Ultralight Hiking:

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NEW MOBILE FRIENDLY SITE: THE ULTRALIGHT HIKER

Della & I (combined age then 120) heading off from Freney Lagoon on the second day of our walk across Tasmania in 2011. We took seven days. Between us we were carrying @ 20 kilos & enough food (& booze!) for 10 days. These zpacks ‘Blast’ packs are 52 litres including pockets and weigh around 300 grams. Today we would be carrying several kilos LESS.

All about light weight, ultra light hiking, backpacking, bushwalking, hunting, tracks, trails, adventures, gear, reviews…

I have been hiking/hunting now for over sixty years, a little more slowly than I once did, walking in the Victorian Alps & elsewhere often in winter and in all weathers. I have camped out a lot, more than two years of my life in toto. I have seen the failure of just about every type of gear, and experienced most disasters which can befall you in the wilderness, and survived. So, if you dream of doing a bit of camping/hiking, maybe I can offer some useful advice?

This is a ‘work in progress’. I will be adding to it on a regular basis adding new photos, adventures, product/ideas, suggestions, etc. You should also look at HIKING ADVICE also a section of gear advice for my son written in 2011 WORLD TRAVEL KIT FOR SON. You can also see my older posts above, eg Hiking 2017. Hope you find something interesting.

PS: UPPER YARRA TRACK: I have recently created this site The Upper Yarra Walking Track Australia’s oldest (& best), an approx. 10-14 day walk with numerous resupply points, plentiful water and camping spots now extending from Moe railway Station @ 150 kilometres up the Latrobe, Tyers & Thomson River valleys, via Yallourn North, Erica & Walhalla, across the Baw Baw Plateau, along the Upper Thomson River, past the Yarra Falls & Mt Horsefall, along the Little Ada, Ada and Yarra valleys via Warburton to Lilydale Railway Station. Now, complete with Track Instructions

ULTRALIGHT HIKING BLOG:

27/12/2018: Gully Walking: Most of the ‘great’ walking tracks (like the Alps’ for example) head along the tops where I admit the views outward and downwards can be truly awe inspiring. They do lack for water (and fish) however, are often windy and/or with very changeable weather that can be a challenge for tents and even survival. Often they even lack for firewood for a nice cheery fire too.

Myself I prefer the valleys though they seldom for some reason have any track at all. Mind you this means you can mostly have them all to yourself. I prefer the view looking up anyway. I am laid up at the moment but that does not prevent me from dreaming of just such journeys.

And as you can see, Spot is dreaming too:

Let me hint at a route you might follow up the Freestone Creek (Briagalong) from the beautiful ‘Blue Pools’ for example. All the way up. Here and there are walking tracks, 4WD tracks, old abandoned logging tracks, deer trails and just plain bush-bashing.

The beautiful ‘Blue Pool’:

Two dogs eager to start the journey – how young Spot was in May 2013:

But he was keen to lead on up the valley

Past a remarkable bird’s nest:

For just a journey of 3-4 days I guess you could (eg) leave your mountain bike at the top of the unnamed track that drops down from the Rim Track above Mt Blomford (above the Lees Creek Track) and return to your car (at the Blue Pools) via the Marathon Rd – quite a pleasant down hill journey.

The Freestone Creek is a beautiful watercourse (with trout, blackfish, crays, freshwater mussels, etc) and you will find many wonderful campsites along the way. I guess over the years (deer hunting, etc) I have walked pretty much all of it coming out at the top onto the Marathon Rd or the McDonald Gap Track perhaps.Many people who love the Blue Pools have never seen the Upper Freestone (which is even better) and is accessed by the delightful Lees Creek Track which criss-crosses it many times,

What a delightful stream the Freestone is. You can walk in or beside it for many, many kilometres.

The road used to follow the creek all the way but a substantial length now diverts from the river. The old road can still be walked however (as you will find out). Quite a lot of it I would have walked in the dark either trying to get to a twilit bail-up or attempting to round up stray hounds after just such a missed bail-up. I know I have a couple of times walked into a large tired stag the dogs still had bailed up in the dark.

The Upper Freestone:

This is a heart-starting experience I can tell you. Much like dropping onto the back of a large shark or porpoise body-surfing when you are a mile out from the beach on the ‘Groper Break’ at Nobby’s near the Newcastle Heads for example. Something which used to happen to me when I was a teenager. It’s a wonder I grew to be a man. There used to be a song about such growing up in Newcastle and working at the BHP steel refinery which then dominated the Harbour and city in the 1960s – what a decade! I worked there too pouring pig iron in the blast furnace, etc. ‘ Men grow strong as iron upon black bread and sour’ was the refrain. I certainly did.

A shark’s skin (called ‘shagreen’) is much more like sandpaper than a dolphin’s (smooth) so it certainly alerts you when to be scared if you should touch it. A mile out to sea there is not much to be done about it. Hard to believe that at 14-15 years old we swam out there to surf (and stayed all day in the water) to swim back in in the afternoon, then catch the train home (to Fassifern). Much better than taking illicit drugs, violent video games or whatever it is the youth risk themselves at these days. We also often rode our bikes up into the Watagan Mountains (behind Fassifern), climbed all over their wild places and camped out there by the light of he moon.

Once you cross the divide (McDonalds Gap Track) you would head down the Little River to the Moroka. This is likely to be tough going after the fires, but might be OK if you walk in the middle of the ‘river’. It is not much more than a gutter really, yet it still held live trout (miraculously) after the fires burnt to the very water’s edge – and even though every fish and eel in the Macalister died! We were one of the first vehicles in after the fires. That was practically the only life we saw in a hundred miles of driving – save for many deer tracks around the deepest waterholes. It is no wonder there are so many deer now – and so little else. Such (wildfire) management is a crime! You might find the going better on the ridges or even sticking to the roads. This is an adventure for you. I can’t do everything there is left to do. (I am 70). You will find out for yourselves.

Moroka Hut

There is plenty of fairly easy walking along the Moroka wherever you hit it – eg from the Moroka Hut down to Horseyard Flat. There is a fine track from Horseyard Flat down to the first waterfall at least. The main set of waterfalls further on is awesome, especially when there is enough water to canoe the river (if you are suicidal!)

You may find it more congenial to cross the river in the vicinity of the main falls and climb to the other side for a better view. Then you might find it easier to walk down the ridges aiming for the Moroka in the vicinity of Higgins’ old cattle yards above the Moroka Creek Track. There are some drops to avoid, as you will find out. However I have beaten my way down through the Gorge itself when I was younger crossing back and forth. It certainly is beautiful and entertaining.

The Upper falls:

The way gets a bit rougher from here on:

When you are walking along the Moroka (below the Gorge) ignore the so-called track. Criss-cross in such a way as to make for the flattest walking. From Higgins Yards to the Moroka Creek for example the ‘track’ is on the true left bank but it is choked with blackberries. You can walk along the clear ridge on the true right bank. From the Carey down it is pretty clear on the true left bank even though the ‘track’ is usually on the other side. Ignore the ‘track’ Parks Victoria will never do any real work – not so long as they have air-conditioned offices and 4WDs and can have meetings.

From the Moroka Creek Track (at least) the river is ‘canoeable’ (when there is enough water – perhaps 2 metres on the Waterford gauge) though intrepid adventurers have come down it all the way from the bridge on the Moroka Road! Truly. But it is not recommended to come over those falls (though people have)!

So it might have been a good idea to bring along your pack raft because when there is sufficient water (eg above 1.8 metres on the Waterford Gauge on the Wonnangatta) you can raft all the way down – to the Castleburn Creek confluence in this scenario about seven days lying about on your raft like Huck and Tom, say from the Moroka Creek Track down – which would be the safest put in, but there are some interesting rapids between there and the Wonnangatta – and some lovely grassy camps too. If you put in at the confluence (six days) it would be safest There are plenty of beautiful campsites on the Wonnangatta too. See (for hundreds of photos and precise canoeing instructions) eg:

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/11/22/remote-wonnangatta-day-two/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/11/15/a-wonnangatta-spring/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/11/15/a-wonnangatta-spring-day-two/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/11/15/a-wonnagatta-spring-day-three/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2018/01/04/canoe-wonnangatta-kingwill-to-meyers-flat/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/01/17/wonnangatta-kingwell-bridge-to-black-snake-creek/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/01/17/wonnangatta-black-snake-to-hut-creek/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/01/17/wonnangatta-hut-creek-to-waterford-bridge/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2018/12/13/wonnangatta-waterford-to-angusvale-day-one/

Moroka-Wonnangatta confluence.

Of course you can walk all the way mainly on the true right bank, sometimes in the water,sometimes criss-crossing along over bends and loops, sometimes walking along on beautiful river flats replete with bell-birds, wood swallows and bee-eaters – and there are roads too in places.

Castleburn Creek Confluence:

If you walk up the Castleburn Creek (there is a lovely campsite at the confluence, but vehicles can get there) you will swing away from the main road till you hit the Black Range Track which you will follow till you hit the walking track that runs down from Pretty Boys Hill via the Lees Creek to the Freestone once again – thence down it as before in the opposite direction to the Blue Pools.

Of course I am assuming you will make this journey in the warmer months but still when the mighty Wonnangatta has enough water to make for an interesting pack raft trip from the confluence down. Some day you may even be lucky enough to find enough water in the Freestone to make it canoeable, or some other side gully might provide an adventure when the rains pour down – something which no man has ever enjoyed The Scorpion or the Castleburn for example. Who knows what delights await in some shady grove deep in the mountain’s heart? I know I have often thrilled to some unexpected ephemeral delight deep in the wilderness.

As a deer hunter I can never neglect the many side gullies which join the main stream. My journey would be likely to take much longer than yours as I spied my way up them. Often they contain hidden wonders which you would otherwise miss in this life: it might be a rare tree or orchid in bloom, or some wildlife or another caught in a surprising way: Baby deer frolicking like lambs for example. Watching a huge goanna fold itself into a miniature tree hole high in some forest giant. A beautiful miniature waterfall or just a perspective (maybe when a rainbow winks into existence) looking up or down the gully which brings joy to your heart. Take your time. You will not pass this way again. And you will pass surprisingly soon. I have seen so many good friends come and go. People whose faces come to me as I see a remembered path or tree in some hidden gully where we once stood, perhaps sharing an orange together long ago..

You would have to make a couple of food drops (along the Wonnangatta – Moroka Glen and Castleburn confluence perhaps?) somewhere perhaps if you intended to do this trip. The old fellas in the C19th would have traveled the land like this with just an axe, a billy, a bag of flour, some salt, a fishing line and a rifle – and mostly lived off the land. Of course you could too (barring legalities!). I favour a .410 myself for its lightness and versatility. Some models such as Rossi’s ‘Circuit Judge’ can be dismantled so they will fit in your pack but can also take a .45 calibre pistol round or a solid in .410 – either big enough to take surprisingly large game. A sambar would have to be quite close and carefully targeted. A wallaby would be easy. Just across the way in Tasmania it is legal to kill and eat them. I can’s see what is the difference myself. Many animals starve to death in winter because they were not harvested before the days start to close in.

Ducks are plentiful along our rivers. Likewise native pigeons (though illegal) are a culinary delight. People tell me lyre birds are as tasty as any bantam. And so on. The game will still be there long after the laws and the people who made them are dust. Some years you will find rabbits plentiful, echidna, brush-tailed possums, goannas, water dragons and so on. A PS: The ‘Tea Tree which is found in various spots along the way was so named because the early settlers used to use an infusion from it as a substitute for tea.

I guess it would take me nearly a week (on my 70 year old legs, but enjoying the trip immensely as I go) to reach the Wonnagatta-Moroka confluence from the Blue Pools. I would then have about a week drifting down the Wonnagatta then 3-4 days making my way back to the Blue Pools, so it is not a weekend trip by any means. You are no doubt much younger (and perhaps in a dreadful hurry to get to the grave!) so you can/will be much faster. I only hope you learn and enjoy along the way…

A couple of other ideas:

First a short one: Sandy Creek to Morris Creek, down the Welington, then a short section of the Mitchell Gorge (bring the pack raft), then walk up the Sandy Creek to your camp.

Up the Nicholson (from around Bairnsdale) to say Marthavale (some bastards burned down the wonderful hut there but it is still a lovely place to camp (although vehicles) with fresh trout in the river nearby. Over (via ‘Steve’s Track’ – Yes!)’ into the Wellington, then down the Mitchell to the beginning (perhaps at the wonderful ‘sand jetties’ at the mouth of the Mitchell. This one would also take weeks and require resupply.

I used to love walking up the Deep Creek – a tributary of the Thomson (years ago) then down the Aberfeldy to the Thomson, sometimes by boat. I could raft down the Thomson to Deep Creek and exit via the (now closed) D10 track which used to take me to within a chain of deep Creek just upstream from the Thomson confluence.

I’m sure if you have read this far, you get the point. There are many wonderful valley walking/pack rafting trips to be enjoyed in the Gippsland mountains. All I can say is: ‘Get out there’. Soon you too will be 70 – or worse!

Can I recommend Rooftop’s Dargo-Wonnangatta Adventure Map for this (and many other like) fascinating expeditions?

https://www.theultralighthiker.com/2018/12/20/their-torn-and-rugged-battlements-on-high/

25/12/2018: Why These Umbrellas Will Last Forever: Davek Umbrellas. They are confident: ‘Unconditionally Guaranteed For Life: Every Davek umbrella comes with an Unconditional Lifetime Guarantee. If, during its lifetime, the umbrella should fail to function properly for any reason whatsoever, the company will gladly repair or replace it for free.’ https://au.davekny.com/

The lightest appears to be: The Davek Mini: https://au.davekny.com/collections/umbrellas/products/the-davek-mini under 1 lb ie 453 grams. Comes in lots of colours – at least seven anyway..

‘The Davek Mini is our smallest, most compact umbrella. This incredibly convenient umbrella fits in literally any compartment, from a handbag or clutch to your pants pocket. The stylish Mini is the perfect “just in case” umbrella, hardly noticeable when it’s not in use. Keep it with you always—never be caught without an umbrella again. Measures less than 7 inches when closed. Pocket-sized protection, with style to spare. Manual open/close system.’

It costs $A75 (Dec 2018), so it is certainly worth finding out. You are always better off to have good things than cheap things. This is a piece of wisdom which seems to have been lost. For example we drive 1995-6 cars which we expect to last us for the rest of our lives. Most everything we own is like that. We are proud of that fact. We never wanted to be a part of the throw away society.

Coverage diameter	38 in (arc-diam); 34 in (straight-diam)
Closed length	7 inches
Weight	Under 1 lb—ultra lightweight
Open/close system	Manual system
Shaft material	Steel
Frame system	Fiberglass reinforced 6-rib frame system
Fabric	190 thread-count microweave fabric
Warranty	Unconditional lifetime guarantee

I carry this Montbell one for emergencies which weighs 85 grams, but I doubt it will last me for life – though I admit the last few weeks have made me think that might not be so long as I might wish! So perhaps it would! It might be more sensible to carry this rather heavier one which I could be confident would never fail me as a roof – so I could perhaps dispense with a raincoat altogether – so the weight difference would be negligible – but how much weight is your life worth in grams?

I have seen a man dead in the rain when I was comfortable nearby. I would not want to be the one who is dead. Rain is deadly. You must have shelter. You must have a roof. There is no such thing as a safe walk. Following a defined trail is really no safer than forging your way through the trackless bush, which I would rather do anyway. How often have I ‘found’ walkers who have followed a deer trail off into the bush and who then can’t find their way back to the marked trail. Some I don’t find!

On a lighter note, here is a genius idea for any hiking umbrella: http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/12/14/a-hands-free-umbrella/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2018/09/28/a-wind-shell-and-an-umbrella/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/08/18/raincoat-shelter/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2016/08/14/hiking-in-the-rain/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/the-importance-of-a-roof/http:/The%20Importance%20of%20Roof

23/12/2018: Wild Journeys: https://www.amazon.com.au/Wild-Journeys-Bruce-Ansley-ebook/dp/B07BVHRZLZ#reader_B07BVHRZLZ

21/12/2018: Their Torn and Rugged Battlements on High : ‘Where the pine-clad ridges raise

Their torn and rugged battlements on high,

Where the air is clear as crystal, and the white stars fairly blaze

At midnight in the cold and frosty sky’

'The Man from Snowy River', Banjo Paterson

As you know I am a bit laid up at the mountain, but a young friend of mine has been out and about, and shared this guest post for you:

Kobie Notting: 'Dear Victorian Alps, you really cemented a place in my heart this weekend. Your bipolar weather makes me love and respect you even more, even though you tried to kill me Saturday night. How lucky we are to live within a couple hours drive of this. P.S. Go hike the Crosscut Saw people.

You start from the Mt Howitt carpark. You can do a day trip or an overnighter.. there’s a hut an hour in from the carpark that you camp at the night.. so basically drop your bags there and keep going to the crosscut. It’s a section between Mt Howitt and Mt Buggery where you’re just walking on the top of the ridge.

Views are just epic; just make sure it’s not going to be windy as there’s some sketchy sections like half a footpath wide with sheer drops, wouldn’t want it to be gusty. You could easy get to the view part and back in half a day. It’s only an hour to the hut, then from the hut another hour to the start of the crosscut saw. With a light day pack you’d kill it. It’s hilly but if you took your time you would be fine.

A reader writes: ‘Got stuck on the cross cut saw in a total white out and had to sit it out behind a rock for several hours. The clouds can move in on you very quickly. Take care. The drop below is called the Terrible Hollow for a reason’

Yeah it changes soooo quickly up there! See eg: https://www.trailhiking.com.au/crosscut-saw-mt-speculation/?fbclid=IwAR10nHuvI9Cb7lfLxLRvpCKLs3OoSXgNi3EPNkNoszvhKQovTdmJisrTGFY'

The High Country is always ablaze with wldflowers:

Kobie also posted this video to give a bit of an idea of how a living 360 degrees up there is like: https://www.facebook.com/kobie.notting/videos/10157010309837658/

Chilling out on the roof rack of the Troopie:

Don’t know the full poem? One of the best ever written. Here it is:

The Man from Snowy River

There was movement at the station, for the word had passed around

That the colt from old Regret had got away,

And had joined the wild bush horses - he was worth a thousand pound,

So all the cracks had gathered to the fray.

All the tried and noted riders from the stations near and far

Had mustered at the homestead overnight,

For the bushmen love hard riding where the wild bush horses are,

And the stock-horse snuffs the battle with delight.

There was Harrison, who made his pile when Pardon won the cup,

The old man with his hair as white as snow;

But few could ride beside him when his blood was fairly up-

He would go wherever horse and man could go.

And Clancy of the Overflow came down to lend a hand,

No better horseman ever held the reins;

For never horse could throw him while the saddle girths would stand,

He learnt to ride while droving on the plains.

And one was there, a stripling on a small and weedy beast,

He was something like a racehorse undersized,

With a touch of Timor pony - three parts thoroughbred at least -

And such as are by mountain horsemen prized.

He was hard and tough and wiry - just the sort that won't say die -

There was courage in his quick impatient tread;

And he bore the badge of gameness in his bright and fiery eye,

And the proud and lofty carriage of his head.

But so slight and weedy, one would doubt his power to stay,

And the old man said, "That horse will never do

For a long and tiring gallop-lad, you'd better stop away,

Those hills are far too rough for such as you."

So he waited sad and wistful - only Clancy stood his friend -

"I think we ought to let him come," he said;

"I warrant he'll be with us when he's wanted at the end,

For both his horse and he are mountain bred."

"He hails from Snowy River, up by Kosciusko's side,

Where the hills are twice as steep and twice as rough,

Where a horse's hoofs strike firelight from the flint stones every stride,

The man that holds his own is good enough.

And the Snowy River riders on the mountains make their home,

Where the river runs those giant hills between;

I have seen full many horsemen since I first commenced to roam,

But nowhere yet such horsemen have I seen."

So he went - they found the horses by the big mimosa clump -

They raced away towards the mountain's brow,

And the old man gave his orders, "Boys, go at them from the jump,

No use to try for fancy riding now.

And, Clancy, you must wheel them, try and wheel them to the right.

Ride boldly, lad, and never fear the spills,

For never yet was rider that could keep the mob in sight,

If once they gain the shelter of those hills."

So Clancy rode to wheel them - he was racing on the wing

Where the best and boldest riders take their place,

And he raced his stockhorse past them, and he made the ranges ring

With stockwhip, as he met them face to face.

Then they halted for a moment, while he swung the dreaded lash,

But they saw their well-loved mountain full in view,

And they charged beneath the stockwhip with a sharp and sudden dash,

And off into the mountain scrub they flew.

Then fast the horsemen followed, where the gorges deep and black

Resounded to the thunder of their tread,

And the stockwhips woke the echoes, and they fiercely answered back

From cliffs and crags that beetled overhead.

And upward, ever upward, the wild horses held their sway,

Were mountain ash and kurrajong grew wide;

And the old man muttered fiercely, "We may bid the mob good day,

No man can hold them down the other side."

When they reached the mountain's summit, even Clancy took a pull,

It well might make the boldest hold their breath,

The wild hop scrub grew thickly, and the hidden ground was full

Of wombat holes, and any slip was death.

But the man from Snowy River let the pony have his head,

And he swung his stockwhip round and gave a cheer,

And he raced him down the mountain like a torrent down its bed,

While the others stood and watched in very fear.

He sent the flint stones flying, but the pony kept his feet,

He cleared the fallen timbers in his stride,

And the man from Snowy River never shifted in his seat -

It was grand to see that mountain horseman ride.

Through the stringybarks and saplings, on the rough and broken ground,

Down the hillside at a racing pace he went;

And he never drew the bridle till he landed safe and sound,

At the bottom of that terrible descent.

He was right among the horses as they climbed the further hill

And the watchers on the mountain standing mute,

Saw him ply the stockwhip fiercely, he was right among them still,

As he raced across the clearing in pursuit.

Then they lost him for a moment, where two mountain gullies met

In the ranges, but a final glimpse reveals

On a dim and distant hillside the wild horses racing yet,

With the man from Snowy River at their heels.

And he ran them single-handed till their sides were white with foam.

He followed like a bloodhound in their track,

Till they halted cowed and beaten, then he turned their heads for home,

And alone and unassisted brought them back.

But his hardy mountain pony he could scarcely raise a trot,

He was blood from hip to shoulder from the spur;

But his pluck was still undaunted, and his courage fiery hot,

For never yet was mountain horse a cur.

And down by Kosciusko, where the pine-clad ridges raise

Their torn and rugged battlements on high,

Where the air is clear as crystal, and the white stars fairly blaze

At midnight in the cold and frosty sky,

And where around The Overflow the reed beds sweep and sway

To the breezes, and the rolling plains are wide,

The man from Snowy River is a household word today,

And the stockmen tell the story of his ride.

Have you seen the film? Here is the short version to whet your appetite

Can you imagine galloping a horse down these precipitous slopes. This view (featured image) all used to be Wonnangatta Station type country and not so long ago stockmen droved cattle and horses all over it - just as I used to did when I was a youngster.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=jo51fIu_fjk

How could you not love these mountains?

15/12/2018: The Loop Alien: This is a really great idea for tightening your guy line or tarp suspension. No knots. Will slip through a loop on your pegs to make a very secure guy line system on particularly windy nights. I like it. It is not intended as a weight bearing device. I think you can see from the picture how it works. Ingenious. Available here: https://loopalien.com/products/aluminum-rca US$5.00 (Dec 2018) 2.4 grams ea.

Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AZl_N4Q5Io

Other people's opinions about it: http://theultimatehang.com/tag/loopalien/

Many other items of interesting hardware are out there, such as this one: https://dutchwaregear.com/product/fleaz/ which weighs less than a gram. There will be a future post about cord knick knacks.

Of course there are plenty of copies out there from US$ .29 cents each.

I am still using the micro clam cleats for my guy lines: http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2014/12/14/the-perfect-guy-line-for-a-hiking-tenttarp /

and I am using whoopie slings for many other uses such as attaching my hammock, centreline and tarp, eg: http://www.theultralighthiker.com/2017/06/02/whoopie-slings-what-a-great-idea/

14/12/2018: Telstra’s Go Repeaters: Your mobile connectivity problems solved: You need: https://exchange.telstra.com.au/new-telstra-go-repeaters-bring-mobile-coverage-to-more-places/ plus https://www.telcoantennas.com.au/antennas/home-office/outdoor/

29/11/2018: Spinal Fusion: This week I am having four-level spinal fusion on my lumbar spine (irrevocably damaged by tough hard heavy work from when I was only a child). However, the surgeons have found one disc which is sound so I can have this done, be free of pain and just be a little stiffer getting out of my sleeping bag in the mornings – indeed I might even move to a quilt as the docs are limiting me to 5kg for the next couple of months. That will certainly make me the ultralight hiker! I will find an X-ray of my spine to illustrate this post, but I am in hospital suffering all manner of indignities and cruelties just now so posts are a bit light. Sorry.

I have two of the best spinal surgeons in Australia working on me: Dr Caroline Tan and Dr David Edis. I had the discs removed on Tuesday and replaced with plastic inserts through my side in a procedure known as OLIF. This is apparently the best way to do it. Then on Friday the surgeons will go in though my back to insert the rods and screws which will hold the vertebrae until they fuse. They paint a highly sophisticated artificial chemical construct on the area to create this bone growth and fusion (which will take up to about 3 months).

By the time the moose are calling in Fiordland (28th February) the back should be healed enough to carry 8-10 kg so I can hopefully go there with Della and try to get a photograph of that elusive moose.I will keep you posted…

PS (15 Dec): After the op I had a fortnight of absolute nightmare. I will never go anywhere near the Valley Private Mulgrave again. They literally made every effort to kill me and to torture me they could – all this accompanied by deliberate sleep deprivation. Day after day with no (or too little) pain medication. It was awful. I will be making official complaints about my treatment. Finally (we) discharged myself, went home and put myself in the hands of my own reliable GP Fred Edwards here in Churchill whom I have known for thirty years. Finally home, with family to care for me, without (much) pain and learning to walk again.

I still hope to meet the moose deadline though. (Very) slowly cranking up the steps per day. A long while yet to get to my usual 10,000+ per day,but I will make it. Plenty of work to do here on the farm which should substitute for physiotherapy! Wish me luck!

PS: The trees which Merrin and I have been planting (over Spring) are starting to peek over the tops of the tree guards (1.5 metres tall). We will have a sheep forest before many years have passed: https://www.theultralighthiker.com/2018/10/13/electric-drill-earth-auger/

http://drcarolinetan.com

https://vicorthospine.com.au/news-dr-david-edis/

30/11/2018: At Last an E-ink Smart Phone: I think e ink is all you need in a hiking phone as long as it has a reasonable camera (or perhaps none at all) and can display maps and books well enough. The trade-off of not having to charge for say a month is enormous value.

This one weighs only 47 grams:https://www.e-ink-info.com/e-ink-devices/mobile-phones

HiSense A6 is a new smartphone with an E Ink screen: https://goodereader.com/blog/smartphones-2/hisense-a6-is-a-new-smartphone-with-an-e-ink-screen

This one’s main screen is e-ink (which probably means the battery will last you a month: https://www.pcmag.com/feature/313023/hands-on-with-the-onyx-boox-e-ink-smartphone/1

https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/4/16/17242014/sony-digital-paper-dpt-cp1-e-ink-tablet-announced-japan

https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2018/02/the-remarkable-e-ink-tablet-is-way-too-good-for-its-software-and-price/

https://www.e-ink-info.com/e-ink-devices/mobile-phones

More about this when I get out of hospital!

24/11/2018: Shadowland – Fiordland Video:

shadowland

If you wonder why I return again & again to Fiordland (& the Dusky Track) maybe this excerpt from ‘Shadowland’ will whet your appetite. (Della’s favourite part, the kakapo @ 37secs in). You may have to buy the complete video as no-one seems to have uploaded it, but it will be worth it. Even more worthwhile is to tramp the Fiordland wilderness. If you feel you are not as fit as we geriatrics, treat yourself to a heli or plane tour out of Te Anau. I/we have been back again several times since I first posted this back in 2014 – but alas not this year. If my back fusion operation next week is successful we may yet walk the Dusky together in 2019.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jF4ugISWMT8

First Published on: Jan 21, 2014

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/from-dawn-to-dusky-day-2/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/from-dawn-to-dusky-3/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/from-dawn-to-dusky-4/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/from-dawn-to-dusky-5/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/from-dawn-to-dusky-7/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/from-dawn-to-dusky-8/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/insects-can-ruin-a-camping-trip/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dusky-track-canoeing-the-seaforth/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dusky-track-adventures-1/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/eddie-herrick-moose-hunting-at-dusky-sound/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/a-friend-i-met-on-the-dusky-track-fiordland-nz/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dusky-south-coast-tracks/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dreaming-of-the-dusky-track/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/the-dusky/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/moose-hunting/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-moose/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-moose-2/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/hunting-in-fiordland/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/off-to-fiordland/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/shadowland-fiordland-video/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/the-best-toilet-view-in-the-world/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/10-days-in-fiordland/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-2009/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-nz-with-bryn/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-april-2007/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/weather-for-fiordland/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/more-dusky-adventures/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/insects-can-ruin-a-camping-trip/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dusky-track-canoeing-the-seaforth/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dusky-track-adventures-1/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/eddie-herrick-moose-hunting-at-dusky-sound/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/a-friend-i-met-on-the-dusky-track-fiordland-nz/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dusky-south-coast-tracks/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/dreaming-of-the-dusky-track/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/the-dusky/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/moose-hunting/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-moose/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-moose-2/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/hunting-in-fiordland/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/off-to-fiordland/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/shadowland-fiordland-video/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/the-best-toilet-view-in-the-world/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/10-days-in-fiordland/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-2009/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-nz-with-bryn/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/fiordland-april-2007/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/weather-for-fiordland/

23/11/2018: Largest built structure on earth: https://www.yahoo.com/news/termite-colony-size-great-britain-built-since-dawn-pyramids-132724663.html

22/11/2018: Launch Pad Water Deluge System Test at NASA Kennedy Space Center:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=13&v=LNkmwrTjKuo

21/1/2018: The Happiness Trick: I am indebted for this to Randi Skaug the first Norwegian woman to climb Everest. First thing in the morning, clasp one hand over the other then raise your hands above your head – and smile. It is just about automatic. Hold for a few seconds to a minute. The smile will kick in serotonin production and actually produce happiness. As Randi says, ‘You are only here on earth a little while, a century at most. Why not be happy?’ Couldn’t agree more. You can catch her story on Ben Fogle’s ‘New Lives in the Wild’ Series 7, Episode 4, ‘Norway’: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9109066/ Available on ThePirateBay.

20/11/2018: Whitetail Hunting in 1810: ‘Forty-four Years of the Life of a Hunter’, Meshach Browning 1859. Lots of wonderful books are available free below (if you look for them). This is from Chapter 6: ‘Whitetail Hunting in 1810’. What a treasure! Six deer taken in a single day with a muzzle-loader. Great hunting!

‘Shortly after returning to my home, three hunters and myself agreed to go to the glades to hunt deer. We all started for what was called the piney cabin and met at the place, but it was too late to hunt that evening, and there was no snow on the ground.

A light snow having fallen during the night, I said in the morning that I would bet any man a gallon of whiskey I would kill two deer that day.

“I’ll take that bet,” said a man by the name of James.

It was agreed on; and I told them to pick their course, and I would take the ground that was left. So they all made choice of a locality for that day, leaving me the very ground I wished for.

Everyone set out in great spirits, but while going to the place assigned me, I heard a buck bleat, which they will do in mating-time when they smell other deer. I walked quickly to the leeward side of him in order that he should not smell me. In doing so, I crossed a number of deer tracks.

Knowing that the buck was after them, I stood close to the tracks, where I could still hear him bleating and every time the sound was nearer. In a short time, I saw him following the tracks. I let him come within eight steps, and then stopped him by bleating as he did, when I shot him in his tracks.

I skinned him very rapidly and went on, but I had proceeded only a short distance when I saw a small buck trot along the top of a steep hill, then disappear down the opposite side.

I ran to the top, and looking down, saw him going leisurely along, whereupon I snorted like a deer, which I could do very naturally. As soon as he heard the snort, thinking it came from the other deer, which he expected to see, he stopped to look round for them.

I had with me a deer’s tail, which I showed him from behind a tree, and then exposed a small portion of my clothes which were about the color of a deer. Uncertain what to do, he stood there, occasionally stamping his foot on the ground, all the while holding his head as high as he could. Then I would show the tail quietly, and as if I was not scared, and at last seeing him lick his mouth, I knew he would come to ascertain what was there.

He came on little by little, still stamping his feet on the ground, until he came within range of my rifle, when I shot at his breast and broke his shoulder. I set my dog on him, and when the deer soon turned to make fight, I shot him again.

I then skinned him, and as I was in the glades without a hat, and it was blowing and snowing as fast as the snow could fall, I started to run across a glade, out of the storm.

As I ran through the ferns, about half-a-leg high, up sprang a large buck, which, after making two or three jumps, stopped in the middle of the open glade. He had scarcely stopped before my rifle sent a ball through him. He jumped forward a few yards and fell over dead.

The storm was so severe that I was obliged to seek shelter in a grove of thick pines. After it abated, I started for camp again, still looking for deer.

I was about halfway in when I saw approaching what I took to be another buck. I stood still, but the deer saw me too, though it could not make out what I was. Each stood perfectly still, looking at the other, until I became tired.

There was between us a large fallen tree, which hid the body of the deer, so that I could see nothing but the head. Finding no other chance, I raised my gun and fired at the head. After the report, seeing nothing of the deer, I hurried forward, and there lay as fine a doe as I ever killed, with her brains blown out.

I commenced skinning her as fast as possible, as it was getting late, and I was quite ready to leave for the camp when I saw on the entrails so much tallow that I stopped to save it. As I was picking off the tallow, it occurred to me that it was a wonder a buck had not been on her track, for she was in that peculiar condition when the males will follow them, wherever they find their track.

So I raised my head to look, and there stood a stout buck within ten steps, staring at myself and the dog as I was sitting at my work, with the dog licking up the blood and eating the small pieces which fell to his share.

I dared not rise to get my gun, which was standing against a tree out of my reach. Finally, I began to creep towards it, all the time being afraid to look at the deer, lest the sight of my face should scare him, for I knew it was not pretty.

When I had secured my gun, I looked around and saw him walking off, and as I did not wish to spoil his saddle, I delayed shooting until I could get his side toward me.

All of a sudden he stopped, turned round and came walking back to look for the doe, stopping at the same place where I first saw him. That moment I pulled my trigger, and the ball, striking in the middle of the breast, killed him at once. He never attempted to jump, but reared up so high that he fell flat on his back. I skinned him, put him on the same pole with the other, and then started off for the camp.

When I arrived there, all hands seemed astonished at my good luck, but James disputed the fact, saying that I had been there the week previous and had hid those skins in the woods. But a Mr. Frazee, who had hunted with me all the previous week, during which time I had killed some eight or ten deer, told James that my boys and his had come out the last of the week with horses, and carried in all the meat both of us had killed, together with the skins. James was satisfied that there was no foul play in the matter. I told James that I could kill a deer yet that night. He was anxious to take another bet, and in order to give him a chance for his whiskey, I closed with him, for when I left the camp in the morning, I had observed a spot where a great many deer had been feeding on thorn-berries, and I knew that they would be there again at dusk after the berries.

Seizing my gun, I made for the leeward side of the thorn nursery in order that the deer should not smell me. The dog scented the deer, and therefore I crept along very cautiously, though I could see no game. Presently, a very large buck made his appearance, and I said to myself: “That will make the sixth deer, beside two gallons of whiskey, and the reputation of being the best hunter in the woods.”

It will be seen that my vanity began to rise. The buck gradually drew nearer, but the pine trees stood so close together that it was a hard matter to secure a good aim, and beside, I found I was becoming so much excited that my hand was growing unsteady.

So I waited till the buck came opposite the space between two trees, when I called to him to stop, which he did, but not until he had so far passed the open space that his ribs were hid from my view. I tried to take aim, but as I could not hold my rifle steady, I waited to get rid of the shakes, though to no purpose, for the longer I delayed, the worse I became. At last, observing the buck’s tail beginning to spread, I knew he was about to make off.

As this was my last chance, I put my gun against a tree, thinking thus to brace myself, but my gun absolutely knocked against the tree. As I was then compelled to shoot or to let the buck run off unharmed, I fired at his hips, at a distance of not more than 20 steps, without ever touching either hide or hair of him.

At any other time, I could have sent 20 shots into a space the size of a dollar, but the idea of a great reputation gave me the ague; and through my vanity, I lost both the buck and the whiskey.

When the report of my gun was heard at the camp, Mr. Frazee exclaimed: “There, James, you have another gallon of whiskey to pay for, as Browning never misses.”

But when I returned empty-handed, the whole company enjoyed a hearty laugh at my expense.’

Full text (available for download here: https://archive.org/details/fortyfouryearsof00browuoft/page/n5

https://www.theultralighthiker.com/thrilling-tales-37-days-of-peril/

https://www.theultralighthiker.com/woodcraft-george-washington-sears/

20/11/2018: The greatest slingshot ever: ‘Hunt down bigger game with arguably the baddest looking slingshot without venturing into full on crossbow territory. This unit features a built-in magazine allowing you to pre-load up to 40 rounds of 8mm ball bearings or a single crossbow bolt.

The position of the front handle can be adjusted, allowing you to reduce/increase the level of power as needed. The rear handle includes a 12mm mounting rail so you can install a scope with laser sight or a tactical flashlight.

This slingshot has been built to withstand the toughest conditions. Full stainless steel construction with a matte black finish. How many slingshots have you seen recently with a steel cable attached to EIGHT sets of high tension rubber bands?

Weight 1.8kg / 4.4lbs
Size: 70cm x 20cm / 28″ x 8″
Range: 100+ meters
US$249.95 (Nov 2018)

See: https://www.hammersurvival.com/products/rs-x7-slingshot-crossbow?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI5eDKm_rc3gIVBYhoCh2HOwJaEAEYASAAEgLfu_D_BwE

They are obviously a lot of fun, aren’t they? And might even be enough to put a bunny or two on the table. They do ship direct to Australia, but good luck with customs and nanny state spoilsports.

15/11/2018: Thindown: A new down insulation material. Thindown creates this fabric by adding an adhesive to the down after it has expanded which then traps the down between two ultralight layers of fabric so what it can no longer move around. This means that the resulting product can be used in many different ways to create a range of new down garments and products which do not require channels or quilting. It also makes the down garment much more washable or even dry-cleanable. It is a brilliant idea, and will seriously challenge synthetic insulation.

One of the first manufactures to use this product is Eddie Bauer. Below their beautiful ‘Evertherm’ jacket.12.64 oz. US$299 (Nov 2018)

LOW ACTIVITY RATING 40°F.
MODERATE ACTIVITY RATING -20°F.

See:

https://www.thindown.it/

https://www.eddiebauer.com/product/mens-evertherm-down-hooded-jacket/38832324

https://gearjunkie.com/revolution-eddie-bauer-launch-fabric

13/11/2018: The Fastest Hiker:

12/11/2018: Ultralight Cigar Case: Something for the ultralight hiker who has everything (with Xmas always coming up). But these might also be quite serviceable as ultralight glasses cases, if you can’t afford a plastic jar of Hormel Bacon Pieces at 33 grams (which I keep my spare pair in) or this free idea at 12 grams!

Massdrop price US29.99

10/11/2018: Why Miriam Lancewood lives in the wild, hunting her own food: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-11-07/miriam-lancewood-woman-in-the-wilderness/10460704?fbclid=IwAR3bjo_QQZg8HPyko9hEb0mQFrozvtAX6VfXhBFGiHL7J2Ut01ODXzhaX0c

08/11/2018: I Just Love Hats: I guess you’ve noticed I am almost always wearing a lid of one kind or another. Here are two I think would be good for the outdoor life (hiking or hunting): Enlightened Equipment’ s Hooligan and Sealskinz’ Waterproof Beanie.

This is the Hooligan at .85 ounce (21 grams – A$76.24). It is very similar to the ‘Bomber Hat’ Della sewed me from a kit bought from Ray Jardine (the ‘father of ultralight’) many years ago – and which has seen excellent service over the years. Such a hat is the best weight-for-warmth investment you can possibly make. I am never without mine. Now you can buy one just like it – even the same colour as mine! On wet.cold days it fits snugly under your raincoat hood. Even if it gets a little damp the synthetic insulation dries ourt very quickly. Usually I reserve the hat for sleeping on cold nights or for keeping my head warm in camp. You have probably noticed the Icebreaker cap I usually wear during the day.

Their 1.3 oz (32 grams - $A83.17) Hoodlum below is their synthetic insulated answer to keeping your head and neck warm in your sleepiong bag or quilt. You just need a Buff to keep your nose warm and you’re good to go.

I also like these waterproof and windproof offerings from Sealskinz. I have owned their waterproof socks for many years. I used to wear them as night socks before I made myself a pair of ultralight booties. Thie beauty was that you could put your wet boots back on when you wer wearing them when you had to go outside to answer one of nature’s calls.

This waterproof beanie looks just the thing for going around he sheep eg when they are lambing on those cold, wet winter’s days they like to choose. Fortunately for me I have sold of the vast flocks we used to have and only keep a hundred or so for companionship and sentimental reasons! Someone who has been a ‘sheep husband’ for over thirty years has to have something to do in retirement! UKL25.

This waterproof cap may be even better than my Icebreaker obne (especially as they may have discontinued it! You need a peak like this on any hunting cap so that you aren’t dazzled by the light when shooting into the sun. You can guarantee that the best stag you have ever been will have the sun at his back – and soon be gone! UKL28.

This one is a real foul weather hunter’s hat. It’s going to you’re your head dry and your ears warm, as well as shading your eyes from sun and rain. What a beauty! UKL30.

Sealskinz’ Waterproof Beanie

Enlightened Equipment’ s Hooligan

Ray Jardine

https://www.theultralighthiker.com/are-you-beautiful-in-the-buff/

https://www.theultralighthiker.com/19-gram-dyneema-camp-shoes/

Below is another great idea for a ‘sleeping hat’ - but you will have to make it yourself from a kit for US$14.95. This hat is also intended to keep your nose warm (like the Buff).

http://www.rayjardine.com/ray-way/Sleeping-Hat-Kit/index.htm

08/11/2018: Longevity only 7% genetics: https://www.wired.com/story/the-key-to-a-long-life-has-little-to-do-with-good-genes/

05/11/2018: Liptrap to the Five Mile: Fit young people might complete this walk in a single day, but folks with more age or sense will take two or more. It is a beautiful, isolated part of our coastline which we plan to walk again as soon as/if my back is better. Then I hope for an extended foray to Mt Darling this time with my darling, Della. You will need to leave a second vehicle at the beginning of the Five Mile Track (or a bicycle) so you can return to your car at Liptrap lighthouse.

Nonetheless it can be walked, but going around the bottom of Liptrap can be tricky. People used to come up this goat track then down another one just below Evan Walker’s driveway – which can still be done. Lots of wonderful surfing ‘breaks’ used to be enjoyed down there on Maitland Beach in the past, campfires on the beach, etc.

You are looking to come out where that gully below meets the sea:

There is a path across that gully.

After you pass by the locked gate and a bit of dense shrubbery you will come to an open ‘lookout’ which used to be a camping area – one of many which have been closed as the public continue to be denied access to their lands. You can see the grassy path along the other side of the gully to your right from the top. You have to get down and over to it. There are only a couple of ways. The best is to take the path down to your right and cross high. If you take the path to your left and down you can still cross but it is steeper and thicker. If you are coming back, pay close attention, as it can be tricky finding the right wallaby track to ascend on! Hint: both could use a little bit of machete work (See: Nuts to Leave no Trace).

You were looking across the gully for a clear grassy walk like this.

As I explained in the earlier post, there is a goat track down to the beach starting at the locked gate 100 metres back along the road from the lighthouse carpark. Parks Victoria plan to have a continuous walk from Venus Bay along the coast to Bear Gully – and on, but it requires work - as well as planning! Thousands of employees are not sufficient to get any work done – though they can invent more and more rules. It may not be ‘legal’ to walk along this beach, or to camp, have a companion dog with you, catch a fish or pipi. I have long since lost interest in keeping up with the plethora of rules and regulations or paying attention to them. I will pay the fine as my price of admission if ever the day comes!

The Venus Bay coast teems with fish. I have enjoyed many fine feeds of bream and whiting for example and there are vast middens of pipi shells as you walk along the beach left by earlier travelers. They are best washed a couple of times in salt water to get rid of as much grit as possible - but they are delicious!

Once you are on the beach the going is splendid (even with a crook knee and back). To your left you will see a sea cave in the beetling cliffs. It contains a rock bivy you could use for an overnight camp (if you have brought water with you).

It is well above the level of the sea, as you can see:

And has a nice dry flat spot to hang out:

And beautiful views to the West:

Or like this:

The beach looked like it had been painted by a scarlet Jackson Pollock:

You see what I mean by 'beetling cliffs'?

They have spectacular synclines embedded in them.

The view around the corner to the east towards Liptrap.

You should check before you begin this through hike that the Ten Mile Creek which you cross just east of the Buffalo-Ten Mile intersection has water flowing in it, as you will need this water for an overnight camp. There is usually/often water at Mueller’s Creek and from rock seeps along the way. Some may even be found in the very small gully at the Five Mile in wetter weather. There is a patch of cumbungi about 150 metres inland from the beach which is a sure indication of underground water – but water cannot be counted on in very hot weather, so check the Ten Mile Creek before you begin!

We head West.

Lots of sponges in the sea wrack today. This one could have been the inside of a motor-bike seat.

This could be a leftover of one of Christo's wrapped coasts:

The sea has ploughed these furrows very straight.

Around the corner looking West

[embed]https://youtu.be/BI_GLI46HkE[/embed]

Still looking West

There is a lovely little beach here. Looking East along it towards where the previous shot was taken.

And closer up

The pigface was putting on a splendid display.

One of the seeps of fresh water I mentioned coming from the rocks. Such a phenomenon is common along the (Gippsland) coast and can be a lifesaver. You need to be prepared to harvest the water though. And maybe even filter it if it is muddy.

Another day when my back is better I will walk all the way again. There are many other delights to see before tracks end...

At the Five Mile looking back towards Liptrap:

Walking out the Five Mile Track:

I realize you could continue along the beach and exit at Venus Bay, but it is also a pleasant diversion to walk up the Five Mile Track to the Tarwin Lower-Walkerville Sth Road. There are many interesting creatures you might see as you do. There is also a (legal) vehicle camping site (without water) at the beach end of this track. You will have to be looking out very carefully for this (sand) 4WD track when you are dropping your other vehicle/bicycle off. You will know you have the right one because there is a sign forbidding everything just at the beginning - in the usual way.

Of course everyone comes home with a few trophies. The sea is depositing hundreds of semi-trailers worth every day, and we maybe take away a small bucketful. The most interesting thing I found was an old iron ship's rivet which had become encrusted on one end with barnacles.The plants which had used stones as anchors were pretty special too. And the coral which has no trouble growing in these 10C colder waters just as they have no trouble growing in the 10C hotter waters of the Red Sea. As I said before: Nuts to Leave No Trace.

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/the-five-mile/

http://www.theultralighthiker.com/the-great-gippsland-circuit/

05/11/2018: Alex Honnold Free Solo Climbing Capitan. Just about impossible to watch – but then I’m not good with heights, or watching people die…The good news is he doesn’t. Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=53&v=urRVZ4SW7WU or here: https://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/100000006186870/what-if-he-falls.html?action=click&gtype=vhs&version=vhs-heading&module=vhs&region=title-area&cview=true&t=21

05/11/2018: Beginning Hiking: (or hunting). Too many people are 'gear junkies' or 'gear snobs’. However, remember this: Grandma Gatewood completed the Appalachian Trail (twice - at 67 the first time!) equipped with a shower curtain as a raincoat, a home-made duffel bag (& etc). I'm sure John Colter and Daniel Boone crossed the continent with considerably less - though they may have carried a rifle. Many folks in the past coped splendidly with much less than what may be considered de rigeur today.

Often I see novices crying out for advice on various forums - usually in the form, 'What should I buy/'. They are almost universally answered with expensive alternatives which must at least work as a disincentive for many to begin the wonderful sports of hiking or hunting - which otherwise would be of such benefit to them, and great fun! Essential to both anyway is developing the skills required for camping out overnight safely, but what to take - not what to buy?

The traditional advice to young brides seems appropriate to me: ‘Something old something new, something borrowed and something blue’. (Incidentally, blue is a really good colour for small camping equipment as there is practically nothing blue in the bush - save things found in bower birds bowers - so that if you drop them they will be easily found, at least by bower birds anyway!) In any case don’t rush out and buy everything ‘new’. Your purchase decision is almost certain to be the wrong one. You will have wasted money, though you may have learned something about whose advice it is best to follow!

If you should visit a 'hiking' store' with such a question in mind, be sure to have a very full wallet - and a strong back, as you are likely to come out with a camel's load of expensive junk you almost certainly do not need. Few such shop assistants will know (or care about) how much the items weigh for example, or even have any extensive experience themselves with such equipment.

It is also quite true that you have something ‘old’ lying about which will do. Take Grandma Gatewood’s shower screen raincoat as a case in point. You really don’t need the latest ‘ultralight’ $500 rain coat when you are unlikely to venture out (the first time – if you are wise) when it is going to rain anyway! A pocket sized space blanket which you will find somewhere for $2-4 is quite waterproof (and warm) and will keep you quite dry – as well as doubling as a ground sheet. It is a bit of a nuisance holding it closed at the front – but so is parting with $500! You can worry too much. Still, you may prefer one of these: http://www.theultralighthiker.com/if-you-could-only-carry-two-things-in-the-bush-what-would-they-be/ You probably already have a $5 umbrella which will suffice anyway.

There are plenty of things in your cupboard will do fine for your first (warm weather anyway) hike. I camped for many years with just a wool blanket on the ground or in a hollow log if it was raining, and a billy. Not much else – and I am still here. The swagmen of yore rolled all their possessions in such a blanket and carried a billy in their hand – and there were once hundreds of thousands of them. Such a ‘swag’

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Peterson’s 12 rules