I've been doing over night trips to campsites with no facilities, byo food and water and usually I'm the only one there. I'm a complete novice so I take it slowly and replace gear that doesn't work with better gear.
First outing - hiked out to an old hut where two trails meet on the side of Mount Wellington, Tasmania.
I learned that Tassie Devils at dusk sound like teenage girls being abducted (scared the absolute crap out of me).
I packed far too heavy, gear was borrowed so didn't have much choice
Lighting fire much harder than it seems, couldn't get the tinder to catch with flint rod, ended up cheating with some liquid fuel.
Experienced a really cold night that taught me a lot about staying warm.
Second Outing
Used much better tent this time around. I learned that chopping wood with a small splitter is next to useless against hardwood.
Still a really cold night even though it wasn't winter and I was wearing thermals
Caught chest infection that kept me off work for a week
Third outing
I learned that school holiday's are not a good time to go camping..... euurgh...Also, crappy short axe from Ray's Tent City next to useless.
Forth outing
I learned how to baton through wood with knives, MUCH more effective than axe.
Used cotton wool balls with vaseline for tinder.
Created a fire reflector with rocks to direct heat towards me and tent
Used new sleeping bag and was toasty all night without thermals
Lastly experimented with hammock and tarp, used some knots I'd seen on youtube with paracord and most of it worked well. Paracord = serious stretch
Fifth outing
Who knows? I'll probably ditch the tent entirely, replace with a Warbonnet hammock and current tarp. Use webbing instead of paracord where possible and keep practicing with my fire making skills. Also use the F1 as much as possible to improvise stakes etc
I figure once I can make fire in damp conditions, stay dry when it's wet, stay warm when it's cold and rest comfortably despite bad weather I'll try something more adventurous like hiking out on an overnight bushwalk in the mountains.
