Red Yeti's Blog

13 Nov, 2007

When I had a pair of shoes suddenly need repair halfway through the Haute Route I was very glad that I’d got a good sewing kit with me. So I was pleased to find out that you can now buy Kevlar thread quite easily.

Using Kevlar means that you don’t need to use so much thread to repair whatever you’re repairing.

For example, using the polypropylene thread to repair my shoe I needed to hold the top lace in place for at least another week’s walking so I kept sewing until I’d built up a considerable thickness, about a 3mm gear cord’s worth I reckon. Each stitch had to be punched through the plastic lace-grip that had blown as well as the tough shoe material. I had to use a Swiss coin as a thimble and managed to badly bend a “leather” needle. Luckily I had a thick “darning” needle as well which finished the job.

Sewing for ages to get a strong repair is fine if you’re sat looking out over a nice view eating lunch. Which we were. But even then, after twenty five minutes of sewing, my fingers were sore and cold and everyone else was starting to shiver. Using Kevlar I know for a fact that I could, and would, have used far less thread and spent far less time doing it.

The fact that the leather needle bent surprised me but it wasn’t the sharpest thing I’ve ever used. So I also had a good search around for a strong and really sharp needle. The best I could find are Wenzel needles that come as a kit with some dyed linen thread for sewing leather. I got them from an ebay seller who currently isn’t trading but a search for “Wenzel thread” on ebay turned up several listings.

As for the Kevlar thread, I got mine from an ebayer in the USA: Primitive Originals were a pleasure to deal with and sell a set of five colours. FindingKing also sell just plain black Kevlar thread but the first one got ripped from the envelope by a sorting machine before it arrived. But they’ve since posted another one with no quibble at all.

Another supplier that I’ve found has a limited amount of thicker Kevlar thread. He has one huge reel and is selling it off a length at a time for a reasonable amount – but once it’s gone it’s gone. 50 metres would probably last a lifetime of gear repair but he will do any length you want. He also has a rather nice picture of it suspending a brick (tied to thicker polyester string) and reckons the breaking strain to be about 5.7kg.

Once I’d got the threads and needles I wanted I cut up a bit of card to spool some the Kevlar around. Add in the darning needle that saved the shoes and a curved upholstery needle that looks like if you need one nothing will substitute (both from a cheap sewing kit) plus a couple of safety pins and you’ve got a complete kit.

Finally, to hold it all I cut the corner from a plastic document wallet, with a spare flappy bit to fold over to make a closure. Taped the edge then covered the tape in Seam Grip (which wasn’t necessary! I was just repairing something else at the time). A piece of Magic Tape or Gaffer Tape over the flappy closure to hold it shut, chuck it in a waterproof bag and you’re done.

Total weight – just 4gms.

I reckon you could put a wheel back on a Land Rover with that.

21 Nov, 2007

First one of those sidebars that appear at the side of magazine articles:

Paramo is the name of a clothing company. Their clothing is based on a fabric called Parameta. Parameta is waterproof but it’s a fabric, not a plastic sheet (like eVent or Gore Tex).Its not only waterproof but also because of some clever physics applied to the design will actively move water from one side to another. The important point is that it is a fabric so it breathes like a fabric.It simply doesn’t get “overwhelmed” and have a film of water build up inside it like even eVent can do. If it ever did build up that much moisture, it would just get “pumped” through and dumped on the outside. It’s more than just the ‘usual’ capillary action at work, this is special use of capillary action that “pumps” due to the diameter of the fibres changing from one side to the other across the the material.The one downside is that it can be relatively heavy and warm compared with jackets made in something like eVent or Gore Tex. So not so good for summer when you hope to be carrying it more than wearing it. But ideal for winter use.

Edit July 2010: I now use the excellent and very light Paramo Quito jacket in summer (it replaces the separate windproof I used to carry) – but still use the Glamaig for winter!

At the moment I don’t have a Paramo jacket but I’ve been bowled over by the Paramo Cascada trousers so I’m getting a jacket based on Parameta for the winter. People on the Gear Forum of OM talk about the “Paramo religion” because “converts” to Paramo are so amazed by what they discover they get very evangelical. It took me ages to pluck up the courage to spend the money on something that, to be honest, looks like it won’t work but I’m very glad that I did. Because it simply does.

Even then I still can’t get away from the feeling that a winter jacket weighing nearly a kilo for a large size is too heavy. But a company called Cioch Outdoor Clothing on the Isle Of Skye seem to have the answer

Cioch make their waterproof clothing out of Parameta, the fabric that Paramo use, since Paramo is owned by Nick Brown who developed Parameta, and Nikwax (Nick Brown – Nikwax – geddit? ;)

Their Glamaig jacket is intended for summer use but since both LB and I are happy with a summer weight eVent jacket in winter for skiing in the French Alps and Norway and wandering about in the Cairngorms I started to wonder why the Glamaig wouldn’t work.

At an average weight of 510gms its heavier than a lightweight eVent (which are more like 370gms for a similar size) but not by a huge margin considering the potential comfort advantage. Price is about the same and Cioch even make to measure for a very reasonable fee. Which looks to be a service worth having once you measure yourself and try comparing with the off the peg measurements.

I emailed Cioch and Neil Urquhart (pictured on their site) replied very quickly. We ended up discussing it on the phone and I found that I’m not the first to have thought of this. Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team have also decided that the Glamaig is right for them in winter. They had the Cioch Harta jackets a couple of years ago and when they came to order a new set they decided on the Glamaig instead.

As Neil said in an email to me “A guide friend of mine uses his thru’ the year in the Cuillins and I know of a member of Cairngorm MRT who uses his for ski-mountaineering. If your happy without the extra protection a full mountain jacket affords- why not?”.

But what is that extra protection?

It’s essentially two things. Firstly the Glamiag has no storm flap over the zip but a baffle inside instead. I have no problem with that and Neil says no one’s ever said it leaks.

Secondly the Beechcomber shell fabric used in the Glamaig is lighter than the fabric used in the Harta, the Harta being the equivalent winter jacket, having a storm flap and heavier shell fabric. A lighter fabric could potentially “flap” a bit more, become plastered to you in high winds and cause the infamous “pumping effect” that pushes warm air from inside your layers. That’s a potential issue but I personally feel that the layers I would wear underneath would be resilient enough to prevent that and wouldn’t be greatly helped by a stiffer shell fabric. Besides, having it made to measure will mean that there’s far less spare material to flap about.

Obviously I can’t yet recommend them from personal experience but I have just ordered one each for LB and myself plus some trousers for LB so obviously I’m feeling confident that they’ll work as I expect.

We requested a couple of alterations, fully lined sleeves, higher volume hoods to take helmets and some allowance for wearing more than summer layers underneath.

I would have liked to leave posting something about them until I’d tried them out for a season or more but in the mean time I thought it worth mentioning in case anyone reading is looking for a new winter jacket. Especially if you were considering a Paramo type jacket anyway.

20 May, 2008

These things work, really, really well.

They are waterproof. They are comfortable across an astonishing temperature range, meaning you don’t carry them in your pack very often so the fact they are heavier than eVent doesn’t matter. We’ve been wearing them the whole winter, since just after I first mentioned them.

To give you some idea, LB and I started a day just after dawn, clear and bright and -2.5C/27.5F with wind chill taking it to -12C/10.5F (according to the Kestrel). It rained, it snowed. We sat and had lunch for half an hour, we sat for ten minutes and grinned as we disappeared under a blanket of wet snow.

So? Well, all through that, neither of us changed clothing. At all. We didn’t take an item off or put one on.

All the rest of what I’ll say is detail that might answer some questions. The main questions; Does it work? Is it comfortable? Is it worth the money? Does it, in short, perform better than eVent/Gore in the Winter? have been answered to my satisfaction. This is very impressive kit.

The hoods are excellent. The brim-stiffeners might look a bit large but they’ve kept a great deal of high-speed snow away from our faces in the last season. Our hoods are actually from the Harta which is the winter-cut and winter-weight equivalent of the Glamaig. We had ours made larger to take a boarding/skiing helmet which worked well. There’s a small flap of material to allow the hood to be rolled up. It’s not very large, and with hoods this big, I think it’s worth having it to stop them flopping about when we aren’t wearing them.

The weights look heavy at first but when you realise that you never really expect to carry them it makes much more sense. They form part of your insulation rather than just being a waterproof shell. We didn’t have to carry them (as opposed to wearing them) from December up until mid May. The temperature comfort range is just so broad.

Mine weighs in at 696gms (slim waist but fairly broad shouldered and about 6′2″/186cm) and LB’s is 594gms (slim, long back for her height and 5′6″/167cms tall). Bear in mind that, leaving aside the fact we had them made large to accommodate winter layers, there is no excess material here. They’re made to measure after all.

Some of that could be saved by not fully lining the sleeves (I hear it works fine), using normal hoods and not having the map pocket. I might go for unlined forearms if I were to buy them again but the hoods and map pocket would stay.

So what’s wrong with them?

Well, not a great deal.

The cords that adjust the opening on the hood can flick at your face in a very high wind (40+mph / 65+kph) but I reckon the ends of them could be sewn on to the hood to prevent that (I must mention that to Neil at Cioch).

The map pocket that I was originally unsure of is something that I have found myself using again and again for maps. It’s handy for putting a RFID ski pass in allowing you to glide through the barriers. Would I have one again? Yes.

The hand pockets are the one thing I don’t like. They’re too low and are restricted by the rucksack waist belt. But that’s not at all uncommon in a jacket.

One thing to note when ordering – the arm length on the site says “B: Measure from top of collar bone to…”. That’s effectively wrong – it needs to be from the base of the neck. See B in the diagram (which is accurate) and tell Neil that’s where you’ve taken the measurement. All the other measurement instructions seem spot on.

Overall, I expect to be wearing Parameta based waterproofs in the winter from now on. I would look at Paramo since some of their new range looks good, but more than likely return to Cioch for the excellent custom fit and option to specify exactly what you want.

23 Jun, 2008

Well no, usually in the mountains as it happens.

Going to the toilet outside “properly” (as my dad used to call it) is either one of the highlights or one of the worst parts of a trip. If circumstances and your body allow, you can enjoy a quiet moment, able to do nothing more than stare at some amazing scenery and really feel connected to nature. On the other hand, waking up in at tent with the runs in the middle of a storm is “character building” at best.

There is a lot of advice on this subject out there on the web from how to avoid having to carry toilet paper, to how to avoid getting ill after doing it. The Mountaineering Council of Scotland has a very good page that’s well worth reading. So I’m not going to spend time repeating too many details.

In essence, find a spot that’s as far from a watercourse as you can but a minimum of 30 metres (100 feet) and dig a hole. Make sure it’s between 10 and 15 cms deep (4-6″). Deep enough to stay put. Shallow enough to have enough air to rot quickly. Then either burn or pack-out your paper.

Of course, only burn as long as there is NO risk of fire, so basically only if the ground and the vegetation is wet. Remember that peat is burnt as a fuel and even though it might be cold and overcast, the wind-blown grass may be tinder dry. Overall, unless you’re certain everything is wet, do not burn.

Replace the soil, re-plant the plug of vegetation you removed and wash your hands!

There are also some special techniques for particular areas, from smearing on to a rock in some desert areas to bagging it and removing it in many mountain areas including, the winter Cairngorms.

But, as ever, I want to concentrate on the gear.

The “gear” for going to the toilet in the mountains can be very simple. The easiest thing to use is a garden spade, as found outside any good Bothy. Especially if you’re in a hurry.

However there are some lighter options.

For anyone that wants something nearly as efficient as a spade, the u-dig-it trowel is apparently very good. But Bob and Rose have managed to source something far lighter and apparently also very easy to use. I notice the amazing Roger Caffin has decided it’s still too heavy and cut it down further.

I found a very light and dual-use alternative mentioned on a forum some time ago (I can’t recall where). It’s an MSR Blizzard Stake, used for holding down tents in snow.

With a handle made from duck tape. Hence the dual-use, the handle is also my roll of duck tape. I glued a tiny bit of cork in the gap to stop mud working its way up.

The stake weighs in at only 25 grams. Enough gaffer to get a reasonably comfortable handle only puts another 25 grams on it. It’s not the most elegant looking thing and the above mentioned trowels are almost certainly easier to use but it’s worked well for a couple of years now.

Then of course there’s the paper. It’s best to sort this out so that it’s completely grab-able before you need it since you’ll have enough to do with trying to stay upright and stop everything blowing around. I’d even go to the extent of pulling it off the roll and folding it, ready torn to length, into a resealable bag. That way you can avoid the whole roll getting wet in a downpour.

On shorter trips, I like “travel tissues”, the sort that come in fives in little plastic bags. Also when looking for a suitable spot – grab a stone to stop everything blowing away. Chasing toilet paper with your trousers around your ankles might be fine for a bad sitcom but in real life it could result in a highly inconvenient sprain.

As the phrase goes; “Now, wash your hands”

Again, some forward thinking regarding getting a bottle or Platypus set-up just right before hand so you can do it one-handed (you’ll know which hand!). Or better still, have your friend briefed and waiting for your return with a water bottle primed.

But using plain water won’t do the job properly by any means.

Some people carry alcohol based gel (better for the environment than something based on some other sanitiser) and in lab tests, alcohol based gels do a better job of killing pathogens than soap and water. But in actual use, soap and water is far more effective. At least according to research mentioned in an excellent article in TGO June 08 by the always fascinating Eddy Meechan. In it he also outlined the use of a water-pistol and a surgical glove as a way to avoid using toilet paper altogether – as I said – fascinating!

A bar of soap might appear to be lighter, but it’s hard to stop it turning to mush, it’s prone to becoming full of bacteria and you often don’t need that much. So a concentrated liquid soap is the way to go.

It will probably come as no surprise that I now use Dr Bronner’s. It’s very concentrated and environmentally friendly in production and use. The bizarre rantings on the label gave me pause for thought but it seems that Bronner was just a very eccentric guy with an incredible knack for making soap. You can find it on-line but a visit to the local health-food shop will probably turn up a bottle. Like most, I prefer the peppermint.

So a mini bottle of that for weekends and a larger one for longer trips and you’re done!

10 Jul, 2008

I carry the little Garmin Geko 301 GPS unit mainly as a backup to the map and compass and partly to allow me to note any tricky-to-find wild camp sites. It’s very light at 87gms so I don’t begrudge the weight too much.

However the screen looks like it would be very easy to break and the on/off button very easy to accidentally press. Especially since I keep it in a silnylon stuffsac on the outside of the pack along with other things that I want to-hand like sunglasses and torch.

So I’ve constructed a very simple and very light “GPS cozy” from some duck tape, a little bit of foam sleeping mat and the side of a plastic bottle. It only weighs 14gms.

The plastic bottle is one of those square-sided Finish Dishwasher Cleaner containers. It’s purpose is partly to add more protection for the screen but mainly it’s to stop the foam being compressed into the on/off button thereby accidentally switching the unit on. Without the hard plastic to protect that button, it doesn’t take a great deal of pressure on the outside of the cozy to activate the switch.

Construction is fairly obvious from the pictures. You can just see the inset I’ve made so that cozy isn’t permanently pressing on the buttons. That inset also means that once the unit is slipped into the cozy, the buttons pop-up into the gap and therefore stop the cosy slipping back off again.

There’s also a chamfer cut along the front edge of the foam where the buttons first contact it as the Geko is slid inside. It’s the same principle as used on any door catch, a chamfer on the catch lets it slide back inside the door, only to pop back out once the door is closed.

To start off, you need to make a hoop of tape, just big enough for the GPS to slide into, with the sticky face outermost, with each end stuck to the foam/bottle-side. That then gets covered by a second layer of tape, sticky side in, that forms the outside face of the cosey. Trust me, it’s easier to see what I mean when you start playing around with it.

It might not be the slickest design ever but it’s very functional and has been shaken around in the pack for nearly two years now and is still in one piece. I’ve used the same technique to make a camera lens cozy that’s also worked rather well. Especially when I managed to drop the lens…

08 Aug, 2008

Back from a great trip to Sweden to see the Out-laws (the last summer that I can refer to them as that before they become the In-laws…). Managed to fit in a couple of gorgeous days of canoeing, with an overnight camp, on a long narrow lake; Stråken. The weather was very hot and sunny almost the entire twelve days we were there with temperatures often in the low thirties centigrade. Magic.

So, what of the sleeping?

I’ve already posted about sleeping bags but they are only part of the story.

Sleeping Bag Liners

We use silk bag liners to keep the sleeping bags clean and add a fraction more warmth. They also give some flexibility if it’s hot because you can use them instead of the bag. Not a problem we expect to encounter in Iceland however (the clue, being in the name).

Silk liners are usually eye-wateringly expensive but the ones from Jag Bag of New Zealand are far more affordable. They are available very easily in the UK from Paul over at Terre Vista Trails.  They come in either Fine (lighter) or Endura (heavier, tougher).

They are very light – the fine is reckoned to be only 85gms on the site but I must admit mine is 108gms.

It’s worth the weight in my opinion because it keeps the bag so much cleaner. And clean down is warm down. Also I don’t want to send them to W.E. Franklin more often than I really have to.

Sleeping mats

Foam sleeping mats won’t deflate so on long trips this can be quite an advantage. Just try finding a leak in an inflatable mat without a bath full of water and washing up liquid! But foam mats aren’t as comfortable or as small as an inflatable mat.

We’ve been experimenting with all kinds of things. Including aluminium faced bubble wrap used as insulation in construction. However we’ve found that it’s far better suited to use as a pot cosy or wind-shield since it’s actually heavier and colder than the same-sized piece of cheap foam mat.

For the main mat we’ve been using Torsolites. They’re very comfy and warm, at least for the area that they cover.

They take a little getting used-to as you tend to roll off them more easily than a larger mat. But for the weight and incredibly small packed-size they’re worth it.

We’ve discarded the stuffsacs that came with them in favour of a loop of 4mm shock cord of the same diameter as the stuffsac. Although the cord is fractionally lighter (only by about 2gms) we mainly prefer it due to the lack of faffing-around trying to get the mat back in the bag.

Torsolites don’t work so well on their own though since there’s nothing under your legs and so they can get cold. So one third of a cheap Gelert camping mat does the trick. It only weighs about 58gms once the edge has been shaved down by 10cms. Who needs that much width anyway?

With the foam mat we also get some contingency should the inflatable mat get a puncture.

It’s worth pointing out that, despite what this picture might seem to show, the mats actually cover the whole length of the sleeping bag apart from my head which I rest on a Gecko Micro Fleece. I simply pulled the silk liner down a bit to show the PHD bag underneath and hadn’t realised that it makes it appear as if the mats are even more minimalist than they really are.

Ear plugs

If you’re sleeping in a hut, or even with a snoring tent partner, ear plugs can be a lifesaver. We’ve recently been using Ear Seals Earplugs and find that they really do block out noise.

Hat

A hat isn’t the first thing most people think of for sleeping kit but the difference they make is astonishing. All this winter I’ve been using one of my all-time favourite bits of kit; the Extremities Power Dry Beanie (Extremities is the brand name used by Terra Nova for their clothing range).

I’ve found that if I ever wake up cold, it’s because the hat has been pulled off my head as I’ve moved about. Putting it back on warms me up in just a couple of minutes.

We’ve also found that hats are especially useful if you’re hair is wet, like after a sauna for example.