Took an overnight trip for the first hike of the summer. I only managed 12 miles in about 8 hours between the 2 days. The second day I abandoned the planned hike of the north loop due to sore calves and heat. An overlook about 4 miles in. The same Read more…
I’ve been beating the heat by staying inside , but figured I’d shake out , and clean out my favorite tent. I did some research before buying the Squall 2. It’s a non-freestanding single wall tent. Non-freestanding tents have a disadvantage of needing a place to stake. Sand , rocks Read more…
Caldera Cones have peaked my interest for some time. With supposedly 5 minute 1/2 ounce alcohol burns achieving 2 cup boils, this is worth looking into. An issue with alcohol, is long distance trekking. A 1/2 ounce stove is nice , but after carrying 14 oz’s of fuel of fuel Read more…
Did a quick overnight @ Zaleskis south loop. Walked in 2 miles in the dark through a thunderstorm and made camp. I’m in process of reviewing and testing out a new Garmin 60cx GPS. It has a cool feature of calculating distance and time. My trip was 11.3 miles , Read more…
Looking through REI I found this cool little stove that weighs a half an ounce. After reading a few blogs and reviews I determined the fuel that’s supplied with it is junk. Stories of short burn times , tons of soot , and it’s inability to attain boils will keep Read more…
Hiking the south loop with minimal gear. Nothing is really new to review , just putting old gear through the paces. The Tarp Tent Squall 2 did good job with 50 mph gusts. I plan on doing the whole north and south loop in 2 days sometime before the heat Read more…
If you troll enough survivalist websites you probably see BOB (Bug out bag) used frequently. Most of the times it’s accompanied by a high power rife and enough ammo for a Red Dawn type scenario. I personally can’t see the need , or don’t have the means to pick up Read more…
Nordhouse Dunes in West Central Michigan affords an easy 2 mile hike to the beach of Lake Michigan. Camping is permitted year round with a $5 a night car tag. It seemed pretty deserted in the winter , but I imagine is pretty popular in warm weather. The trail head. Read more…
Picked up 3 knives from http://www.gofastandlight.com/ I’m comparing weights to see If I can part with my trusty Buck 102. Old Buck knife- 4.6 oz Feels the best in my hands. Guessing about $35. Stainless Steel. Mora classic- 2.7 oz . Feels a little cheap , and it is @ Read more…
The first hike of march allowed me to test out a lot of gear. Tent with Neo Air under inflated inside. Tarptent Squall 2 is impressively light and packs down small. It sets up pretty easily with either 1 or 2 hiking poles and 4 stakes. It affords enough room Read more…