I’m having an awful time remembering to write out here. Mostly it’s because of a lack of things to say. These days my attention is almost entirely focused on my corporate gig, which is something that I really don’t want to discuss here, and is also something that I really should be doing right now. But in the spirit of a Proof of Life, I decided to take a minute and throw a pulse out here.
We are currently in the heatwave that we always get towards the end of September, early October. Temperatures have been running in the very high 90’s to low 100’s (35 – 40 celsius). It kind of makes me a slug. It kind of has me going to the office every day even though by corporate policy I only have to be in there three days a week (there’s better A/C in the office). It kind of makes me want to go to the mountains, except that the entire western United States seems to be covered in forest fires. So I’m hunkering down, staying inside, and just riding it out.
Sure does make it nice to go swimming, though. Except for the part where everyone else wants to go swimming. The pool is crowded. I’m spoiled, so I’m not happy when I have to share the pool.
I did get my tent out last weekend and do a test setup in my yard. I haven’t touched the thing in almost two years, so I figured I’d better make sure that it didn’t mildew in storage. It’s fine. It’s good to go. Now I just need to go.
My tent is a Nammatj 3 from Hilleberg. I’ve had it for many years, but it is damn pricey, if you can even find one. This is a true four season tent, which makes it too hot for camping in California during the summer, except at elevation. I’m good with that because I prefer to camp in the late fall, winter, and early spring when all the wimpy Californians sit huddling in their houses crying because there’s a raindrop or something on their sidewalks. I bought it because I saw videos of guys in England riding out full-on gales on unprotected cliff tops using this tent. I have a long history of camping, and I have more than one story to tell about high winds and tents. So I splurged big time, even though I knew it wasn’t a good option for summer camping.
There is a mesh inner for the tent that should make it possible to use on those hot California summer nights, but I have been persistently skunked trying to get my hands on one. I’m on Hilleberg’s wait list for that, so if they ever get around to making more mesh inners maybe I’ll get lucky and score. In the meantime, if I do decide to head out in the summer, I’ll probably have to find a decent three season tent with good ventilation. (Maybe the Teton Sports Mountain Ultra 3?) It hasn’t really been an issue yet, though.
Finally, last week I finally bit the bullet and bought a new group pad for sleeping in the great outdoors. I already have a nice inflatable pad that works well, except here in my 60’s I’ve expanding so that I don’t really fit on the typical backpacking sleeping pad. The issue is that I’m a back sleeper, but when I lay down on a typical backpacking pad my elbows fall off the side. It’s uncomfortable and creates drafts because I use a camping quilt instead of the usual mummy sleeping bag. Like I said, I got wider as I got older, and all that super skinny stuff doesn’t work very well for me anymore.
Anyway, I ordered the Exped MegaMat from REI. I was going to just go to the store and get it (they’re a mile away) but the thing is out of stock. So I ordered it and it should be here sometime this week.
Which is a long-winded way of saying that I’m inching closer to camping again, once the temperatures drop and the forest fires subside.
As I write this, people back east are getting hammered by hurricanes. Helene has pretty much flattened parts of North Carolina — the flooding is reported to be biblical. Now there’s a new one, Milton, spinning up in the Gulf of Mexico (Milton) that looks bad for Florida. All my complaints about heat are nothing compared to what people back east are going through. I wish them the best, and I grieve for the people who lose everything, especially their lives.
Stay safe, my friends.