Quote:
Originally Posted by eddiep
Im about to embark on a 6month trip along the panama highway. Chile, argentina, bolivia, peru, ecuador and columbia. maybe further if money lasts. To save money along the route im thinking of camping and cooking my own foods.
Can anyone suggest good one man tents for the varying climate and terrain of these countries?
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As others have said. Get a two man tent. The cost increase is minor and one man tents really only fit one man and nothing else. I've done a long trip in a one man and after rainy days you will definitely want to not have to snuggle up to your wet gear. Also, as others have said. You want a self-supporting tent. Some tents only stay up when pegged down and you can't do that in loose sand without special pocket things that you fill with sand or rocks to take the place of the pegs, which is yet another thing to carry.
I HIGHLY recommend the
REI Quarter Dome T2 Tent at REI.com . Lightweight, and pretty easy to set up even if you're the only person.
However, as others have said a good tent isn't cheap. That one's $269, but at an average of fifteen dollars a night that'll pay for itself in 18 days. You'll also need a GOOD sleeping bag because it gets cold at night in high altitudes (Bolivia). I've gone with a bag rated down to 25 deg. F plus a liner that'll add another 25 deg f (
Sea To Summit Thermolite Reactor Extreme Mummy Bag Liner at REI.com ). I believe this is a good arrangement for two reasons. 1) bags start getting
very expensive very quickly as you head below about 30 degrees. 2) by using a liner to get the extra warmth you don't have to have a sleeping bag that'll boil you on warmer nights.
Keep in mind that there is no standard for sleeping bag temperature ratings and the general rule of thumb is that it'll keep you alive at that temp, but probably not comfortable, and there's no telling how much thermal clothing users are expected to wear to survive at the lowest rated temp.
Quote:
Originally Posted by eddiep
Is it easy and worth while camping along the way compared to staying in cheap hostels?
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I think it depends a lot on how dedicated you are to actually using the tent as much as possible. But, I think yes. $15 seems to be a decent average price from what I've read (Please correct me if I'm wrong folks) and as I said above. The tent would pay for itself very quickly at that rate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by eddiep
Can anyone recommend a good stove burner and other useful equipment?
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You can definitely get cheaper ones but I've read the reviews of pretty much every stove on the market today and the
Optimus Nova Multi-Fuel Stove at REI.com comes out far above the rest. I haven't used mine very much, but I like it so far. I would note that the first time you use it it's a little finicky and takes some practice to get the hang of starting it up. The alternatives tend to have issues with stability, or heat control. The Nova is a really well made product.
Related useful equipment: We LOVE the
GSI Pinnacle Dualist Cook System at REI.com They have a single person version (
GSI Pinnacle Soloist Cookset at REI.com ) but honestly it's not that much smaller, and if it were just me I'd rather have the spare bowl. The sporks that come with it are lame though. Get yourself a good quality spork (not kidding. Loved mine on the last trip). The Dualist advertises that it "Includes a rugged stuff sack that doubles as a sink or wash basin". It sounds like a gimmick, but it isn't. Really helps when you've got limited water and need to clean. Some of the reaaaaally compact stoves may actually fit in one of the bowls but the Nova does not.
On the last trip I decided I'd forego a sleeping pad. I regretted that decision every night. Now I've got this:
Therm-a-Rest Z-Lite Sleeping Pad - Regular at REI.com I like it better than your standard roll ones for a number of reasons: 1) the egg carton shapes means that it actually ends up being thicker than others when you lay it out. 2) it takes up the same amount of space as the roll-up kind. 3) it's a lot easier to keep a square from rolling away than a circle. 4) you can easily fold it into different configurations. When I have to sit on the ground for a while I just fold it into a rectangle three layers thick and sit on that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by eddiep
Is there anything equipment wise i should nor leave home without?
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One atypical thing I always carry is one of those sandwich sized disposable tupperware containers. Great for carrying your leftovers in.
You can never have too many Dry Sacks. Ok, you can, but we've found a bunch of cheap dry sacks and now most all of our stuff sacks are dry sacks. ALWAYS keep your sleeping bag in a dry sack.
The BeadBrakr (
BestRest Products, LLC - BeadBrakR ) does everything it claims. We've got F650 GSs which have notoriously hard beads to break but I swear it is trivial with the BeadBrakr. Plus it includes tire irons.
More importantly though is good gear for your body and a real first aid kit. We use this one (
Adventure Medical Kits Mountain Weekender First-Aid Kit at REI.com ) but we've added a few things. You can definitely make your own with the same contents cheaper, but as we've found through experience, when you're stressed and hurt you aren't generally thinking straight or patient enough to hunt for what you need. The clearly labeled pockets on this bag really help you find what you need when you're stressed. The book that comes with it is actually a REAL book, not some crappy pamphlet like most first aid kits have. Of course, I doubt many people actually read it before they need it but....
The On The Road video sold here at HU (
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/store/dream ) has a really good section on building a first aid kit. I thought some of it was a bit excessive until I read ride reports where people go into hospitals with broken bits and are sent out to go buy their own gauze. We keep it packed, refill anything we use, and hope we never need it for anything too serious. There's also a large SAM splint in my panniers and a few finger splints in the kit (they come in packs of 3).