kayaks can easily be strapped down to cross bars. Sometimes J bars or uprights are used to put the boats on their sides allowing more to fit without stacking them. Bike racks for roof bars are quit...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭

A dedicated GPS is likely to have better signal as well as better battery life. The key is that you don't have to run it all the time - if it's had a fix within the last few hours it will pick up...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 10y ago by System‭

There are fuel cells with 12V output designed for this application, at least considering it as a battery charging task (random internet example at 100W). Methanol cells are more expensive but the ...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 10y ago by System‭

It's highly unlikely that using poles will make anything worse. You still have to place your feet as carefully and in the same sort of position (training for technique/precision). Your legs still d...

posted 10y ago by Chris H‭  ·  last activity 10y ago by System‭

The biggest difference between letterboxing (at least on Dartmoor, its original home) are: letterboxes are usually intended to be left out indefinitely. they're put out for anyone to find. It's...

posted 9y ago by Chris H‭