There is one fundamental problem with modern “Social Hiking 2.0″ is battery power – on a single device you have gps switched on, you are navigating using Viewranger (which is also updating your position online and updating the position of your Viewranger buddies on your phone), you are also sending, reading and replying to Tweets, uploading photos, reading and responding to Facebook comments and updating your blog.

All this leaves your average phone dead by the end of the day (by teatime if it is a touchscreen phone) – and that is where Powertraveller’s excellent portable power device the powermonkey comes in!

I have owed a powermonkey eXplorer for a couple of years now – and I almost always have it with me when I am out and about to provide an instantly available charging point for my phone. Each fully charged powermonkey can charge my phone about one and a half times.

On Offa’s Dyke however I will have two phones and a camera to keep charged for 13 days. My Nokia N79 will be in use during the day with Viewranger and my lovely HTC Hero will come out in the evening. Without charging, neither phone will last the second day, and there is no guarantee there will be anywhere to charge in the evenings. With a single powermonkey, I could probably stretch this to upto four days – still 9 days short!

The powermonkey eXplorer comes with a small solar panel – I have never really had the opportunity to test it fully, but I am not sure I can rely on there being enough sunshine in April to build up a sufficient charge during the day.

I also looked into wind powered devices – however all the ones I can find on the market rely on a minimum speed. This minimum speed is great if you are driving or cycling, but just doesn’t seem that reliable for walking. Someone suggested putting a small wind charger on the tent – but hopefully I will be camping somewhere sheltered without sufficient wind speed to charge!

The easiest option I can think of is having multiple powermonkeys – they are light and small, so not too problematic to carry, and they hold their charge. I can charge them all up at the start, which should cover us when other charging facilities aren’t available throughout the whole trip (and as a backup the support vehicle can take a couple away to charge).

I am delighted that Powertraveller have kindly agreed to support our challenge by loaning us some extra powermonkey Classics! Their support is very much appreciated. I am pretty sure that with their support, we will be able to share our adventure on the internet for the whole trip!

On our next training trip, in a few weeks time to the Brecon Beacons, I will pay a bit more attention to how the powermonkey’s fare, and will do a more detailed review on this blog.

Equipment-wise we have done quite well – there are a few little tweaks, but in general we have everything we need. The one key learning point for me though is the importance of caring for your feet when hiking for multiple days in a row.

The Problem

In general I do not tend to suffer from blisters, which are caused by a combination of heat, sweat and friction. The main reason for this is that I have a comfortable, well worn in, pair of Brasher boots (who are now on Twitter – @BrasherBoot) – and all the advice on the internet is to choose a good pair of boots (see “Top 10 tips for buying walking boots”)

What I do suffer from however is generally very sore feet – as my feet sweat (clean, non-stinky, sweat I hasten to add), the skin wrinkles. As I continue walking these wrinkles get a pounding (especially carrying a full pack), leaving them sore and tender. After our 17 mile walk in Surrey, I was in complete agony, and I would not have been able to do a long walk the following day.

(on the plus side I didn’t really have any major problems with my shoulders, hips or body generally from carry the backpack, albeit without the tent and sleeping bag – a little stiff the next day perhaps, but nothing that would stop me continuing a hike)

The Solution

So I did a little research on the internet, and found a few really helpful posts, firstly “How to take care of your feet when hiking”. The key recommendations are:

• Choose the right hiking boots
• Trim your toenails
• Soften any tough skin (which are subject to hard to treat deep blisters)
• Rest feet when walking

Now my feet are generally in pretty good shape (too much information right?), but the idea of regularly taking off your boots and letting your feet rest and air seems very sound. I was in too minds about whether to take my Holeys with me , but I am now convinced it will be a good idea to give my feet a chance to breath in the evenings (and they are hardly very heavy)!

Another useful blog post, “Avoiding and treating foot blisters for hikers”, as well as giving some useful advice on how to treat blisters, highlights the importance of changing your (decent walking) socks when they get wet – it might sound a little ridiculous, but this is not something I usually do, instead suffering until the end of a walk!

I remember from my days of Duke of Edinburgh that we used to use talcum powder to help keep our feet dry. A few people I have spoken too didn’t think that would be a good idea, however a comment on the Guardian website reminded me of the advantages:

There are some skin protectors on the market, but the best and most successful thing to use is talcum powder in the socks. Not only does talc soak up the sweat (damp socks can cause blisters), but it acts as a lubricant between skin and sock. Use what seems to be an excessive amount of talc to prepare the inside of the sock and on the foot. An extra shot of talc can be put down the heel just before lacing up. Carry a small pot of talc in your rucksack for repairs en route.
Barbara Cross, Nottingham

So on my walk yesterday (over 15 miles across a very wet Northamptonshire with an almost full pack), I put these ideas into practice.

Testing It Out

Before setting off, I ensured my feet were well covered in talcum powder, with an extra few squirts in my socks (remembering to pack the talcum powder!).

For this walk I decided to retry my 1000 mile socks – initially I couldn’t remember why I stopped using them, as they are very comfy!

Every hour or so, when I stopped, I made sure I took my boots and socks off to let my feet dry and breath – and then reapply some talc before continuing the walk. The socks started getting quite damp (that clean, non-smelly sweat again!) but the talc certainly seemed to do the job in stopping it wrinkling my skin.

I foolishly decided against wearing my gaiters, which I quickly regretted due to sheer amount of water on the ground. No matter how careful I was, water ended up splashing (and eventually pouring) into the top of the boot. This made my socks completely waterlogged, however thanks to the talc and the rest breaks, it took a while for my feet to be too badly affected.

Eventually I swapped my socks for a clean dry pair – which felt absolutely amazing – and completed the walk. Despite the tough terrain (thick mud), the dampness and the full pack – my feet were in excellent condition by the end and I could have easily done another walk the following day.

Incidentally the reason I don’t use 1000 mile socks is that they are very difficult to dry – ideally you want socks that you can stick in your sleeping bag to dry over night!

My guide to foot care whilst hiking

1. Make sure you have a decent pair of boots
2. Take plenty of decent hiking socks
3. Change your socks when they get damp (if you do this as early as possible you have a fighting chance to dry them in your sleeping bag)
4. Regularly let your feet rest and breath
5. Regularly apply talc to your feet
6. If it is raining or very damp, wear gaiters to stop water getting into your boots

Do this and your feet, the most important hiking equipment you have, will thank you!

Now I have started putting together my kit for Offa’s Dyke, it has occurred to me that there is something fairly fundamental that I have completely failed to take into account… my dog.

Now I wouldn’t even think about going on a walk without my dog, let alone a trip like this – but I had not really thought about the implications, in terms of weight to carry, that having my dog with me would have.

To give you an idea, here is a list of equipment I currently have to hike and camp with for a, well certainly my, dog, and their weights (yes I have just spent half an hour with my kitchen scales weighing everything!):

The “small” stuff

• Poo bags (100g) - being a responsible dog owner, I will of course have poo bags with me.  There particular ones are quite heavy duty ones, so I might have to make do with lighter, thinner ones.
• Clip (120g) – rather than the usual, and heavy, screw-in dog attacher (it probably has another name!) I take camping with me, I will just have a large multi purpose clip.
• First aid kit (50g) - in additional to my own small first aid kit, I will also have a range of wipes and some tick removers (is there any other dog-specific first aid equipment I need, especially for her pads?)
• Aqua Sorb towel (300g) – this is ideal for cleaning and drying the dog after a day of walking (and much lighter than the alternative – old towels!).
• Bowl (450g) – at the moment I just have one of those funky non-spill water bowls (the one that was on Dragon’s Den). It is ideal for having in the tent, but it is slightly heavier and slightly bulkier than a usual bowl. I probably need to find something lighter that folds away.
• Extendible lead (500g) - not something I can do much about, although at least it is in my hand not on my back!
• Small lead and Halti (250g) - again something I need when walking through busy areas (and the Halti stops her pulling me down steep hills / mountains!!)
• Water (1.5 kg) – my dog is pretty well “trained” at jumping into anything wet and trying to drink it, but I always take a 1.5l bottle of fresh water with me for stops and in case there isn’t running water.

Sub-total: 3.2kg

Sleeping Arrangements

The dog will be sleeping in my tent with me, but I don’t think I would have gone much smaller than the North Face Tadpole 23, so I won’t count the possible extra weight from a slightly larger tent.

However the dog does need to sleep on something (other than cold ground!) – usually I have a great sleeping matt which is fleece one side and rubber the other, but this is far too heavy and bulky to take on this trip.

The solution I have come up with so far is to buy a cheap roll matt and cut it in half – it shouldn’t be too heavy and I can just roll up in my roll matt. She doesn’t need a cover – anything I try and put over her very quickly gets shaken off (and she has me to cuddle!).

Sub-total: 200g (based on half the weight of my roll matt)

Food

Now this is where it gets really tricky (and heavy).

Her usual daily diet (a third of her daily requirement in tinned meat, and two thirds of her daily requirement in biscuits) weights just under 1kg.

However these won’t be standard days – I usually give her an extra tin of meat and plenty of treats when we do a long walk, which increases the weight to 1.5kg (per day).

Looking at the route so far, I think I need to carry at least 2 or 3 days worth of food…. that’s going to be a whopping 6 kg!!

If anyone can suggest light weight, but very nutritious food, dog food – I would love to hear from you. I have seen a few (predominately American) websites which mention freeze dried raw dog food – light and nutritious. I will need to do some more research!

Sub-total: upto 6 kg

Summary

So as it stands, I have to carry about 3.5kg of weight for my dog on this trip… and with her usual diet upto 6 kg of dog food!

To put that into perspective the tent, the heaviest item, is just 2.3kg.

I am going to have to find a solution to the dog food problem, and try and scale down some of the other smaller items!

I could of course get her to carry her own kit……

(from funstufffordogs.com)

I was originally supposed to be using the Tadpole tent donated by a good friend who was emigrating – however I foolishly left it on the train whilst returning from London (and have heard nothing from baggage reclaim since!).

It still wasn’t plain sailing collecting this tent mind – I had only been travelling for about 10 minutes (by car this time) when someone decided to drive their Volvo into the back of me whilst I stopped at a pedestrian crossing (you know – to let some pedestrians cross!). The bumper is pretty smashed up, and the boot dented!

Hopefully that is the end of my tent bad luck now!

The tent seems perfect – after having a  look around @fergycool’s  lovely house, garden and garden office, we put the tent up – it seems easy and quick to put up, has just the right amount of space for the dog and I, and packs down very light and small.

I can’t wait for next weekend to test it out now! (well other than the cold anyway!)

Maps

You would at least think I would come out with the one thing I went in the shop to buy… sadly they didn’t have the maps I needed (although bizarrely they had more Dorking & Box Hill maps than anything else!)

Well at least Amazon have fairly cheap maps!

Clothing

After the disappointment of not finding the maps I needed, I spotted that a lot of the clothing was on sale. I only really have one set of decent walking clothes so, unless I plan to really smell on Offa’s Dyke, I do need a few more items.

What caught my eye was:

• Lowe Alpine Polartec Power Stretch
• Another pair of North Face walking trousers – I love my first pair! I think they are the horribly named Men’s Paramount Convertible Pant featuring zip off legs, UV protection, big pockets, water resistance and a “gusseted crotch for increased mobility”

Sunglasses

I have worn glasses for my entire adult life – I used to have a pair of quite good wrap-around prescription sunglasses that I used for walking but I lost them about five years ago (after the tent saga, you will probably not be surprised to hear it involved beer and public transport).  Unfortunately my eyes require thick lenses, and I haven’t been able to find an optician since willing to try and make wrap-around lenses (the side bits become very very thick).

This was a situation that was driving me up the wall so, about a month ago, I started a contact lenses trial in the hope I would be able to get sunglasses in time for Offa’s Dyke. I couldn’t resist having a look at what sunglasses the shop had, and before I knew it, I had fallen in love with a pair of Julbo Bivouak Matt Black sunglasses (they are sort of meant for snow / ice, but who cares!)

Sleeping Bag Liner

Camping in April is potentially going to be quite chilly, let alone camping next weekend!

Follow the recommendation of both @documentally and @LittleWideWorld (both on Twitter), I have bought a Sea to Summit Silk Standard Travel Liner which the pack claims will increAase warmth by upto 5 degrees.

The liner actual solves several problems – I hate sleeping bags, and unless it is very cold, I tend to use them more as a duvet so I don’t feel so trapped. Hopefully the liner will give me a bit extra warmth without having to zip the sleeping bag completely up, and the extra warmth in very cold conditions with the sleeping bag zipped up.

Other Camping Accessories

I also picked up a few other bits and pieces:

• A Sea to Summit Delta Plate with Protext base
• A LiFEVENTURE travel mirror (for putting contact lenses in and out)
• An Exped Fold Drybag (a little orange one)
• Set of LiFEVENTURE titanium knife, fork and spoon set
• Gas bottle for my cooking stove

I just can’t wait to get out and use all this equipment now!

Backpack

Perhaps the most important item for the trip, and something I needed to get as earlier as possible so I can start training with more weight.

I headed down to White and Bishop in Northampton – my family have been going there for years, and the staff are always very helpful. The very (and I mean very) patient shop assistant helped me try on pretty much all of their backpacks. The problem I was having was that either the back support didn’t provide enough support or it provided too much.

I nearly went for the North Face Terra 60, which was very supportive on my back. However, as fellow team member Karen pointed out, I will be having my dog on a lead for most of the trip, and when she pulls forward my back wouldn’t be able to bend forward – over 177 miles I can see that being a problem.

In the end I settled for the Berghaus C71 65l+10l. This rucksack has Berghaus’ Bioflex system – effectively the frame of the backpack twists and bends with your movement. In the shop (without any weight) it feels amazingly comfortable and responsive.

Review to follow!

Baselayer

Whilst I was in White & Bishop I also picked up an Icebreaker Bodyfit 200 base layer, made from 100% Merino wool (a sheep from New Zealand).

The Merino wool fibre keeps your body warm when it is cold, and cool when it is hot. I cannot tell you how much I love this baselayer – so much so that I had to be ordered to take it off and wash it (it is anti-bacterial, and even after my two week trial it hardly smelt at all!). The only slight annoying thing is that it is a little short for my frame, so unless it is carefully tucked in there is sometimes a draft!

Head Torch

Documentally, in his useful comment to my equipment list post, recommended Petzl Myo RXP head torch. Now the inner-gadget geek inside me got very excited about the idea of a programmable head torch, however the inner-realist came to the, probably correct, decision that this torch was a little too “flash” for me….. so I bought the simpler (though still very cool) version – the Petzl Myo XP (from the Stony Stratford Outdoor Shop)

It still has light output upto 150 lumens, several modes, and wide angle lense – so I am sure it will be fine!

Review to follow!

Cooker

I finally folded and went for the Primus EtaPackLite cooking stove – I am really surprised how small it packs up to and I am really looking forward to trying it out (when I have some gas…)

The stove consists of a base with a burner and piezo ignitor, windscreen, a 1.2 liter pot and a lid which can also serve as a colander with its bayonet fastening. It is pretty straight forward to pack and unpack – and is supposed to be efficient with a fast boil.

Review to follow!

I don’t think the list is particularly comprehensive – it was more a list of things that caught my eye, but if you can spot anything missing let me know!

I used my list to give my friends and family a rough idea of possible Christmas gifts, and fortunately I have obviously been good this year, as Santa brought me quite a few items:

• Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Mattress – Hopefully the ideal balance between comfort (and warmth) and weight. I had a look at the self-inflating versions, but I don’t think I can justify the extra weight, and the RidgeRest seems like it should be comfortable enough for me.
• Sea To Summit eVENT Compression Dry Sacks – In two sizes – should hopefully help reduce the space my clothing will take up as well as keeping it all dry.
• Berghaus Raincover – to keep my rucksack dry in the worst case scenario of it pouring rain every day!
• Peter Storm StormTech Gaiters – some people find gaiters really useful and other people don’t seem to get them. Personally I don’t particularly like them, but I cannot deny that they can help keep your feet dry – a must when you are walking for 12 days solid!
• Peter Storm StormTech Waterproof Trousers – a replacement for my worn and leaky Halfords ones.

After hearing about my tent saga just before Christmas on Twitter, Chris (@fergycool), obviously filled with Christmas cheer, has kindly offered to lend me his 2-man North Face Tadpole for the next few months! Thanks a lot Chris – it is much appreciated!

Over the next few months I hope to review as many of these items as I can!

So what does that leave?

• Backpack – I am not really sure what size I might need. Too small and I won’t be able to fit everything I need, too large and the temptation is to try and take too much. I quite liked the look of the Vango range – the 40+8l Stealth range (although perhaps a little ultralite), and the 60+10l/65l Contour range. A friend on Facebook has offered to lend me his army style backpack, although I don’t know how big it is yet!
• Charging Kit – We will have about seven devices to keep charged up over the 12 days (five mobile phones, a netbook and an MP3 player). To an extent we can cheat and rely on my parents (in the support vehicle staying at bnbs) to get some of the devices charged, as well as friendly pubs, but part of me would really like to try and keep the main phone (with Viewranger) running on wind/solar power alone!
• First Aid & blister care kit – I already have a first aid kit, but it could do with a refresh, and some kind of blister care kit will be a must!
• Cooker – At the moment my preferred camping stove is the Primus EtaPackLite (mainly due to the Countryfile magazine review in July), however I am starting to think it might be a little advanced for my requirements. I do quite like the idea of a solution which includes the pans as well – and low gas usage is pretty important.
• Insoles – I am still not sure how convinced I am by my Sorbothane double strike replacement insoles, and I am starting to run out of time to find and test a replacement. They do seem to work, but they do take a few walks for your muscles to get used to them.
• Clothing – I need quite a lot of clothing: base layers, walking tops, walking trousers and walking socks.
• Other camping equipment – just a few bits and bobs like cutlery, head torch, roll up water carrier, etc.

So lots more equipment to source – time to hit the sales!

The tent seemed ideal, all I need to do was head into London to collect it……

The North Face Tadpole is a light (2.22k), cosy, 3-season tent. Although being quite cosy for two people, it seemed ideal for just me and my dog.  It also sounds like it is pretty quick to pitch –  an added bonus on a 12-day hike!

My friend had bought the tent for a camping trip in the Peak District – and he was very pleased with it. Reviews on the internet seem to agree:

The tent has been used in all weathers, a night in 3 foot of snow, on a hill top at minus 15 in Wales springs to mind, without fault, it certainly feels bomb proof in very strong winds when staked out belying the tag of only being a three season tent.
Song of the Paddle – North Face Tadpole 23 Review

light, easy to pitch, stable in high winds, good ventilation, extremely waterproof.
Customer review on outdoorsmagic.com

The tent also received some positive comments on Twitter, with both @documentally and @fergycool (thanks for the use of your photo) singing it’s praises.

So, last Saturday, with some excitement, I hopped onto a train to London. I don’t get to see my friend that often, so it was nice to catch up over lunch and a few drinks in the pub. After bidding farewell, I headed back to Euston, tent in hand, to catch a train back to Milton Keynes.

Initially I had a table to myself, but as the train started to fill up, I was joined by a family who had come down from the North to watch a football match, and the tent was moved into the overhead storage rack. What followed was a saga involving the family, four Virgin train staff and a frail lady who, despite having problems communicating, I suspect was more with it and capable than she appeared and didn’t want the help the well meaning family forced upon her. The family also felt the train staff should be doing more,  which they then tried to do when the lady was due to disembark at my stop. In all the confusion I left the tent on the train!

There was a lot of colourful language when I realised what had happened as I left the station (just in time to see the train disappear in the distance!). I quickly rang the Virgin Trains Lost Property number, but there isn’t anything they can do until the train is emptied at the terminating station.

I have left all my details and contacted the terminating station, who have not seen any sign of the tent. I am not holding my breath – a tent with no name tag just before Christmas is highly likely to “disappear”.

So I am still without a tent, although at least now I have more of an idea of what I might need. I am also the butt of jokes on Facebook from my so called friends!!

I am sure the saga will continue…..

I don’t really know very much about tents – I have owned three over the years, but they were all pretty much impulse buys.

I know even less about backpacking / hiking / expedition tents – I am assuming that being light and compact is important, but beyond that I haven’t got a clue!

Hopefully that is where you come in! This is an open invitation for suggestions and recommendations on what hiking tent I should get for Offa’s Dyke.

If case you are interested, my previous tents were:

• an ok 3-man tent that came in one of those “starter” camping kits from Blacks. The sleeping bags and inflatable bed were quickly discarded, but the tent lasted a couple of years (my ex-wife has it now).
• one of those pop-up tents – perfect for a 20-day driving holiday to and around Morocco I went on a few years ago. I still occasionally use it for short trips, but it isn’t ultimately very waterproof!
• my new Outwell Arizona L tent I bought in the Summer. I really like this tent and it is perfect for camping holidays around the UK (the extra height is brilliant as I am quite tall and suffer from back problems – so being able to stand up straight is great!)

However none of these tents are particularly practical for a 12-day backpacking trip Well I say that, but Karen & Popa will be using the Arizona, but they have the benefit of using the support vehicle to carry their camping equipment – Alex and I will be carrying ours!

A few weeks ago I very nearly bought a Coleman Avior X2 - it was (surprisingly enough) an impulse buy after visiting a local store and seeing it was half price as part of a winter clearance. Unfortunately the only one left in the country (in Scotland) was already reserved and was sold before they had time to ship it down to Northampton.

My requirements

My requirements for the tent are:

• suitable for all UK weather – I am unlikely to take it anywhere particularly extreme
• light – I have to carry it
• suitable size – it needs to fit me (6′3), my dog (German Shepherd) and a rucksack
• waterproof / wind proof - obviously!
• not too expensive – I obviously want to get a tent fit for purpose, but at the same time it won’t get a huge amount of use after Offa’s Dyke, so I don’t want to spend too much
• easy to put up – the quicker it is to put up the better

It’s all so confusing!

Doing some research on the internet brought up a whole host of queries:

• do I need a 4-season tent, or will 3-season be fine?
• what is the best balance between size and weight, for a few extra lbs of weight should I go slightly bigger, or will my knees tell me on day 4 that I should have gone for the lightest option?
• what is a realistic budget?
• what type of tent do I need? there seems to be so many types!

So please, any advice or suggestions to put me out of my misery will be very much appreciated!

Firstly it is important to make sure that the insoles sit in the right place in your boots – even slightly out of place, and they will feel uncomfortable (and potentially blistering) as you walk. I stopped a couple of times to adjust the position, but once everything was aligned up the insoles felt great!

The insoles definitely affect the way that I walk – my ankles in particular seemed to be working harder, and today I have more aches and pains than usual, although I am not sure whether this is due to the slightly tougher terrain than usual or to the insoles – probably both. Either way, this is something my body will get used to over time!

Towards the end of the walk a blister started to form on my little toe, and the underneath of my feet were beginning to get very uncomfortable – at the time I was coming to the conclusion that the insoles have only succeeded in taking the edge off my feet pain – maybe adding up to another 5-7 miles (considering the amount of road-work on this walk) before becoming painful.

However my views changed when I got home and removed my boots. There was a lot tall wet vegetation on the walk and, as I don’t have any gaiters, this water, unbeknown to me, had run down my leg and into my boots. My feet had obviously been wet almost all day as they were extremely wrinkly – a lot of the foot pain had been caused by the compression of the wrinkles (pinching the skin) and wet feet of course blister easier.

So in conclusion, although I won’t know for sure until the next walk, I am pretty sure that the insoles are doing their job of reducing the impact pain occurring on the ball and heel parts of my foot – certainly enough to allow me to complete a 20 mile walk without being in pain.

I have also learnt that I need to get some gaiters (yes Alex – you can do the “I told you so” dance!), and take clean dry socks with me on walks!