LEJOG 2 weeks in: gear review and habits

I’m now two weeks in to my LEJOG and 3-Peaks challenge. I am trying to walk from Land’s End to John O’Groats, wild camping every night. In this post, I will review how I’m getting on with the gear I finally chose to bring along. You can read my full gear list here. I’ll also share the habits I am trying to get into to make this wild camping life a little easier!

Sleeping Mats

The bed roll combination is working well. Obviously it would be more comfortable sleeping on a full size mat, but putting my empty rucksack or clothes bag under my feet and other bags at my head to raise my pillow height leaves enough of the Neo Air Xlite small mat for my body to be comfortable. Having the closed cell foam mat under the tent as a ground sheet does take the stress out of finding a suitable pitch in the dark. It means I don’t have to worry so much about thorns and sharp stones that may puncture my inflatable mat. This system is quick and easy to set up, which is nice when I’m tired and it’s dark.

Boots 

My Inov8 Roclite G 345 GTX boots are still very comfortable and I have no signs at all of blisters or sore patches. I am very impressed with them. I have written a full 1200 mile review of these boots here.

The 345s feel wider than the Inov8 325s I have in the same size. The 345s also feel like they have a firmer sole, which is better for walking. How true this is I don’t know as I’ve no technical way of checking, but they are perfect for this walk in colder weather.

If walking this in mid-summer I would choose a non-lined boot as they breathe better. Probably the Inov8 RocFly G 390 boots.

Down Jacket and Sleeping Bag 

Bringing this combination of sleeping bag and down jacket is working well, as a more insulated bag would have been too warm on some nights. Layering my clothes to adjust for colder nights is proving successful too. I am a cold sleeper and like to be warm to sleep well, but easily overheat and sweat which is bad news long-term in a down sleeping bag.  This why I wear merino wool clothing, as it controls my temperature well and absorbs sweat without smelling.

Sleeping Bag Cover

The water-resistant PHD sleeping bag cover doesn’t seem to work inside a tent. It traps moisture inside it from my body, which causes condensation on the bag inside the cover. I have found it best to leave the cover off and let the sleeping bag breathe. Perhaps the bag cover would work better with more air flow over it, for example under a tarp or even on dry nights as a bivvy bag. I will be posting it home the first chance I get to save the weight.

Teko Socks

The Teko socks are very good. I am wearing them without liner socks and they are comfortable. They are keeping my feet relatively sweat free, which is allowing for the Goretex boots not breathing terribly well in the heat (like all waterproof lined boots). The Teko socks are fine with liner socks, it’s just too warm at present for both pairs.

Nordisk Telemark 1 ULW Carbon

This tent was definitely the right choice. With the darker, longer nights and the condensation issues, it’s nice to have the space to stay away from the sides and keep my stuff that bit drier. It’s also good to be able to lay things out, and sit up comfortably to sort my gear or get dressed.

The main advantage is how easy this tent is to put up. It has only 4 pegs and the outer and inner go up as one. Quick and easy – just what you need when you’re pitching every night.

The tent feels very sturdy when it’s pitched correctly, and it doesn’t flap in the wind too often.

However, I personally don’t think that this ULW carbon version is worth the extra money. It is only a minute weight saving over the standard version of the same tent, and I only bought it as it was so discounted at the time. The carbon pole is a bit of a pain – the end keeps coming out unless I’m extremely careful when pulling the pole out of the ends of the fly sheet. The alloy poles are indented to stop this happening, but it’s not possible with carbon.

All in all this is a great tent for this trip, or for bad weather. It’s sturdy, well made and I feel very safe in it overnight.

I recommend the Nordisk Telemark 1 LW because of the cost saving and is still my favourite tent. The Nordisk Telemark 2 LW which isn’t much heavier and can be used as 1 or 2 person tent.

Meths Stove

The Vargo Triad multifuel stove is very very light-weight (30g) and simple stove with the convenience of being able to use various fuel types, depending on what’s available. It’s also very economical, using very little meths. However, it is slow and difficult to light when it’s windy, unless it’s in the tent porch (not recommended for safety reasons). Also when the stove is very cold I have to warm the meths before trying to light it, but it only takes a few minutes so not a big issue. Since buying this stove it has been on every trip I’ve walked. I love it now I’ve learnt how to use it properly. I would definitely take the Vargo Triad multifuel stove again. Love its size and weight.

Mug

My 64g Alpkit titanium mug is a bit of a luxury as I could drink out of the pan. I only use the pan for heating water anyway. But it is nice to be sitting drinking a coffee while I’m heating more water for a meal.

Important habits I’m trying to get into:

1. Always checking I haven’t left anything behind every time I stop, especially if I’ve taken my pack off. I always check twice as everything I’m carrying is essential. I can’t afford to lose anything!
2. Just think about today’s walk and don’t rush, enjoy where I am and don’t think about the end goal. I feel stressed when thinking how far I’ve still to go, it’s too much to think about and stops me enjoying today.
3. Keep everything in its place (or bag) and always put an item back in its correct bag, however much hassle it is. It’s then easy to see if anything is missing, so I can find it before moving on. This is especially true of my tent pegs and electrical leads when I’ve been charging something.

Being organised makes it so much easier to set up camp or just find things. I’m enjoying the routine of everything having its place.

Further reading

I couldn’t think of doing any of my long distance walks without my waterproof phone which I use for navigation and safety. Read my review of the GPS and mapping here and My Ulefone Amor tough phone review.

Lejog preperations

My 11 Wild Camping Rules

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