made a short trip into the Crazy Mountains and thought I'd share a few thoughts on some new gear
I purchased a Steripen Opti earlier and the year and have had it out on several trips- I'm now officially sold
Previously I was using Micropur tabs, liked the weight, didn't like the wait (the taste of Chlorine wasn't terrible, but it's not mountain water taste by a long shot). Before tabs I used several different pumps- heavy and would get heavier as you went, would clog, temperamental and not that convenient.
It weighs 3.6 oz w/ batteries (two CR123's) and will treat ~ 100 liters per pair of batteries. It's easy to use, collect your water (1/2 or 1 liter), hit the button once for 1 liter, twice for 1/2 liter- submerge the "pen" and stir- ~ 90 seconds for 1 liter, 45 seconds for a 1/2 liter- no need to count- the light goes out when it's done You have to use containers that are Nalgene bottle size or larger- that was a problem for me as I like Platypus bottle- they are light, but still plenty strong. They are a little tough to fill however- problem solved- I cut a 2 liter platy bottle ~ 3" above the 1 liter mark. Now I have a container that stands up, is easy to fill, can use w/ the Steripen and easily fill my platy bottles all for 0.7 oz 
For solo trips I've always used a poncho-tarp- very lightweight and did double duty for rain gear. The down side is it's really small, so small not a lot of room for you and your gear and if it's raining and windy- you're going to get wet. I wanted a solo shelter that was still light, but w/ more room- enough room that I get my pack under it and could cook in it if the weather was bad. After looking at a lot of shelters I settled on the MountainLauerlDesigns Solo Trailstar- at 10.8 oz it was light, and the photo's/specs showed it to be pretty roomy as well.
Part of the light weight is that it uses your trekking poles as part of the structure- saving weight of poles. Setup is easy stake the four corners, put the center pole in, put the other pole in the vestibule and stake out. If your expecting wind, stake the rear guy out. You can pitch it tight to the ground for very inclement weather or high for nice weather.
rear of the shelter
from the front
with the bivy/sleepingbag/pad
after a couple of night out I think a guy could get by w/o the bivy, at 7 oz though it serves as ground cloth, bug protection and probably adds 5 or so degrees to the sleep system- I think in the future if the weather looks decent I'll leave it at home, if rain is the forecast I'll bring it just in case.
there are several small clips in the shelter, perfect to hang my hat and keep from stomping on my sunglasses
all in all I'm very happy w/ this shelter, plenty of room for me and my gear and would be easy to cook from the vestibule- I'll take the weight hit on this one
next up is my new stove, it's a Four Dog Bushcooker (LT1- they come in several sizes, this being the smallest)- it's meant to burn wood, but also burns Esbit tabs or alcohol. Weight is a svelte 2.1 oz, made entirely of titanium. I used Esbit in the evenings and wood in the morning (nice to warm your hands on)
Esbit mode
wood mode
it was rather cool in the mornings (high 20's) and a guy definitely needs his hot coffee!
leave you with some scenery
I purchased a Steripen Opti earlier and the year and have had it out on several trips- I'm now officially sold
Previously I was using Micropur tabs, liked the weight, didn't like the wait (the taste of Chlorine wasn't terrible, but it's not mountain water taste by a long shot). Before tabs I used several different pumps- heavy and would get heavier as you went, would clog, temperamental and not that convenient. It weighs 3.6 oz w/ batteries (two CR123's) and will treat ~ 100 liters per pair of batteries. It's easy to use, collect your water (1/2 or 1 liter), hit the button once for 1 liter, twice for 1/2 liter- submerge the "pen" and stir- ~ 90 seconds for 1 liter, 45 seconds for a 1/2 liter- no need to count- the light goes out when it's done
You have to use containers that are Nalgene bottle size or larger- that was a problem for me as I like Platypus bottle- they are light, but still plenty strong. They are a little tough to fill however- problem solved- I cut a 2 liter platy bottle ~ 3" above the 1 liter mark. Now I have a container that stands up, is easy to fill, can use w/ the Steripen and easily fill my platy bottles all for 0.7 oz
For solo trips I've always used a poncho-tarp- very lightweight and did double duty for rain gear. The down side is it's really small, so small not a lot of room for you and your gear and if it's raining and windy- you're going to get wet. I wanted a solo shelter that was still light, but w/ more room- enough room that I get my pack under it and could cook in it if the weather was bad. After looking at a lot of shelters I settled on the MountainLauerlDesigns Solo Trailstar- at 10.8 oz it was light, and the photo's/specs showed it to be pretty roomy as well.
Part of the light weight is that it uses your trekking poles as part of the structure- saving weight of poles. Setup is easy stake the four corners, put the center pole in, put the other pole in the vestibule and stake out. If your expecting wind, stake the rear guy out. You can pitch it tight to the ground for very inclement weather or high for nice weather.
rear of the shelter
from the front
with the bivy/sleepingbag/pad
after a couple of night out I think a guy could get by w/o the bivy, at 7 oz though it serves as ground cloth, bug protection and probably adds 5 or so degrees to the sleep system- I think in the future if the weather looks decent I'll leave it at home, if rain is the forecast I'll bring it just in case.
there are several small clips in the shelter, perfect to hang my hat and keep from stomping on my sunglasses
all in all I'm very happy w/ this shelter, plenty of room for me and my gear and would be easy to cook from the vestibule- I'll take the weight hit on this one
next up is my new stove, it's a Four Dog Bushcooker (LT1- they come in several sizes, this being the smallest)- it's meant to burn wood, but also burns Esbit tabs or alcohol. Weight is a svelte 2.1 oz, made entirely of titanium. I used Esbit in the evenings and wood in the morning (nice to warm your hands on
)Esbit mode
wood mode
it was rather cool in the mornings (high 20's) and a guy definitely needs his hot coffee!
leave you with some scenery
