Quote (SheriffCool @ Mar 18 2020 02:30pm)
With quarantine and self isolation, it might be a good time to practice some techniques out in nature away from people.
I have been using all of my extra free time to strengthen myself in two areas (since my strength in the gym is no longer an option); the kitchen and the outdoors. I am becoming quite the chef and meal prepping now. That's another story. As far as my time outside, I am trying out all sorts of new configurations with my hammock and tarp setups. I've been learning and practicing a lot of knots, starting fires with a striker (and cheating with dryer lint to help me get it started if it's extra windy), and other miscellaneous stuff. I am starting a blog and youtube channel about my adventures, nothing serious where I am trying to be a promoter or anything like that - just as a hobby.
Working on optimizing my 3-season New England climate backpack setup for a 2-3 day trip. I have a 65L backpack that fits everything I need. I would like to optimize my cooking setup. I am stuck between a JetBoil MiniMo and the Trangia setup. If I was a better fisherman, I would just bring a collapsible pole and use a campfire in some situations. Other than that, my shelter setup is beyond on-point as long as I am below the tree line. There will be times in the White Mountains this year where I will need to improvise with a sleeping pad or configure some sort of hammock stands. The next thing I am realizing is that I may become a weight weenie. I consider myself strong and in shape, so I never really cared about the pounds and would sacrifice weight for comfort. But as I tote around my whole load, I am starting to see that I don't need to be such a diva at the cost of my aching back after a long day. While I originally converted from tents to hammocks to save weight, my bling'd-out setup is now the same weight, if not more, than a small tent. It is a lot more comfortable, though.
Wishing health and happiness to my fellow outdoorsmen.
Also taking suggestions for new things to learn!
I've been following this guy, Shug, for a while. He's entertaining and informative when it comes to all things hammock. Here's a look at him reviewing a nice tarp, I just recently ordered this as well and will be setting it up for the first time this evening.