How long and how often you stop during a hike is very goal dependent. However, an Australian study may hold the answer if you are wanting to stay at your optimal condition through out the day.
Check out this 'Aussie Top Up Strategy'.
The study gave a group of athletes various eat, drink and rest schedules, and closely monitored each patients' body for signs of fatigue, dehydration and discomfort.
Optimal schedule:
Stop every hour for 5 min (only) during streneous physical activity: eat, drink, and rest during the break. After the fist hour you will drop to 90% your optimal condition and bounce back to 95% by the end of the 5 min rest. When following this schedule, after 3 hours you will have only dropped to 85% (bouncing back to roughly 90% after the rest). As 9 hours rolls around you will still be operating at 70% of your optimum. Even at 12 hours expect to be functioning above 60%.
Compare this to another scenerio. The atheletes in this trial rested for 15 min every three hours. By the time they reached their first rest, atheletes were only functioning at 70%. After the 15 min break they did rebound to 80% only to plunge 50% by their next rest at hour 6. By hour 9, 30% and around 10% at 12 hours.
The obvious but interesting observation is that in both scenerios, the actual duration of rest is the same.
I will be trying out this strategy for my next few trips.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Eldorado Chili
I've had a lot of success with this recipe. It is a hearty meal that satisfies the hunger brought on after a long day on the trail. This is a vegetarian recipe that even staunch meat eaters will enjoy.
Serves 3 people
Eldorado Chili
1 cup split red lentils
8 sun-dried tomato*
1 Tbsp beef bouillon (vegetable based for vegetarians)
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp dried onion*
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder*
3 cups water
*Substitute 6 roma tomatoes (wrap in news paper and pack in your cook pot), 1 medium onion and 2 cloves of garlic.
Options: Add a bell pepper, jalapeno or cheddar cheese to round off the meal.
At home: Combine all dry ingredients in a sealed plastic bag. Carry fresh ingredients (incl. cheese) separately.
At Camp: Mince garlic and chop vegetables (if applicable). Combine vegetables and dry ingredients in a pot. Slowly add water and stir well. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat; simmer for 15 to 20 mins. Add additional water if looking dry. Add cheese to each serving. Serve with: pita, bread, or instant rice.
Serves 3 people
Eldorado Chili
1 cup split red lentils
8 sun-dried tomato*
1 Tbsp beef bouillon (vegetable based for vegetarians)
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp dried onion*
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder*
3 cups water
*Substitute 6 roma tomatoes (wrap in news paper and pack in your cook pot), 1 medium onion and 2 cloves of garlic.
Options: Add a bell pepper, jalapeno or cheddar cheese to round off the meal.
At home: Combine all dry ingredients in a sealed plastic bag. Carry fresh ingredients (incl. cheese) separately.
At Camp: Mince garlic and chop vegetables (if applicable). Combine vegetables and dry ingredients in a pot. Slowly add water and stir well. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat; simmer for 15 to 20 mins. Add additional water if looking dry. Add cheese to each serving. Serve with: pita, bread, or instant rice.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Calculating Hiking Travel Times
When you are preparing for a wilderness trip, it is important to be able to judge approximately how long you will be hiking on the trail. The following information is a general guideline that can help plan your itinerary.
5 km/hr Good maintained trail free of obstructions
3-4 km/hr Trail with some obstructions, some vague spots
2-3 km/hr No trail but open terrain
1-<1 km/hr No trail with forested or obstructed terrain
Other mitigating factors:
Add 1 hour for every 300m of elevation gained.
Add 15 minutes for every 300m of elevation lost.
Other mitigating factors that may affect your travel times include: excessive heat, heavy packs, substrate that you are traveling on, and individual walking speeds.
5 km/hr Good maintained trail free of obstructions
3-4 km/hr Trail with some obstructions, some vague spots
2-3 km/hr No trail but open terrain
1-<1 km/hr No trail with forested or obstructed terrain
Other mitigating factors:
Add 1 hour for every 300m of elevation gained.
Add 15 minutes for every 300m of elevation lost.
Other mitigating factors that may affect your travel times include: excessive heat, heavy packs, substrate that you are traveling on, and individual walking speeds.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Backcountry Chocolate Fondue
You need:
400g Chocolate (dark or milk - your choice) in pieces.
2 oz Liqueur of choice (ie Grand Marnier)
2 cooking pots Medium pot with 300 ml H2O, smaller pot nestled inside.
Sliced/Individual Apples, Biscuits, Marshmallows or all.
Place the larger pot on the stove with water inside (ensure there is not too much water that it will boil up into the smaller pot). Bring to a boil and place smaller pot inside the larger. Add Chocolate pieces. As it starts to melt, add the Grand Marnier and begin to stir until chocolate is fully melted - reduce heat to and have the water simmer. The idea behind two pots is to create a 'double boiler' and to reduce the chances of scorching the chocolate (making for a horrible mess to clean later).
Gather your friends/family around and dip the apples (in slices), biscuits, or marshmallows into the chocolate. Increase heat if chocolate is solidifying. When all the apples/biscuits or such are gone, give the inner pot to either the hungriest or biggest chocolate lover in the group - they'll surely clean the pot to a spotless state.
400g Chocolate (dark or milk - your choice) in pieces.
2 oz Liqueur of choice (ie Grand Marnier)
2 cooking pots Medium pot with 300 ml H2O, smaller pot nestled inside.
Sliced/Individual Apples, Biscuits, Marshmallows or all.
Place the larger pot on the stove with water inside (ensure there is not too much water that it will boil up into the smaller pot). Bring to a boil and place smaller pot inside the larger. Add Chocolate pieces. As it starts to melt, add the Grand Marnier and begin to stir until chocolate is fully melted - reduce heat to and have the water simmer. The idea behind two pots is to create a 'double boiler' and to reduce the chances of scorching the chocolate (making for a horrible mess to clean later).
Gather your friends/family around and dip the apples (in slices), biscuits, or marshmallows into the chocolate. Increase heat if chocolate is solidifying. When all the apples/biscuits or such are gone, give the inner pot to either the hungriest or biggest chocolate lover in the group - they'll surely clean the pot to a spotless state.
MSR Whisperlite International Stove
WhisperLite International Stove
Rating 4.5/5Review:
I have personally owned this model of stove for 12 years and have a lot of experience using it in a wide range of conditions. First, let's look at the features:
Weight: apprx. 15 oz
Fuel Types: White Gas, Kerosene, Automobile Gas (unleaded of course)
Burn Times: White Gas110 minutes - Kerosene 160 minutes (with standard fuel bottle as seen)
Time to boil one L of H2O (at sea-level): White Gas 3.5 min - Kerosene 4.4 min.
Now that we've read the specs let's talk about performance. This is a very dependable stove. I still own my first model which I use on mountaineering trips, backpacking adventures and while guiding. So far I have only had to replace one part, the Pump. The plastic plunger broke after being stepped on. This was a very easy part to find and only cost around $20. I have also replaced the windshield and reflective base as my old ones were becoming a little too disgusting to use (aprox $15).
How to use: The stove bottle must be pressurized and the stove primed. Do so by allowing a little liquid fuel to escape into the cup at the base of the stove. At this time it is best to have the stove assembled and place on to the base heat shield on a fairly level spot. Ignite the fuel (with the valve turned off) allow the flame to burn nearly out - you should notice the stove sputtering now. Now turn on the stove to the level of your desire. Be sure to use the windshield as it greatly reduces boil times. When carrying the stove in your pack it is always a good idea to depressurize the stove.
Pros: This stove uses three commonly found fuels as listed above. I have used automobile gas for two months straight with no problems.
Fuel bottles are re-fillable reducing waste you need to carry (spent cannisters) and thus garbage. This also allows you to switch between available fuels.
Very light and compact (fits into a 1.4 l. pot).
Larger fuel bottles are available.
A field repair kit is available for little cost and it adds little weight or volume to your pack. This kit is able to repair nearly everything except total destruction (ie running it over with a vehicle).
Not prone to plugging up and easy to unplug 90% of the time while using the shaker jet option (when cool, just shake the stove - really)
Cons: This stove can be unstable with larger cooking pots (but what is one to do?).
Cannot accept pressurized gas canisters (but I believe that is a plus).
Does not simmer well. Let's say it simmers with the subtlety of a blowtorch. (a way to alleviate this issue is to use a heat diffuser or to constantly lift the pot away from the flame when you are cooking something delicate).
I'm not a great fan of using kerosene because of how dirty it burns and leaves my pots black. Kerosene needs a separate priming fuel.
Summary:
This is a great stove. It is very dependable, which is extremely important on longer back-country trips. I have carried this stove along side with a similar Coleman version. Coleman broke, MSR has never yet let me down. For well under $100.00, there are few stoves out there that are even worth considering.
Additional Notes: The initial flare up due to priming can be a little large and unruly. This has nothing to do with the actual design, but how much fuel you use. Even though you should never use a stove in a tent, some weather conditions may force you to take a risk. Minimize the danger!!! Prime your stove outside the tent to avoid burning it down (our outside a low hanging tarp). When the stove is on - then consider moving it into the vestibule with all tent vents wide open and hopefully some wind to push the exhaust outside... carbon monoxide poisoning is always a danger when cooking in a confined space. This also holds true for a quincy or snow cave - I know of people who have died in snow caves due to using a stove inside without proper ventilation - be warned!
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