Freeze dried meals

 So over the last 10 yrs ive moved over to the "Freeze dried meals" some have been so vile ive gone hungry,but they have got better as the years have gone on,with some being really very good
 

 Ive dealt with a few different firms over the years,being northern haggling or just asking for a deal,is just the norm.On a trip a few weeks back with Ste,he gave me a Bla Band meal to try and it was fantastic so much so i decided to get some more to try

 James at Basecamp foods came up trumps and had lots of different flavour Bla Band meals to try,so this wknd i took one along for my tea.Another good thing with this make is no measuring of water you just pour boiling water in upto the correct mark inside

The thing i liked instantly about the Bla Band meals as they have sorted out the "messy fingers" problem.With most meals the pouch are tall so getting the last bits out involves you having to use a long spoon.But Bla Band just solved this real easy....they just turned the pack on its side...hey presto so much easier

So tonights meal was as the pack says Indian chicken stew,so pour water in good stir,make sure to get all corners,then shut it up and wait 10 mins.Some use cosys to keep the food piping hot,i just put it in my down hat or inside my jacket

This one looked appetising and hydrated really well.It was extremely tasty too,once id started it was hard to stop,just what you want after a hard days walk.Ill do a quick review of the rest of the meals as i use them up over the coming months
I have a new favorite freeze dried meal brand !

Duomid mini mod 2

So this is a work in progress mod,as i need to try it in the snow first..Last nite was first its been dry this week so i shot into the garden as soon as i got home and got the Duomid up...then it started raining !!

 So a good friend who walked across Scotland with me was kind enough to knock me these 3 Cuben tabs up for me,ta Matt Holland

So the other item i used was this foil blanket that i bought two years ago off Ultralight outdoors and its lasted really well,very tough and worth the money 

 The last item was 3 S clips that i think i took off an old SL3 floor that i cut into a smaller size many years ago

 

So nothing posh just stuck on the three Cuben loops two on the door and one onto the 2nd door ? .. the idea being that once im in just fasten these 3 hooks up then push my pack and boots (This is only a winter item) and that should,i hope stop the spindrift.
     On all the other sides i just push snow up and over the edge,but i cant do that on the door,can be done from the inside but then i have to redo it late at night when i let Oscar out for his last wee before the bed 

 The weights ok,bit higher as the foil already has some Gaffa tape and bits of tube on it,from when i had it as a tub floor for Oscar and the tape wont come off,impressed how well it has stuck 

So thats it not much but think it will work ..

Duomid mini mod

So ive been using the Cuben Duomid just over 12 mths now and have been very impressed,but have lapsed back a few times to my trailstar..   
Recently had a few very windy and snowy nites and had a bit of spindrift come in.Now some has come under the door and i have a winter mod to do yet on that,next wk with some luck .But this quick fix mod is around the roof vent ..i found that the velcro on mine didnt match up enough to hold it shut when windy
          I had a very helpful friend ,Matt Holland,stitch me some velcro on some cuben tape.

Vent as standard

I had two pieces of cuben tape with velcro sewn on

So i took two pieces and stuck them either side of the middle and below the existing velcro strip

You can see the two pieces above


While on this picture the other mod i copied off Robin over on Blogpacking light is to make a guy from inside the roof cone down to the door guy.I used 4" of 1/4" bungy at the top then just 2mm cord and a line lock.I think it really helps and even more so when you,on occasion open up both doors 

 Pic below shows the guy line better,here used with an A-frame set up
 

                 As the above and below show it closes up nicely now

 

So never had to use this guy line and ive used it now in some 50 + gusts but i keep it in my very nice Treadlite XL peg bag,for just in case nights 

 The other mod im hoping to do next week and is just trying make an inside snow skirt for the door half of the shelter,the ever helpful Matt has posted me some cuben  stick on loops,will add on here when ive done it.....
 

A dogs life following my friend on his wild camps

Pertex & pile bed 367g

 So ive had a quite alot of questions over last few years about what i take for the dog,so thought id do a blog on what i take for my trusted side kick "Oscar the mountain dog "  
















 So this is the bed he uses for 8-9 mths of the year,in summer he just sleeps on the brown rug,shown further down.Its a piece i cut out of an old army sentry style sleeping

Just a cheap travel style towel 67g

    

   Oscar sleeps on this in summer and i throw it over the top of him (where it doesn't always stay) from when the temp gets too 8c ish and down to -2c or so
















Cheap brown rug 191g

 Woooftub with 6" walls,Silnylon  133g

 So i asked Sean to make this for me it fits perfectly in one quarter of the Duomid and anywhere under the Trailstar,helps keep it all together and keeps a bit of draught off

 This is his winter matt 8mm reflective foam matt weight 214g

 This is an excellent bit of kit it stops the sleet getting into Oscars coat,which was always a problem as it would melt overnite at camp soaking his bedding ....worth every penny has lasted 5 winters of heavy use so far...Its made by Ruffwear too its called the Cloud chaser

A fleece coat that i only got last year this is only for when i know temp will be below -2c   weight 328g 

 This a bit of cheap 6 mm foam matt on the under side ive taped on a bit of space blanket to help it retain some heat ?  weight 85g

 Very important metal bowl 90g

 So another excellent bit of gear.Ruffwear Palisades harness and pack system,of the two available buy this one much easier to be able to remove the packs ( just 3 clips) for crossing fences/walls or those dog gates.
 The harness on its own is handy for winter too on the odd times i need to help on steep snowy sections or pull him out of a snow drift hes run into at 15 mphs and got buried ....he loves snow as much as his dad

The pack has been used since he was nearly 2 years old and used constantly up until last year when i made the decision to retire him from carrying his own stuff anymore.So its been used for 5 years the outer zips broke after about 4 yrs,but only from constantly being knocked and scraped against rocks,i glued them up and it still works,both the top pocket zips and both the main comparment zips still work perfectly



















So thats it,hope it helps ...safe travels Peter and Oscar