A warm fire on a crisp Fall evening - photo by Steve Wall on Flickr
For starting fires in our campsite, I use dryer lint and wax for tender (see How to make your own campfire starters) which is a quick and easy way to get a campfire going. Anytime I venture out from the campsite, however, I carry a number of emergency items in a small daypack, including a fire starter kit.
The new Dakota 10 ($299.99) is a new touchscreen GPS receiver similar to the Oregon® line in a slightly smaller (2.2†W x 3.9†L x 1.3†D) package with a 2.6-inch display. The Dakota features a 25% longer battery life on its two AA batteries, at 20 hours, than the Oregon, which is probably attributable to the smaller display (the Oregon has a 3-inch display). The Dakota 10 does not have an expansion slot (the $349.99 Dakota 20 does), but it does have 850MB of internal storage.
One of the most functional pieces of gear I own is this Window Dry Sack™ from Outdoor Research, in Seattle, WA. It is constructed of thick nylon, with taped seams and a big urethane window that lets you find what you are looking for, so that you don’t have to dump everything out. Like all Outdoor Research products, it’s guaranteed forever.
Somehow, Father’s Day ended up being maintenance day around the house, but since it was my day, I decided to prioritize a little maintenance on the gear before I took on the yard. One of my primary pieces of gear is my CamelBak® hydration pack, which provides the family with water, snacks, and usually a lunch on our hikes. This pack is admittedly overkill for light use, but it came with a prior job assignment so the price was right and unlike a nylon daypack, I don’t have to worry about wear and tear. I thought I’d snap some pictures while I cleaned the hydration bladder, so that you could all participate in a little maintenance with me!
I was thumbing through the Friday newspaper ads and our local sporting goods store was advertising some $20 tents, which left me to wonder what you really get for that kind of money. Dimensionally, the tent is in pretty good shape, with a 9×9 foot floor and a 72-inch vertical center-height. The walls are fairly vertical, so much of this floor-space is usable, though the ceiling tapers over quickly so most of the vertical height is really about five feet – which is still not bad.