Ultimate Camping Thread

I just bought this one sale at Cabela's:

 

I'm can't say I'm a big fan of that boot style. I see it all the time.

The heel grip sticks out from the side of the boot on each side and the rear. This allows for your boot to slip between terrain (rocks or twigs) and can become stuck. I've seen it happen before and can cause strain or twisting when trying to remove it.

Just sayin. IMO

 

^^^^ Hipster

 

Lols

Before it was cool though.

 

Honestly probably better than trying to sleep on the Damn seats or trying to find a bar bench to crash on. Though copious amounts of alcohol charged to your company at the airport bars helps with the uncomfortable sleep

 

So I've got a down sleeping rated to about -10C (14F). I've had it for over 10 years and it has served me well. I've recently noticed that some of the down was all bunched up in the some sections, mostly the upper back sections of the bag... It's like all the down is packed up in the sides of the bag. I've camped in the rain a lot this summer and I think that might be the cause, at least in part (packing wet, etc).

So I decided to clean it and see if that would bring back the down to original volume. I put it in a front-load washer to wash, then in the dryer with a few tennis balls and the heat at the lowest setting.

So it did really bring back a lot of volume to the down, but the sections that were bad and all bunched up still are.

I'm wondering if anyone would have any tips I could try? Or is my bag just done? Any advice would be appreciated!

 

A clean tennis shoe and back in the dryer-no heat.

edit: you probably need a bigger dryer-maybe go to the laundry mat and see if they have one.

 

Sounds good, I'll give that a try. They have giant dryers there, like at least twice the size of the one I have at home. Thanks!

 

Picked up a Kelty 20* Down sleeping bag yesterday for $90 on clearance yesterday. Now I have two down bags.

Also picked up a Snowpeak gigapower stove I have been wanting for a while because I hated the one I had. This little guy is great. love the push button ignition and that fact it fits in my pots when stored.

 

December bivouac on southwest ridge of 3-Fingered Jack, central Oregon Cascades- stomped out cozy snow ledge and slept under the stars.


looking north from bivouac at 3-Fingered Jack summit


looking south from 3-fingered Jack bivouac at Mt. Washington & The Sisters beyond


bivouac on Dutton Ridge, Crater Lake, OR


"tarping it" in back country of Olympic National Park

 

To funny I slept at O'Hare one night. Last flight to Campaign was cancelled that night, had to wait for the next morning for a flight. Had to prop myself up in a chair with my duffel bag strap wrapped around my leg

 

Kudos to you sir for going it "old school". Love the simplicity.

 

Here's a pic from a trip this past weekend in AZ. I love fall camping in the desert, especially in unique areas like this. Warm days in the sun, cold nights for good sleeping. Backed up to a 6' waterfall coming through this canyon system. I wouldn't want to be here in a flash flood, as there was debris 10' up on the canyon walls from summer monsoons.

 

My new tent shows up today

 

"tarping it" in Olympic Mts., Mt. Olympus in background


back country snowshoeing in central Oregon Cascades


sleeping under the stars in Olympic Mts., Mt. Olympus in background


winter camping in upstate NY, sometimes one can get cool photos even with a basic camera


"tarping it" in upstate NY, Hudson River in background

 

What are you using for heat? Just a really good sleeping bag and a pair of massive balls?

 

I have a North Face 0 deg synth bag for anticipated wet conditions and a Moonstone 15 deg down bag for drier conditions. I find that sleeping bag warmth ratings are about as nebulous as any rating system can be. Some folks just sleep hotter (like me) than others. To minimize weight, I sleep in my bag in all my clothes except shell and boots. I also find it helps to don an extra pair of heavy socks when sleeping to keep the extremities warm.
I've always tried to be a minimalist and keep the weight down. I often use 6'x8' tarps (only 6-8 oz) and make a leanto instead of lugging a tent around. It doesn't always work out, especially after too much whiskey (see photo).
In 2009 during my minimalist peak, I once did a back country Olympic Mt. excursion and went 3.5 days on nothing but Clif Bars (and all the same flavor at that!) and whiskey. I've since relented and purchased a couple of MSR Pocket Rocket backpacker stoves, so now I usually have one hot meal a day.

too much whiskey + not enough attention to guy line tautness + too heavy a snow load = tarp failure (but the whiskey allowed me to sleep through anyway!)

 

Camping on Lake Powell a few months ago. Super awesome trip, miles and miles of kayaking

Edit: i believe this particular one was taken by one of the people i was with. I did take a few buti don't want to steal somebody else's credit for the photo