New kit - Golite Quest, Big Agnes bivi and Therm-A-Rest NeoAir

I've had a spending spree....again....all in the name of trying to lower my pack weight. That's it now - I'm done!

I've bought a new pack - a Golite Quest. Weighing 1355 grams it's about 1200 grams lighter than my Gregory Diva. the padding on the hip belt isn't nearly as thick as the Gregory pack, but I've now learned (thanks to comments from my "followers") to keep weight down more, so hopefully I won't miss the extra padding - which can be a tad warm on a hot day.

On first inspection this pack seems fab - some really useful features, like the zipped bellow pockets on the hip wings, and a good pocket either side that's slanted so you can reach the contents / water bottles on the move. It seems to fit perfectly which is great as I bought it online which can be a gamble. The only oddity is the lack of a separate bottom compartment for the tent, but the side compression straps rather nattily can be extended across the back of the pack and fastened to the opposite compression strap which allows the possibility of lashing the tent on the back. My tent (Laser competition) can be a bit tricky to pack if I leave the small side poles in it makes for a longer package, but these can easily be left in place if I stick it on the back of the pack.

I've also gone for the Big Agnes bivi bag, which I bought for a very good price from good old eBay. It hasn't arrived yet but I can't wait to get my hands on it. It's statistics are very good weight and size wise. My thoughts are to use the tent for the first part of the hike where I'll appreciate the shelter from midges, plus a porch where I can cook a meal as it will initially be around 8 days before I can re-stock or find anywhere to eat. Once I get to Kilsyth I meet up with my hubby (John) for the day and plan to collect the bivi bag from him and leave the tent and stove. I'll be able to buy food along the way more easily from then on so I can live without the stove.

The NeoAir hasn't arrived yet - I'm looking forward to this one as although my Big Agnes insulated aircore mat is really comfortable, it isn't the lightest mat. The NeoAir will save me around 200 grams.

Its been pointed out to me that I've turned into a weight freak - and I think they are right!

I'm itching to get going now....3 weeks to go. My friend Sue is incredibly stressed this weekend after taking on my work, bless her. I'm hoping to get out for some backpacking days this week if I can and try out the new kit - time is getting short.

Come on warmer weather.....

A visit to Elan Valley

Our plan was to spend the weekend hiking around Elan Valley - a beautiful area of hills, moorland and reservoirs. Our plans were cut short though as our dogs were squabbling inside the tent - our little one "Snowy" is incredibly insecure and wasn't coping with being shut in such a confined area with Patch (my sweetie). So we ended up plodding back to the car after the first night, rather than continuing on. What a shame.

Never mind...we did have a fab night wild camping...and still have the rest of the walk to look forward to another day.

The outcome of this is that we have decided to now camp with separate accommodation...John with his dog, me with mine (Patch). Some may think this odd, but it's a good solution for the dogs...plus I get a slight break from John's snoring....!

We are thinking of eventually getting a bivi bag each, plus a lightweight tarp to use for cooking etc under if it's rainy / midgy. So far we're looking at the North Face Backpack bivi (910g) and a Gossamer Gear SpinnShelter (250g) - the idea being to use the bivi as the main shelter, and the tarp only when necessary. Of course it would help to win the lottery first...! I'd be interested to hear other people's ideas on this combination - feel free to leave comments or email me.

On a different note, I loaded myself up more than necessary in preparation for our upcoming Jogle, and found my new waistbelt and shoulder harness incredibly comfortable...the weight wasn't a problem at all...until I went uphill...

I may have lost the plot...

Ok, it's official. I've lost the plot. Maybe it's due to the recent sunny weather...or too much walking...or those weird little needles Physio stuck in my backside in the name of acupuncture...who knows...

I've just entered the ballot for a place in the 2010 London Marathon.

Why the heck did I do that?! AND it cost me £32!

I should finish my Jogle at the beginning of September, and one month later I'll find out if I have a place in the marathon. Goodo.

Ruff Wear Grip Trex Boots

What can I say...I'm getting my work (an online shop) in order for Sue, who's going to be holding the fort for me. Poor woman. I hand over to her at the beginning of May, and then spend a bit of time on and off with her making sure she's ok until I disappear off to John O'Groats. It's surprising how you think something will be straight forward and then all these complications appear...

Patch is doing well...we seem to have found a solution to her boots rubbing...there's a lovely lady called Penny on ebay (her ebay ID is; angelica1963) who has been just SO helpful and knitted us some fantastic boot liners. I can't tell you how helpful she has been - far beyond what you would expect. Penny has made some 100% wool liners that are padded everywhere except the sole, so they give protection over her toes, around the top of the boot and her dew claws, but they leave the sole simple so Patch still has stability underfoot. She's only worn them for 5 miles so far, but so far so good. I don't want her to have to wear them unneccessarily as I'd rather her feet toughened up a bit, but she DOES have some issues on pink skin area, so at least I know we have a fallback option. When I have days where I have a lot of roadwork, or some gritty forestry tracks I intend for Patch to wear the boots for maybe half the day - just to take the strain off her feet.

She may be a Jack Russell, but she's a big strong girl, and weighs around 9kg so I'm not planning to carry her!!

Just to update you...

The news so far....

After a fab weekend in Snowdonia, we had great fun conquering Glyder Fach and Glyder Fawr. Patch wore her new boots for the first time and coped very well - she was too busy trying to go faster than me up the mountain to even notice the boots. The problem we had though is her toe joints on the top of her foot were getting sore. Patch was wearing the Ruff Wear Grip trex boots with liners - the boots are fab, but I've just ordered some knitted woolen baby mittens to try as liners instead of the cotton Ruff Wear ones. Hopefully they will give a little more padding and will cope with wet conditions better.

I used ENGO Blister Prevention Patches this time in my new boots, and I have to say they were bloody brilliant! No irritation AT ALL on my heels - which is amazing considering how much these boots were shredding my feet before! It was a really good test for the patches, and they really came up trumps.

I'm currently planning campsites to stay at once a week or so. I'll be wild camping as much as possible, but if I can send a resupply parcel of food, maps etc ahead to some campsites to collect on my way through that would be good. Lorraine Finnie who has a campsite in Contin has been particularly helpful, and is giving me an alternative address to send my stash to as she's not there during the day. My hubby, John, is visiting 3 weekends, so that's some re-supplying sorted!!

I still can't figure out the easiest way to post my route on here other than putting it all on a google map (which I'm not having much luck with!). I planned the route on good old paper maps, so I'm not sure how to get them onto the web.

Fundrasing is still lower than hoped, but considering I don't have a vast network of friends, and my family don't particularly want me to do this walk, then it's hardly suprising really! The amazing think is, most of the donations have come from either old friends from school who I haven't seen for about 20 years (who have seen my walk on my Facebook page) or customers from my jewellery supply business who I have never met - but I class them as my new "cyber friends", or complete strangers who have come across this blog or my Justgiving page by chance - and some people who have come across me on Twitter.

So, although donations are low I'm over the moon that there are so many lovely people out there who will donate and support a total stranger! That's something special.

The weekend approaches...!

As the long Easter weekend approaches we are preparing for a weekend in Snowdonia. I'm going to stick a big bale of hay in the field for the horses and let them get on with it while we have some fun in the mountains. The change this year is that my mother has agreed to look after our older dog (Artie) for the weekend, as these walks are getting a bit much for him.

Artie has done well so far..he's conquered 3 different routes up Snowdon (almost 4, but we had to turn back down the Watkin Path very close to the summit as one of our other dogs was struggling with the cold!), breezed Cnicht, and scrabbled up Moel Hebog in some pretty horrendous wind and rain as well as numerous other mountain walks. He's crammed in our backpacking tent, and put up with one of our terriers (Snowy) giving him a hard time.

Although I feel guilty leaving the old boy behind, I know this is definitely the best thing for him as he trundles into old age. He's a sweetheart, and he's going to have a great weekend being spoiled by mum, while we get blown off the Glyders and drenched along the way I'm sure.

I'm looking forward to it.

Have a great Easter all!

Blister Prevention Patches by ENGO

I've just had contact with a company called ENGO who are new to me, but were recommended by BG / Stef. They supply some very interesting looking Blister Prevention Patches, and what a refreshing company they are to talk to. I received a reply to my email enquiry that wasn't full of the usual standard company waffle that I've normally received after approaching companies for sponsorship, but instead an honest and humourous reply - and an offer to supply plenty of patches to see me through my JOGLE. What stars they are!

I'm going to give my current blisters chance to heal before giving these patches a try, then I'll report on how effective they are - and believe me, these new boots will be giving them a good test!!

I'm so grateful to the guys at ENGO for this support, and if these Blister Prevention Patches work as they say, then they are going to be worth their weight in gold! It's a long time since I've suffered from blisters, but as long as these work then I will always be keeping some handy as having blisters again is incredibly unpleasant!!