UKH

Hi all,

I've been into hiking/hillwalking off and on since my teens especially the Eskdale, Wasdale, Mitterdale area of the Lake District. Have also inter-railed round Europe in the '80s, usually camping/bivouacking for a month, so always had the outdoor life in my blood. I'm now 55 years and have not been up to the Lakes for a few years now.

Most recently (2014-2018) myself and my eldest daughter would stay in a small cottage in Boot, and do day long hikes, typically Sca Fell+Pike, Great+Green Gable, etc.

I'm now planning a hard core (well for me!) Lake District trip probably Autumn 2024, I'd like to be more independent,  i.e. one-man tent, stove and back-pack. No cosy cottage, just nature. I wanted to join a forum like this, seeking advice on gear etc. etc.

Looking forward to talking and learning some more,
thanks M

Is it an expedition really, or more a sort of chautauqua?
(Sorry - obscure joke for any old hippies in the room.)

Have you bought the tent yet? Not sure if you're asking that sort of advice.

If you last went out on the hill was 5 years ago, then it may be sensible to stay in a youth hostel in a little warmer time, such as May-June, and choose good weather days during that trip, to go and camp less far out on the hill. The idea being, to both get used to how your kit works, and also to see if it is as practically appealing as you currently think. Then you can try in less good weather/season later on.

I personally am a fair weather camper if I can be, as I hate packing my tent up in a wet state and having to dry it all carefully at home.

Yes, I will be needing a tent. I did the youth hostel treks in my teens. But I'm planning to go a bit more hard core this time. I do have some rough sleeping experience, in teens and twenties, having even slept in the middle of large roundabout (Leige-Guillemins / Belgium) in my Interrail days in '88!

Tent wise, I guess I'm after some thing light weight, i.e. one man, but _possibly_ with a hood, i.e.  a one man affair - but if possible having some kind of hood, to prepare a brew under. Would appreciate links to any decent stuff, fitting the above description.

Hmm... hoping to get the kit well in advance and do a few "dry" runs (no pun intended!) in the back garden, etc. and get used to assembly, re-packing first.

I'm also after a stove. Back in my youth, one of my walking.mates had a Primus. IIRC it used paraffin and we used to have to pressurise it first. But after scouring the net today, it looks as if they are all gas with a disposable cartridge.
 

Thanks, M

A Great book, I re read it this summer whilst on holiday and enjoyed it immensely again. Also re read “the master and margarita” again recently and enjoyed it more the second time round. 
 

“Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance” is a must read and I am a (not too) Old Hippy! 😂. 
 

to the OP welcome to the forums, sorry for hitchhiking your thread and hats off to a great user name 😃. 

The less weight you carry the more (potentially..) enjoyable the experience will be. Going ultralight when solo wild camping is the way forwards. Obviously it takes some judgement and experience to go very light without compromising safety if it's colder, windier and wetter than expected. But try to go as light as you can (without silly price tags).

For example, in summer or early autumn you might be able to have a titanium cup+lid and some hexamine blocks instead of a stove and pans. You might be able to use a sleeping bag that weights 342g and packs tiny (https://ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk/spark-spi-down-sleeping-bag/). Water purification tablets and soft collapsible water bottle not traditional bottle. You can get tent, sleeping mat, stove, tent, water bottle, rucksack all totalling up to 2kg or less. The whole trip becomes a different experience!

Maybe I'm trying to teach you to suck eggs, but (discrete!) solo wild camping and ultralight go together perfectly. Enjoy!

I also like the book, but surely much more likely to be a trip to the country with Socrates? Anyway, welcome to UKC, Phaedrus, whichever one you are

I would suggest a first priority might be water management: clothing boots and gear, and a navigation device that doesn't have a touchscreen.

Also a route that really makes you want to get out there; I've been looking at a winding one from Workington to Windermere.

If you're planning this trip in one year's time, my main advice would be get out and enjoy some day trips between now and then, and a few valley camps and/or one night wild camps in fair weather. That will give you all the experience and learning you need, as well as a fitness boost. The fitter you are, the more comfortable you will be.

If you want more specific advice, you can usually get pretty good local knowledge on here, but take all advice with a touch of salt.

Some great multi-day walk/camps to be had in the Lakes. Enjoy!

Why the back garden only? Can you drive out to your nearest hilly - or at least quiet - area and camp out there one night? Drive out at 7pm, drive home again 8am, even a man with family responsibilities should be able to manage that once or twice over the next twelve months. 

Thanks for this CCT. That bag does look awesome, yes a tad pricey! But I'm sure it's worth it. I'll shop around and start a specific thread I guess once I start to look more seriously.

Many thanks FF,

Yup. Was a great book. (His next "Lila" was dreadful, IMHO).

Yes. In the past, I've probably skimped too much on the clothing. And got wetter than necessary. Navigation wise, I'm old school. Compass and map. Stay away from heights in low visibility. I've managed to worry myself even on a 1/2 walk up Kirk Fell, with fog and masses of rain, making paths very hard to retrace.

Yes, I'm pondering that. Mine's going to a lot shorter than what you are planning. An expedition was probably a gross exaggeration. About 5 days around the areas of Eskdale, Wasdale and Mitterdale which I'm already familiar with maybe a few extra slopes/views that I'm yet to experience.

In reply to seankenny:

Yes you are both right. Some practice jaunts out of the garden would be a good idea. It's a shame I live in the Fens!

Regarding tent options, I bought a sierra designs high route 3000 this year and did a few summit camps this autumn in it. I personally really rate it. It's a proper weird design, but once you get used to setting it up it's pretty simple and has a tonne of room in it, only weighs 898g, but you do need to use 2 poles with it. You can set it up to have a little shelter for cooking, has a gear store, and seemed fine and stable in moderate winds. There's definitely better tents out there but for the price I love it. 

If you can, treat yourself to some weekends away in Wales or the Lakes. I grew up in PBO so I know your pain!

How can going to the Lakes need expedition planning? You could go there tomorrow if you wanted to. Why wait until Autumn next year?

I used to backpack solo (and with with my ex) all over the place and abroad. Last year I wanted to get back into it after over a decade away. I got long covid so that was also a consideration as it limited the distances and times I could manage. I still have much of my old kit and knew the basics but I would advise you to start with something that's not over ambitious as a first trip, perhaps a night with your newly acquired kit to get the hang. I expect you'll already have basics the for hill days or will know what's required. Tent, sleeping bag, mat, stove/cooking/eating kit - more choice than you can shake a stick at and even more opinions as to what's 'best'. Unless you're going to get into it big time I wouldn't spend zillions on it - can you borrow some stuff? Decide on a nice place where you think it would be good to camp (flat grass, close to a clean water source, sheltered) - OS maps are the way, Google aerial views or even websites like Geograph. Consider going earlier in the year than autumn - the sun sets early and it's a long time in the tent before it gets light again. It can be cold, wet and miserable any time of the year but autumn stacks the odds against you. Bear in mind also that midges can be a pain during the summer months although I haven't had too many issues with them camping above Eskdale/Wasdale. It depends on your site - if it's open you'll get a breeze. I have had ticks camping in those parts. It's all about building up your personal knowledge so that you enjoy the trip without it becoming a misery festival. Oh, and don't spray that perfect pristine site you've discovered all over the web like some of those Youtube knobbers!

Thanks for the tent rec. Yes I did take a look at tents the other evening. Amazon presented such a bewildering range. Eventually I did a straight google search and found this:

https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/15905666/msr-elixir-1-person-tent-15905666

the Amazon reviews for it are very good. Some mention that it's very good in strong winds, which I rate v highly. Back in the day, 20 years old, on Hay Bluff in Wales I was sleeping under a home made effort comprising of a 3-4 foot long stick, some placcy sheet bought from a garden center, held down with rocks. I was pretty crazy then... anyway it withstood a few nights, but alas one very windy night, I got blown down!

So given that I might not necessarily know where I pitch the thing in terms of shelter, I don't want to take any chances.

Interesting what you say about the sunset, sunrise times. My issue with sleep is that I struggle to sleep when it's too light. However your point about a long time in the tent before it gets light again bears consideration.

I wonder if the August-September months would be the sweet spot? Of course none of us can second guess English weather...

Those months are among the worst for midges, certainly in Scotland but also in the Lakes if you're in a place that is prone. Last year I set myself a goal of backpacking a LDP and chose the Cowal Way in Scotland since it was quite short and not too full-on. As it turned out, it wasn't ideal for wild camping but I did manage to find spots at about ten miles apart each day. I went in April so that daylight was longer but before midge season. What did surprise me was the amount of ticks so I had to inspect everything whenever getting into the tent. The weather was good mostly, just a passing light shower one morning. I did another short trip in August and got blitzed by midges so bad that I baled out after one night rather than face them again. I've definitely gotten softer with age since we used to regularly camp out in the Highlands in the height of summer. I'd invest in a midge net - one of the best few quid you'll spend. Weighs ounces and could prevent a lot of discomfort.

Your comments to James about bivvying under plastic sheets made me smile. That's exactly how I started out as a schoolkid camping around Rivington on the Pennine moors. It's all part of the learning journey - onwards and upwards!

Hmm... TBF I know the Lakes are obviously v boggy and midges love that, but where we live we have lots of drainage ditches. And are surrounded by moisture retaining hedges. When I'd work in the bottom of the garden e.g. trimming hedges/splitting logs, sometimes I'd get bitten. But spraying on a bit of insect repellant would always scare them off me. My issue is I really love the late summer, so I may well take lots of insect repellant and slog it out then. And maybe get that net you mentioned just in case.

Me and my mates used to do some crazy stuff sleeping rough. Sometimes even night-fishing with only a bivvy bag. Didn't get much sleep!