Thunder trip

 

Trip at the End of June

I had planned this trip for the end of June. I ordered a modification for my rain cape from Bushcraft Spain, but since it hasn't arrived yet, I ended up using my oilskin tarp again. We're in the middle of a heatwave here, so the hammock would actually have been perfect – but I had decided it was time to get back on the ground.

Shelter

It's also cloudburst season, and suddenly the sky turned dark. My shelter was up in no time: one ridgeline, one side pitched low and the other left open because I wanted to be able to look out. I packed very simply, bringing only two wool blankets. I quickly gathered some dry hay for bedding inside the shelter and threw one blanket on top.

This is where I learned my first lesson – you either need a lot of hay or some sort of side support. The hay simply gets pushed out to the sides, and before long I was lying on the ground. It wasn't a problem in terms of warmth, but it wasn't exactly kind to my back.

The trick must be to either use a huge amount of hay or bring some sort of bag, like one of those cheap sleeping bag liners, and stuff the hay inside it. Another option could be to place two logs on either side, secured with pegs, so the hay stays trapped between them.

I'm planning to sew myself a Kephart Roll with enough room to stuff it full of hay (or whatever other bedding material I can find).

Thunderstorm

Around midnight the storm finally arrived, along with thunder. Lots of thunder and lightning.

The shelter held up perfectly, even though I'd thrown it together in a hurry. Just for fun, I placed my pot under the corner of the tarp where most of the rainwater was running off, and it filled up within a couple of minutes. There was an incredible amount of rain coming down.

It was also the first overnight trip where I brought my dog along. He never really figured out the hammock, but sleeping on the ground suited him just fine. He's not afraid of thunder, but he moved closer to me once the storm started. It was an absolutely wonderful experience. The lightning and thunder returned in full force around five in the morning.

My dog reacts to the lightning before I even see the flash. That's pretty amazing. So there we were, lying under a shelter that had kept us dry all night, watching the lightning while the morning slowly arrived. It was an incredible experience.

Something else I noticed when the rain really started pouring around midnight was how long it took before it actually came through the canopy. I could hear the rain for quite a while (and my dog was sleeping outside the shelter) before the first drops finally made it through the leaves.

Oilskin Tarp

Once again I was reminded just how fantastic an oilskin tarp really is. The peace and quiet inside a shelter like that, compared to a lightweight polyester tarp, is on a completely different level. The rain sounds soft and relaxing instead of loud and flapping overhead.

The downside, of course, is drying it out once I got home. That part wasn't nearly as enjoyable.

Cooking

The rain gave me the perfect opportunity to test my new BCB cooker using Fire Dragon fuel. BCB makes this folding cooker for the British military. I think it's much better than the Danish version. Among other things, it has storage for the fuel tablets and includes a built-in windshield.

I bought it so I'd have a way to cook inside a shelter whenever a campfire isn't an option, and this was the perfect chance to use it.

Once I've spent a little more time with it, I'll write a proper review. Fire Dragon tablets are great. They have almost no smell and leave behind no soot at all. Using a single tablet, I boiled water for coffee, fried sausages, scrambled eggs, and warmed up a bread roll. That's pretty impressive.

Now it's time to 3D print a few egg protectors to make packing a little easier.

 

Final Thoughts

This has been one of the best trips I've been on in a very long time. I love the simplicity. I love sharing experiences like this with my dog, out in nature.

There's just something truly special about it.

And make sure to go to your recycle station. There's awesome stuff. I just found this thick leather satchel, for free. Don't know what I'll be using it for, because I have a satchel. But it's so cool.