Posts Tagged camping
Summer is almost over
As Labor Day approaches, this marks a good time to reflect over the past summer. Overall, the summer of 2010 was a great summer – my dad gave me a boat a few months ago, so a lot of time was spent on the river fishing and camping. My wife and I got to go fishing a couple of times. Being sick for the first 2 weeks in August was no fun, but I’am felling a lot better now – except for a slight residual headache. With all Texas summers, the heat has terrible.
Labor day plans include a bar-b-q with a brisket, maybe some ribs, chicken, sausage, ranch style beans and whatever else I can fit on the grill.
After Labor Day focus is going to shift a little more towards hunting. My kids and I might head out to the deer lease to check the stands and feeders out.
This hunting season there is a certain creek bottom that I want to put a ladder stand up. Every year a buck goes through the creek bottom marking his territory. The stand is on the top of a hill, so I never get to see him. This year is going to be different, I’am planning on setting up at least 1 ladder stand 50 – 75 feet from where that buck makes his marks every year.
There is always “something” that is skipped over during summer, and this year it was taking my son to Lake Sam Rayburn to go fishing. Fishing on the river is nice, but I wanted to launch the boat at Mill Creek Park and go across the lake to Bear Creek and do some bass fishing over there. Maybe we can do that before the cold fronts start moving through and the bad weather sets in?
Some of my new favorite pieces of gear include a large MOLLE pack, and a Vargo Hexagon wood stove from readypro.org.
After some debate, I decided it was time to move away from the medium and large ALICE pack and get with the times. I have seen people on youtube talking about the MOLLE packs, so I decided it was time to get one.
I even made a video comparing 2 different MOLLE packs and a medium ALICE pack. For the full review, check out this link – MOLLE pack VS ALICE pack.
Overall, I like my new large MOLLE pack, I just wish it had more outside pockets and the internal radio pouch.
After testing the Vargo hexagon wood stove in my yard, I took it on a few camping trips – and it did a great job. Instead of using wood like the stove was designed to use, I used a can of sterno. In about 10 minutes I was able to cook noodles.
Here is a video about the Vargo Hexagon wood stove while I was testing it in my yard.
Labor Day is fast approaching, which means we only have about 1 more month of warm weather to go fishing and camping.
My wife and I have been wanting to go camping at Martin Dies State Park, which is at Dam B, but the weather has been so hot, we would have been miserable. So we are going to wait until the weather cools off just a little bit – maybe until the night time temps drop into the 60s.
We also want to take the kids camping before the weather gets too cold. But here in East Texas, sometimes its still hot all the way into early November.
So summer is not fully over yet, nor is Labor Day the “official” end to my summer plans. Its more like a mile marker saying “whatever you want to do, you better go ahead and get it done.”
As I look back over the summer of 2010, it was a good summer. It was one that will not be forgotten very soon.
Maxpedition water bottle holder and mini rollypoly
Need to carry plenty of water on that pack of yours? Looking for a way to carry 32 ounce water bottles instead of canteens? While looking for a water bottle option for my Maxpedition Vulture-II, I came across the Maxpedition water bottle holder and the Maxpedition mini rollypoly dump pouch.
The water bottle holder is just that – its a padded pouch that is designed to hold a standard 32 ounce water bottle.
This is some information from the Maxpedition website:
Water bottle holder
The water bottle holder has webbing on 4 sides – 1 side to attach it to the pack, then webbing on the 3 other sides. The zipper closure makes sure that the pouch stays closed. I like the extra webbing so you can attach a couple of smaller pouches to the outside of the water bottle holder.
The 10” x 4” Bottle Holder is designed to fit a 32oz / 1L Nalgene bottle (sold separately) or similarly sized containers.
Product Features
* Main compartment: 10” high x 4” diameter, padded, with drainage grommet
* Frontal: 6” x 3” x 1.5” with elastic retention
* PALS attachment webbing: Front and sides
* Attachment1: D-rings for optional shoulder strap
* Attachment2: 5″ TacTie™ (sold separately)
* Attachment3: Keyper quick release hook on back
* Available colors: Black, OD Green, Khaki, Foliage Green
Product Materials
* 1000-Denier water and abrasion resistant light-weight ballistic nylon fabric
* Teflon® fabric protector for grime resistance and easy maintenance
* high strength zippers and zipper tracks
* UTX-Duraflex nylon buckles for low sound closures
* Triple polyurethane coated for water resistance
* High tensile strength nylon webbing
* High tensile strength composite nylon thread (stronger than ordinary industry standard nylon thread)
* #AS-100 high grade closed-cell foam padding material for superior shock protection
* Internal seams taped and finished
* Paracord zipper pulls
* Stress points double stitched, Bartacked or “Box-and-X” stitched for added strength
MINI ROLLYPOLY® FOLDING DUMP POUCH
Its a pouch that can fold up until you need it. Then its unfolded. Unlike the water bottle holder, the dump pouch has a folding top for easy access.
Folded: 3.5″ long x 2.25″ wide x 1.5″ thick
Open: 4″ diameter, 8″ tall
Total Volume: 100 cu. in.
Belt: Integral Closed Loop
The Mini Rollypoly® (#0207) is a folding dump pouch designed to hold a standard 32 oz. / 1L Nalgene or smaller water bottle. Bungee cord cinch and velcro flap lid secure top.
One of the big benefits of the mini rollypoly – it can be rolled up until its ready for use. This means you can attach several of them to your pack, and their not going to take up a lot of room – until their needed, unrolled and filled up.
Conclusion:
A lot of it depends on what your looking for. Do you want a pouch that is secure with a zippered closure, or easy access?
I found that both pouches fit a 32 ounce water bottle just right. The pouches were not too snug or too loose.
Post your comments in this forum thread about the Maxpedition water bottle holder and mini rollypoly.
Related Articles:
Maxpedition Kodiak Gearslinger Review
Internal vs external frame backpacks
ALICE, MOLLE II or Maxpedition backpack for a 2 day trip
Maxpedition Falcon-II and Pygmy Falcon-II
Maxpedition Sitka Gearslinger Review
5 fire building tips
Whether your at the deer lease, building a fire in your bar-b-q pit, or lost in the wilderness, building a fire is a skill that must be mastered. There is a difference in knowing how to build a fire with a lighter and charcoal lighter fluid, and knowing how to build a fire just before sundown when your lost in the woods.
1) Alcohol prep pads – These are the things that the nurse uses to clean your skin right before you get a shot. Their good for cleaning wounds and starting fires. The alcohol content allows the vapors to burn before the cloth of the pad to burn, so you might get a couple of minutes of burn time out of 1 pad. Their lightweight, easy to use, easy to light, and multi-purpose items.
2) Pencil and pencil sharpener – Not as easy to light as the alcohol prep pad, but will help you get a fir built. Use the pencil to write with, just as leaving notes at the truck before you head out on a hiking trip, and use the sharpener to get wood shavings to help build a fire.
3) Dip your matches – Even though a lot of people recommend dipping your matches in wax, I do not like doing that. The wax coating makes the match difficult to strike, and in some cases the match head might just snap off instead of lighting. Waterproof finger nail polish will give you a thin water proof coating that is easier to remove then wax.
4) Bow and Drill – Might take you a long time to build a fire, but if it was good enough for primitive man, its good enough for you.
5) Magnifying glass – May only work when the sun is out, but its good for looking at splinters. Being able to look at small splinters and start fires makes the magnifying glass a dual purpose item.
Comments – Post your comments in this forum thread about fire building tips.
Maxpedition Vulture-II
Looking for a good quality 2 – 3 day pack? The Maxpedition Vulture-II might be just what your looking for. When your looking at backpacks, there seems to be small, medium, large and super large.
Small – good for day hikes and short trips
Medium – good for day hikes or overnight trips
Large – good for 3 – 5 day trips
Super Large – good for 5+ days trips (think expedition)
The problem I have, I need a pack that fits right in-between medium and large. These are the ones where you can pack enough for a 1 – 3 day trip, but not too big or too small.
This medium sized pack is where I’am trying to fit the Maxpedition Vulture-II. I need something for warm / hot weather camping, and just big enough to carry some food, one man tent, rain poncho, hammock, poncho liner,,,, but not too big that I’am tempted to carry gear that is not needed. If your like me, and if there is spare room in your pack, your going to find a way to fill it up. A half full pack just does not look right.
Before a pack is taken out on a hiking or camping trip, it needs to be loaded, tested and checked out. So before my Maxpedition Vulture-II was taken on a real hiking / camping trip, it was loaded up and taken on a trip to the deer camp. Inside the pack I was able to fit – hammock, one man tent, 3 legged stool, couple of MREs, compass, map, and topo map compass.
From the Maxpedition website:
* Main Compartment: 20.5″(H) x 16″(W) x 7.5″(D)
* Front Pouch: 15.5″(H) x 12″(W) x 2.75″(D)
* Slip Pocket: 15.5″(H) x 12″(W)
* Capacity: 2810 cu. in. / 46 liters
* Weight: 3 lbs , 8 oz
* Hydration: Up to 100+ oz Bladder
* Support: 1″ Sternum Strap, 2″ Integrated Belt (min 19″ strap alone / max 52″ strap alone; min 34″ loop / max 67″ loop)
* Optional accessories: Hook & Loop Modular Accessories and Grimloc Carabiner, Hydration reservoir
*1000-Denier water and abrasion resistant light-weight ballistic nylon fabric
* Teflon® fabric protector for grime resistance and easy maintenance
* High strength YKK zippers and zipper tracks
* Triple polyurethane coated for water resistance
* High tensile strength nylon webbing
* High tensile strength composite nylon thread (stronger than ordinary industry standard nylon thread)
*AS-100 high grade closed-cell foam padding material for superior shock protection
* Internal seams taped and finished
* Paracord zipper pulls
* Stress points double stitched, Bartacked or “Box-and-X” stitched for added strength
The 2 complaints that I have about the Vulture-II – it needs a couple of small pouches on the outside of the pack, and I wish it was just a “little” bigger. 2,810 cubic inches is nice, but 3,000+ cubic inches might have been a little better for a 3 day pack.
If you need more room, just add a few extra Maxpedition pouches on the outside of the pack. Even though the pack has a place for a water bladder, I added a mini-rolly polly dump pouch and a Maxpedition water bottle holder. The water bottle holder has an extra pouch built onto it that large enough for a GPS or map compass.
In pack design you have 2 basic types – the panel loader and the top loader.
Panel loader – this is when the pack fully unzips and makes it easy to organize the contents. This type of pack is good for people who like to organize stuff.
Top loader – just as the name describes, you load the pack from the top. This design is good people people who like to cram stuff into the pack, and when its full stomp on the contents, and pack some more.
Strength – by design top loaders are usually stronger then the panel loaders. Panel loaders are limited by the strength of their zippers, top loaders are limited by the strength of the fabric material and stitching.
The Maxpedition Vulture-II seems to be a combination of a top loader and a panel loader. The pack unzips down both sides, but not all the way. To help hold everything together there are 2 compression straps on each side, and the classic Y strap at the top of the pack.
Please post your comments in this forum thread about the Maxpedition Vulture-II.
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Related Articles:
Maxpedition Kodiak Gearslinger Review
Internal vs external frame backpacks
ALICE, MOLLE II or Maxpedition backpack for a 2 day trip
Maxpedition Falcon-II and Pygmy Falcon-II
Maxpedition Sitka Gearslinger Review
Disclosure: The Maxpedition Vulture II used in this article was supplied free of charge. But that did not influence the authors opinion.
Why I like to go camping
Being raised in Southeast Texas has presented a vast opportunities to go camping. This includes everything from my parents taking my brother and I to local parks, to camping on the bayous with my buddies, to camping at the lake with my kids, hiking in and camping at remote areas, to take my kids camping on the river.
While I’am sitting around the camp fire looking at the coals and staring at the stars, I often wonder about the people that came before me. And I’am not just talking about the people in the last 100 years.
Did the neanderthal look up at those same stars and wonder where he came from and where he was going?
While Julius Caesar was fighting the Gauls, did he sit around the camp fire with his troops, look up at the stars and talk about humanity?
There is a certain peace and quit in the woods that being at home can not substitute. Its a natural peace, something that just turning off the TV can not match.
A couple of weeks ago I took my son and my nephew camping along the Angelina River in Southeast Texas. While we were in the trip I bought along “The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston”. There is no way to describe how peaceful it was, sitting there next to the river reading my book. The only sounds were my nephew, my son, the wind and the birds in the trees. Every once-in-awhile a boat went by, but there must have been 2 – 3 hours where we did not see another person or boat.
The quit times provide a chance to reflect on our lives, where we have came from and where we are going. Have we done good things in our life, or bad things? When we die, will others be glad that we are dead, or will we be missed?
Getting your backpack ready for the trip is like life – you have to pick what is important and what has to be left behind. Its impossible to bring “everything” with you. So you have to sit down, make some notes and decide what is “really” important.
There was this one trip that a couple of my buddies and I went on. We took the boat and headed up into a low marsh area that was full of cypress trees, spiders and snakes. Two of us pack our bags and were ready for the adventure that awaited us. The third guy, all he brought was a 5 gallon water cooler with a blanket, snacks and a few canned drinks. I guess that would be a good example of how people prepare for life. If you know that something awaits you, an adventure, how do you get ready for it? In other words, how do you get ready for life? Anyway, my buddy and I brought a tent that was big enough for 4 people, so the three of us fit in there fine.
Being out in the woods also reminds people how comfortable their lives back at home are – they have a bed, TV, internet, running hot and cold water, blankets,,,,. While on a camping trip, it might be really hot, or really cold, or you could fall down a creek bank and get covered with mud – and no way to take a shower. You just have to take things as they are when you in the woods. Sure you can take a bath in a pond or stream, but there is not going to be a hot water heater upstream; so you have to take the water as it comes.
Then there is the self reliance while on a camping trip. Its up to you to bring your own gear, to fix your own food, to setup your own tent,,,,,. While back in the real world, someone might be there to help fix dinner, or just get in the truck and drive to sonic. Who needs to cook anything when you have fast food.
Then there is the closeness to nature. For tens of thousands of years, mankind lived in the wilderness. We hunted, we fished, we gathered, we survived. But over time something changed. People starting cutting down the trees and building cities. We were no longer “part” of nature – we just took what we wanted (like a thief in the night) and gave nothing back. At one time mankind was at the mercy of nature, but now nature is at the mercy of mankind. The rolls seemed to have been reversed a little bit.
When you look up at the stars, do you think about the stories those stars could tell if they could talk? What about the trees? Do you ever wonder what stories they could tell? The tree that was in your parents backyard – the tree that watched you grow up. Did you ever pay that tree any attention? Did you ever think about what that tree has seen? When you had your parties, the tree stood by as a silent friend that offered shade from the suns heat.
Next time your in the wilderness, think about what those trees have seen in their life time. In some parts of the world the trees can grow to be 300, 400, 500+ years old. They were here before Europeans ever set foot in North America – oh the sights they must have seen.
Camping on the Angelina river
For those you in Southeast Texas that are looking for a little adventure, the Army Corp of Engineers has something you might want to look into. And that is a series of primitive camping spots set up along the Angelina and Neches rivers. The Corp calls these camping spots “Primitive Campsites” and here is a list from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers website. As of July 18, 2010, these is no fee to use these sites, and they have to be reserved. To reserve the site, you just fill out a form, fax mail or hand deliver it to the Town Bluff Project Office (phone number 409-429-3491) and they will give you a permit to use the spot. These primitive camping spots are reserved on a first com first served basis – so do not wait until the last minute to reserve the spot you want.
Primitive Campsite List
1. Bluff 1
2. Bluff 2
3. Hamilton Lake 1
4. Hamilton Lake 2 (Closed Indefinitely)
5. Hamilton Lake 3 (Closed Indefinitely)
6. Angelina 1
7. Angelina 2
8. Angelina 3
9. Angelina 4
10. Moon Lake 1
11. Moon Lake 2
12. Moon Lake 3
13. Warden 1 (Closed)
14. Warden 2 (Closed)
Between June 18, 2010 and July 16, 2010 my kids and I have camped at 3 of the spots – Hamilton Lake 1, Bluff 1 and Angelina 1. Angelina 1, 2 3 and 4 are all located close to each other. So while I was at Angelina 1, I walked over to the others and took a look.
The Angelina River runs south out of Lake Sam Rayburn, merges with the Neches river at the forks of the river and empties into Steinhagen Reservoir. The level of the Angelina River is controlled by how much water is released from Lake Sam Rayburn – which means that flooding is somewhat rare. When water is released from Lake Sam Rayburn, the level of the river rises – but only by a foot or so – and the cool water from the lakes bottom helps cool the river down.
Boat launches are located in the Martin Dies State Park, Walnut run, Hen House Ridge and at Bevilport – which is on Farm to Market Road 2799.
Before we went camping, my son and I took a trip to the river and scouted some of the spots. This was in February of 2010.
Hamilton Lake 1 was the first spot stayed at – the party included my son, my nephew and myslf. When arriving at HL1 you have to pay attention, because its easy to pass up. We launched the boat at Bevil Port and headed south along the Angelina river. Heading south, HL1 is on the left – the bad thing, its in the bend of a river that turns to the right. So as your looking to the right (looking for other boats or stumps that might suddenly appear in the curve), there is a good chance that your going to pass HL1 right up. I know because we passed HL1 up and did not realize it until we hit Angelina 1. After realizing that we passed HL1 up, we turned the boat around and headed north. Going north, you still need to pay attention – because the camping spot does not have a wide opening. All you really see is the sign, and a small spot to dock the boat.
Some of the things I liked about Hamilton Lake 1:
Lots of shade
Good perch fishing – the cypress trees provide a natural habitat for all kids of fish
Privacy – lots of trees make it difficult for people on the river to scan your camp site
One thing that I did not like about HL1, is that the trees also blocked out a lot of the wind. It got hot that night, really hot.
HL1 has a nice picnic table and lantern hanger. The hanger looks like its made out of 2 inch pipe, its galvanized and is cemented into the ground. Lets just say that the lantern hanger is sturdy enough to hang a loaded large MOLLE pack from it and its not going to move.
Hunting – if your planning on using the public hunting land, there is a hunting lease that stops about 200 feet from HL1. So there is a nice buffer zone. Something worth noting, Hamilton Lake 1 and Bluff 1 are about 200 – 300 feet apart and are the narrow spot of a peninsula.
Overall, I found camping at Hamilton Lake 1 a pleasant experience.
Bluff 1 was the second spot we stayed at – the party included my son, son-in-law, friend of the family and myself. When arriving at Bluff 1, its going to be easy to find. When launching at Bevil Port, Bluff 1 is going to be the first camping spot you come to. There is a camping spot at a hunting lease just south of Bevil Port, do not stop there. When you see the sign that say “Bluff 1 – camping by reservation only” you know your at the right place. This is on the bend of the river, (like Hamilton Lake 1), but in this case, its at the end of a straight away.
Dock the boat on the left hand side of the camping spot, and its a short uphill walk – maybe 100 feet – to where the picnic table and lantern hanger are setup.
To the right hand side of Bluff one is an old logging road that runs through a deer lease. Tire tracks on the road showed to be recent, so if someone drives up while your camping, do not be surprised.
Some of the things I liked about Bluff 1:
It has a rope swing – make sure you land past the drop off.
Nice swimming area
Nice open area overlooking the river – provides breeze and photography opportunity.
Hunting – there is a hunting lease that bumps right up against Bluff 1, so you might have company during hunting season.
Between Hamilton Lake 1 and Bluff 1 – this provides a unique hunting opportunity, as both camping spots are on the choke point of a peninsula. Everything on the peninsula is public hunting land.
Angelina 1 as the third spot we stayed at – the party included my son, my step-son and myself. This camp site is close to the forks of the river – which is where the Angelina and the Neches rivers come together. This spot should be easy to find, as the camp spot is pretty open, and the sign is easy to spot.
There are 2 spots to dock the boat, but one of them is kinda narrow and is in between a couple of cypress trees.
Angelina 1 faces west – so the setting sun is going to heat up the camping spot. In the winter time this may not be a problem, but in the summer its going to get a little hot.
Some of the things I liked about Angelina 1:
Nice rope swing
Good fishing – we caught some catfish and perch
Wide open so you can get a good breeze.
Privacy – Angelina 1 is several miles from the nearest boat launch. During the whole time we were there, only a couple of boats came by.
This camp area is a little close to some roads – so you might hear sounds of traffic through the woods. But there is no road access to the camping spot.
Wildlife:
Animals – Your probably going to see everything from armadillos to snakes. While camping at Angelina 1, we left some worms on the picnic table. During the middle of the night, several armadillos invaded our camp site in an effort to find those worms. Since armadillos can not climb, they walked around that table trying to figure out where the worms were at. While camping at Hamilton 1, we had a deer walk right up to our camp spot, it started snorting, and then ran off into the woods – this was around 5:00am.
Fishing – If you have some fishing line and a hook, you can catch everything from bass, to perch to catfish to gar. The cypress trees that line the banks of the river offer a natural habitat for sun perch. Just drop a hook and worm around the roots of the cypress trees and you should be pulling up sun perch with no problems.
For catfish, use some worms or stink bait and fish out towards the middle of the river. This past weekend my step-son probably caught 5 or 6 small cats on nothing more then worms and a perch hook. But these catfish were no longer then 6 – 8 inches long – and all of them were thrown back.
While riding the river in the boat, we saw several gar fish ranging in sizes from 2 – 4 feet.
Gators – There are a bunch of them in the Angelina and Neches rivers – so keep an eye out for them.
Mosquitoes – There are 2 things that needs to be at the top of your list – bug spray and a good quality tent. And not just “any” tent – it needs to be mosquito proof. If your planning on hammock camping – make sure its a jungle hammock type of a fully enclosed bug net.
The plentiful bogs and slews give mosquitoes unlimited areas for breeding – and they take full advantage of them. When the sun starts to go down, its like wave after wave of blood sucking parasites that have no compassion.
Overall, I found camping along the Angelina River to be a pleasant experience – expect for the summer heat. But even with the heat, being able to hit the river to cool off is pretty nice.
A couple of things about the Angelina River – it offers almost unlimited photography opportunities and a great chance to catch some fish.
The abundance of cypress trees, alligators, sun rises and sun sets – if you have a camera your bound to get some amazing pictures. One of the best pictures I took was just after sun rise, say about 8:00am – the river had a slight fog over it. Combine that with a cypress tree and a close to the water shot taken from the back of the boat.
The summer heat has set in, and as a result my summer camping has drawn to an end. On the last trip it was so hot, that I did not stop sweating until after midnight. As winter draws near and the temps start to drop a little bit, I can get out to the other camping spots on the Angelina River and get some more reviews posted.
Related Forum Post:
Gator on the Angelina River
Saturday trip to the river
Camping on the Angelina river – please post your comments about this article in the forum thread about camping on the river.
Review of the Eureka Solitaire
While writing this review of the Eureka Solitaire one person tent, I tried to be as impartial and honest as possible. The tent was bought from Academy Sports and Outdoors in Beaumont, Texas and was not supplied by anyone. The first part of the review was setting it up in the yard and the the second part is taking it on a camping trip.
After about 15 years of use, I decided it was time to retire my Wenzel Starlight tent. The replacement had to be light-weight, fit into an medium ALICE pack or large MOLLE pack, easy to strap to the top or bottom of a pack, easy to setup, easy to take down, good for hot weather camping, bug proof,,,,,, just the typical stuff.
Fitting into the medium ALICE and large MOLLE pack are important – due to where I like to carry my tent. Since the tent is the last thing I setup, it usually goes in the bottom of the pack. When the tent is strapped to the outside bottom of the pack, there is a slight chance of sticks poking a hole in it when the pack is dropped. To prevent this, I like to keep the tent inside the pack, and at the very bottom. Because of where I like to carry my tent, it helps if the tent is no wider then the pack.
The first tent I bought to replace the Wenzel Starlight was the No Limits Sunlight Peak One Man Tent. But one of the tent poles split after the first camping trip, and it was returned to the store. With the store credit from the No Limits Sunlight Peak tent, I bought the Eureka Solitaire.
Before the solitaire was taken out on its first trip, it was setup in the yard – this was to make sure that all of the parts were there and to test how waterproof the tent is. Some thunderstorms were rolling through the area, so why not test how waterproof the tent is before it was taken out on a real camping trip.
The Eureka solitaire sets up like any other 1 person tent – 1 pole in the rear and 1 in the front. The 2 poles are different lengths, because the pole in the front is longer so you have more head room – as compared to the height of the tent in the rear. The 2 tent poles being different lengths allows the tent to have a slope, so rain water runs off towards the rear of the tent.
To enter the tent, just crawl in from the front. The mosquito netting has a zipper on the top of it, but you have to have the rain fly off to access it, and unzipped, it does not provide very much access to the tent. Unless your kinda skinny, do not plan on entering the tent from the top.
There is no vestibule, and the tent is too small to have your pack with you – unless your hiking ultra-light and your pack is only about 2,500 cubic inches or less. So bring a spare rain poncho, and strap to hang your pack from a tree.
This is not a free standing tent, so your going to have to stake it out. If your hiking / camping in a place with a lot of rocks, be sure to take that into consideration.
One of the things that I noticed, was that the floor seemed a little thin. When the tent was setup in my yard, the stickers in the grass felt like they were going to poke a hole in the bottom of the tent – but they didn’t. Before the solitaire was taken out on its first real camping trip, 8 foot by 6 foot tarp was purchased for a ground cloth. Folded in half – the tarp fit under the tent perfectly.
On June 18th, 2010 my son, my nephew and I went camping on the Angelina River – which is close to Jasper, Texas. The Army Corp. of Engineers has some primitive camping spots on the river that are only accessible by a boat. So we loaded up the boat and headed out.
Once we arrived at the camping spot, setting up the tent was a cinch. A nice flat spot was picked out, sticks and gum balls were removed, the 6 foot by 8 foot tarp was folded in half, and the eureka solitaire was setup. Total assembly time was around 5,,, maybe a couple of minutes more.
The 6 wide tarp – folded in half – fit under the tent perfectly. There was very little hang over, it was like the 2 pieces went together like peas and carrots.
The sleeping pad that I used was a Magellan, which fit well into the tent.
During the middle of the night, I was able to unzip the mosquito netting in the front of the tent, unzip the front rain fly, and fold it back to allow some air into the tent. The camping spot was in the bend of the river. The Eureka solitaire was setup with the front pointing towards a stretch of the river – that way a breeze can come off the river and right into the tent. When its 80 – 90 degrees at night, any breeze is a good breeze.
One of the benefits of having a tarp – you can string it between a couple of trees and use it as a detached rain fly. And then roll the rain fly back on your tent to allow a cross breeze.
One of the things that I did not like about the tent – the stuff sack does not have anything on the draw cords to keep the sack closed. Its no big deal, because the cords have enough slack to tie a knot. So I guess it depends on how you look at things. Do you “really” need a built in way to keep the stuff sack closed, because you can just tie a knot.
The stuff sack also has plenty of extra room, so your not having to cram the tent into it.. This is really nice so you can include a few extra tent stakes, or some 550 cord for guidewires.
One thing about camping on the river – when the bugs come out, they come out in force. Its like those mosquitoes are playing Ride of the Valkyries from little loud speakers. Regardless of how much mosquito repellent you have on, they will land just long enough for you to feel it. In situations like this, a bug proof tent is an absolute must. If there is the slightest hole in the netting, its going to be found, exploited, and you can expect to spend a miserable night “trying” to sleep.
When the tent was taken down, the tent poles retained a little curve to them. I guess its good that the poles are thin enough so they bend easily, but hopefully their strong enough not to break after a few uses.
Lets Review:
Pros:
Does not cost a lot of money – for less then $100, it seems to be a good quality product.
Bug proof
Easy to setup
Easy to take down
Rain fly can be rolled back for a cross wind in hot weather.
Cons:
Not free standing
Tent poles seem a little thin
Floor seems a little thin
Stakes are cheap – might want to place them or carry spares
There are some things that might be considered a con – but that is just the nature of a one man tent. Its a little cramped, there is not a lot of room for your gear,,,, but that is just the nature of the beast.
Post your comments about this forum thread about the Eureka Solitaire.
Related Forum Post:
Eureka Solitaire
Suggestions on a tent
Backpack contents
Good one man tent
MOLLE Pack VS ALICE Pack
“which one should I buy, an ALICE Pack or a MOLLE Pack?” – that is one of the questions that I see a lot of on the forum. The answer is not a simple one. Before you can answer a question, sometimes you have to ask a few questions.
How much room do you need
How rugged do you need the frame? – the MOLLE pack has a plastic frame, ALICE has a metal frame
A couple of weeks ago my son, nephew and I went on a boating / camping trip. We loaded up the gear, launched the boat and headed out to a camping spot on the river. While we were there, I decided to put together a video about the packs and do a little comparison.
My first exposure to the ALICE pack was way back in either 1992 or 1993. One of my good buddies had just came back from the first Persian gulf conflict, and one of the first things he did was buy himself a medium ALICE pack to replace the one he had been using in the ARMY. I liked the pack so much, I bought myself one. The difference between my buddies pack and mine – my pack was woodland camo, while my buddies pack was olive drab. After using the medium ALICE for a few years, I found it was a little so, so I bought a large ALICE pack in olive green.
My first exposure to the MOLLE pack was a couple of months ago after I bought 3 packs off ebay.
The three packs that my son, nephew and I brought on the camping included – Large MOLLE with internal sleep system, MOLLE with external sleep system and medium ALICE pack.
Large MOLLE pack with internal sleep system compartment – digital camo, internal sleep system compartment, plastic frame, no external pouches or internal pouches, map case in top flap, no radio pouch inside of pack, no hydration pocket for water bladder. The shoulder straps and waist belt are desert camo because I bought 2 desert camo packs off ebay, and used one set of straps and waist belt on my large molle. I would really like to replace the desert camo stuff with woodland green, but woodland green MOLLE stuff is a little difficult to find on ebay. Also, the military is supposed to be releasing its new camo to the troops pretty soon. This might cause the price of digital camo items to drop.
One of the things that I really liked about the large MOLLE is how much webbing it has. The pack also has webbing on the bottom of the pack to strap a sleeping bag, tent, tarp or anything else.
One of the things that I did not like about the large MOLLE – it did not have a radio pouch inside the pack like the alice pack does. Nor does the pack have pouches on the outside of the pack. The plastic frame is also a draw back. Nor do I like having to use the pack with a frame – if the frame breaks your just out of luck.
Large ALICE VS Large MOLLE – If I had to pick between the Large ALICE and the Large MOLLE, to me there is no real comparison – Large MOLLE all the way.
When the Large ALICE is loaded, it seems to “fat”, and sticks too far off my back. The makes me have to lean forward to off set the weight sticking off my back.
The Large ALICE does not have any compression straps around the pack – this might be one reason why it seems too fat. Once th pack is loaded up, there is no way to take the slack out, because there are no compression straps. With the Large MOLLE pack on the other hand, it has a couple of straps where you can cinch it down nice and tight. So if your carrying a large load, it can be cinched up so that its close to your body.
The Large ALICE pack has 6 external pouches – 3 large and 3 small, while the Large MOLLE has none. This has its pros and cons. The small pouches on the Large ALICE are almost to small to store anything but small items. The larger pouches are big enough to store rain gear, and a 1 pound propane bottle will fit just right.
The Large ALICE pack has a radio pouch inside the pack, the Large MOLLE Pack does not. This may not seem like a big deal – but I like a place to store my smaller items, like bug spray, small flashlight, small muti-tool, bible, FM-2176, personal hygiene kit, camera and camera case along with spare batteries,,,,,, stuff like that.
MOLLE with external sleep system – lets just call this one the Medium MOLLE pack – desert camo, external sleep system compartment, claymore pouch on outside, no internal pouches or compartments, plastic frame, map case in top flap – but has plastic on one side of the map case so you can see the map without having to take the map out.
Overall, I view this pack as the least flexible – it has only a few webbing around the pack, none that wrap around the entire pack, and no webbing on the bottom of the pack. has very little webbing on it, no pouch on the inside and only one pouch on the outside of the pack.
Without the external sleep system compartment attached, and with something in it – the pack would not stand up on its own. It had to be leaned against a tree or something else in order for it to stand up. Its nice when you can drop and pack, and it stands up so you can dig through it.
Medium MOLLE VS Medium ALICE – If I had to pick between the Medium ALICE and the Medium MOLLE, I would have to pick the Medium ALICE.
The Medium MOLLE does not have enough webbing – this makes attaching extra pouches nice and easy. So if you need a place to keep a canteen, just attach a canteen. If you need a first aid kit on the outside of you pack, just attach a first aid kit.
The Medium MOLLE does not even webbing on the bottom of the pack for lashing a tent, sleeping bag, tarp,,,, or anything else to it.
The Medium ALICE pack has 3 outside pouches – which are just the right size for storing rain gear and a 1 pound bottle of propane for a stove. There is also webbing that runs the circumference of the pack, which makes attaching more pouches easy. The Medium MOLLE does not have any external pouches, and with a lack of webbing, there is no way to attach extra pouches.
Neither the Medium ALICE nor the Medium MOLLE has a place for a hydration bladder. As long as you can carry plenty of canteens, this should not be a big deal. But one more thing but that webbing – or rather the lack of it on the Medium MOLLE- if you dont have the webbing, your no going to be able to attach canteens to the outside of the pack.
When the canteens were put in the top flap (map case) the pack became top heavy. On the camping trip my son used the Medium MOLLE, and noted that it was top heavy because of where we had to put the canteens.
Review:
If I had to re-buy any or all of the packs in this article, it would be in this order:
1. Large Molle – Well designed pack, the few things I do not like about this pack can be easily fixed with a few add-on pouches. I still wish it had a metal frame instead of that junk plastic.
2. Medium ALICE – Battle proven through military use for around 40 years. Metal frame, lots of webbing,,,. The only draw back is that its a little heavy.
3. Large ALICE – Lots of room, but when fully loaded can be un-comfortable to carry. The lack of compression straps makes this pack too fat.
4. Medium Molle – I dont know if I would even buy this pack again. For something that supposed to be used by the military, I’am really disappointed in it.
Post your comments in this forum thread – comparing the MOLLE and ALICE Packs.
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Alice Packs
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Backpacks
People are like the rain fly of a tent
Do you play it safe and leave the rain fly on overnight – just in case it rains?
Or do you leave the rain fly off, and will deal with the rain when the time comes?
Do you leave the rain fly on, so no wild animals can peak into your tent at night.
Or do you not care what peaks into your tent while your asleep?
…In other words, do you play it safe, or do you take a little risk?
Getting the maxpedition vulture II ready for a camping trip
The other weekend I took some time to get my maxpedition vulture II ready for a camping trip. Over the next few months, my family and I have a couple of camping trips planned. One is supposed to be next weekend, on March 13 to Dam B in Jasper, Texas. There is supposed to be another camping trip on the river, and another camping trip along the Sabine River sometime this summer.
Regardless of where your going on a camping trip, its best to be prepared. On my camping trips, I like to be comfortable, that might include bringing a hammock and a tri-pod stool, or even both. That way I can get off the ground for a little while and relax.
There is nothing quit like laying in a hammock, in the woods, in the middle of nowhere. No phones, no cars, no noise pollution to bother you, just the relaxing sounds of nature.
Contents of the backpack:
One man tent
Sleeping pad
Sleeping bag
Hammock
3 eversafe meals
Rain poncho
Garmin GPS
TOPO maps
Map Compass
Maglight flashlight