N
nordskoven
Guest
I love-hate camping. I do find that if I have handy gear, it’s a treat and I find myself using the stuff around the house in my everyday life. I use a good Swing-Away hand crank can opener in the kitchen because it works every time with no fuss or hanging lids. I use a good comfy folding director’s chair that’s stout. I can’t recommend those triangle leg chairs that fold into a wee long bag as they can break at the joint.
That propane stove makes a nice adjunct to outdoor grilling for side dishes. I also like rocket stove-type rigs that turn twigs into blow-torch fires to start my charcoal for outdoor cooking. This, for me, consists of a wood stove T connector set on its side to feed twigs into the bottom T leg. Those tin cans with handles and vent holes act like rocket stoves. I stick this right on the grill coal grate and feed sticks in and get a big hot fire, then put charcoal in. This way there is no chemical taste to the barbecue or stinky fumes and it is mega-fast, faster than using those chemical starteres. Hip new rocket stoves have little battery fans that create blowtorch fires with no big logs and one model, BioLite, even converts the heat into electricity to charge a cell phone or computer with a USB connector.
thecoolist.com/biolite-campstove-and-usb-charger/
Sure, I want to drink out of that pure mountain stream but don’t want to risk getting Giardia or Cryptosporidium from some elk pooping in the water 2 miles upstream. I have used a PUR pump filter system that will kill 99% of everything but that’s not good enough. Now I have the MIOX rig that is about the size of a thick pen. You add pure salt and water and it makes a bug killer, a non-toxic chemical hyper-oxidizer that will kill 100% of those pathogens and parasites. No pump, just let it sit in a jug. You have to wait four hours for it to work on Giardia. If you have military personnel in the family, this would make a great gift. Get extra batteries. They store for over 5 years.
miox.com/miox-solutions/MSR-MIOX-Purifier-Pen-sales.aspx
I don’t like chiggers and no-see-ums so will try to stop them up front by scrubbing up with a good skin-friendly soap. FELS NAPTHA is gentle, old timey brown washing soap and the bonus is, it will remove poison ivy oil. I used this on a kid once who got poison ivy in his eye area at a 4th of July shindig and it was only a little uncomfortable for a short while but that whipped it fast. I had my hardware store order FELS NAPTHA and keep it in the car. Lavender oil or lavender-scented soap is the only thing that will repel bugs so keep away from any scented anything. PS Blue attracts skeeters so opt for any non-blue gear like tents if possible.
New LED flashlights are wonderful and can work for long hours while providing truly useful light. My favorite is a clip-on cap light that is a straight stick that costs $20–not cheap–but it only takes one AAA battery and is very bright and lasts eight hours.
Stuff I don’t like includes the pricey Leatherman multi-tool that have a knurled connector that can loosen and drop out. Glue those in with nut glue from the auto parts store.
I’m really vexed with the leaky connector in my plastic canteen CamelBak-type water sack that fits inside my day pack. I guess job one is to check out all your stuff before starting out. That includes food, because your tummy might not agree with certain types of dehydrated food or trail mix recipes. Anyway, I’d love to hear any funny stories, tips or tricks you might have and hope these help. GBU!
That propane stove makes a nice adjunct to outdoor grilling for side dishes. I also like rocket stove-type rigs that turn twigs into blow-torch fires to start my charcoal for outdoor cooking. This, for me, consists of a wood stove T connector set on its side to feed twigs into the bottom T leg. Those tin cans with handles and vent holes act like rocket stoves. I stick this right on the grill coal grate and feed sticks in and get a big hot fire, then put charcoal in. This way there is no chemical taste to the barbecue or stinky fumes and it is mega-fast, faster than using those chemical starteres. Hip new rocket stoves have little battery fans that create blowtorch fires with no big logs and one model, BioLite, even converts the heat into electricity to charge a cell phone or computer with a USB connector.
thecoolist.com/biolite-campstove-and-usb-charger/
Sure, I want to drink out of that pure mountain stream but don’t want to risk getting Giardia or Cryptosporidium from some elk pooping in the water 2 miles upstream. I have used a PUR pump filter system that will kill 99% of everything but that’s not good enough. Now I have the MIOX rig that is about the size of a thick pen. You add pure salt and water and it makes a bug killer, a non-toxic chemical hyper-oxidizer that will kill 100% of those pathogens and parasites. No pump, just let it sit in a jug. You have to wait four hours for it to work on Giardia. If you have military personnel in the family, this would make a great gift. Get extra batteries. They store for over 5 years.
miox.com/miox-solutions/MSR-MIOX-Purifier-Pen-sales.aspx
I don’t like chiggers and no-see-ums so will try to stop them up front by scrubbing up with a good skin-friendly soap. FELS NAPTHA is gentle, old timey brown washing soap and the bonus is, it will remove poison ivy oil. I used this on a kid once who got poison ivy in his eye area at a 4th of July shindig and it was only a little uncomfortable for a short while but that whipped it fast. I had my hardware store order FELS NAPTHA and keep it in the car. Lavender oil or lavender-scented soap is the only thing that will repel bugs so keep away from any scented anything. PS Blue attracts skeeters so opt for any non-blue gear like tents if possible.
New LED flashlights are wonderful and can work for long hours while providing truly useful light. My favorite is a clip-on cap light that is a straight stick that costs $20–not cheap–but it only takes one AAA battery and is very bright and lasts eight hours.
Stuff I don’t like includes the pricey Leatherman multi-tool that have a knurled connector that can loosen and drop out. Glue those in with nut glue from the auto parts store.
I’m really vexed with the leaky connector in my plastic canteen CamelBak-type water sack that fits inside my day pack. I guess job one is to check out all your stuff before starting out. That includes food, because your tummy might not agree with certain types of dehydrated food or trail mix recipes. Anyway, I’d love to hear any funny stories, tips or tricks you might have and hope these help. GBU!
