spotTheCamper

Health Care Reform

2009-11-08T02:13:00.000-05:00

Well the Health Care Reform Bill has passed the House of Representatives. I'm actually quite amazed at the number of people against this bill. I guess living in Canada for all but the first three years of my life affects my bias a little. But honestly, what is so bad about this? I think Michael Moore does a good job dispelling the myths with his movie "Sicko". If you haven't seen this movie then you should.

While watching Sicko, I was awe struck when the man who cut off the tops of his fingers had to choose which ones to put back on because he couldn't afford to re-attach them all. WTF? Living in Canada there is no question. If the doctors can, they will, re-attach all of them. They wont even ask questions about it.

I've heard bits a pieces from the media and one thing I seem to hear, complaints about the cost. I don't pay a single penny directly to this wonderful health care system. Sure I pay taxes and that goes towards it but big deal. Take away the health care and do you think my taxes will go down? I think not. Waiting times will go up they say. Well sure, now everyone can go to the hospital when they cut off a finger (or worse). No need to kid yourself that the pain in your chest is the cheeseburger you had for lunch because you don't have Medicare. On the flip side, if more patients are going to the hospital that means the hospitals and doctors make more money and thus more hospitals can open.

Everyone knows that the biggest problem with this new bill is that there is really only one looser, the Insurance companies. Profits will decrease, but they will survive. Everyone one still wants to have the extra perks; a private room; elective surgeries; life insurance; etc... Billions of dollars will be diverted from the Insurance companies and end up in the hands of the American people. This new found disposable income will boost the economy as people start buying again. Retail stores, realestate and automotive sales, to name a few, will see large growth again. Now how is that for a stimulus package!

Come on you guys! What are you thinking about!

What GlobalWarming!

2009-01-22T22:16:00.004-05:00

Gripped by the chilling winter, we wonder if the snow will ever melt and return us again to the euphoric summer months. I've noticed lately that everyone is mocking Global Warming (or the lack there of) and some are indicating that the hype is wrong. With resent headlines of old growth forest dieing faster than expect and polar ice melting at alarming rates. I wonder where these people are finding their astute knowledge. Thus I turn to my trusty search tool: Google.

I found the site www.globalwarmingisafarce.com which claims to tell the other side of the store. There are some links to recent news reports that “support” their claim. The articles I looked at appeared to be reports poking fun at the global warming issue. One article caught my eye though. The story Report: Ice Age to blast Earth. The article explains how the northern hemisphere has had record lows for the past two years and that we are at the end of a 100,000 year cycle. But at the very end of the article, Professor Steve Colman states "the amount of greenhouse gases we are contributing to the atmosphere, and the rate at which we are doing so, completely dwarfs the natural variations.". Interesting how an article selected to convince the reader that global warming is a myth goes and contradicts itself.

There is also a great video The Global Warming Myth - Dr Noah Robinson - Telecosm 2007 that breaks down the myths presented by Al Gore. They show graphs and explain how solar radiation, not carbon emissions are affecting the planet. I was getting convinced myself. It's interesting to note however, that the video ends by saying that Carbon Dioxide is a good fertilizer (plants grow faster when their is more CO2 in the air) and that taxing or rationing energy will only hurt US industry as well as third wold countries who rely on high co2 levels for farming.

That's great, now I need to burn more fossil fuels so I wont loose my job or starve the poor people in third wold countries! I thought you told me Al Gore was trying to sell me fear!

Well I couldn't bring myself to read anymore. Sure, Al Gore and everyone he supports might be wrong. But I'd rather see humanity error on the side of caution for once. Why does a civilization need to abuse its resources in order to see what will happen.

SpotTheCamper

Camping Trip

2008-07-19T19:02:00.001-04:00

I went camping last weekend to Algonquin Park. I just love that place. I went canoeing with my youngest son (6), my brother and his oldest daughter (7). Keeping it simple for the kids, we decided to do Rain lake. Padding from the put-in to the opposite end of the lake, where we made camp, only took about an hour. The kids enjoyed the short paddle and so did we.

We stayed for 2 nights in the same site. This gave us the entire day Saturday to hike, fish, paddle, etc... The kids managed to run around and make up their own games like all kids should. The weather was ideal, overcast and about 20C. Just warm enough that you could wear shorts and a t-shirt and just cold enough that the mosquitoes didn't bother us too much. As a matter of fact I didn't wear any bug spray the entire weekend. There were a couple of quick showers but they didn't dampen our spirits (no pun intended).

The site we stayed at was nice and large. It was located right beside a smaller, feeding lake that had no sites or water access. There was a trail that went over to it and you could honestly say there was no one else there with you. I enjoy the solitude, which is why I camp.

Rain lake is a long, narrow lake. The put-in and first 15-20 minutes looks more like a river. I like this setup over larger lakes for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, the kids don't get board as easily; secondly I feel like I'm making progress as the scenery glides by; and finally, when the wind picks up you don't have to battle large waves.

Because Rain lake is not off of Hwy 60 it's not as busy as the bigger, easier to access lakes. Once you pull off of hwy 11 at Emsdale it's about 10 minutes to the ranger station in Kearney. Then it's another half hour down this terrible dirt road before you arrive at the put-in. Most young adults don't appear to like this extra hassle and thus the lake is less crowded.

Absenteeism

2008-07-18T22:03:00.002-04:00

I’ve been busy lately with the family and work but I have found a new hobby, Genealogy. Several times in the past years I've gone looking for family tree info on the internet. I’ve always been able to find the same old stuff. I'd send some updates to whoever ran the site and a couple of years later I could never find the same stuff again.

Well, tired of sending emails for the umpteenth time I decided to keep track of it myself. http://www.familySearch has a great free program to aid in the creation of your family tree. There are several places on the internet where you can find GEDCOM files to start you tree with or just start with what you know and build on it.

I've been having fun with it and discovering that it really tries to take over in the hobby department.

Ireland Trip Review Part 1

2008-04-28T21:00:00.002-04:00

What an amazing country. There is so much to see and do there. Unfortunately my visit was limited to Dublin and Athlone. Because my wife is Irish, we were able to stay with family and enjoy their company every night of our stay. During the day we went off and did tourist type activities.

Although I wanted to do some hiking there was never any time for it. I spent most of my days walking through historic buildings/sites and shopping malls. Getting onto some trails was just too hard to do.

The weather was, well, Irish. Let's face it, the local weather report said, and I'm really quoting this, "…with Frequent Changes." It only rained once while we were there but it was almost always overcast and fairly cold. We did get a couple of truly spectacular days though.

Places of interest:

Guinness Brewery http://www.guinness.com
Kilmainham Jail http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kilmainham_Gaol
Christ Church Cathedral http://www.cccdub.ie/
Malahide Castle http://www.malahidecastle.com/malahidecastle/default.asp
Hill of Tara http://www.knowth.com/tara.htm
Newgrange http://www.knowth.com/newgrange.htm
Sean's Bar (Oldest bar in Ireland/British Iles/Europe/World) http://www.seansbar.ie/index.php

Ireland Trip

2008-04-11T21:43:00.002-04:00

Thought this day would never arrive but now it's just around the corner. My wife and I are going to Ireland!

A couple of things on my to-do list:

New Grange
Guinness Brewery
Hiking local parks
Dublin bus tour (See everything worth seeing in Dublin)
Did I mention the Guinness Brewery?

Earth Hour Update

2008-04-04T22:29:00.002-04:00

According to my local newspaper the town I live in managed a 9.4% drop in power during Earth Hour.

Earth Hour Review

2008-03-30T21:55:00.005-04:00

For me Earth Hour was a success. All four of my children (ages 6 – 13) were excited. When the appointed hour arrived, we lit candles and watched the sun go down. There was so much enthusiasm that the three youngest decided to try to persuade some of our more pessimistic neighbours to partake in the event. Unfortunately they didn't have much luck. As a matter of fact, I was able to count nine of the fifteen or so houses visible from my living room, illuminated by electrical lighting.

Regardless of my neighbours' views, we were determined to do our part. So much so, that when someone opened the refrigerator we all shouted to close the door because there is a light bulb burning. Of course my thirteen year old argued unsuccessfully that it didn't matter.

Once Earth Hour had ended some of my children wanted to turn the lights on with a count down but we realized that there was no need. "Let's just keep them off and keep the candles going. It's warmer, cosier and prettier." The real sign that this was a success was when my twelve year old daughter announced at dinner tonight, "Lets do it every Saturday night!"

I think we might…

Climate Change Revolution

2008-03-21T21:03:00.003-04:00

Earth Hour is quickly approaching and I’m all prepared with my candles and games for the kids. I’ve even registered my intent with earthHour.org. My wife and I are going to make this a family night and enjoy the time with our children. Although family night is not new to our household, it does get neglected now and again with the trappings of our hectic lifestyles.

Living in the Greater Toronto Area, I’m reminded of the Northeast Blackout of 2003. The town I live in and the surrounding areas were completely dark. Normally we don’t get to see many stars because of the light pollution. But on that night the stargazing was impressive to say the least. I have high hopes that for that one brief hour during Earth Hour, enough lights will be turned off so that we can again see some extra stars.

I realize that not everyone will partake in this landmark event, and that’s okay. The media will show the world the difference that was made that day, water coolers will erupt with the whispers of change. The climate change revolution has begun.

What's in my pack?

2008-03-17T22:03:00.002-04:00

I saw an interesting article on WinterCampers.com that asked the question “What’s in my pack?” I thought it would be good to do this since I’m still trying to fine-tune my pack. I don’t have any hi-tech gear or anything expensive but I do try to keep it as light as possible and minimal. Here goes:

Sleeping Bag Shell – A 1945 pattern, US Army mummy outer shell. I use it all seasons but what goes in depends on the weather.
Sleeping Bag (cold) – A 1945 pattern, US Army Mountain sleeping bag. I think it’s rated for –10c. I just got it this past summer and it has a few thin spots. I tried it out once this winter and it did quite well. I’ll use a fleece liner next time in help with the cold spots and see how that works. It’s quit heavy though. One day I’ll invest in something newer and lighter.
Sleeping Bag (warm) – A fleece liner and the shell.
Bed Roll – I only use a closed cell pad that is 4oz. It’s a little thin for winter but I make up for that with whatever branches I can get from my firewood. I always find tree trunks that have small branches on them. Once I have a pile large enough for kindling I use the rest for bedding.
Shelter – MEC Scout Tarp. I was introduced to tarps a couple of years ago and have never looked back.
Pack – It needs some work but I’m currently using a Roots 50L pack. Completely water proof, comfortable when fully loaded and holds everything I need. It just a too heavy at around 5lb.
Stove – Pop can alcohol stove
Folding saw with a nice 6-inch blade. It’s a little slow but it gets the job done.
Storage (clothes) – a nylon water proof stuff sack
Storage (Food) – a large protean powder (for body building) jar. This thing holds about 4-leters and is completely waterproof. I once submerged it in the lake overnight to keep my cheese from sweating.

Clothes

Wicking socks
Light sports shirts (wicking)
Polyester long sleeve shirts
Fleece sweater
Cotton filled, water proof coat with a large hood
Tempest (Viking co.) rain shell that sheds water like mad. If you can believe it, I found this in the Salvation Army store.

Survival on a belt

2008-03-16T11:15:00.005-04:00

Here is yet another survival kit. It's a small cell phone pouch that I wear at all times while I’m hiking or camping. There is enough stuff here for me to feel confident that I can handle most adverse situations. There are other items that I try to always have that supplement this kit such as a water bladder, a bandanna and a good knife. This is just a basic kit that has some simple, easy to carry, supplies.

Cell phone pouch that attaches to a belt. There is also a key ring attached
Orange, waterproof match holder. This is nice because there is a small rod of flint on the bottom
Cotton balls and Vaseline (inside match holder instead of matches)
Garbage bag wrapped around match holder and held in place with an elastic
Small razor knife (can be used with flint)
The balk circle is the best part. Two different sized pop bottle lids shaved so that one fits inside the other forming a water resistant container. This can hold just about any small item you want to keep dry.
Paper coffee filter (inside the pop bottle lids)
Small carabiner
Fox40 style whistle
Small LED flashlight
Dollar store compass (may not be exact but it good enough to get me out of a jam)
Pace beads (average 66 steps = 100 meters = 1 bead, 10 beads = 1km) Instructions
2 meters para-cord
Nail with 2 meters brass wire
Some Band-Aids and alcohol wipes

Am I a Bushcrafter?

2008-03-16T01:13:00.005-04:00

I thought bushcraft was a style of wilderness experience. These people that call themselves bushcrafters would dress in ancient clothing and use primitive equipment in order to get back to basics. Recently I’ve had this idea brought into question.

Am I a bushcrafter? I enjoy being outdoors; I no longer camp with a tent (I use a tarp); I build a fire with flint (when ever possible since I haven’t mastered it yet); I try to learn and practice survival techniques; and I would rather improvise something at camp than carry it in. That being said, I also like some comforts, I use a sleeping bag when it’s cold and I use an alcohol stove for cooking in general. I don’t fit the Grizzle Adam’s persona and I can’t catch my dinner unless there is a shopping cart close by.

Does any of that matter? Is there one word or phrase that can define bushcraft? Am I a bushcrafter?

Welcome

2008-03-16T00:29:00.001-04:00

Well I did it. After much discussion with a friend regarding blogs and his passion of BushCraft, I've decided to start this blog. I've been researching blogs and RSS feeds a lot over the past couple of days and have gotten the bug to start logging my experiences and observations.

The intention here is to discuss my primary passion, Camping. This is, of course, an extremely vague topic, but that's the point I think. Regardless of what happens next, this will be a learning experience.