Offa's Dyke Ultralight 2008: The Plan

Aside: I've still to finish the Ridgeway write-up!!!

After the experience of the Ridgeway this year and Cotswold Way last year I'm planning to do Offa's Dyke. This path goes over several mountains and so I need to adapt my equipment to cope with more varied terrain and have a tent that could cope with camping in mountain terrain (I like it).

Food and Water

Not a lot has changed from the Ridgeway. I plan to have capacity for about 3L of water and to carry between 1-2L between water souurces in a bladder. After m Source Bladder started to leak on the last trip I've swapped the bladder for a lighter Platypus one. I have however kept the Source tubing which has far less taste to it.

Shelter

This is the first major change.

The tarp I took with me last time was just too small for more than emergency use. I also had problems with down getting damp. One night was understandable - totally still with frost; but other nights were not.

I've decided to build a larger version of my original Tarp/Tent but with pointed front and rear porches. I've also built a small inner tent for it. The inner tent is on target for 300-320g. This compares well with the 200g pertex bathtub floor / bivy hybrid that didn't really work.

I think the total weight increase in my shelter will be 150-200g. That's significant. I hope to save it in the changes to the sleep systems.

I'm going to have at least one carbon-fibre pole. Maybe two. I haven't yet decided if I will be taking a trekking pole. If I do then of course it'll double up.

I'm expecting the tent to come in at under 1Kg including poles and pegs.

 I looked at the Photon/Laser Comps but they are too small for me. I also looked at the Laser. It's much better but those 3g tent pegs would have to be replaced with a more sensible mix of 6g Ti Skewers and some V stakes to make it more suited for mountain use and that would bump the weight up to 1400g+ which doesn't sound so good. 

I also looked at pimping my Saunders Tent with the new inner and Ti stakes but that doesn't save much.

I'll post pictures when I've got time - and it's finished!

Sleep Systems

I've been thinking long and hard about the holistic nature of my kit.

A good quality down bag will always weigh in at a lot less than the equivalent synthetic bag but requires a little more TLC. A 2-season down bag weighs in at around 600g and the equivalent synthetic at 900-1000g. When you move into 4/5 season bags the difference can be 800g. So, even at the lowest range of bags you still have a good 300g+ to play with before the down starts to become too heavy as part of your system.

Tests over winter and more recently suggested that a small inner tent will provide an area that is at least 1-2C or more above ambient temperature, has much lower wind-chill and may well avoid much of the under-tarp humidity.

The lightest usable bathtub floor that I've built weighs in at 140g and it's equivalent made into an inner tent weighs in at around 300g - an increase of 160g. But that increase gains me about 1/2 a season rating on the bag (a season is roughly 5C)  and is much better for preventing water absorbtion - say 10g vs. 50+g.

[After several nights sleeping in a tent in varying conditions I think that the down takes on neglible amounts of water compared with sleeping under a tarp and I think performs better than a pertex-topped bivy bag.]

So although the weight is higher it's still better I think than synthetic and provides more weather and bug resistance.

The other change is to change my sleeping mat. I've been using a 5-season NATO multi-mat which is warm, comfortable, cheap and light at 300g. I've swapped this for a thinner and lighter 'competition' multimat which is much better for warmer weather use.

Pack

The Ridgeway Pack and front-pouch combo worked very well. I'm sticking with it. I might add a QR Pole Carry to it but that's all. I might also make a billows pocket. I haven't worked out if the volumes will be sufficient just yet.

This shows the early proto-type. I-ve since added padded straps to it and a rear mesh pocket. Internally it has an inverted U frame just like I made for a GoLite Jam.

Footwear

This is a tough one.

I've bought a pair of replacement Trail Running shoes (sale prices) but know that they are only good for at most 500 miles. That gives me 50 miles to get them operational and 200+ miles for walking before they become toast.

I did buy a pair of GTX lightweight boots but one of them seems to be biting on my achilles tendon so they might be unusable for this trip.

I know this trip will be going over several mountains and that Peat Bog is quite likely. I am very tempted to use my 1500g leather boots that are ideally suited for this type of terrain. Of course it's just 30% of the walk. The other 70% would be just fine for trail shoes. I've no idea which way to jump.

The boots may be heavy but I can wear them anywhere without problems for 2 weeks. I know with trail shoes blisters are much more likely and that they will be crap in the rain and the mud.

Since draughting this I've had some fun with an achilles tendon and boots crucify it and so I'm assuming I'll be wearing trail shoes and am training accordingly.

Cooking

This is an even tougher call. I found using Esbit far too painful. I'm tempted to take my alcohol stove which is light and painless to use but at 12-15g/cup doesn't compare well with Gas for 2 weeks. However, Gas is fast. Fuel availability en route is going to be poor for either choice.

If I budget on 3-4 cups a day then that's 20g of fuel for Gas or 60g for Alcohol; but Gas carries about 180g weight penalty at the start for canister and heavier stove which equates to 3d. A 250g cylinder might just be lighter..... A 110g cylinder will barely do a week but I'm not sure if it would run out near a fuel point.

I `will however continue to carry a Flatworld Mug that continues to work very well.

Clothing

I've become a big fan of the IceBreaker Merino wool base layers and so have bought both a T and a heavier l/s layer. The T will definitely go with me but I'm not sure about the other one just yet.

In the last week or so BackpackingLight.com have just released (members only for now) an ultralight shirt and ultralight pair of trousers. The two together might save me 4-500g!!!! But I don't think I have time to get and field test them so maybe next year.

Trekking Poles

I think I will take one. Some terrain might justify it. It will add 100-150g to the pack weight when compared with a Carbon Fibre tent pole.

Wet-Weather Gear

Pretty much as for the Ridgeway : a waterproof knee-length SilNylon coat (DIY) that is modelled roughly on a surgeon's gown and I've added a Paclite waterproof hat to it. I also have a pair of Thigh-length SilNylon gaiters/chaps that will attach to the coat. [Again, I need photos and an article!]

I'm also carrying as standard a Montane windshirt which continues to be most excellent.

Navigation

I'm using strip-maps and a standard orienteering compass (not ultralight). I did order a BCB Compass that weighed 8g and had a rotating bezel and could have been used (just) for real navigation. Unfortunately it turned up with a MILS scale and the supplier gave me some bullshit about how they weren't available in degrees any more and so I sent it back. (They are around with degrees printed on them).

Misc

A small lanyard that I always take that contains a whistle, a compass and a light (Photo Freedom this year) and weighs in at 1oz. This lanyard is my in-case-of-serious-trouble kit. I'll be carrying a small medical kit that takes care of the foreseeable.

On my last trip I lost the potty trowel and so have built a new one to a different design. It weighs a little less too.

Luxury Items

I'm sticking with  a Tikka Plus. It's much more suitable for hiking in the dark in poor terrain. I don't think the saving over the Petzl e+ is worth the extra risk.

On the Ridgeway I took a cameraphone with me. That multi-use device saved me 200+g. I wasn't too happy with the picture quality when compared with a 'real' camera and I did have concerns about using an emergency device every day. I'm tempted to move back to a separate camera, mobile and FM radio. I'll still carry an emergency phone charger (23g empty).

Since first writing this I've decided to move back to a separate Camera, phone (Motorola F3, 73g) and radio (Roberts, Sports Radio). I want to treat the phone more as an emergency device.

Summary

When I was analyzing all the changes I was making to kit I was expecting the pack weight to increase. In fact it has decreased or is broadly neutral. A lot depends on which sleeping bag I can take (the difference is about 200g).