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#35014 - 12/30/07 09:55 AM
I'm off!
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Loralee Ryan
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Registered: 10/29/07
Posts: 23
Loc: Bard College, NY
(192.246.225.14)
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Change of plans!
I'm going camping over New Years.
So the camping trip I've been talking about for (two months?!) on here, is happening, just slighty shorter and slightly safer.
I'm going to the Rider Hollow trailhead and bopping around there for a few days. Annoyingly, my stove seems to be missing a piece, but I'm only going to be there for a few days and perhaps I can still use it just by pouring propane in it without pumping. And this plan includes me having a car (Yay!)
So I'll be posting again on New Years or the day after. Thanks again, everyone!
Tata
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#35015 - 12/30/07 10:58 AM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: Loralee Ryan]
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Mark Heyman
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Registered: 12/23/99
Posts: 850
Loc: South Jersey (Pinelands)
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I'm going to...my stove seems to be missing a piece,...perhaps I can still use it just by pouring propane in it without pumping.
Unfortunately it it all to obvious you havent tried this!
Like the clothes, borrow or buy before you camp. Oh well.
Good Luck and I hope things work out for you.
Edited by Mark Heyman (12/30/07 10:59 AM)
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#35016 - 12/30/07 11:48 AM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: Loralee Ryan]
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MarcC
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Loc: Sandy, UT
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Annoyingly, my stove seems to be missing a piece, but I'm only going to be there for a few days and perhaps I can still use it just by pouring propane in it without pumping.
Probably not. And you're not pouring propane - sure you're not thinking gasoline?
Why do you keep making things up that you "think might work" instead of listening to experienced folks both here and in some of the links provided earlier?
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- Marc
Proud Member of the Reality-Based Community
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#35020 - 12/31/07 02:00 PM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: MarcC]
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AOR
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Registered: 08/27/04
Posts: 186
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Annoyingly, my stove seems to be missing a piece, but I'm only going to be there for a few days and perhaps I can still use it just by pouring propane in it without pumping. Probably not. And you're not pouring propane - sure you're not thinking gasoline? Why do you keep making things up that you "think might work" instead of listening to experienced folks both here and in some of the links provided earlier?
Loralee, I agree with with Marc...pouring any type of flammable liquid "hoping perhaps" it might work is a disaster waiting to happen. Even for an experienced outdoorsman. I used to have to do this every now and then with my 1970's model Svea stove and I prayed every time that I wouldn't blow myself up. So, take it from personal experience that this practice sucks.
I was a little concerned when you wanted to chop your hair because of a little iced snow on your head, but now the possibility that you may lose your hair altogether really concerns me.
But, as "O" said, I'll be anxiously awaiting the trip report!
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#35021 - 12/31/07 02:17 PM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: AOR]
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Loralee Ryan
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Registered: 10/29/07
Posts: 23
Loc: Bard College, NY
(192.246.225.24)
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Ah, yes - when I get settled I'll have a full trip report.
By the way, I realize that what I said before sounded a lot more ridiculous than what I actually meant.
I wasn't relying on my stove. I was planning to be out there for one or two nights tops, and I was a half a mile from my car. While
having a hot meal makes the experience much more enjoyable, I was happy enough to be camping and brought enough food which did not require a stove.
Also, I wasn't planning on pouring white gas over an open flame.
I had the idea that if I just filled the little dish beforehand and then lit it, it might be enough for my purposes, and it was.
First thing I wanted was a hot water bottle: mission accomplished. Then it burnt out, and I didn't mess with it much anymore.
Full trip report coming soon.
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#35022 - 12/31/07 02:18 PM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: Loralee Ryan]
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Loralee Ryan
stranger
Registered: 10/29/07
Posts: 23
Loc: Bard College, NY
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Hair still intact.
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#35023 - 12/31/07 02:59 PM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: Loralee Ryan]
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AOR
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Registered: 08/27/04
Posts: 186
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Very good...I don't think the Sinead O'Connor look would become you 
Actually, what I had to do with my Svea was to pour a little white gas into the depressed area at the base of the stove to build up the pressure inside so it would exhaust the thin spray to light it. Hated it every time...
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#35024 - 12/31/07 03:17 PM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: Loralee Ryan]
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Loralee Ryan
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Registered: 10/29/07
Posts: 23
Loc: Bard College, NY
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Okay,
The trip was phenomenal. This one wasn't hiking intensive, I just wanted to get some semi solo experience. By semi-solo, I mean alone but with a good chance of people around. I was right next to a ski resort, so the people were plentiful.
Because it was such a short hike, I got there with plenty of daylight. The main thing I wanted to try to do on this trip was to try my hand at fire building. I'd read the information on the other thread and done some online browsing but my guess is that it was much more delicate than something that could be learned online.
Rider Hollow, as it turns out, is a goldmine for decent firewood.
There was a fallen birch tree about 10 feet away from the lean-to, so I stripped it pretty shamelessly. Someone else had apparently build a fire, so there was some wood around, which was
nice too.
One thing I learned: bring matches. I brought two little bic lighters and both of them "broke" on me. My guess is that I wasn't using them correctly...but I don't know how you can use one of those lighters incorrectly. My other guess is that they suck.
So I was nurturing a small flame when a family came by and helped me with my technique. One of the things I learned from them was to get branches with had broken off but were still in the trees , because they were likely to be the most dry. We had some difficulty, because all of the wood was pretty damp from the rain a few days ago.
Another thing I learned: Firebuilding is significantly easier with a lot of people. You can have one person blowing, another feeding it twigs, someone else blowing on another piece..etc.
I had been trying to just get a flame and keep it alive, rather than build a very solid base first, so they corrected me there.
But eventually we got a roaring fire going. I'm putting in a picture because I'm shamelessly proud of it.
Spent the rest of the evening either maintaining the fire or gathering more firewood. Obviously didn't use my stove, because I used the fire to cook.
I opted for uninterrupted sleep rather than maintaining the fire all night and through a snow storm. Also, as someone else said in the other thread, my sleeping bag was warmer.
The next morning, I cleared off the eight inches of snow that got dumped on my beautiful fireplace and tried again. (By the way - I had checked the weather beforehand. The snow didn't catch me by surprise). Unfortunately, my second lighter died. Every once in awhile I could get a spark.
I had already tried and failed with the stove. Just to reiterate that point, when I went camping before I hadn't actually used the stove but I watched it used. I tried it in my driveway before I went, and thought mine was missing a piece. It wasn't, actually, I just misunderstood the mechanism. My friend was going to teach me how to use it, but he hadn't yet as I called off the trip. And now he's in California. I wasn't expecting to use it, but dragged it along anyway because I figured that there are worse things that I could pack and not use.
As my level of pride decreases dramatically along with my body heat, and I didn't need to conserve it for the stove, I decided to try and kick start the fire with the gas. (Before I considered that cheating)
Don't worry. I've played with bug spray and candles enough in my youth to know that it is important to stand back. I lost hair to neither ice nor flame this trip.
Also, I could only get my lighter to spark, so the only way I could produce any kind of a flame was to dip a stick in the gas and try to let the spark catch, and then use the burning stick as a light. I had already (somewhat) cleared the snow out of my fireplace and sprinkled some gas on the wood. Again, don't worry - I did not pour it over an open flame.
Another thing I learned: The importance of taking a few breaths of fresh air when blowing on a fire. A gulp full of smoke doesn't feel good.
But anyway, I didn't manage to get it going this morning so I decided to come home a night early. I would have been okay without a fire, but it wouldn't have been nearly as enjoyable and I wanted to remember a fun trip. And I had a blast. (And learned a lot!)
Edited by Loralee Ryan (12/31/07 03:20 PM)
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#35025 - 12/31/07 03:56 PM
Re: I'm off!
[Re: Loralee Ryan]
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MarcC
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 07/10/00
Posts: 2745
Loc: Sandy, UT
(24.221.250.208)
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I wasn't relying on my stove. I was planning to be out there for one or two nights tops, and I was a half a mile from my car. While having a hot meal makes the experience much more enjoyable, I was happy enough to be camping and brought enough food which did not require a stove.
Glad things worked out. Keep in mind that on more ambitious excursions - multi-day with miles hiked per day, above treeline, etc. - a hot meal becomes and important part of being able to keep warm. Not just for the "hot" aspect, but making 5000 calories per day palatable (most folks don't like to drink straight olive oil or eat frozen butter). Another critical need for a stove is when it is your only source of liquid water. Sure, you may plan to make camp at a year-round flowing stream - what happens when a storm forces you to stop 3 miles short of that campsite with a strem? Of course you'll need to calculate how much fuel to carry with the assumption that you'll be melting snow or ice for all your water. This is but one example poor assumptions.
There's just a lot more to think about and consider in winter camping/backpacking that a lot of novices don't realize. I think that is the major motivation behind some of the cautionary posts in these threads. Reading an exciting TR of an epic trip is great. Reading about extremities lost to frostbite, hypothermia deaths, injuries or deaths of SAR personnel looking for your sorry ass, or even chopped off hair when it could have been prevented with a bit of knowledge is just depressing.
_________________________
- Marc
Proud Member of the Reality-Based Community
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