Out for a quick trip
I finally had some time to go out into the woods. The snow was ok (about 30 cm in the open, 10 in among the trees), the temperature quite varied (-30 C at one point, about 0 C at another).
A snow covered dirt road, first used by a moose and a hare, and later by me.
I passed a bog, in the summer it would have been hard -- or at least wet -- work crossing it, but as soon as it freezes and we get a bit more snow it is quite easy travel.
Apart from getting out one purpose was to try the Hennesy hammock in winter
It was good in one way (no need to dig, no need to worry about wet snow making everything wet), but it was a true pain keeping the foam pad and reindeer hide actually underneath the sleeping bag. I woke up several times because I needed to adjust things. If I decide to keep using it in winter I'll have to get an underquilt. When spring thaw comes I will most certainly return to hammock camping, but in true cold I am more hesitant.
A campsite, with the hammock, campfire and pack. I used the Moskosel -- now Tentipi -- firebox for cooking. Very efficient in firewood (I found a pine stump, and a few rather small pieces cooked my breakfast quickly), but gave no huge blaze to warm everything up.
One advantage to the firebox is the way it can be supported on top of a pair of poles, above the snow. You can see the melted hole underneath the firebox, but everything was quite steady anyway.
I also tested my new Luddan felt boots and Olskogens jägarbindning. The boots are excellent, warm, light and comfortable. The binding is perhaps a bit more stable than the Tegsnäs Epok that I have on my other skis, but the straps over the instep was barely long enought for the size 45 Luddan boots I wear.
This entry was originally posted at http://deepwoods.dreamwidth.org/5145.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
A snow covered dirt road, first used by a moose and a hare, and later by me.
I passed a bog, in the summer it would have been hard -- or at least wet -- work crossing it, but as soon as it freezes and we get a bit more snow it is quite easy travel.
Apart from getting out one purpose was to try the Hennesy hammock in winter
It was good in one way (no need to dig, no need to worry about wet snow making everything wet), but it was a true pain keeping the foam pad and reindeer hide actually underneath the sleeping bag. I woke up several times because I needed to adjust things. If I decide to keep using it in winter I'll have to get an underquilt. When spring thaw comes I will most certainly return to hammock camping, but in true cold I am more hesitant.
A campsite, with the hammock, campfire and pack. I used the Moskosel -- now Tentipi -- firebox for cooking. Very efficient in firewood (I found a pine stump, and a few rather small pieces cooked my breakfast quickly), but gave no huge blaze to warm everything up.
One advantage to the firebox is the way it can be supported on top of a pair of poles, above the snow. You can see the melted hole underneath the firebox, but everything was quite steady anyway.
I also tested my new Luddan felt boots and Olskogens jägarbindning. The boots are excellent, warm, light and comfortable. The binding is perhaps a bit more stable than the Tegsnäs Epok that I have on my other skis, but the straps over the instep was barely long enought for the size 45 Luddan boots I wear.
This entry was originally posted at http://deepwoods.dreamwidth.org/5145.html. Please comment there using OpenID.