Camping Lite?

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Mix
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Camping Lite?

Post by Mix » 22 February 05 11:59 pm

Camping Lite (or maybe' Camping Max: Max Taste, Zero Sugar.')
<br><br>
I am planning a backpack camping set up that does not weigh too much, I am carrying enough extra weigh already. I am interested in what others take with them when they go more that a day from the car. Most importantly whatÂ’s you choice in bedding/shelter? Any good suppliers? Any other good advice for remote camping equipment is appreciated.

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oznaturist
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Post by oznaturist » 23 February 05 12:41 am

Therma rest self inflating mattress, if your trying to save extra weight go with a 3/4 length. Down sleeping bag, mummy style. Mac pac make some excellent 1 and two person tents. I can tramp comfortable with around 14 or 15 kgs. Water is the biggest problem. Mountain designs or one of those will often have pack packing sessions. Even down to the extreems like snapping the long handle off tooth brushes. Using near empty tubes of tooth paste etc.
Leave the curling wand at home, dont laugh I took one out of a females pack one day because she complained it was too heavy.

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Ghost Who Walks
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Post by Ghost Who Walks » 23 February 05 12:53 am

When hiking, Take Puritabs with you, and let the water sit for an hour. That way the bad tasting water(with the Puritab) in it will settle to the bottom. Or to disguise the taste, take some Gatorade powder with you to mix in with the water.

But be careful using the Gatorade powder. If you drink that only, and not plain water, you can run the risk of Dehydrating yourself. I did that once when i was hiking with Oznaturist.

If the Puritabs/Gatorade idea doesn't appeal, then you can but water bottles, than have an inbuilt water purifier in them. I think Brita make them, and they cost about $10.

Hope this helps,

GWW

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Cached
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Post by Cached » 23 February 05 12:54 am

These are just brilliant for sleeping - rev oloutionary

www.hennessyhammocks.com

I'll be bringing mine across to the Goldrush..

Friend here (cacher) is looking at distributing them in SA.

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Post by Lt. Sniper » 23 February 05 12:55 am

Well first up Andrew (AusHiker) can help you out with this.
In fact Andrew is the editor, http://www.backpackgeartest.org/

I do bushwalking/hiking for a club and have alot of gear because of that.
For tents I suggest MSR Zoid, I have on layby a Zoid 1.5, roomy for 1, plus gf has room if need be. If your always going to take a partner then look at the Zoid 2 (depending on how big you are, it still might be a bit small)
http://www.msrcorp.com/tents/fastlight.asp

I was able to test it out by borrowing one from a club member before I ordered mine so I knew what it was like to QLD weather.

I use a standard portable gas cooker, blue gas bottles that cost about $8 and last for probobly 7 meals usually, I am going to upgrade to a liquid stove, most likely a Trangia, http://www.trangia.se/

The rest of my equipment is cheaper, bag, sack, etc from camping stores. Too much stuff to talk about :)

EDIT: I havent been able to test one my self but I was recommended by several people to One Planet bags,
http://www.oneplanet.com.au/
Recently there factory burnt down and they are just getting back in to the swing of things again. My next winter bag will be one of these.

Geof
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Post by Geof » 23 February 05 10:40 am

Mini gas stoves: Simple, cheap, not good in cold or snow (baring some liquid supply models) not refillable in the field.

Trangia / metho stoves: - Very simple and easy to use good for kids - a bit heavy on fuel however.

Shellite / Petrol stoves: (My choice) Good Fuel ecomomy (as far as weight goes) good heating ability. Not good for the technicaly challanged / kids. Can require field maintanance from time to time.

Multi fuel stoves: Same as Shellite / petrol but also burns kero diesel and numerious other flamable liquids. May require a second fuel to start ie metho. Handy in forign countrys.

If you go a shellite stove read the instructions well and abide by the rules. A friend of mine had a shellite stove with the tank next to the burner (a swiss brand I think) and it blew the safty plug and shot out a 4 meter flame. Knowing him however :roll: he probebly was using a wok / fry pan covering the tank (not recomended).

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EcoTeam
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Post by EcoTeam » 23 February 05 11:26 am

Roger Caffins FAQ is about as extensive as you'll get, it has a specific section on ultra-lightweight stuff:
http://www.bushwalking.org.au/FAQ/FAQ_U ... weight.htm

EcoDave :)

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Aushiker
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Post by Aushiker » 23 February 05 12:58 pm

Hi

The FAQ is very good if a bit eccentric like the author :D. A couple of very good Yahoo! groups on going light are BackpackingLight at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BackpackingLight/ and Ultralight Backpacking at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ultraligh ... ckpacking/.

Keep in mind that the idea of lightweight or ultralightweight backpacking has not really caught on with Australian and New Zealand manufacturer's or retailers as yet so often you need to go to the US to get genuinely light gear. For example GoLite has only recently become available here at some retailers.

To me light (winter backpacking here in WA) is around 10 - 12 kg base weight and ultralighweight is under 10 kg. Also if you go with lightweight gear you need to treat it with more care. It is not as robust.

On the gear front, as one example of the difference in thinking, my Macpac Cascade backpack weighs in at just under 3 kg, whereas my USA sourced Granite Gear pack weighs in at 1.5 kg and I use it for seven day hikes.

Regards
Andrew

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Post by Lucanos » 23 February 05 2:18 pm

I guess the question that should be asked before we can answer is "How comfortable are you wanting to be?"<br>
<br>
I spent about 5 years with the Australian Army Cadet Corp - we used to go super-lightweight, but then again we subscribed to the "no brain - no pain" idea.<br>
<br>
Tent was a "hootchie" (essentially a 6'6" square tarp), a 3 season sleeping bag (if you were soft!) and a spaceblanket/groundsheet. The whole kit probably only weighed a few kilos.<br>
<br>
Cooking was a Hexamine (Solid fuel) stove, which could burn the fuel tabs, or twigs/leaves/etc. Water was carried in 1L canteens (pre-Camelbak era) with Pannikins (stainless steel mugs) that fitted around the canteens really snug (you could cook, or brew in them).<br>
<br>
Our old rule that we had was that you had to be able to lift your pack with your pinkie to be able to take it on a bivouac. Some of the dopey ones would strain to lift it only to start complaining about the weight of their pack after a few days hard hiking - was their own fault.<br>
<br>
Now I'm kind of getting my head around the idea of comfy-camping.<br> Easier on my bones, but harder on my wallet.

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Post by Bronze » 23 February 05 8:30 pm

^^^^^^ What they said ^^^^^^

I used to do all that too.
Now I have four wheels instead of two campings easier and more comfy.
I used to two season then I went to just a heavy jacket instead of a bag.
Now I swag it - bigger and heavier but lets me sleep in past dawn until it gets hot.
I have a aversion towards tent after lighting one up at scouts one night.
Things need to be pretty wet and wild for me to climb into one.
A hoochie, mozzie net and swag will be my kits for a while now.
Going to invest in a gas stove soon and get mini swags for the kids.
Next will be a box trailer with canvas roof and matress for the wife.
She enjoys the creature comforts of ***** camping now apparently.

The Bronze.
"Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow".

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