My Cape Wrath trail trip is getting closer and final preparations are on their way. My two last tasks were to deal with with my gear and my food. My Cape Wrath gear list is finally done and all the gear is here or almost here! Packing for this trip required me to have a few adjustment to what I carry and how much of it. The goal, as with all trips, is to have a perfect balance of comfort and lightness; this become an even bigger issue when the trip is so long on one hand and so demanding on the other. The biggest change I made is to move from a bivy and tarp shelter to a one person tent and was the biggest investment. The reason i decided to get a 1 person tent is, well, because I had enough of using the bivy, I miss the sense of security, dryness and tidiness that comes in a tent. The tent I choose is a Nordisk Telemark 1 ULW tent – very high tech tent that weighs a mere 770g (around 800g at home) but it was pricy. Testing will be soon to make sure I and the tent work well together before committing to a 10 days relying on it in the Scottish wilderness.
The other problem I had is that it has been a while since I done such a long trip – the quantities of some of my gear needed to be adjusted (like some spare clothing) and the need to accommodate for keeping a healthy hygiene: add floss, soap, wipes, some ointments to take care of potential skin irritations and more. The Scottish highlands are also known for the midgets (a form of sand flies) that lives there, so the appropriate head net was needed.
The last adjustment (or just preparing) is for the Scottish weather. The weather is not extreme, but it is very changeable, with days raging from warm and sunny to freezing downpours and hail. The trail is also very long, so obviously I will be crossing a few climate areas. all that means the my Cape Wrath gear list need to be ready for most 3+ seasons – from down jacket to shorts and everything in between. My footwear will stay my trusted Inov-8 Trialroc 235, despite that some wear and tear starts to show on them. they are perfectly shaped to my feet by now and the tears are only fabric holes on the sides – nothing that will effect performance.
One thing I am taking are neoprene socks – my last trip to the Yorkshire Dales took through days of frozen bogs and snowy ridges, leaving my feet in pain and my concerned about frost bites (on toe took 3 hours to defrost!). To avoid another episode like that, I’m taking the socks as an emergency option instead of opt in for waterproof shoes. That is pretty much all there is.
My last item on the agenda is food, any thoughts about how to tackle it? I’m thinking on getting a mid trip pick up package – do you have any experience with that?
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