Keeping Bad Company

The real world outside the window is all grey, wet and miserable.

To a virtual one then. A couple of hours blowin' shit up should do it.

I hope he had insurance on that thing.

We're Oscar Mike. Husker, Out.

The Joy Of Parcels

Nothing starts a Tuesday off like a wee trip to the Sorting Office. And when the package carries the mark of the US Postal Service the joy is palpable. Big packages or small, it's all good.

I don't buy from The States very often but when the stuff you seek can't be found here then it's over The Pond we go.

The contents were eagerly anticipated. The substance therein, my own personal Opium.

I tested a sample when I got to work. Pure, Grade A Caffiene. This stuff's the shit, man.

It kicks the arse of that Nescafe pish that I took with me last time out. I'm popping a few packets in the grub bag and then I'm away to check the MWIS.

Credit to John Manning & Darren for the enlightenment. Bless you.

Update : It occurred to me that, apart from a photie and a brief mention in the comments, folk might not know what the hell I'm talking about. It is, of course, Java Juice. And I should also point out that they're rubbish at answering emails. Rubbish in the sense that they don't. At all.

OFFS!

Why is the Blogger editor so shite? I mean, seriously. Look at the state of that last post. That looked great in Live Writer and then Blogger mangled it. Why? Why does it do these things? Cause it's free, that's why so just STFU and get on wi' it.

F***ers.

Terra Nova Moonlite Bag Cover

I love my wee Laserlite, I really do, but a couple of things bother me; it's a tad cramped for a big lanky like myself and it's prone to a fair bit of condensation. Combine these things and you end up with a damp sleeping bag on account of me constantly coming in to contact with the inner, particularly at the foot end.

So, I'd been thinking of some kind of water-resistant cover. The Rab Survival Zone is a bit OTT so when I saw the Moonlite I thought, "That's the boy for me".*

First impressions: It's light. Very light for what it is and packs up small, much smaller than the SZ. And it's simple, just a drawcord at the top that pulls the "hood" in nice & snug. There's enough room to let my Rab Quantum bag loft fully and it's long enough for me at 6'4".

Moonlite (Top) vs Survival Zone (Bottom)

So, looking good then. All I need to do now is make the time to get some serious Zeds in it.

*Credit to Matt by way of ptc's place for bringing it to my, and others, attention.

Pies and Vapour-Rise

Back to Pitlochry for some much-needed downtime. We ate well, mooched around the local gear shop (where I managed to not buy a Haglofs LIM Down Vest. Yaaay for me!!!) and then ate some more. It was braw.

We took a wander up to the wee loch at the top of the hill, just up from the hotel. The ducks were still there; they looked sad. The loch was all froze and everything. We went back this morning with some toast, snaffled from our breakfast and shared it out. That seemed to make them happy. We resolved to stock up on duck food before our next visit.

It's no' easy being a duck.

Vrackie looking all snowy and rugged.

I nearly went home empty-handed but saw the light just in time and popped back into Escape Route for another wee nosey. The brightly coloured Optimus display had caught my eye yesterday so it would've been rude not to at least buy something.

Then, just to satisfy my curiosity like, I tried on a Rab VR Trail Stretch Top. I'd never worn one before and wondered about the fit. Glove-like, was the answer. The sleeves are nice and long too. And its' price reduced to not-very-much-at-all. It was all a no-brainer really.

Naturally enough, we also brought home a MacDonald's Steak Pie, so that's tea sorted.

Heavy Weather

There's some cold weather on the way. It is, according to the Beeb, coming all the way from Russia. Nobody's mentioned where in Russia but you can tell they're thinking Siberia. Maybe they don't want to panic the population just yet?

Such weather has of course never happened before. England and Wales are to be the worst affected with accumulations of up to 10 cm expected. 10 CMS!!!! The Welsh will be OK. Their thick skins, developed over the years as protection from the endless slagging by their neighbours, will save them. Our English cousins however, are fucked.

I can't bear to watch so I'll be sticking to the more obscure satellite channels until the glaciers retreat. Probably Thursday. Friday latest.

Stakeout

Important things, pegs. The recent banter over at ptc*s place got me think about my own, admittedly small, collection. I keep meaning to add a couple of really long ones to anchor the ends of the Laserlite in really dodgy conditions but never seem to get around to it. I may purchase more this weekend.

From left to right: Vaude(V), Vango(V), Alpkit(V), Big Agnes(X), Clamcleats(Y)*, Golite(Y) & Terra Nova(r?)

Some of those are ripe for a bit of a drilling and some cordage. Sounds like a rainy day project to me.

*Tip o' the hat to Bigbanafeet for bringing these up by way of Petesy's place.

Talk of the town

I'm no' sure I believed her but when the waitress at the Little Chef in Spean Bridge told us we were the talk of Fort William, it had a certain air of plausability. Four days previously, we were effectively marooned by a Landie which decided that it didn't really fancy the long drive to Skye after all.

We sat in the Little Chef and considered our options; we could press on and risk catastrophic car failure in the middle of God knows where, call out recovery and go home or phone a garage and try and get it fixed.

These options were further limited by the fact that this was after lunchtime on Hogmanay and most of Scotland was effectively shut.

Praise be then to the wonderful folk who live up that way. Crissy the waitress offered to call out her man who was a mechanic & the manager of the LC gave us the numbers of a couple of local garages.

Charlie of Heathercroft Motor Engineers came to the rescue. He took the car for a quick spin and came back looking rather sad. It was, he said, "sick" and advised us to go no further. He could take us on to our destination but couldn't promise that the insurance company would pay to get us all the way home again, or he could just take us home.

Perhaps prompted by our sad wee faces, he then suggested a hire car. The place was shut but he knew the owner and might be able to persuade them to lend us something. It wasn't a long phone call but but it felt like an age. There was a glimmer of hope; the lassie in charge lived across the road from the showroom and was willing to meet us there. So I hopped in the van and Charlie gave me a hurl doon the road to Fort William. Holly of Ben Nevis Motors turned up shortly after Charlie had dropped me off and headed off to rescue some other poor unfortunate.

A quick DVLA check, a cash transaction and I had the keys to a shiny Ford Focus. Result! Back to Spean Bridge to pick up The Future Mrs D & The Boy and we were back on the road. 90 minutes later, and about 4 hours after we'd hoped to be there, we pulled up ootside our wee home for the next 4 days. It was awfy stressful and more than a tad expensive but ultimately worth it and everybody had a grand time.



Let's hear it for the nice folk who go that extra yard when they really don't have to.

Thanks people.

A Guid New Year to ane an' a'

I f****n' hate New Year. All that false bonhomie and pished folk. Blame it on living in Edinburgh for years. Street Party? My arse!

However, that won't stop me from wishing you all a happy, safe and prosperous 2009.

As for us, we're away to Skye to hide out in a wee hoose at the end of a single track "road". You'll recognise it; it's the one with the "Get tae f**k!" sign on the gate. :o)

See yooz in a bit.

Good Grief!

The Boy's 15 today. 15!!! Where the hell did the years go?

Happy Birthday, wee man.

LOL and indeed, ROFL! :O)

When did that happen?

That's the question I've been asking myself. When did I go from being relieved that a plan fell through to being disappointed?

To be disappointed I must've initially been looking forward. Without realising, I was looking forward to a a night on a hill in shite weather with a bunch of folk I've never met before. I was looking forward to a night of sub-zero temp's, in the middle of nowhere, shooting the breeze with others of a like-mind.

When I packed my kit, there was an air of excitement and anticipation, not trepidation. When those plans were scuppered, my reaction was nothing like it would've been last year. The gear's still laid out, ready for the off rather than packed away and doomed to months of seeing no action at all.

My attitude has changed. This is good. This is almost an epiphany, in fact.

Game's a bogie

"I'm undoubtedly tempting fate by making any plans at all, let alone sticking them up here for the world to see but sometimes you just have to."

How prophetic. For the second weekend in a row, bag packed and ready for the off, it all goes wrong at the last minute.

The first time, the fickle hand of fate cast the di and came up with two sixes. I threw "snake eyes".

This time, the fourth horseman, Pestilence turned up just in time. He apologised for his lateness but there's nothing like a last minute cancellation to make you look like a complete and utter fud.

Bastard.

Operation: Not The Yukon - Update

See previous.

Message ends.

Operation: Not The Yukon

Standby.

-------------------------------------------------
I'm undoubtedly tempting fate by making any plans at all, let alone sticking them up here for the world to see but sometimes you just have to.

As plans go, it's a simple one: head up to Glen Derry on 28/11/08, pitch a tent and kick back for the next wee while. I might go for a hill on the Saturday but I'll see how it goes.

Base camp will be near the bridge over the Derry Burn at approx NO 041936. I'll be there from about 4pm, barring fate, misfortune and the unpredictablity of the Scottish weather. ie if it's really sh*te, I'm no' goin'. Quitting is, very definitely, an option.

Folk should feel free to come along and say hello or keep walking with their head down if they don't like the look of me. The tent will be marked with a couple of glow sticks after dark. If it's a nice night, I should be easy to spot, I'll be the one wandering about, mug in hand, looking rather pleased with myself.

See yiz up there. Or not :o)

Double Bagged Part 2 - Muddying the waters

Just when I thought I had it sussed, ie down bag inside synthetic, an unrelated trip to the loft threw a spanner in the works. There, tucked away at the side of the gear pile, was a suspiciously fluffy-looking storage bag.

In the bag was a Snugpak Sleeper Lite, rated IIRC, to about -10C. I'd completely forgotten I had it. From memory, it is very warm but, like all synthetics, relatively bulky. I'll have a go it stuffing it into things over the next day or 2. I think I'll still go with the down/synth' combo' but this one might work out as an alternative to the Alpkit for The Boy.

Interesting.

Lest we forget

90-odd years ago, my biological Great Grandfather went off to a war from which he never returned. He left behind a pregnant sweetheart. Just over 30 years later, the son he never knew also answered the call to arms.

Thankfully, he survived.

Today, I'll stop whatever I'm doing and spend a few minutes offering up whatever the agnostic version of a prayer is, to them and the others they fought alongside and against, and to all the men and women who made, and continue to make, the ultimate sacrifice.

Thank you. Thank you all.

Access Denied

My apologies for my tardiness in replying to those folk who've taken the time to leave comments over the last couple of weeks. It's not that I'm being rude, it's that our new Overlords (Hello btw) have decided that we're not to be trusted with our internet access anymore. And there was me thinking that an IT professional with over 20 years experience was about the only person that you could trust with unrestricted net access.

 

This post was brought to you via Google Mail.

Single Skinner

I picked up a Golite Trig 1 via Ebay the other day. It's in pristine condition and cost very little. It was an impulse buy and I'm no' sure how, or even if, it'll work out. I like the idea of single skin tents but there's the thorny issue of our increasingly mild and damp winters up here. I'm hoping for cold & frosty for our impending trip to the 'gorms but I'm no' holding my breath.

I'll stick it up in the garden tomorrow and have a look see.

Also in the post was a Silva L4*. With The Boy using the Tikka last time out, I was left in the murk. So a spare was called for. Anyway, it's Camo' so what's a boy to do?

As I wrote that last paragraph, I remembered the E-Lite that lives in the "emergency" dry-bag. I think I may be going senile.

*Tip o' the hat to ptc* for bringing it to my attention.

Double-bagged

With a proposed overnighter in the offing, I've had a look in the armoury and there's a sleeping bag-shaped gap in the weapons rack. I'm covered for 3 season stuff but with The Boy getting the Alpkit AlpineDream 700, I'm left out in the cold, so to speak. I could throw money at the problem by heading over to PHD but then I'd have to decide what, or who, gets sold to raise the money.

I'm wondering if a combination of bags might be the answer? The first 2 that came to mind were the Rab Quantum and the Snugpak Merlin, both "summer" bags on their own but possibly capable of delivering a bit more when combined. Factor in clothing eg PHD Minimus and it could be a go-er.

They both fit loosely, one inside the other, so that's a good start. A bit of experimentation is called for but what's the worst that can happen? I get to be cold and uncomfortable for a night? Pah! Been there, done that.

We're talking low-level camp in the CGNP. Worst case, we bug out to Bob Scott's or back to the car.

It's no' The Yukon FFS.

Kevvy No-Mates

I was over having a look at TGO's new forum layout and jolly nice it is too. It's still a bit quiet but at least they seem to have booted the porn spammers into touch.

However, I was a wee bit disheartened when I had a look at my profile page; there, writ large was the legend "This User Has No Friends". It's even capitalised. Cheers. Thanks for pointing that out.

Heartless bastards.