(Wet and dark) Trek into the woods

T

TFin04

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Aug 21, 2005
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Went exploring tonight with my hiking buddy. We were a little pressed for time and just wanted to get outside. I was supposed to be testing JK's new 1095 blade but honestly didn't have a chance to.

My goal was to work on setting up a shelter and building a fire in wet conditions. It's been raining the better part of the day here so I figured I'd give it a try.

We got in the woods by about 6:45 and had about 15 minutes to collect some fire wood. I chose a pine forest area based on the amount of dead wood that would burn easily.

Hiking buddy Josh:
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Me with my JK Kephart
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Infant stages of my fire. It was started with wet pine needles, wet pine sticks and a PJ cotton ball.
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That's what I'm looking for!
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New JK blade and our gourmet dinner
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Cooking in the canteen cup
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Fun little jaunt, we're gonna go back tomorrow. More pics then.
 
Rained all day yesterday here too. I`d like see an up to date picture of that Keppy to see its "scars." Working on something now that would have made your wood collecting a lot easier. ;)

John
 
Ramen in a canteen cup and getting rained on brings back some memories from long ago, I dis 2 tours in Korea 72 &82 and have cook my share of ramen in and out of the field . The local brand of ramen is like 10X better, we use to put the c-ration meat into it and maybe the cheese as well it was very spice just the thing to warm you up on a cold wet day on top of some Yama.
 
Wow! I finally see what you all were talking about when mentioning Rammen noodles! We also have something like that here in Spain, it is just called "Pasta China". Which is a package of noodles with a little bag of spices inside. There is about 4 flavours but all taste the same to me. In order to save fuel when I go climbing for a few days, I built a pot cozzy out of an old sleeping pad. I put the desired amount of water, the spices and the noodles all at the same time, bring to a boil with a lid on. Once it is roaring I stirr it a bit, count to three, shut off the gas and put the pot into the cozzy. 10-15 minutes after the noodles are perfectly cooked with usually little water left. I just eat them from the pot in the cozzy so they don't cool off. The best news is that you never ever scorch the pot with this system and cleaning it up is as easy as wiping it with some wet TP... or licking it clean! I can fit up to three packages in my 1,2l pot.

Mikel
 
Man, I bet that ramen tasted good in those conditions! It's looking good right now actually. Around here we all call them mr. noodles, as that's the common brand name.
Good job getting a fire going in the wet, you and pitdog make it look easy.
 
The ramen was tasty out there, that is for sure.

John I'm not sure if you want to see the Kephart. It has a mix of natural patina, rust, and gun blue on the blade. It's ugly as hell and I love it that way. Thing is a workhorse for sure.

I'm hoping to get back out there in a couple hours, maybe with my girlfriend this time. She's much nicer to look at than our ugly mugs. Pics to come.
 
Good stuff Bro!! I look forward to them pics.

Nice wet adventure!! Food looks good, cant beat the Ramen!!!
 
If you get a chance, mix a MRE main meal, chicken based (I used to use chicken a la king) a pack of chicken flavor Ramen, and mix in one MRE cracker into a canteen cup after bringing the Ramen to a boil.

You can live for about three days off that single meal. :D
 
sorry to bring back an old thread but is that a surefire e1L outdoorsman on the brim of your hat? :)
 
i was looking into getting one myself, was wondering if you knew what the replacement bulb was
 
jca21 said:
lookng at it again it actually looks like a E2L outdoorsman. lol.
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You are correct, it's an E2L. My favorite surefire. Dual output, usable light on low setting and good throw on high. Run time is excellent for both which is important to me, especially for a 'bushcraft' light.
 
TFin04 said:
... especially for a 'bushcraft' light.
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Maybe it is worth trying with a dedicated headlamp like any of the led-only models from Petzl. Granted your flaslight also has a brim clip but you need to wear a cap in order to use it hands free.... They are cheap as well.
Mikel
 
Mikel_24 said:
Maybe it is worth trying with a dedicated headlamp like any of the led-only models from Petzl. Granted your flaslight also has a brim clip but you need to wear a cap in order to use it hands free.... They are cheap as well.
Mikel
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I take very little into the woods with me. I prefer having the ability to take it off and use as a viable handheld flashlight as well.

A good dedicated head lamp is expensive and really only good for flood lamp focus for close up work. It's more electronics to fail on me and more batteries I need to pack.

A hat is an essential piece of outdoor gear in my opinion and I always have one with me. If I didn't, I could have easily hung this light from my tarp or another tree to create a hands free area.

These are just my opinions of course, but they are a few reasons why I don't use head lamps.
 
TFin04 said:
I take very little into the woods with me. I prefer having the ability to take it off and use as a viable handheld flashlight as well.

A good dedicated head lamp is expensive and really only good for flood lamp focus for close up work. It's more electronics to fail on me and more batteries I need to pack.

A hat is an essential piece of outdoor gear in my opinion and I always have one with me. If I didn't, I could have easily hung this light from my tarp or another tree to create a hands free area.

These are just my opinions of course, but they are a few reasons why I don't use head lamps.
Click to expand...

Right now I own a Petz Duo with a 3 led module instead of a the cripton bulb, I also modified ala Petzl Duo belt allowing me to carry more batteries (more run time) in a pack I can put inside my clothes (so they don't freeze off in winter). And yes, this thing is expensive (no electronics at all though..).

BUT, I also own a Petzl Tikka which only has three leds, weights next to nothing and runs for days with only three batteries. And this one is cheap. I bought mine locally long long ago but now you can get the simplest models (no electronics at all, no dual output) for less than $30

When I only plan on walking, I take my Tikka. If I need to do any climbing in pitch black conditions, I bring the Duo. As you can see I am mostly into climbing so headlamps make a lot of sense :D

I also carry often a mini Maglite in my mans purse (gosh... I hate that term!) with a few more items so I can also appreciate handheld flashlights.

Mikel
 
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