[Disclosure – The Berghaus Akka Mens Down Jacket was provided on behalf of Berghaus for free, and I have passed it onto Tim to keep in return  for him giving his own personal opinions on it based on his outdoor activities. Neither Berhaus, nor their agents, have any influence on his views or any editorial control]

Over to you Tim:

‘Down Jackets. To me they have always meant Puffa, Pony Club, Sloane Rangers, and the Michelin Man (yes I’m of a certain age). So when the opportunity to have and use one was offered recently, I was of two minds as to whether I should accept.

However, I had been finding that the winter months (and more importantly the wind chill) were defeating my trusty Craghopper 3 in 1 jacket. I was either sweltering inside the thick, not very breathable fleece and coat, or freezing the moment I unzipped and the sweat evaporated. (To be fair, this may also be attributed to my still wearing cotton t-shirts at the time. I told you I was of a certain age!)

So I put my 1970’s fashion concerns aside and accepted the offer. While waiting patiently for the postman to arrive, I looked into down jackets and found they have actually been around for much longer than I thought.
People have been employing duck and goose down for bedding and other pieces of clothing for centuries. How many of us sleep almost every night under a down quilt? The down vest and outerwear had been manufactured and distributed in the United States from 1911. But Eddie Bauer (he of the clothing label) was the first person to make a goose down quilted jacket back in 1940. He came up with this idea when he was out catching hypothermia on a fishing trip. He was contacted by the Army Air Corps to create more of these jackets for pilots to be able to defend them from the chilly weather in high altitudes. Following the war, down jackets and coats were adopted with a passion by the outdoor community for their heat trapping, wind stopping, lightweight advantages.

The postman finally dropped off a package and I happily opened it up to see what down jackets in the 21st century had to offer… and found myself straight back in the 1970’s! It was brown, a chocolate brown! I could quite see Jack Nicholson wearing this between takes on ‘Easy Rider’.

However, and much to my surprise, the colour has grown on me in the month and a bit since it arrived. It’s not a colour I would have chosen, but it does actually work.

The important part is under the outer shell anyway. The Akka jacket has an “80/20” fill, this means it is 80% down and 20% feathers. This appears to be toward the higher of the scale when comparing the mix available which can start as low as “50/50” (50% down, 50% feathers), up to “90/10”. 100% down jackets are not possible as down cannot be sorted that effectively (there will always be some feathers).

The Akka also is rated as a “600 fill power”. The Fill Power is most basically the size of the down clusters and ability of the down to loft (fluff up). The higher the number, the better quality the down is, and the warmer the jacket will be. The range is from 500-750, so a 600 loft is…average. However, bear in mind that anything over a 700 is made from an exclusive and expensive process involving hand harvesting particular geese bred specifically for the purpose. So a 600 is actually toward the higher end of the main stream.

But what does this mean to someone wearing an Akka Jacket? It’s warm. OMG it’s WARM! After wearing a few times I actually toyed with the idea of hatching eggs in the pockets to see if it could be done. I stopped wearing gloves as much; I found I just didn’t need them. If my hands got cold, I simply put them in the pockets and they were instantly warm. Inside the jacket it was the same. Once zipped in I found I just did not get cold. No matter the outside weather or wind chill, I found myself at a comfortable temperature, often with just a base layer underneath. A fleece was too much, except in minus degree weather, and seemed to prohibit the natural temperature regulation.

I have stood on hilltops in blowing gales in the Akka, and conducted very unscientific experiments (driving home from work at A road speeds with all the windows open. In January), and have yet to be bothered by windchill. You can feel the wind pressing on the jacket, but it does not seem (to me) to wick the heat away. This is a big deal to me as I’ve always been one of the types that don’t mind how cold it gets, but one puff of wind chill and I’m shivering.
I also like the weight, or the lack of it. At 645g it feels like you’re putting on air (which in a sense, you are). It is so much lighter than my previous jackets. For instance my Craghopper Kiwi Jacket is 1459g, over twice the weight!

And it’s comfortable, very comfortable. Putting it on feels like slipping into that old pair of walking boots that you’ve taken years of wearing to shape into that perfect fit. I have the large Akka, and at 5’9” and 200lbs I find it to be a good fit. Hugging enough to keep the chills out, but with just enough room to be able wear a fleece when the temperature truly plummets. I have found no draughts down the neck or up the back when zipped in. The cuffs also seal well, even over gloves, and the collar zips up tightly enough without that ‘strangled’ feeling I’ve had with other jackets.
I have not gone out in heavy rain in the Akka, but it seemed to fare just fine in light rain. Water seemed to soak into the polyester, but not affect the down within.

The Akka has become the jacket I reach for since I received it. Whether it’s going to work, walking the dogs, offroading, or outside by the firepit till 2am, it’s the jacket I want to be keeping me warm. Though to be fair, the Akka is not often by the firepit. I have a ‘sacrificial’ old coat I wear for that due the all too often flying ember damage risk.

Which brings me to a downside I have found with the Akka. I worry about it. I worry about how easily it may be damaged. I worry about what is around me and if it might tear the jacket. Not a concern I’ve had with previous outdoor jackets. It’s just that the Akka is too ‘lightweight’. The polyester feels so flimsy, so thin. I have, unfortunately, brushed against thorns while out walking the dogs (they were hanging out from the hedge I was trying to avoid) , and now have 3 small tears in the right sleeve. On the bright side, they are not growing so perhaps the polyester is some form of ‘ripstop’.

Something else that bothered me a bit was the tiny inside pocket. Tiny to me anyway. I use a Galaxy Note loaded with Viewranger (digital OS maps) as my primary navigation when out walking/hiking, and traditionally keep it in my inside jacket pocket so I can pull it out quickly for a location update. In the Craghoppers I’ve previously worn, it’s not been a problem due to the large map pocket found in the jacket, but it doesn’t quite fit in the Akka jacket inside pocket. It’s not really an issue as I have plenty of pockets in my hiking trousers, but I do now find myself having to think which pocket I use instead.

The final minus for me, at least until later in the year, is that, as I mentioned at the beginning, the Akka is warm. OMG it’s WARM! This has been a huge plus until recently, but with the change in the weather the outside temperature is now often above 5c. This is making the jacket too hot for me, even unzipped. I would consider the AKKA to be strictly a one season jacket, and the season appears to be over.

But when the temperature drops again and the icy North winds return, the Akka will be the first jacket I reach for.

A massive thanks to Tim for putting together the post and for agreeing for me to publish photos of him (sadly he refused to provide any photos of eggs hatching in the pockets!).

The Berghaus Men’s Akka Down Jacket has a list price of £140 (it is currently out of stock on the Berghaus website, but you can pick up the black version for £84 from Field and Trek)

[Disclosure – The Target Dry Mens Origin Insulated Jacket was provided by Target Dry for me to keep and to give my own personal opinions on based on my outdoor activities and they have no influence on these views and no editorial control]

The Origin Insulated Jacket is available in a single colour – Liquorice (an off black with red zips and inner lining). Actually a surprisingly nice combination as I discovered when the jacket arrived (I do not look like a Rowntree fruit gum as @welshracer suggested). Having had a token look at the size guide (and comparing it to the clothing I happened to have on), I opted for a large however, whilst the jacket fitted around my chest and shoulders nicely, it was too short on my arms and body.

Target Dry’s exchange policy is that, as long as the item has not been worn (other than being tried on) and still has the original tags attached, they will exchange the item (or refund you). I sent back the large, and in a few days had an extra large. The length on the arms and body were better, but still felt slightly a touch on the short side, especially the arms (it failed the ‘sticking arms out straight’ test, although as my mother says you would never normally do that!), whereas the fit across my chest and shoulders was now slightly too loose (which presumably has an effect on heat retention).  I am 6’3 and relatively slender (this side of Christmas at least) – and my frame seems to fall between Target Dry’s sizes.

The Origin Insulated Jacket has 200gsm Thermolite Plus – a hollow core fibre technology apparently inspired by polar bears (essentially it works by trapping lots of little pockets of air in synthetic fibre). I do not particularly want to get into a down vs synthetic discussion, but for my outdoor needs synthetic makes a lot of sense –

Pros:

• More affordable
• Still provides insulation when wet and dries quicker (it always rains when I hike)
• Easier to care for (in theory machine washable – although see below)

Cons:

• Not as long lasting (well looked after down can last years)
• Heavier and bulkier than down (not significantly enough to bother me)

Target Dry’s blog describes the jacket in their blog as ‘toasty’ and after over two months wear I would have to agree.  I have worn it from a few degrees below freezing whilst camping in Shropshire (and several times waiting for buses) upwards (wearing both decent outdoor baselayers and normal every day t-shirts), and my body has always felt warm – I would certainly be happy to rely on it for warmth down to the temperatures I am likely to use it (my sleeping bag is rated for comfort down to -5 degrees centigrade – lower than that and I will be in front of a warm log fire, so I cannot comment on how the jacket performs at more extreme temperatures). It also seems to maintain a constant body temperature despite different external temperatures and it’s wind proof properties proved effective on gusty hill tops (although the size issue does mean the neck is a bit loose – so a buff is sometimes needed to block drafts unless you put the hood up).

Other than the warmth, the other thing that really impressed me with the Target Dry Origin Insulated Jacket is the comfort – it is lovely to wear! The outer shell feels soft and the jacket does not feel bulky – I have been known to wear it all day in my garden office (in fact it is probably fair to say I have worn it most of time!). The two side pockets have a soft inner lining and I found them to be in the perfect height and position for my hands (there is also a third internal pocket).

The jacket cuffs are elasticated and covered with a soft material – I find the elastication to be sufficient to trap my gloves under, but loose enough to be comfortable and unrestrictive. One cuff however does show some signs of wear where it rubs against the velcro straps of my watch (perhaps unsurprisingly!). The jacket has a drawcord on the hem, although I did not really use this much. The jacket has a water repellent coating, which performed well during the occasions it rained whilst I was out walking. I was not able to test it in heavy rain though to see how it faired, what effect it had on warmth and how quickly it dried (I will update this post accordingly when I do).

I usually tend to have a bit of a problem with jacket hoods not fitting my head comfortably (queue big head jokes), however this hood fits quite nicely without being too restrictive. At first glance the hood, which clips at the front with two poppers, seems like it might let in drafts, however it nicely overlaps the jacket providing sufficient shelter and the hood (if you so desire) can be pulled in with a drawcord (that said the only time I tried to do this, whilst writing this post, a bit of plastic on the toggle connecting it to the jacket snapped – the toggle on the hem seems to be a stronger better design though). The hood is detachable, although I tended to keep it attached most of the time – one mildly annoying thing however was that the zip gradually unzips itself over a few days.

After a few weeks of owning the jacket, I discovered that part of the inner lining had torn away from the stitching. I do not remember tearing it and, whilst it is entirely plausible that I inadvertently did, it does look as if it could also have been possible that it was a weakness caused by a manufacturing fault. In the end I did not feel convinced enough it was a manufacturing fault to return the item, but I wanted to mention it for completness (Target Dry do provide a guarantee for two years on defects)

One of the things I have not yet tried is washing the jacket – in theory you should be able to put it in the washing machine on a delicate wash. I will update this post after the first wash.

Conclusion

Overall I am really pleased with the Target Dry Origin Insulated Jacket – it is toasty warm, comfortable and is a fairly affordable mid/outer layer that fits well with the outdoor activities I do. Although I have some concerns on how long it might last (I am very nervous of the brambles on my regular dog walk), it has potentially usurped my Chocolate Fish Merino base layer as my favourite item of outdoor kit.

The Target Dry Mens Origin Insulated Jacket is available direct from targetdry.com for £89.99 (although the jacket is currently has a sale price at £69.99).

Definitely worth considering if you are looking for an affordable insulated jacket (especially at the sale price of £69.99), although check it fits you properly before taking the tags off.

I always think Northamptonshire gets forgotten when it comes to outdoor activities. For the first few years I subscribed to Countryfile Magazine I religiously collected, ordered and stored the ten route cards included each month – whilst almost every part of the country was covered, there was not a single route in Northamptonshire!

Whilst Northamptonshire may not have any mountains (or indeed any hills of note), moors or other ‘exciting’ landscapes, I find it a really nice place to walk – peaceful farmland, picturesque villages, hidden woodlands (and more obvious woodland like Salcey Forest just around the corner from me), stately homes, canals and rivers. And it is quiet – you pretty much have the footpaths to yourself once you outside the dog walking perimeter of the villages.

So it was with some excitement that I spotted ‘Northamptonshire’ mentioned in a Google+ post in my outdoor circle – and not just a passing mention… Daniel Martin (his Google+ profile), an extreme athlete with plans to become the first man in history to swim the Atlantic, was describing a stretch of the River Nene near Tansor, Northamptonshire as his favourite place to swim in the world! (you can view the post on Daniel’s site  - you will need to scroll down a bit).

Wow.

It was only last year that I discovered the joys of wild swimming (or in my case wild bobbing about) – after accidentally choosing a hike in Brecon Beacons that was part of Trail Magazine’s series on wild swimming hikes, followed the following day by a dip in a waterfall plunge pool on this brilliant waterfall walk in south Brecon Beacons. I have never felt more alive or in touch with the outdoors than when I was sitting on the bank drying out with my whole body (literally) buzzing from the experience. This year trips have been few and far between, although I did introduce my partner’s daughter to wild swimming in the Tavy Cleeve on Dartmoor, so discovering there is an excellent swimming spot somewhere just down the road from me  means I can have the chance to go for a dip more often. Although he may have been joking, Daniel has invited me to join him for a swim one day - apparently it is more beautiful the colder it gets!!

And it is great to see Northamptonshire get some recognition for outdoor activities.

You can read more about Daniel, his expeditions and his experiences outdoors, on his website, and you can follow him on Google Plus and Twitter (he is using the hashtag #MyFaveSwims for the series on his favourite swimming spots).

Tempted to go hiking in Northamptonshire? Check out the Northamptonshire Round - a route around Northamptonshire including some of the best parts created by a bunch of hikers keen to show off what Northamptonshire has to offer. There are also loads of resources on Google.

(Many thanks to Daniel Martin for permission to use his photos)

I wanted a family tent with a sleeping compartment that could comfortably sleep three adults with room to spare, had a decent sized living area, that I could stand up in (I am 6’3), was reasonably priced and would last more than a few years. Initially I started by looking at the larger Outwell tents but was slightly disappointed – whilst the quality was good, the shape of the living area meant that the usable space was less than the actual size of the tent. They were also quite expensive – especially if you wanted extras like a porch or awning.

Then I discovered Kampa - not a brand name I had heard of before (I believe they originally specialised in caravanning equipment). A representative from Camping World told me that their tents, which they have been doing for a couple of years, were proving popular and the feedback was positive, and this was backup by the few reviews I could find on the web.

The Kampa Carbis 5 is a five berth tunnel tent with a three man and a two man compartment, measuring 180cm and 150cm by 210cm, with a dividing zip barrier between the two. The main living space, excluding the sleeping area, is 290cm by 330cm, and there is a porch included (a further 130cm by 330cm). One of the features I really liked the idea of is the removable front door – it’s primary position is between the living area and the porch, however you can move it to the front of the porch increasing the size of the living area (or remove it completely). The tent is available for £339 from Camping World.

On arrival at our campsite, Kinrowan Park in Cornwall (review to follow), we unpacked the beast (it weights 27kg). It was quite simple to put up – essentially consisting of five parallel fibreglass poles that you stretch out (aided by two inner steel poles lengthways) and stake down. The marketing photos do make it look more like a greenhouse (with all the window blinds up), but in the flesh it looks much more tent like. I was impressed with the quality of the tent – the heavy duty zips and taped seams, and the finishing touches: the electrics port and cable ties for a hanging light, the tent organiser and the included poles to turn the side door into a canopy (oddly not advertised as a feature). The Carbis 5 has a bathtub groundsheet but, as the front door is  removable, there are Velcro fittings to seal it to the door – these took a few attempts to get a nice seal.

Then it rained, and rained, and rained… all evening and all night.

Generally the tent kept the water out, although there were a few small puddles forming underneath the front two windows – it was hard to identify exactly where the water was leaking in from, either from the seams or where the vent supports put pressure against the tent (the vents were misshaped from being squished in the tent bag). It was a minor annoyance rather than a disaster – the tent instructions also have a paragraph about ‘your expectations’ regarding the seams, and we later found some sealant included with the tent that would have solved the problem.

Unfortunately, after our single night in the tent, disaster struck. Whilst we were out for the day, Cornwall was battered by strong winds and we returned to the camp site (after a call from the owners) to find the tent had collapsed. The wind had changed direction since we put the tent up and was side on, and the winds were so fierce that the entire tent appeared to be bending flat in the strongest gusts (the strongest the camp site owners had seen on their site). Ultimately it proved too much for the fibreglass poles which eventually snapped, shearing the steal poles – later inspection showed the tent was otherwise undamaged other than a small tear in the sleeping compartment that’s easily fixed.

On later analysis, I do not think either the tent nor our pitching were to blame – I am not sure any tent of that type and size would have survived those winds (and the instructions do mention the tent is designed for reasonable weather not storms). I have to give Kampa maximum kudos (and my thanks) – after hearing what had happened on Twitter, they offered to replace the damaged poles free of charge. The camp site also came to the rescue and rented their cottage on site to us at a discounted rate, saving our holiday.

So, on first impressions and after one night, I am thus far pleased with the Kampa Carbis 5, and I am looking forward to future trips in it in the future (hopefully later in the Summer). I am also very impressed with Kampa as a company for their customer service – worth a second look if you are in the market for a new family tent.

Since I first heard of Walk 2012 and The Games Way, I have been a massive fan of this project – unfortunately I am unable to walk the whole route, but I will be going along to the launch party (on the Friday evening) and walking the first day along the Jurassic Coast. Mark kindly took a break from his final preparations to have a chat with me about the project.

Mark worked for Hackney Council when it was announced on 6 July 2005 that London had won the bid for the Olympic Games 2012 (the day before the tragic bombing attacks in London). There was a lot of excitement - both in London and in Weymouth, where Mark grew up, which would be hosting the sailing events. A gem of an idea formed of organising a challenge, linking Weymouth and London, that would allow us non-athletes the chance to take part and experience this once in a lifetime event ourselves rather than just watching it on the TV like any other Olympics.

After an aborted attempt to walk The Ridge Way with ill fitting boots and carrying too much weight (we have all been there!), Mark’s first proper experience of walking and camping a long distance path was West Highland Way. This experience, and the challenge element of a long distance walk, led him to the decision to create The Games Way, that just about anyone could take part in during the Olympics that would suit campers and B&B-ers.

After an initial trial run to make sure the walk was feasible, Mark has spent the last two years walking and re-walking the proposed route to finalise the details (often with his partner Felix), and he has produced a brilliant downloadable guidebook which details each stage of the route as well as suitable accommodation, options for refreshments and public transport available. In fact finalising the route has taken up so much time that, other than a weekend away on Pembrokeshire Coast, all his hiking time has been spent walking parts of The Games Way route!

The route, which is listed as one of the 12 great walks for 2012 by Country Walking Magazine, is officially recognised by The Long Distance Walkers Association (LDWA), and the name ‘The Games Way’ was agreed with the London Olympics Committee (as you can probably imagine anything with ‘London’, ’2012′, ‘Olympics’ etc was off limits).

For more details on The Games Way visit http://walk2012.co.uk, follow @walk2012 on Twitter and ‘like’ their facebook page. The launch party is on Friday 28th July at The Ship Inn, Weymouth Harbour, and the first day starts on Saturday 28th July at 9.30am in Weymouth. Anyone can take part, and you can either walk all the route, or join in on any of the days. You can view the itinerary (including start times and locations for each day at http://walk2012.co.uk/blog/?p=1350)

The full route is:

Stage 1: Weymouth to Durdle Door (14 miles) [Sat 28th July]
Stage 2:  Durdle Door to Wareham (15 miles) [Sun 29th July]
Stage 3: Wareham to Wimborne (18 miles) [Mon 30th July]
Stage 4: Wimborne to  Linwood (17 miles) [Tue 31st July]
Stage 5: Linwood to Romsey (18 miles) [Wed 1st Aug]
Stage 6: Romsey to Winchester (14 miles) [Thurs 2nd Aug]
Stage 7: Winchester to  Bishop’s Sutton (10 miles) [Fri 3rd Aug]
Stage 8: Bishop’s Sutton to Bentley (17 miles) [Sat 4th Aug]
Stage 9: Bentley to Puttenham (12 miles) [Sun 5th Aug]
Stage 10: Puttenham to  Weybridge (17 miles) [Mon 6th Aug]
Stage 11: Weybridge to Putney Bridge (15 miles) [Tues 7th Aug]
Stage 12: Putney Bridge to  Stratford (17 miles) [Weds 8th Aug]

I just about managed to get Mark tied down to a single choice for his favourite part of the route – the first stage on the Jurassic coast!

My one and only experience of the leather production was on a holiday in Fes, Morocco – we stood on the balcony (of a leather goods store now I think about it) looking down on the smelly tanning vats whilst the workers, with seemingly no regard to health and safety, wandered the edges of the vats prodding the skins (Mike later told me that this traditional method is mainly kept going just for the tourists).

Things at The University of Nothampton’s Institute of Creative Leather Technologies are a little different. I was introduced to Rachel, the director of the institute, and, after Mike had finished his lecture, we headed off for some lunch to chat about the institute.

Northampton has a rich history of shoemaking stretching from 1200*, not only due to the proximity of water and oak bark (both required for tanning in the early days), but the county’s location, so it probably should not have surprised me that the University has the world’s best leather research centre, with students attending from across the globe, and a fully working tannery. As well as covering the technical aspect of leather production, the institute works with other disciplines like fashion, development economics, podiatry, wastes management and leather conservation.

* for more information on Northampton’s shoe industry visit http://www.international-footwear-foundation.co.uk

After lunch, I was given a tour around the facilities by Chris, a tannery technician demonstrator. View all the photos from the tour.

Producing leather is a surprisingly complicated process – rather than me incorrectly try and regurgitate details from the tour, you probably might want to have a read of the Wikipeida entry on the leather production process instead!

The tour started in the chemical and research labs – research areas include taking leathers to extremes of thinness, lightness and grip, as well as fire, cut and impact resistance for use in sports and performance. Some of the testing equipment for batch stretching and tearing of leather looked pretty impressive. I was also surprised to find an electron microscope in the Institute which is used by other departments at the University.

This was followed by a fascinating guided tour of the tannery itself – including the shed containing salted hides ready to start the process, the fleshing machine, the spinning drums mixing the various chemicals to prepare and tan the hides, the splitting machine, the shaving machine, the staking machine, the buffing machine and the glazing machine (most of which do sound like torture implements!). It is an amazingly detailed and complex process to take the raw ingredient and turn it into a specific leather ready to be used to create the final end product.

A massive thank you to Mike, Rachel and Chris for spending the time to give me a glimpse into how leather is manufactured, and I certainly have a new found respect for my leather boots and the effort and skill that went into them so I could go out and enjoy the outdoors.

View the photo gallery in Picasa

Base Camp

The original plan for the trip was to camp in our new family tent, a Kampa Carbis 5 bought from Camping World, and we were also quite keen on having a camp fire. There were only a few sites in South Devon / East Cornwall which allow camp fires and are dog friendly, including Kinrowan Park - a lovely small site just off the A38 near Liskard.

Crabbing and Stormy Seas

On the first day we braved the showers to head to Looe, Cornwall. After a wander around the town, we decided, as it seemed to be the done thing in Looe, to have a go at crabbing. Most of the shops sell crabbing kits – a bucket, a line with weight, a small net bag and some fish heads for bait. You put a fish head in the net bag, attached it to the line, and then drop it into the sea. It took us a while to perfect the best place to put the bait (as near the wall as possible) and our catching method (the crabs drop off the bait as soon as it is lifted out of the water, so we scooped the bucket underneath to catch them) but we soon collected 14 crabs – including a few quite big ones.

After a tweet from @onnison, we decided to head to nearby Polperro -  a picturesque fishing village. The weather took a turn for the worse with strong winds coming in from the sea. We climbed up to Peak Rock, which juts out in front of Polperro Harbour, and watched the waves batter the rocks below us.

Unfortunately as we were returning to Kinrowan Park, we were rung by the owners to tell us that our tent had been damaged by the storm. Several of the poles had snapped and sheared in the strong gusts, although it seems the fabric was undamaged. The owners were brilliant in our absence in saving the tent from further damage and offered us the holiday cottage on site for the night.  As the tent was unusable, we decided to upgrade to the cottage for the remainder of the holiday (as it was fortunately available). Kampa has also since offered to replace the poles free of charge – I would expect most manufacturers would argue that family tents are not designed for strong winds, or that we had pitched it incorrectly,  so full kudos to theml.

Plymouth Hoe

My late grandparents owned a block of flats on Plymouth Hoe, and every Summer we used to have a family holiday to Plymouth. I remember sitting on the balcony with a pair of binoculars watching the Royal Navy ships and submarines coming in and out of harbour.  Plymouth Hoe is famously where Sir Francis Drake was playing bowls when he was informed of the approach of the Spanish Armada – he is said to have remarked that there was plenty of time to finish the game and still beat the Spaniards. Plymouth Hoe is also the site of several war memorials including one for all the sailors based in Plymouth who have died at sea in conflict – if the names upon names of sailors is not moving enough, as you walk around the memorial you realise the memorial extends much further on the level below with even more names.

Rock Pools between Seaton and Downderry Beaches

At high tide, the sea closes off Seaton and Downderry beaches from each other, but as the tide withdraws it leaves behind a whole network of rock pools, mini salt lakes and beaches to explore. Although we failed to find any crabs or fish left by the sea, we did come across a huge colony of winkles (common periwinkle) which we harvested. Winkles are small edible sea snails – we boiled them, picked them out of their shells and ate them covered in oil and vinegar! After exploring the pools, we popped into the Inn on the Shore (after a tip from @dansantillo), which sits on the cliff overlooking the rock pools, for a pint of Dartmoor brewed ‘Jail Ale’.

Dartmoor: Ponies, Wild Swimming & Camping

After parking at the foot of Cox Tor, we went on a short walk (about 3 miles) to visit the Dartmoor ponies. We headed to Pew Tor via Feather Tor and returned via Heckwood Tor to get a look at the forbidden Vixen Tor. The weather was not too bad, just a few showers, and there were plenty of friendly ponies to be found.

We then headed to the car park at the foot of Ger Tor and, after some lunch, followed the stream down to a deep pool on the Tavy Cleeve – the water was freezing, but it was once again a fantastic experience to swim outdoors.

Back at the car park I was left by my family to make my own way up to Lynch Tor for a wild camp. The views across Devon and into Cornwall were amazing, although I could see the low hill fog coming in. In the morning however I awoke to a bright sky and sunshine. After breakfast I headed from Lynch Tor to White Tor, then back around to Roos Tor, Staple Tor and finally Cox Tor where the dog and I basked in the sunshine waiting for my lift to arrive – I did not see another human being for nearly 14 hours.

Body Boarding in Salcombe

After an enjoyable drive through South Dartmoor we headed to the seaside town of Salcombe, Devon. After a wander on North Sands, the dog friendly beach, we decided to put the seemingly quite large waves to the test and bought a body board. The sea was at least slightly warmer than the river on Dartmoor although the waves were not ideal for body boarding! After warming up we paid a brief visit to Bigbury-On-Sea to walk across the sand to Burgh Island, before discovering the excellent Dolphin Inn, a lovely fish restaurant in Newton Ferrers.

Canonteign Falls and Quantock Hills

Rather than head straight home on our final day, we headed to Canonteign Falls, the largest waterfall in England. Whilst the falls are quite spectacular, I have to admit to being a little disappointed to discover that they were engineered by the Victorians! Our final stop (other than a tea stop at Stow on Wold) was to the Quantock Hills – again in search of ponies. The Quantock Hills is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with some fantastic views across Somerset.

The first problem is where do I post things? For example a review of a social network for sharing location specific photos: outdoor blog or web blog? A tutorial on setting up a blog to share outdoor experiences: outdoor blog or web blog? A post on the talk I did at innovex on the web, mobile apps and the outdoors: outdoor blog or web blog? You get the idea!

The other problem is updating: I was finding it harder and harder to keep up to date multiple blogs, I was losing the conversation as I jumped between blogs, and I was avoiding writing posts I wanted to write because they did not really fit with either blog.

The solution: philsorrell.com

philsorrell.com

Excuse the vanity url!

philsorrell.com is made up of three sections: ‘The Outdoors’, ‘The Web’ and ‘Sharing Adventures’ (easily accessible from either the menu on every page or the three featured boxes on the homepage)

• ‘The Outdoors’ replaces mycountryside.org.uk – it will continue to be my place to share my outdoor experiences in the countryside, including trip reports, reviews and other things related to the outdoors.
• ‘The Web’ replaces daylightgambler.com and will cover the internet, developing for the web and being a freelancer.
• ‘Sharing Adventures’ is a new (and currently sparse) section that will cover using the internet and social media to share your adventures. I hope to also include some great examples of what others are doing, as well as looking at concepts coming in the future.

Each section is separate with it’s own slider (the photos at the top of page of featured stuff) and sidebar (so for example ‘The Outdoors’ sidebar has outdoor categories, latest outdoor posts and outdoor related links). More importantly, each section also has it’s own RSS feed – if you are not remotely interested in sharing your adventures or in the web, then you can just subscribe to ‘The Outdoors’ feed (there is also a feed you can subscribe to for all posts, which available from the homepage).

Existing subscriptions

If you were already subscribed to mycountryside.org.uk, then your subscription will have automatically been transferred to philsorrell.com: The Outdoors. Likewise if you had subscribed to daylightgambler.com, this has been transferred over to philsorrell.com: The Web.

Apologies for the few stray posts you would have received during the transfer – there was as glitch in the redirects!

Mobile / tablet friendly

As befitting a web developer, the new site template is mobile friendly. The site uses a technology called ‘responsive design’ – basically this means the layout of the site is changed depending on the size of the device you are using. Where possible content in the posts, like images, are also resized before being downloaded to keep the site as light as possible if you are on your mobile.

Feedback

I would really appreciate any feedback you may have on the site. There is a contact form at the bottom of every page, or leave a comment, send a tweet, get in touch on Google+ etc.

Now to get on and write some blog posts!

(It is probably worth mentioning that both my personal blog and the Social Hiking blog will remain separate)

Charlie, who studied History at university, decided, perhaps slightly foolishly considering he was not much of a hiker, to walk in the footsteps of some of the famous (and not so famous) figures from British and Irish history. These are not just short walks but in some cases some pretty epic trips – for example following King Harold’s route from Stamford Bridge near York to the site of his ultimate demise at Battle just off the South coast.

The book includes Boudica’s revolt, King Harold’s march south, Olaf the Dwarf (King of Man), Owain Glyndwr revolt against the English, Mary Queen of Scots escape from Loch Leven, Bonnie Prince Charlie hiding out in Western Isles and the tragic Doolough Famine Walk.

From the first chapter I was immediately drawn into not just Charlie’s journey through history, but his personally journey of hiking discovery.

She used words I’d never heard before, words like ‘wicking’ and ‘tog’. The list she’d made looked frighteningly long. My list hadn’t really got beyond ‘rucksack’, ‘cagoule’ and ‘biscuits’.

My choice to walk Offa’s Dyke was largely due to the historic nature of the route (and the castles, abbeys and other historically significant locations I would encounter along the way) – but I at least had the luxury of an existing defined route. Charlie put together his journeys based on research and a bit of guesswork of the likely routes his historic figures would have taken which, in the case of Boudica, left him with a few problems on the ground as he attempted to walk down the A140! All is not lost however when he discovers the wonder of OS maps:

In that moment I knew my walking life would never be the same again….. Suddenly my journey had acquired another dimension. I was seeing the map in layers, in relief. I wasn’t just looking at a map, I was reading it.

Each chapter covers a different historical journey – rather than being a step by step route guide, Charlie concentrates on the story behind the characters and the places he visits, and the stories of the fascinating people he meets. I really enjoyed how he imagined the thoughts and feelings of the people involved, for example at a war memorial following Harold’s progress south he ponders the feelings of the new recruits signing up to defend their country:

I felt a pang of sorrow that Harold’s soldiers would never have their names on a memorial like this one. Their names are long forgotten, their lives a mystery.

Charlie brings to life the history around us. As he discovered the joy of walking, the peacefulness of the outdoors and the slower pace of life when undertaking long hikes, I was reminded that the mountains, hills, woods and fields of these islands and the people who inhabit them hold the memories of our history – “history is irrefutably alive”.

I really enjoyed “And did those feet” – it is an interesting yet funny read about hiking and history which will inspire you to get out there and walk amongst our history.

I just have to share my favourite part of the book, as Charlie puts on some of his new hiking kit for the first time:

I put on the pants, curious to see if they lived up to the hype. I stretched, I squatted, I lifted my knees in an exaggerated marching movement ; I even tried an ill-advised star jump.. I was, frankly, amazed. This was by far the most comfortable item of underwear ever to pass my kneecaps.

We have all been there!

Kit

Having a clip was absolutely indispensable - it is so handy to easily be able to clip the dog to pretty much anything. The clip I have is a large lightweight clip (in fetching pink) – I think it originally came from a camping store. When not in use it just clips to the side of the rucksack, although I have been known to walk ‘hands free’ with the dog clipped to my side (on her Halti so she does not pull – this does require a bit of vigilance though if your dog is a chaser).

On Offa’s Dyke I really wish I had used her Halti every day all day. The constant additional strain on my feet due to her light not ongoing pulling pressure ultimately caused me to damage the metatarsal bridge of my feet, which meant they were in agony for most of the second half of the walk.

The Aqua Sorb towel, whilst a pretty good idea, ended up not really being that useful and just a dead weight in my bag. We were pretty lucky with the weather, so I just tried to make sure she had a swim close to our stopping point at the end of the day, and then letting her dry out of her roll mat during the evening.

Having half a cheap roll matt as a dog bed worked really well – it doubled up as a seat for me during the day on wet ground, it dried quickly, and provided all the warmth the dog needed at night.

For food and water bowls I bought a set of Orikaso folding bowls and plates (there is also a cup in the set, but this is less useful for the dog!). They are cheap, fold flat, and very light – I did a review of them here: http://www.mycountryside.org.uk/2010/05/19/review-orikaso-folding-platebowlcup/. The bowl is great for water, and the plate just about holds a meal worth of food.

Other bits: I would have probably taken less poo bags, as I ended up with loads left at the end. I would probably also now avoid special dog wipes for the first aid kit, and just have a few extra antiseptic wipes. The tick removers were not used, but are still in the first aid kit just in case.

The clip, halti, half roll mat and Orikaso bowl/plate still go with me on any trip with the dog (as well as the poo bags and tick remover).

Food and Water

There was plenty of water available throughout the trip for the dog, but I am still glad I carried some backup water just in case. Since Offa’s Dyke, I have bought a Travel Tap from backpackinglight.co.uk (http://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/product353.asp?PageID=40) -  this allows me to safety drink water from hill / mountain streams, which reduces the pressure of my water supply so I usually just carry a 2l supply for both of us as a backup.

Food is still troublesome. On Offa’s Dyke we probably could have managed without the support vehicle doing daily drops of dog food with a bit of planning and foresight (there were plenty of shops, and where there was not, a pre-planned parcel would have done fine). Even now I still take a few tins and biscuits up into the hills with me for a night camp although I am starting to think about dropping the heavy tins and having more dried food and taking some gravy grannuals to make it a bit more enjoyable for the dog (she hates dried food).

I completely failed to find any freeze dried dog food in the UK – it seems to exist in the US though.

Dog Fitness

When I approached my vet about doing Offa’s Dyke, his response was that as long as she does all the training we do, then she will be just as prepared as we are. Halfway through the hike, after a night of not eating due to a poorly stomach, she was clearly tired – whilst seeing a squirrel would still excite her, she spent most of the morning walking to heel – at this point we made the decision to give her half a day off. She very gratefully curled up in the support vehicle and apparently slept all afternoon (and was back to her usual self the next day). Likewise towards the end of the walk, she started getting tired again, so we gave her another half a day rest before the final (and longest) day. The vet was right – she was as prepared as us – but whilst we knew the overall purpose (to raise money for charity) so could work through the tiredness, she did not. It was the right decision to give her a rest, and if I did it again without a support vehicle, I would include a few rest days.

On our return home, it did take her a few weeks before she was asking for her lunchtime walk with her usual excitement – I think she was worried it would end up being another 13 day trip if we left the house again!

Her paws coped fine – they were slightly worn and a bit tatty by the end, but they did not get sore or cause her any discomfort. I never did try any  boots.

Do you have any advice to give people thinking about doing a long distance hike with a dog?

When outdoors, it never ceases to amaze me how my senses seemed heightened and enhanced – the coutryside seems to come alive with small mammals rustling in the undergrowth, my skin seems to be able sense slight changes in air temperature and wind, and I am suddenly aware of the rich variety of smells.

The outdoors was far from my mind today as I sat on a train on the way back from London reading ‘Seventeen Equations that Changed the World’ by Ian Stewart. I was reading the chapter about logarithms when I came upon the Weber-Fechner Law. This law states:

“The perceived sensation is proportional to the logarithm of the stimulus”

Basically our brains handle relative difference in sensation (from all senses) rather than the actual difference. Put another way our senses tune into the scale of a stimulus – whilst we need to hear quiet sounds like a mouse and loud sounds like thunder, we cannot respond in proportion to both at the same time (or our ears would explode).

So (and I am extrapolating here slightly), as we leave our over stimulated lives to head out into the great outdoors, our senses must be re-tuning to our new environment, and this is the superman-esq feeling of enhanced senses we experience.

Get outdoors and experience it!

(this is presumably the same reason a world class violinist playing one of hardest pieces of music in a Subway station was largely ignored – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/15/the-things-we-miss-a-viol_n_158188.html)

[Disclosure - The North Face Pamir Etip gloves were provided by Webtogs for me to keep and to give my own personal opinions on and they have no influence on these views and no editorial control]

The Pamir Etips are winter gloves that are designed to be useable with capactive touch screens – on the thumb and index finger of each hand are silver pads permanently bonded to the fibre face which creates an electical connection between your finger and the screen. North Face call this technology ‘X-Static’ – rather bizarrely their website stresses this technology “inhibits growth of bacteria”…. whilst silver does indeed have anti-bacterial properties, they presumably are implying that whilst your thumb and index finger tips will stay bacteria free, the rest of your hand will suffer glove rot!? (silly marketing people).

Here is Gareth from Webtogs running through the key features of the North Face Pamir Etips:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcXEMgnqZec

So could I use my phone satisfactorily whilst wearing them?

Generally yes. The pad on the thumb covers quite a large wide area (see photo below) and I found it too inaccurate however, with a little bit of practice, I found I was able to use the smaller index finger pad with sufficient accuracy. Navigating and browsing on the phone worked well and, albeit with a bit of practice, it was possible to use the full keyboard in portrait mode and to tap on small targets on the screen with only some errors. I found long presses more unreliable and these were often interpreted as multiple taps. Typing takes longer but, whilst I would not want to write a long email (or this blog post) with them, typing tweets and other small amounts of text is fairly painless. I did try using Swype on my keyboard, but it was difficult to maintain a constant contact point, which produced poor results.

It is worth noting that it seems to be personal preference whether the thumb or index finger pad works better – @divescidiva for example finds the thumb pad more usesble. [I also have to admit to rather stupidly trying a normal under glove to see if the inaccuracy of the thumb pad was due to the glove fit........ I know. I am an idiot!]. I cannot help feeling that the index finger pads are not in the best place – they seem too low on the finger which feels unnatural when touching the screen.

Over three months of occasional wear, the silver pads are showing a little amount of wear – mainly some tiny holes where the gloves have caught on prickly bushes. It is easy to imagine that the pads are the weak point of the gloves and are likely to wear first. Nick (@Astronick) kindly shared this photo of his old etip gloves after 6 months wear (NB Nick’s gloves are the first generation standard Etip gloves, and were worn regularly during the 6 months)

How are they as gloves?

The Pamir Etip gloves are made of Gore Windstopper fleece. This material proved really good at blocking the wind – I headed out into a storm and despite barely being able to walk, the gloves did a fantastic job of blocking the strong winds. The material is also meant to be good at managing moisture and regulating temperature – I run hot whilst hiking, but my hands did not overheat or sweat and even in sub-zero temperatures my hands remained at a comfortable temperature (although I would not say that they are toasty warm gloves). The gloves have a water resistant coating, and shower drops bead on the glove rather than being absorbed (I also did a snowball fight test – my hands remained dry although the material was beginning to get wet from the outside). I am always dropping my phone, but thanks to the Pamir Etip silicone gripper pattern on each palm, my phone did not once slip out of my hands.

As far as fit goes, the Pamir Etip gloves have ’5 dimensional fit’ and ‘Radiametric Articulation’.. yeah I had no idea either, so I researched them (you know you are Googling marketing gumph when the first hit for both terms is the trademark details):

 5 dimensional fit uses 5 measurements, taken from a single index point of heel of the hand to construct gloves with an accurate and consistent fit

Radiametric Articulation uses fabric patterns that mirror the relaxed position of your hand which improves warmth and blood flow

I do not know about the improved warmth and blood flow from the ‘Radiametric Articulation’, but the gloves do allow a good range of movement for your fingers, and they are comfortable to wear. I have a large pair, but whilst my finger tips are up against the top of the fabric, there is plenty of excess material around each digit – for the thumb especially this excess material is what makes the wide thumb pad hard to use accurately with a screen.

Want to make your own?

As you only need a conductive connection between your fingers and your screen, it is of course possible to make any pair of gloves touchscreen capable, as this video demonstrates: (thanks for @Beuteltiere for sharing)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCuVCrBCDfY

Conclusion

As winter gloves, the North Face Pamir Etip gloves are pretty decent, and they are certainly usable to operate your touch screen device (although in my opinion the pads could be better positioned). Even after three months I still find myself taking of a glove sometimes to type a message, but in bad conditions or just to check the map or take a photo it is handy to be able to keep your gloves on. Overall if you use your phone as much as I do outdoors and want a basic winter glove which you can use on a touch screen, then the extra cost is probably worth it.

You can pick up North Face Pamir Etip gloves for £35.99 from Webtogs (available for men and women). Webtogs also have a range of other outdoor gloves including the three season standard Etip gloves.

I love being outdoors. As a reader of Martin's excellent blog, whether you are into hiking, backpacking, peak bagging, geocaching, rambling, mountain biking or running, you probably feel the same way. If you write about your outdoor trips or share your photos and routes, then you will also understand the enjoyment I get from sharing the outdoors online with others. This sharing works both ways - I do not get outdoors as much as I would like (again something most of you will probably relate to), so I find sharing in other peoples' adventures a great substitute.

Social Hiking is a free geo-blogging website that is all about sharing outdoor adventures online, big or small. Social Hiking merges location information with media like pictures, video, audio, and tweets to create a media rich interactive map which can be followed live or shared later. Do not be fooled by the name - the site caters for a range of outdoor activites (for example see Jilly's epic cycling journey from UK to China)

Social Hiking started life back in April 2010, when a friend and I set off to walk Offa's Dyke (a 177 mile long distance path from North Wales coast to Severn Estuary) in aid of MS Society. I wanted a way for family, friends and sponsors to share the experience with us. The response was brilliant: we had a regular group of people following our progress and interacting with us, which really helped us keep going, we were getting links to local information and history, met a friend of a follower who lived on the route, and had a surprise visit from another friend who tracked us down using the map on her iPhone. The concept was picked up by Phil Turner, Colin Ibbotson and Tim Cooper who encouraged me to create a version for general use, and Social Hiking was born.

Social Hiking is designed to be easy to use whilst you are outdoors - once setup, the site automatically collects your or your companions uploaded media. This can include:

• photos uploaded from your phone or camera via services like Twitpic, Flickr or Picasa
• tweets and your twitter mentions collated into conversations
• video and audio from supported services like Bambuser, Audioboo and ipadio

Your location data can be uploaded as a gpx format file, or collected live using ViewRanger or Instamapper mobile apps, a SPOT gps device or just via geo-tagged tweets. When location data is received a multimedia map is automatically created for you - your media does not need to be geotagged and the site always links each media item back to the original source. The site will even automatically 'bag' peaks for you, displaying the peak information on your map.

Sharing is an important part of Social Hiking - you can setup automatic tweets to notify your Twitter followers when you are sharing an adventure live, all maps can be embedded into your blog or website (we have tried to keep our branding to a minimum), sites like My Outdoors and Walk Highlands support Social Hiking maps and you can even send tweets via the site to auto append a link to that location on your map to give your tweets context as part of your adventure. The site also lets you share routes you plan on doing - these routes can be displayed as a layer on your live maps to show your planned route as well as your actual one. Of course you do not have to share - maps can be private so you can just use the site as a personal reminder of your adventures!

The site really comes alive when you are watching a map unfold live - the route updates live before your eyes as new location data is received, and photo and other media updates appear in the media viewer (next to each map) with a notification counter so you know when updates have been received. As a watcher, you can comment on maps (the site supports custom Disqus accounts, so the map owner can interact with their comments remotely via email) and reply to (or forward) tweets. It is a surprisingly addictive experiece - I usually have a live map in a browser window whenever I am on my computer! I would recommend to anyone interested in using the site to watch a few live maps to experience it from a watchers perspective.

It is great to see a community of outdoor enthusiasts coming together to share their adventures via Social Hiking. Social Hiking is very much a community driven site - user suggestions have led to most of the improvements and new features since the site started, and we are continually rolling out updates to help users get what they want from the site (there are some great new features planned for 2012).

(thanks to Dean Read for use of the photo)

Thank you to Martin for inviting me to write this guest post. If you have any questions about Social Hiking you can get in touch on Twitter (@socialhiking), on Facebook or on our Customer Support Community. Pilgrim Chris has done some great unofficial video tutorials about Social Hiking and how to use the site at http://social-hiking-tutorials.posterous.com/

Reposted with permission from: Summit and Valley – Guest post Phil Sorrell

The wood in question is located just south of Towcester – it is rented out by a local group of bushcrafters who hold regular meets there.  My friend Steve (@sandbag47) and I arrived just after lunchtime on Saturday to be greeted by a handful of friendly bushcrafters who had survived the previous night’s freezing conditions. There was a fire going in the central communial area, which was sheltered by piled up wood and tarps, and dotted throughout the small wood were hammocks and shelters, including a tent and a wig wam. We selected a few suitable trees, and Steve patiently demonstrated how to put up the hammock and the tarp cover – I tried to be a good pupil but, to be honest, I cannot remember any of the useful knots I was shown!

Once our hammocks were up, and after a quick trip to the garage for alcohol provisions, we settled down for the evening in front of the communal fire. The guys were an interesting bunch, and I picked up some great tips applicable to backpacking, including a quick play with the Petzl e-lite. One of the group gave a fantastic demonstration of fire cooking: venison stew and mixed plum crumble with custard, all prepared from raw ingredients on the fire in Dutch ovens. It was delicious! There was of course a knife show and tell – I do not have one, but there was an impressive collection. It was also great to discover one of the group is a regular visitor to Social Hiking.

After a bit more fire chat (and some more wine and whiskey) I made my excuses and headed back to my hammock. Outside the fire’s warmth it was cold – heading towards minus 2 (minus 5 with wind chill) – I slipped into my sleeping bag (complete with silk inner) and gingerly got on. Once the initial swaying had died down (I do suffer a little from montion sickness) I was comfortable. Very comfortable. And surprisingly warm (well not warm exactly but not cold). My sleeping bag (an old Technicals Transition 500) is a 3 season and does not tie up at the hood so I kept my fleece and down jacket on but had stripped to my Icebreaker leggings (a bargain at £20). Along with a merino / posum hat and neck scarf from Chocolate Fish and a pillow made up from another jacket I was very snug and quickly drifted off to sleep.

I awoke at 4am needing the toilet – a situation troubling enough in a tent. There was frozen condensation on the tarp and the ground was icy so, whilst I plucked up the courage to leave my cosy nest, I lay quietly enjoying the night: the hooting of owls, the rustling of nighttime animals and the gentle snores coming from various corners of the wood. It was bliss. I relieved myself and returned to my hammock and attempted a sit up maneuver, discovering that I do not have the balance to sit up in a hammock and fell out – waking Steve, who was hanging off the neighbouring tree, in the process. Feeling slightly embarrassed I snuggled back up and drifted off to sleep again.

I was awakened again at 9am by the bright winter sun which had drifted into my line of sight from behind the tarp. It was a glorious sight – the bright sun was causing the ice around me to glisten spectacularly. I lay there, still comfortable and still not cold. 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep outdoors is pretty rare for me, so that is a good indication if how comfortable I was.

Eventually I clambered off the hammock – the communal fire was burning, thanks to an early riser, and after some morning tea (and a trip to the nearby Super Sausage cafe) we packed up and headed home. I am a total hammock convert – it was (as various people on Twitter warned me) the best night I have had in the outdoors (impressive considering the weather conditions). Plans are already being made for taking a travel hammock (which can be used as a bivi bag) for a whirl. I may need to practice (well relearn) those knots!

Massive thanks to Steve and the guys at the Bushcraft meet – you can find out more about bushcraft meets near you at http://www.bushcraftliving.com/ and http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/

Favourite Event: Just Walk 2011

It hurt like hell at the end, but I did really enjoy the 40km hike across South Downs in aid of MS Research – it was a great route with two nights camping in great company (@ukjeeper, @TheRamblingDuck, and the two MS Trust girls who plied me with Jelly Babies). It was also great to raise £1152 for MS Research (thank you again for everyone who donated).

You can view the route, as well as the photos and tweets, at http://www.shareyouradventure.com/map/os/daylightgambler/2011-05-07

Favourite National Park Trip: Dartmoor

I am not sure if it was the lovely weather, the company or the awesome rugged landscape, but I really enjoyed a weekend in Dartmoor, and I am looking forward to visiting again soon!

Links to the write ups: http://www.mycountryside.org.uk/category/areas-of-uk/south-west

Favourite Experience: Wild Swimming

On a trip to Brecon Beacons in August I discovered wild swimming (or just outdoor swimming if you prefer). It was in a rather slimy pool, but I followed it up the following day in a beautiful waterfall plunge pool (see below) and, to be honest, I am still raving about it. Unfortunately there were no other opportunities for the rest of the year, but this is definitely something I will be doing in 2012!

Related post: http://www.mycountryside.org.uk/category/areas-of-uk/south-west/

Favourite Walk: Waterfalls of Afon Mellte and Afon Nedd Fechan

I am totally in debt for Surfnslide for his original write up of this awesome waterfall themed walk (and the scene for my second wild swim). It is quite possibly one of the best walks I have ever done!

You can view the related blog post at: http://www.mycountryside.org.uk/2011/09/23/brecon-beacons-day-3-waterfalls/

Favourite Camp: Peak District with Gareth and Wales with Lauren

Ok I am cheating here slightly by picking two camps, but honestly my life would not be worth living if I choose a favourite. First up was my first wild camp with Gareth (from Webtogs) in the Peak District in a wonderful spot found by James. This was followed a few weeks later with a glorious little spot on a hill above Lauren’s house. Both fantastic experiences.

Favourite Kit: Chocolate Fish Merino Baselayer

I love my Chocolate Fish baselayer I bought earlier in the year – in fact I am pretty much always wearing it (except of course when it is in the wash…) It has a great fit, remains the same size as it was new (my Icebreakers seemed to shrink down a size over a few months) and still feels fantastic against my skin. They are not cheap – but they are worth it!

Other Highlights

• Spending some quality time with friends both old and new out on the hills, especially @divescidiva
• The Monsal Head outdoor bloggers meet organised by Terry
• Social Hiking – literally blood, sweat and tears have gone into it in 2011!
• Pretty sure I have forgotten something….

and 2012?

2012 is going to be all about taking time to enjoy the outdoors – I have a vague idea about some time out on Dartmoor, as well as more wild swimming and camping.

2012 is also the year of Walk 2012 – a great project that lets you be part of the Olympic experience whilst walking in some lovely English countryside. More on that soon!

Have a good 2012 everyone!

The morning was a little more leisurely than planned – but eventually, after a bacon sandwich, the dog and I were packed into the car heading towards to Ravenstone, just East of Salcey Forest. The weather forecast was for strong winds and showers, however, other than a brief light shower, the rain held off and, whilst gusty, the wind was certainly bearable especially as it was surprisingly sunny (I was thankful I remembered my sun glasses!).

The first half of the walk followed The Milton Keynes Boundary Walk – from Ravenstone to Weston Underwood and then heading towards Bozeat. Being an official trail the route was well sign posted. Although a lot of the route was on quiet tracks, this was made up by some wonderful wood sections (through Kilwick Wood and Old Pastures) and high (for this neck of the woods) views across Buckinghamshire (and possibly Bedfordshire!!)

It is quite unusual to see fellow outdoor enthusiasts out in the countryside, other than a few dog walkers within sight of their villages. As I left Weston Underwood (after passing ‘The Knobs’, a fascinating feature on the main road out of the village) and headed up the bridleway track I was passed by a group of mountain bikers – a rare site in this part of the world.

For a short while, the track was left behind as the trail winded it’s way through Kilwick Wood – I prefer these private managed woods (usually managed for shooting) than the more heavily managed Forestry Commission ones – they just seem wilder and more interesting. The path soon rejoined another quiet track leading to Olney Park Farm and a variety of turkeys, clearly unaware of the fate that lies ahead of them!

After another easy to follow path through some fields, the route entered another wood – Old Pastures. Judging by the signs, the majority of the wood is used as a firing range, but I found a peaceful spot at the junction of several paths for lunch. Guarded by the dog, I settled down against a huge Horse Chestnut tree as I boiled up some soup and put on a brew.

At Horn Wood it was time to leave the Milton Keynes Boundary Walk to head back towards Yardley Chase. Just off the path, well away from any roads or other buildings, was a derelict barn with a remains of some kind of walled garden. I find these old ruined buildings fascinating - what were they used for? Why were they left to go to ruin? Who still visits it? (there was a well worn path through the undergrowth into it!)

At Yardley Hastings, I took another lunch break – basking in the sun on a bench on the village green. I was tempted to pop into the friendly looking pub, but unfortunately I only had enough money on me for a single pint, and I was saving that for the end of the walk! The path from Yardley Hastings into Yardley Chase, which I have walked before, is a rather dull road, but eventually I entered the estate proper (making friends with some huge pigs on the way). The estate is some kind of nature reserve – with information signs about some of the wildlife and plant life. Yardley Chase is also used for cadet training – the last time I passed through, I was accompanied by the sound of machine gun fire!

As the path turned to the South back towards Ravenstone, my feet began to tire. Checking ViewRanger, I noticed that my rough and ready route was a little too inaccurate as I was already approaching 17 miles. Reaching the car I felt completely justified to pop into Cowpers Oak in Weston Underwood for a pint of A380.

It was an enjoyable hike around some quiet and tranquil countryside – I was also mighty impressed with my Defy+ phone: I was running ViewRanger recording a track, BuddyBeacon pinging every 5 minutes and the Audible app running continuously, as well as taking photos and sending / receiving tweets. By the end the battery had only just gone yellow (less than 30%) (with a PowerMonkey Extreme top up at lunch time).

This morning, I was reminded of this as I was mulling over a discrepancy in distance between Social Hiking and a GPS unit, and GPS tracker apps in general (as you do). For my 1000 mile challenge, I have been using ViewRanger to record my progress – ViewRanger is a fantastic app, but feels like overkill when you are not using the maps or Buddybeacon (to share the walk live on Social Hiking). With 170 miles still left to go, I wondered whether it would be a good opportunity to have a look at other options available for recording tracks.

So, for the rest of the year, I have decided to run a group test of GPS tracker apps available for Android. The criteria is simple – the app must be able to record and export a gps track. I will be looking at things like ease of use, accuracy (based on how data compares with peers), cost, battery life, progress features, sharing features and anything else that catches my eye.

As well as being a useful test to run, it will also give me some extra motivation to complete my 1000 mile challenge, and will be helpful in my ongoing testing of the Powermoney Extreme and the North Face Etip gloves.

Diving into Google marketplace, it is really quite surprising how many apps there are that allow you to record a track! I found the following that seem to meet the criteria:

GPS Tracking
Google My Track
Backcountry Navigator
Sportypal
endomondo
Alpine Quest GPS Hiking
Gaia GPS
GPS Essentials
Maverick GPS
Speedview Pro
Trip Track
Viewranger
Ultra GPS logger
Andando
GPS Grid Reference
Trimble Outdoors
Allsport GPS
MM Tracker
Imapmyrun
My Trails
Sports Tracker
Run Bike Route

Let me know if I have missed out your favourite. As the list is quite large, I will do a brief test of all of them, and then choose my top 5 for a more detailed test (including battery performance). The final test results will be published at the end of the year (possibly the start of next year) but I will be using the Twitter hashtag #trackertest throughout if you want to  stay updated with the test.

The MYO XP offers up to 150 lumens (in boost mode – shining up to 97 meters), has three lighting levels, a flashing mode, a diffuser and I found battery life to be good. It does however have some drawbacks – it weights in at 170g (including batteries), it is quite expensive (mine cost £58.50), the buttons are very fiddly (I really struggle to switch it on in a dark tent) and light gets reflected straight into your eyes when the diffuser is up (I never noticed this until @groovy_nut pointed it out – now it is like having the sun burning directly into my eyes. She has a fix involving matt black enamel paint).

The Petzl TIKKINA on the other hand is £19.99, offers a maximum of 23 lumens (shining up to 23 meters), weighs 80g (including 3 AAA batteries) and has two lighting levels (maximum and economic). The torch has a big push button switch – you press it once for maximum beam, a second time for economic beam, and a third time to switch it off. It comes in a variety of garish colours – french rose, electric blue, lime green and orange. I was initially not very fond of lime green (the colour of mine) – but having a bright colour certainly makes it easier to find in my pack than my dark ‘ninja black’ MYO XP.

But with 6.5 times less brightness, is the TIKKINA going to be any use? There is only one way to find out!

[Disclosure - the TIKKINA head torch was provided by Webtogs for me to keep and to give my own personal opinions on it and they have no influence on these views and no editorial control]

I am an occasional night walker – after coming back from the pub I might have a sudden urge to take the dog for a quick wander to see the stars (winter is my favourite time to do this) but otherwise I usually leave my hiking for the daytime. Obviously this is no good when you have a head torch to review, so I headed out on some longer night time wanders…. and made a surprising discovery…..

Firstly walking at night is awesome. Your senses seemed to become heightened – I could feel the change in temperature as I dropped in and out of pockets of warm and colder air, and the smell of the countryside seemed enhanced (sort of like the smell just after it rains but different!). The fields, hedges and trees around me came alive with different sights and sounds – the hooting of owls and the rustling of night time animals going about their business.

Secondly I hardly used either of my torches (unhelpfully for this review). I was surprised how quickly my eyes adjusted – I could see better without light than with it. Tim (@ukjeeper), a regular night time countryside hiker, has written a great guest blog post on his experience of night walking – http://bit.ly/v8cXxs, and his experiences back this up.

There were a few times where I missed the stronger beam of the MYO XP – especially when scanning a field looking for livestock, especially cows. The TIKKINA’s light is only really good enough to light the path in front, although with the ability to angle the beam I could easily cover the ground ahead as well as the dog on full lead. Lowland countryside has quite a lot of easy to follow markers, like field boundaries and tree lines, so the low strength beam was not a hindrance at walking pace, although I needed to use ViewRanger on my phone to cross featureless fields accurately. The beam is unlikely to be sufficient however for faster modes of transport or for use on higher ground, where you need to see further to pick out your route. I did miss the safety of having the facility of a flashing light when walking along a (fortunately quiet) road.

The elasticated strap was comfortable, even over several hours of wear, and without the lighter weight I soon forgot I was wearing it. The beam of the two leds did create an odd effect of areas of slight shadow amongst the lighted areas – nothing major but I did find it mildly distracting as my head was bobbing along (this is probably just me!). In camp, or during cook stops, the TIKKINA was perfectly sufficient and I did not really miss the diffuser on the MYO XP. I found the maximum beam was too bright though and usually just used the economy mode. The lack of a battery pack at the back meant it was comfortable lazing around the tent – in fact I even fell asleep in it after reading!

The TIKKINA is ADAPT compatible. These means that, with gentle (?!) persuasion, the light can be detached from the headband and then fitted to a range of optional mounts for use on a helmet, the strap of a backpack or a belt.

The official battery life figures are 55 hours on maximum and 190 hours on economic, although other reviews suggest this is optimistic (a reviewer on Webtogs claims only 150 minutes on maximum using Duracell batteries). I have used mine for a week camping and five or so night walks, and the batteries are still going strong. I wonder (and I have no evidence for this) whether reduced performance as the batteries drain is more obvious in already low output head torches compared to higher output ones?

Overall the Petzl TIKKINA has surprised me – despite being a budget no frills head torch with relatively low price tag and brightness, it proved to be sufficient for lowland countryside night hikes and camp site use and, whilst battery life still has a question mark, it has certainly usurped the MYO XP as the head torch that goes in my pack by default. However the lack of a flashing option, useful on roads at night, would put me off buying it.

Other Head Torch Options

I did a quick little poll on Twitter to see what other head torches people use and why. Petzl seemed to be a popular choice, and they certainly have a good range of options:

Prices from Webtogs on 27 October 2011 (with the exception of MYO XP)

The Alpkit Gamma was also a popular option, and at first glance you can see why – the large central LED (upto 88 lumens) has a high, low and strobe settings, but there are also three 5mm LEDs (white, green(map reading so contours do not disappear) and red (which strobes)), and a red backlight led (on or flashing). Battery life is less impressive (about 20 hours max) and it is heavier at 110g, but at only £12.50 it is something I would certainly think about (see below on what owners think about it).

Hendrik mentioned a few other options (none of which I had heard of before), worth looking at if you want to keep your pack light and have more extreme uses: the Princeton TEC Remix (spring / autumn), the Petzl Elite (summer), the Fenix HP 10 (winter) and Spark ST6-320CW (winter)

Here is what people said on Twitter:

Petzl Tikka XP. Small but long-lasting power and for short distances good light.
hillplodder

I prefer a small LED handheld torch.
ukjeeper

winter – Myo xp. Older version. Takes AA batteries. Powerful high beam with boost function. Reliable
nigep

cheap £4.99 from Maplins because for over 12 months of use it always works (led lights)
Mattr68

petzel tikka2 had it for years hasn’t let me down…
tookiebunten

Myo XP: very bright, long lasting, comfortable. Doubles as caving light.
ellie_bennett

Tikka XP slightly heavier than the Tikka and Tikkina but massively brighter, flexible with difuser, strong beam and red LED
webtogs

Alpkit Gamma – cheap & does what’s needed (after a mod)
mixedupmessedup

Princeton Tec Remix in spring/ autumn. Petzl elite in summer. Fenix HP10 or Spark ST6-320CW in winter.
hendrikmorkel

petzl tikka or whatever you call it. 100% reliable and nice and light. Looking at getting @Alpkit Gamma though for mtbing
simonjhodge

I have 2. Petzyl Myo 3 which is waterproof & Alpkit Gamma, good illum & light. Also red led at rear.
59MikeBeaumont

@Alpkit Gamma’s rock – awesome light, awesome price. Mine replaced my tikka
tankslapper

Go for the Gamma. Top performance and at fraction of the price. Makes Petzl look way over priced
cooper1258

Petzl Tikka Plus^2 – does the job fine. I’d probably look at a Core model as even the low output mode is quite bright!
Astronick

With the days drawing short, most people’s only option for walking, during the week at least, is going to be in the dark.

Personally I enjoy it. The world at night has a completely different feel to it. Familiar walks can often appear to be quite different when the sun has gone down. Different viewpoints, smells and often wildlife are experienced during the twilight hours. Once you are practised and experienced at walking in the dark, it actually becomes quite easy. Paths are usually easy to find and follow as the dark line on the ground is visibly clearer than the surrounding area.

I am fortunate enough to have good night vision, only having to resort to using a torch on moonless nights or when under tree cover. Perhaps I have particularly efficient ‘rods’ in my eyes. I’m not referring to a horrible industrial accident or some form of cybernetic upgrade, the human eye retina is composed of ‘cone’ and ‘rod’ cells. Cone cells are used for seeing colour and brighter light environments, rods are designed for black and white and low light environments  (ie, the dark).

Molecules of rhodopsin in the rods of the eye undergo a change in shape as they absorb light. Rhodopsin is the chemical that allows night-vision, and is extremely sensitive to light. Exposed to a spectrum of light, the pigment immediately bleaches, and it takes about 30 minutes to regenerate fully, but most of the adaptation occurs within the first five or ten minutes in the dark. Rhodopsin in the human rods is less sensitive to the longer red wavelengths of light, so many people use red light to help preserve night vision as it only slowly depletes the eye’s rhodopsin stores in the rods and instead is viewed by the cones.

Rod cells are also more sensitive to movement. A useful tip when trying to focus in on an object in low light is NOT to stare at the object directly, but use peripheral vision as this uses more of the rods. Look slightly away from the object and move your eyes.

Although the cones and rods work together, it can take a while for your eyes to adjust to the lower light, which can take as much as 20-30 minutes. Before starting off, try as much as possible to allow for your eyes to adjust. It would be embarrassing to fall into a ditch 10 feet from the car (yes, I’ve done it). While out walking, also try to avoid looking directly into artificial light. Halogen floodlights and car headlights are great for the owners, but reset your retinas back to ‘day view’.

As I prefer to walk in the dark as much as possible rather than walking along like an illuminated Cyclops with a head torch, I carry a small, but strong LED torch in my pocket, covering the lens to only emit as much light as I need for the situation. Another option is coloured filters that fit over your torch lens. Just be aware that some, especially red, the most popular filter, will ‘filter’ out the colour red. A colour often used in OS maps. You might not see an important symbol or contour line. Some people prefer to use a blue filter instead.

With the absence of identifiable features and landmarks at night, make even more sure than usual you know where you are on the map and where you intend to go. Its incredibly easy to get lost at night, and often harder to get oriented again.

For those that are lucky enough to have electronic mapping solutions (EG; Viewranger) turn the brightness down as much as possible while still being able to see the display. On more than a few occasions I’ve been blinded by a 7” LCD screen while checking my position. The Symbian version of Viewranger has a ‘night vision’ setting. If you have it, use it.

Also, look in the app market (smartphones and tablets) as there are often (depending on your model) apps that turn your camera LED light into an emergency torch. A useful item to have if your torch happens to die when you least expect it.

Some even have an SOS option, useful if you end up in the unfortunate position of having to be rescued. That little light can be seen for a very long way.

While on the subject of mobile phones and summoning help, it is even more important to leave word of where you’re going and when you should be expected back. If you have a tracking system (such as Viewranger, Instamapper, SPOT, etc) use it, and make sure someone else knows how to look you up if needed.

Searching for a lost soul will take even longer in the dark, and its generally colder (and damper) at night so a quick recovery is a good idea.

Guest post by Tim Cooper – @ukjeeper on Twitter

Thanks Tim for an interesting and useful post!

Very unusually for me I left home without booking a camp site or planning a single route – I just had a vague idea of wanting to walk in The Molwyns. It was approaching late afternoon by the time I arrived in Betws-y-Coed, the gateway into North Snowdonia – there had been plenty of rain in Wales over the last few weeks and the rivers were spectacularly swollen with ominous approaching dark clouds in the distance. My first idea was to head to Dolwyddelan and the camp site near the castle (I like castles and it is on the edge of The Molwyns) – unfortunately the recent rain had meant that the camp site was inaccessible and was closed. So much for not having a plan!

Shallow Falls

I returned to Betws-y-Coed, past the full caravan park in town, and continued down the A5. Just as darkness was descending I came across the Shallow Falls Hotel (and a reassuring camp site sign). It is a terraced camp site – although waterlogged in places (and worn as it was approaching the end of the season) I managed to find a fairly dry flat bit. The heavens opened just I began to get the tent out and the dog watched smugly from the dry car as I pitched the tent in the downpour in double time. Rather than begin my trip damp in the tent, I returned to the pub and pint in hand settled into a corner to dry off. Although the rain quickly eased I felt obliged to have another few pints and sample the pub grub (I was on holiday after all!).

Before heading off in the morning I took the opportunity to visit the Swallow Falls – judging by the roaring of the water audible from the tent I was in for a treat, and I was not disappointed!

Wild Camp in Moelwyns

The weather forecast was not great – although the day was going to start fairly dry with some hill fog, there were going to be heavy showers late afternoon and throughout the night with low hill fog. Not really the ideal conditions for my first solo wild camp. I headed to Croesor, where the peak of Cnicht was only partially obscured by the clouds, and decided to head out with all my kit and see how the conditions developed throughout the day.

I have climbed Cnicht before, so I made it up to the top in good time. The hill fog was patchy with some occasional good views, and there was steady strong wind blowing across the peaks. Just below the summit I stopped to decide my plan of campaign – so far the rain was holding off, so I decided to head deeper north east towards Ysgafell Wen.

Over a lunch of rehydrated potato and salmon in dill sauce I debated my options. I really wanted to wild camp, but I was also very aware that I am not a particularly experienced hill walker and conditions were likely to worsen considerably. Glancing over the map I spotted ‘Llyn Croesor’, a lake just above Croesor Quarry – from Cnicht I had seen the very obvious track that leads up from the village to the quarry. It seemed perfect -a seemingly wild and isolated lake, but with access to an easy to find safe route down the mountain if conditions are difficult.

Rather than retracing my steps, I followed the ridge line for a short while before heading south west along the banks of a (slightly flooded) stream to join the main path to Rhosydd Quarry. I spent a little while exploring the ruins of the water logged quarry trying to imagine what it would have been like in full production. Many of the buildings were demolished when the quarry closed, although some remain partially intact and water was pouring out of the mine entrance (much of the underground workings are permanently under water).

I found a nice flat, dry and fairly sheltered pitch on the shores of Llyn Croesor (it was reassuring, although a little disappointing, to find the lightweight tent peg of a previous resident). It was a bit early to pitch the tent but after a quick check of the route down and a phone call home, the promised rain began, the hill fog descended and a strong wind picked up, so I quickly set up camp. After an evening of reading, thinking and a rehydrated chilli con carni, I fell asleep whilst the elements raged around me.

I awoke to an eerie calm – the wind and the rain had stopped (judging by my broken sleep, just a few hours earlier) and I was surrounded by dense hill fog. After a breakfast of instant porridge I headed to Croesor Quary – the buildings gradually appearing through the fog.  I wandering the remains soaking up the feeling of isolation – it felt like I was in a void with everything around me dissolved to nothing. Eventually I took the easy to follow track back down the mountain –  the real world gradually returning as I dropped below cloud level – and returned to the car.

To be continued…