Ut & Aboot

My current tent is a Hilleber Saivo, but until 2020 I used a Vango Force10 Vortex 3000 (pictured), which I bought used on e-bay in 2013, and did me very well in strong Scottish wind and rain, Norwegian and Swedish winter cold and storms, and many warmer nights too.  For the last few years I have used it as my winter tent (on my own, or as a pair), and a tent for summer when we were in groups of three or even four.

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Unfortunately it has reached the end of its life, with too many running repairs required, and it will be a very tough act to follow.  I feel that my 10 day crossing of Hardangervidda was a suitable last hurrah for a trusty companion.  So far I'm pleased with my new Hilleberg Saivo, which I'm now using as my main winter tent

For lighter weight camping I use my wife's Force10 Ion II, which has stood strong and stable as tents around have flapped, buckled or collapsed with broken poles.  It is not a very lightweight tent, but it is an excellent shelter from the elements.  On a hot, still summer's night, it can easily get a bit hot and stuffy, as it is clearly designed for a windy Scottish hillside, but it stands up to the elements, and even handles winter camping.  We used it during our Easter ski trip in 2019.

For nights when a tent is just not airy enough I have rigged up a ultra-lightweight and very exposing "tent system" using a DD Hammocks SuperLight Tarp and a Paria Outdoor Products Breeze Mesh Tent.  Combined with hiking poles, trees, split kayak paddles or sticks I can be free of insects, and with a "roof" that can adapt to give various levels of ventilation or protection.

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It was the only shelter I brought for a week of kayaking in Buhuslän, Sweden in summer 2019.

A sleeping mat is what makes all the difference to a night's sleep, insulating you from the cold ground and providing padding.  The Thermarest NeoAir XTherm is fantastic on both fronts.  The insulation it provides makes sleeping on snow feel as warm as sleeping on my bed at home, and the comfort is great, even on hard or lumpy ground.  It weighs very little, and packs down to a 1l cylinder, so is extremely practical.

With my pulk I keep it inflated during the full trip, but when hiking or kayaking I have to inflate it each night.  It is not too bad, but the larger opening on my wife's Thermarest (something like this) does make inflation much quicker and easier, but it appears to have been discontinued.  With a Pulk I also take a foam mat to put under it, or take out onto the snow, not for warmth but in case the Thermarest fails.

I use a MRS WhisperLite year round - with purified petrol in winter, and gas in summer.  It is a great winter stove - a lot easier to use than some I've tried, and more reliable (or I keep better care of mine) than ones my friends have tried.  It is also noticeably quieter than many petrol stoves.  I used a plastic chopping board to create a base plate for my stove for winter - the stove held on by elastic (hair baubles) and the fuel bottle with a strap.  This allows the full unit to be moved quickly and easily, for ease of use and increased safety when using it in the tent porch.

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For summer (gas) use it neither excels nor disappoints.  It is a little bulkier than many gas setups, but does allow the gas box to be turned upside-down to use the dregs, and it fits nicely within my pots.