Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Letter E – Needs to have two E’s in the topic word.
Creepy
Creepy – because we can’t take photos of rainbows every day.
The photo above was taken on a camping trip to Gunter Hill Campground just outside Montgomery Alabama. Fear not there was a warning sign that the walkway was closed. I’m not sure where the walkway lead, but I believe it was close to some areas where hunting was allowed. Beware!
Long weekends are a time to relax and a time to reflect. This memorial day weekend take time out to reflect back on those who have served our country and paid the ultimate price. It’s their sacrifice that allows us to be able to enjoy peaceful weekends in the woods.
Long weekend camping at Fort Toulouse/Fort Jackson park in Wetumpka Alabama.
What is thermal cooking? Well it’s like a slow cooker, but it does not use electricity at all and all the magic happens inside the insulated pot. The short and sweet of it is that food is heated to boiling for a period of time 5, 10, 15 minutes and then put into an insulated structure. The interior covered pot will retain all the heat and the food will slowly continue cooking for several hours.
This cooking concept is not new. While doing some research I found a newspaper article from the late 1890’s describing the same method. I also found a drawing in the book Experiment Station Work, XLI from 1907. If interested in reading the article it can be found over on the Internet Archive.
Well my cooker is not made from wood but the concept is the same. I was able to duplicate the method using a lidded pot and a cooler. Considering the cooler took up so much counter space and the hot pot warped the plastic on the inside of the cooler I finally decided to purchase a small crock pot sized thermal cooker.
It’s very simple to use and there is no worry from leaving an electric appliance plugged in all day. Continue reading
My second find online and a deal so far is an self inflatable camping/hiking pillow. It compresses and rolls up to about the size of a large cantaloupe. Those super duper OMG where did they grow those sizes.
I found it on AliExpress for $6.35 and with shipping it came out to $7.90. The order was placed on August 9, and it arrived at my house on August 25. Since I didn’t have a camping trip planned the wait wasn’t bad at all. The exterior material is a polyester PVC type material with a foam interior. Air valve is a screw type and is easy to inflate. Since it is a “self inflating” pillow I decided to test that feature and see if it would fluff up a bit without assistance from my lungs. When I opened the valve it did fill partially with air and with two little breaths it was full. It weighs in at around 9.3 ounces without the stuff sack. The size is 47x30x8cm (18.5″ x 11.8″ x 3.14″ inches). I made sure to check the sizes since I didn’t want to get something the size of a Barbie doll pillow. It’s been a while since I had to learn the metric system, and that didn’t stick; however, Google is your friend! If you’d like your own then you should check out AliExpress.
I have a trip planned in October so I’ll post an update once my camping trip is complete. Also, I think I’ll make it a tiny pillow case to keep it clean. Not that I drool, but well hiking makes me tired and I’d rather not slobber on my new pillow.
Lightly cushioned, nylon material. Easy to inflate. Green to match the down sleeping bag I got off E-Bay.
Weighs in at 9.9 ounces – 9.3 ounces without the stuff sack
So occasionally I get these ideas (Ok..it’s often I get these ideas) to see how I acquire a nice product, but save some cash while doing so.
Take this for example. I’ve been thinking about getting a pack-able down sleeping bag that would work in cool weather (30-50F). The problem is I’m not so sure I’d like to spend $150 to $500 for something I’m going to only use a couple times a year. So I start looking around online and found something that seems a little too good to be true. It’s advertised as a Autumn Adult Outdoor Envelope Duck Down Sleeping bag. Ok, I’m intrigued. The brand is AndesMountain and it had free shipping from China. It was a 1/4 the cost of several I looked at and it says it has 12.3 ounces of white duck down fill. Hmmm, not sure how to gauge that part, but I’m still looking. Well it did arrive all safe and sound and I am VERY impressed! Overall the weight is 1 pound 13 ounces and that’s when it’s packed down in it’s little stuff sack. It’s put together very well, has a nice feel to it, and looks like it would fluff up nice. The zipper works great and the bag packs easily back into it’s stuff sack. If anything it will be a great top quilt or something to use during weather that’s not too cold or for just hanging around the campfire. The sleeping bag is rectangle which I like and it also has a cord that allows the top to be cinched down around your head if needed. There are also two loops at the foot where it can be hung up to dry if needed. I’m very impressed and look forward to using my new bag on a trip I have planned in October. I’ll be bringing a separate bag…just in case the temps get too chilly!
