crag 45 – Peter Donegan Garden Design & Landscaping

Wild Camping, December 10th 2011 – Equipment Used

Wild Camping, Wicklow Mountains – Saturday 10th December, The SodShow teamed up with Gelert and Millets Mary Street to take five people and record the journey as we hiked, trekked and wild camped overnight, without tents, in The Wicklow Mountains.

The 4 part mini series will air on radio/ podcast for 4 weeks from Dec 23rd & Jan 6th – 20th.

The following is the equipment we used.

My Clothing: [see image above]

Gaiters: Frontier RS Gaiters
Trousers: Mens 4 Way Stretch Venture Trousers
Base Layer: Mens Alpha Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Mid Layer: Plateau Half Zip Fleece
Mid Layer: Freedom waterproof jacket
Outer Layer: Mens Ridge Waterproof Jacket
Hat: Mens Thaxted Peaked Beanie Hat
Rucksack: Crag 45

Survival Bag – I cannot emphasise how important these can be. It not only doubles as a full water and wind proof for your sleeping bag but in emergency situations it’s uses are literally endless [ieg. can be turned into a stretcher]. Costs around €4.

Waterproof Kayak Bag – Used to keep all of my recording equipment dry for the two days. The roll down taper and also the clips allowed it to be easily tied to the outer of my rucksack. Could not have done this gig without it. Cost €7.25

Gelert Tarp – For shelter purposes I can’t speak highly enough of the Gelert tarp range. It does come with a set of poles which I’m sure are quite handy if you are having a garden féte on a fine day. But any as experienced camper will tell you a length of rope and some well placed trees do a much better job in 60 plus mph winds. Do note, this is not a tent, more a waterproof sheet and you can see from the image below we used random branches [and later waterproof rucksacks] to create a wind filter of sorts on the most exposed side.

The Phoenix Cookset is a bit like a slow cooker for the great outdoors and again a serious bit of logic kit. Not even the rain and gales could slow it down. It cooked full evening meals [rice, chicken and sauces] for 5 people and morning meals of potatoes and sausages.

Aluminium Mess Tins – Lightweight, cook in them, eat from them, strap them to the outer of your rucksack. The mess tins [2 pack] cost €5.99 and are worth their weight in gold.

Aluminium Knife, Fork, Spoon Set and Carabiner – If ever you need to eat, when it’s lashing out of the heavens and somewhere in your rucksack is a spoon and somewhere else is a fork…. The Carabiner [little keyring hook clip] keeps it all together and on your outers. Simple but so glad I had it on my belt clip. Costs €5.99

Freedom 350DL Sleeping Bag – With no tent, in December in Ireland, this is what I slept in. Enough said. QED. Also stuffs [as it sounds] into its sack in about 7 seconds. Logic.

Other:

Further information

Original Blog Post: Wild Camping, Wicklow Mountains
All Products: Gelert and Millets of Mary Street
Radio & Podcast: The SodShow
Contact Peter

5 Essential Products for the Great Outdoors

As we head past the August mark on the calender towards what I would note as the wetter and latter months of the year, some may be noting this as their time to hang up the outdoor paraphernalia for what may be considered the off season. Not on your nelly says this fellow.

To me, the more inclement the weather the more interesting I say. Whether it be Electric Picnic were it always rains on the final night, a walk in Donegal were all for seasons are guaranteed within the space of ~~one weekend~~ two hours or like me you just like camping and working outdoors in all seasons – the following are five essential products that make my great outdoors experience greater.

1. Icebreaker Bodyfit 200

First up it’s all about keeping the upper body warm and dry.

This is in short no ordinary t-shirt and if you think I might model this for the sake of a blog post, you are [happily/ sadly/ delete as appropriate] mistaken. That said, the Icebreaker bodyfit 200 holds tight to the body and warms me almost immediately. I own three of them now and they are the ultimate piece of clothing for this gardener/ festival/ outdoors trekker.

Sweating whilst it rains is a pain in the tusch and if I am going to get wet, my logic is really is a case of how quick I can become dry. They say:

Wind resistant. Highly breathable so moisture vapour escapes. Liquid moisture is pulled away from the skin and released as moisture vapour. warm air is trapped between layers. Warmth is trapped in air pockets between each layer.

I say: it is a genius piece of clothing. Extremely light. Dries out very quick and is essential if you are to be outside from ~~September onwards~~ in Ireland. I bought the long sleeved version. Black in colour to soak in any available Irish sun that little bit quicker. Also: check out their BAA code tracker.

2. Crag 45 – Beyond by Gelert

Second is about keeping the rest of your clothes and food dry and as important comfortable to carry.

From the Beyond by Gelert range, this Crag 45 ain’t no ordinary ruck sack. It was given to me to road test by Millets Camping of Mary Street, Dublin. How good is it….? For starters, it comes with a [quote]

manufacturing, materials and workmanship defects for the lifetime of the product

There’s confidence for you. 45 litres in size it has enough adjustment straps to suit perfect to your shape and an air fit system to suit your back in comfort whilst drying sweat away. Better again it is water safe but has what I can only describe as a mini-parachute tucked into its bottom that can be taken out and pulled over for extra water-proofing. So suited to the great outdoors the chest straps come with a built in whistle, that works. This one costs €44.99.

3. Mini Maglite

No. 3 is the light that guides you.

About the only thing on the list that may not be used by me as a gardener yet I still keep it in my jeeps glove compartment.

I have this maglite torch years. Pretty unbreakable, durable and just ruddy well made, it is so much so I have never replaced the bulb on it. In search of an official note that says how waterproof it is and also the light strength – the Maglite official website is pretty brutal – and I couldn’t, officially find an answer.

That said mine has fallen in river, lakes, puddles and last year spent three weeks outside in the Irish snow and still, the old horse works like a charm. More than that I consider it a valuable and at a little wider than a pen, it fits perfect on my person and is well able to take on the big boys in the how bright can you shine contests.

4. Silky Pocket Boy 130

No. 4 is for fire wood and furniture.

If you have ever made anything from what surrounds you by the way of rope and wood [?] or just the odd branch gets in your way whilst trekking across the hedgerows the self nicknamed Little Giant [due to its extraordinary cutting capacity] is an absolute must. They say:

Rust-resistant, hard chrome-plated, taper-ground blade with an impulse-hardened non-set tooth design for greater cutting efficiency

5-inch (130 mm) blade length

8.5 teeth per inch (10 teeth per 30 mm) teeth configuration

0.35 pounds (160 grams) operating weight; 0.5 pounds (220 grams) weight with carrying case

I say: I’ve had this one about eight years now. Light as a feather and once again takes up very little space, this is a genius little product and an essential for this gardener, camper and great outdoors lover. Another great investment.

5. Tresspass Commanche

Finally it is all about keeping the head dry and warm.

As you can see this Trespass Commanche hat has been with me for some time. Peaked at the front and without even pulling the flaps down I have done very little by way of gardening, camping or trekking without this in my arsenal. This has more often ended up saturated on the outer whilst I’m bone dry by way of hair style inside.

I couldn’t find anything about it on the Trespass website – that’ll possibly tell you how long I have it.

Thoughts and comments below if you wish or find me via: