tips

Designers should know better...

But they continue to produce equipment that have stupid switches, the sort that come on when you shove your head lamp in your gear bag. You pull it out to use and thanks to an idiot in the design department, something has pressed against the raised switch, turned it on and now the batteries are dead.

To fix this on a recent head lamp I bought (I should've known better than to buy it in the first place - I partnered in the designer's idiocy) I used some Shoegoo to build the area up around the switch so that instead of the switch being a raised knob, it is now level with the Shoegoo. A silastic of some variety would do a similar job.

So now I can shove it in my gear bag and it won't get knocked on and flatten my batteries before the first night of my next camping trip.

Shelter is one of the most basic of human needs but I still see people everywhere thinking that you can buy a cheap family sized dome tent and think it will work as adequate shelter. Instead what you get is a big sail that's not waterproof and likes to fold flat with any level of wind.

I've also noticed a disturbing trend in the last number of years with family campers in Australia during summer. They cover their tent in at least 1, usually more tarps to keep them waterproof. Not only adding to the set up time, but putting extra pressure on that already stressed out cheap fibreglass tent poles.

These so called shelters also take forever to set up compared to most other tents. You need to feed poles through loops, hooks and guy out every conceivable pole intersection and use 18 or more pegs.

If you want to camp, buy a decent tent. A good hiking tent, or a family size canvas tent. Forget those budget large family dome tents unless you want to end up like this photo in the middle of the night. Which isn't a great way to get your family convinced that camping is good fun.

The poor people in this photo were having their very first camping experience and bought this tent. No doubt some expert from an large family camping store suggested it would have great space and be easy to set up!

Most camping websites do the 'how to choose tent' routine. So I was thinking I'd do the same. But then I hit myself on the head with a hammer and it came to me - trying to give advice on how to choose the one perfect tent is like trying to give advice on 'how to choose the best noodle' at the local Chinsess takeway - it simply can't be done.

In the real world, it doesn't matter what sort of tent you take with you. Sometimes it will be ok but other times you'll need a different tent. And then next time a different tent again would be better. So if you buy just one you'll always be living in a compromised camping experience.

At mycampgear.com compromise is not an option.

The solution?

Buy more tents.

Don't over think it. Just go into a camping shop, surf ebay or go to a garage sale and just buy the first one that you go 'yeah, I like that.'

And then do the same next month. And the next month...

mycampgear.com - saving the world, one tent at a time.

As a hiker and a media producer I love this video. Great tips on how to make your very own hiking documentary video.