Source to Sea » Homemade Outdoor Gear

Neuse River Kayaking Gear List

John — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 02:19:15 +0000

Here’s a list of the kayaking gear I’ll be taking on the Neuse River Expedition. I’ll be doing video gear reviews while out on the river and posting them when I get back so make sure to check back with us!

Paddling Gear

Hurricane Kayaks Santee Expedition model
Astral Designs V-Eight PFD (life jacket)
Sea to Summit Big River Dry Sacks
Werner Kalliste paddle
paddling gloves
20′ line for securing kayak

Communication / Photography / Writing

Apple iPhone 3G
Pentax W80 waterproof camera
4 GB SD cards (3)
8AA backup charger for phone (homemade)
2 extra camera batteries
AC Chargers for phone and camera
Mini-tripod
velcro straps/suction cups for mounting camera
Moleskine Plain Pocket notebook
Pilot G2 pens

Camping Gear

Eagle’s Nest Outfitters hammock / Slapstraps
Tarp (homemade)
1/2 length blue foam pad
down quilt (homemade)
3′x7′ groundcloth

Water Treatment and Supply

Platypus Clean Stream Gravity Water Filter
Platypus 4-liter water tank (2)
assorted 1-liter water bottles
Aqua-mira water treatment drops

Clothing (worn)

Columbia long sleeve fishing shirt
Nylon shorts
sandals
sunglasses
Columbia Bucket hat

Clothing (extra)

synthetic t-shirt
shorts
bandana
homemade silnylon rainjacket
Outdoor Research Seattle Sombrero

Repair / Misc bag

small roll duct tape
needle / synthetic thread
3′ wire
zipties

Personal Kit

sunscreen
travel toothbrush / toothpaste
first-aid (alleve, anti-diarreal tablets, band-aids)
Headlamp
50′ cord
mini-carabiners (4)
Victorinox Classic knife
lexan spoon
lip balm
tweezers
hand sanitizer
toilet paper

Cooking

2-liter pot
alcohol stove (homemade)
windscreen
wood stove (homemade)
fuel bottle
pot cozy
spare ziplock bags
stuff sack

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Choosing the Right Backpacking Stove

John — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 01:15:07 +0000

Backpacking stoves change and evolve, as do gear preferences. People can spend hours wading through mountains of information about burn times, fuel delivery, treehugging-ness, and of course, price. I know people who change stoves more than they change underwear. To each his own, but here’s where I ended up.

I used a MSR Whisperlight International for years, but it was way overkill for 95% of what I end up doing. Still, that thing was a blowtorch if you kept the fuel clean and jet unclogged. It was the first stove I used when I really got back into backpacking during college. Many meals were cooked, and many eyebrows singed, using that stove over about ten years.

I started a southbound thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 2000 with another person, using solid fuel esbit stove. Slow and simple, but barely usable for a couple. I hacked out an alcohol stove from a refried bean can in North Woodstock, NH and carried it for the next 4 months for some 1,300 miles or so till I reached Georgia. The stove lasted longer than the partnership I’m afraid.

Went back to grad school, led a bunch of wilderness trips, and used either that same alcohol stove, a MSR Pocketrocket, or one of the school’s MSR Whisperlights. I think I’m about done with Whisperlights now, mainly because it’s too much weight and hassle just to boil a few cups of water at a time. The Pocketrocket is a simple, light canister stove and worked fine, but I’ve never spilled more meals off any stove. It’s a little top-heavy with a quart of water for my tastes, but man it’s very controllable. Great little stove for the most part, but not for my clumsy self.

We went down the Mississippi River with a cheap single-burner propane stove, and I developed an irrational hatred to it on several different levels. Man that was a mistake. Very top heavy, bulky, and horrible in the wind. The picture of misery sometimes. Missed my little alky stove almost everyday on the river, but was too pig-headed to change.

Now, I’m back to using that same little homemade stove I made some eight years ago. It’s a little beat up, but that just gives it character. I know it’s quirks, and have hiked probably 1,700 miles with it by now. It’s slow, but completely silent. I mix up my dinner with some water, put a splash of fuel in the stove, light it, then let it do it’s thing while putting up the tarp or putzing around.

He’s been a good buddy, and I especially like using it with a homemade pot cozy now. In short, I love this little guy, and it’s the perfect stove for me.

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How to Make a Pot Cozy

John — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:56:17 +0000

A pot cozy is one of the easiest pieces of backpacking gear to make. A pot cozy opens up the option to cook all kinds of different foods that typically require long simmering times, keeps your food hotter, and easily saves its own weight in the amount of fuel it saves. I don’t know how I managed without one, but my cozy is one of the few things that goes into my pack on every single trip.

What you’ll need:

Insulation (closed cell foam pad, “bubble wrap”, or other similar material
Scissors
Pen or sharpie marker
Tape measure or string
Adhesive tape or contact cement

In keeping with the adage that “the best project is a done project”, we’re going to make this pot cozy out of cheap, easily available materials commonly found in any gear closet. Even if you bought your materials new, it shouldn’t cost more than $10 to make a cozy that will wow your friends.

Step 1 – Measure the Insulation
Your cozy should fit snugly around the pot, with a little extra wiggle room that will make it easier to slide the pot into and out of it. The easiest way to measure the circumference is to wrap a string around the pot, then add about 1/4″ inch to that length. Mark your foam pad with this length, then put the side of the pot on the pad and mark off the height at several points.

Now take you pot and trace the bottom onto the pad. Do that again, and you will end up with a rectangle and 2 additional circles for the top and bottom drawn on your foam pad. Congratulations – you’re through with the hard part!

Step 2 – Cut the Materials
Cut both the rectangle and the circles out, cutting directly on the lines. Try to keep your cuts as straight as possible, but don’t worry too much about it if you are off a little bit. Duct tape can cure all ills!

Step 3 – Put it all Together
Tape the short ends of the rectangle together. You may want to just tape the outside first, then check the fit around your pot before taping the inside seam. Remember, you want to have little room to wiggle the pot into. You may have to cut the foam to fit around the handle depending on your particular pot.

Leave the foam cylinder around the pot, the tape one of the circles as the bottom piece. To do this, align the bottom circle and tack it in place with 2 2″ pieces of tape, then use one long piece of tape around the bottom. Take the last circle and put on top of your pot. You can either leave it loose, or make a “hinge” with a 3″ piece of tape – your choice.

That’s it! You’re now the proud owner of a pot cozy that will drastically cut down on the amount of cooking fuel you’ll need, and keep your food hot for much longer.

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Ziplock Wallets

John — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 16:47:57 +0000

It’s always the small things that get me excited about trips. One of these is my ziplock wallet. I always empty out my regular wallet and put the bare essentials in a quart-size freezer bag. Just my license, debit card, and a few business cards. That’s it – that’s all I need.

I’ve carried a ziplock wallet on all my trips. Breaking out another bag reminds my of the Appalachian Trail thru-hike, Mississippi River trip, and tons of other activities done outside. When I finished the AT, I carried that same ziplock wallet for several months afterward as I just wasn’t ready to jump back into the real world.

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