Camping Trip

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.

Ireland Trip Review Part 1

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

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?
  

What's in my pack?

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.

Am I a Bushcrafter?

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

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.