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post is a little behind: i'm trying to catch up whilst performing life changing life changes:-) No safety net lol!
i care (and for some time) for an elderly and infirm close relative (not my first choice for lifestyle!): my sister managed to get to Guernsey to give me respite. After Sark camping i took myself off to Dorset and Wiltshire camping.
a bit of a diary but does contain some terse reviews of the campsites that i visited. i actually mainly preferred the basic sites but ymmv.
Terra-nova Laser Compact 1: 1099 g with decathlon Al pegs.
Homemade groundsheet and ties: 295 g
Optic 58 rucksack: 1410g
Therma-a-rest Space Cowboy, Long: 610 g
Sea to Summit Ultralight, Large: 530 g
Silk Sleeping Bag liner: 110 g
Decathlon Foam Mat and ties: 295 g
With my camp kit the total weight before clothes, tech gear, and food: 4852 g. Total weight excluding what i did wear: 6178 g. so quite a bit lighter than Sark Camping.
flight to SOU from a busy GCI terminal, a nightstop in SOU close to the airport.
browsing at Outdoors, and Decathlon (bought a foam sleeping mat) in the morning, then train to Wareham and hike (5.5 km) to Camp Hartland. with the C issues i wisely booked a table at a pub 20 mins walk from the camp: i r a CC camper lol.
Camp Hartland: eco toilets (+), morning cafe with bacon rolls, coffee, etc (++), clean hot water showers (++), no rubbish facilities (-). manager gave me discount when he saw it was a tiny one person tent with only one person (++), close to pub (++). booked via pitchup.
morning hike to Wareham (4.2 km) for train to Weymouth. after negotiating Weymouth with it's massed entitled electric carriage riders i hiked to Chesil Beach, Chiswell (8.3 km) and stopped for a swim. onwards to Portland Bill Camping campsite (4.8 km). again i wisely booked an evening meal at a pub close to the campsite as i passed it on the way to the campsite. as far as i could see bookings were essential due to reduced pub capacity. i also booked in for the next evening.
i changed my plans during a morning exercise walk: rain on the way, exposed campsite, only my wee tent for shelter: i saw a bus, hopped on, to Weymouth Train Station for a train to Poole, then Branksom. a really good mooch around Decathlon. i came away with a hat, socks, a groundsheet, and some ultralight cord. my plan was to tarp the tent for the rain and expected winds.
by the time i had walked, trained, bused, walked back to the campsite the rain was mainly done earlier than forecast. the tarp plan failed due my inexperience and the square tarp on a curved tent. entertainment for the others at the campsite as i tried to make it work.
as it happens the tent survived the night with only a very minor leak:-)
the terra-nova laser compact 1 is a sil-nylon tent and does not have sealed seams on the fly-sheet (same as most sil-nylon tents). it does have a half-arsed attempt at a cover over the seams that is just so badly designed i can't see why they bothered. the cover tightens over the main support; it has a central seam and so it slips either side of the support and cannot stay centered. with two seams the cover might be useful. ho hum.
Portland Bill Campsite: basic exposed site (=), friendly welcome (+), porta-loos (=), water (+), rubbish and recycling facilities (+), close to pub (+).
short hike (3.1 km) to a breakfast cafe that i'd spotted the day before. full breakfast then longer hike to Friar Waddon (19.9 km, 3:42).
and begins my love hate view on uk rights-of-way. despite websites and guide books about this way or the other my experience is that many long distance walking paths are unmaintained to the point of being unusable. C times may have changed the usual maintenance?
i camped with my son and his girlfriend - each with their own tent on a large pitch - i gather that the others did use one tent or the other for warmth lol. we had a car so we could travel for the evening feed.
my son arrived with some sil-nylon compatible seam sealer that i'd had delivered to him to bring. i set about sealing the tent seams. all went well and still 2/3 of the tube left. the rain held off long enough for it to cure:-)
breakfast at the excellant Duck's Farm Shop, Portesham then under the wing of the youngsters we had a day to Lyme Regis and round about. youngsters were cold damp and listening to me rattling on about never, ever, not ever hiking or camping wearing cotton, jeans, etc. i was quite dry and warm in my merino wool tops, layers, and synthetic technical trs:-). overnight rain did not leak in so seams now waterproofed:-) silly seam cover now redundant!
more gadding about to a NT house that the kids wanted to see and wandering about the gardens. youngsters (one especially) suffering the effects of another damp, cold night so we cut the gadding about short. they dropped me off at my next pitch earlier than they may have planned.
Friar Waddon Campsite: friendly welcome (++), advice about local area (++), clean and many eco-toilets (++), pitch for our group (+), drinking water (+), washing facilities (+).
i had a friendly welcome at Bake Farm and advice about how to get to the local pub via fields and rights of way (that were actually useable). good food at The Fox & Goose in Coombe Bissett.
my pitching and breaking down camp is improving. the Compact 1 is prone to condensation so i often separate the dry inner from the wet inner and pack these separately. i learned that my Compact 1 is best pitched with the inner attached (avoids pitching the outer too long or wide).
my solution is to:
loose pitch the outer,
clip the inner to the outer at each end,
finish pitching the outer,
finish attaching the inner.
Salisbury Campsite at Bake Farm: basic (+), clean toilets and showers (++), friendly reception (++), advice about local pubs (++).
5 km walk via Town Path across wetlands to massive breakfast in Salisbury and pondering the cathedral.
onwards 4.9 km to Old Sarum for a wander about the ruins and learning a little about the history. i joined English Heritage here as i expected to gain value on this and other walks. seems Salisbury came into being as a church v king thing.
at noon i continued hiking 14.7 km to Stonehenge Campsite. this was my first campsite with most facilities and it worked out well. i had a pitch separate from the big tents and RVs. i pitched twice due ants and needed a mallet to get stakes into soil with stones. the burger trailer was most welcome: nearest pub closed, next nearest closed due C, ping! short walk to shop at a service station.
Stonehenge Campsite: facilities (+), clean toilets and showers (++), helpful reception (+), food on site (+++), take home with us campers (=).
nothing open at the time that i left the campsite (07:44); protein and fat available at a service station shop i passed after 15 mins. i ate on the hoof. my education continued into what rights of way and long distance paths are like irl (not in guide books or websites). impassable row led me to change my route: quite a time walking through wet grass, nettles, and (inadvisedly) along the A303 verge. soaked below the waist. with hindsight i might have tried harder to negotiate the thick deep mud of the other row lol! i lost count of my nettle stings!
i took a gamble on the Larkhill Ranges being open and they were:-) 15.8 km saw me in Netheravon. along the way i was passed by soldiers training quickly half-running with packs way heavier than mine. i passed them again a short while later; each now carried either two packs and weapons, or a soldier! impressed i am!!
i found a shop in Netheravon and fed again. with the row issues i decided to use windy maps and os maps and cross-check for best routes. i'd just started walking when i found Brushh; art shop and artisan coffee shop. i stopped of course, friendly service and good coffee. 8.2 km along the river Avon found me in Upavon. I found another shop and The Anelope Inn. I fed from the shop and had coffee at the Inn.
on another 7.5 km to Wilcot to camp at the Golden Swan. best rump steak that i have had for as long as i can remember! eating was outside in lovely weather. surprised to meet someone taller than me (he was over 7') camping and cycling.
the walking in wet socks and shoes left me with a blister. i didn't have Vaseline but i did have MCT oil: works great to lubricate toes, socks, and shoes, to stop or prevent blisters. so hindsight suggested that i put it on before i get the blister and not after, doh!
because of my blister and a planned a visit to Avebury Henge the next day i changed my plans: booked a second night at the Golden Swan and cancelled my other campsite. i would travel lighter to Avebury.
4.7 km canalside walk to Honeystreet Cafe (+++) for great breakfast with just a day pack.
12.5 km walk cursing unmaintained row to Avebury Henge and Stone Circles passing Silbury Hill close to Avebury. shops here so i could feed and coffee again. i considered trying to get back to Wilcot by bus and train but in the end decided to walk back. OS maps edging ahead of Windy Maps but i think both necessary still.
12.7 km along a different route via West Kennet Long Barrow had me back at the Golden Swan for yes, another rump steak dinner (+++). if it ain't broken, don't fix it! my views on land ownership and obligations for maintaining row starting to drift (in the direction of the aggrieved masses) in the light of new knowledge. i had to fashion a stick on route for beating my way through nettles: leatherman to the rescue.
Golden Swan: food on site (+++), clean toilets and showers (++), bookings flexibility (++), help with charging devices (++), close to railway station (++).
a short brisk 2.3 km walk to Pewsey Railway Station saw me working my way back to Southampton area. more Decathlon shopping and a rest in Andrews Park (East Park) to dry out my gear in the sunshine. i opted to train to Eastleigh for Southampton Airport and the flight back to my island home, Guernsey.
- showers not that important on these trips (i r a water only bather in any case)
- carry less, so lighter gear necessary!
- marked long distance paths, row, etc marked on maps do not mean the path is useable!
- i can fit in the Compact 1 for days at a time.
- sil-nylon tents need seam sealing after purchase.
- Compact 1 is nearly always wet from condensation in the morning.
- i can break camp from the inside of my tent outwards in the rain:-)
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neil.gemini@mingmengtou.org
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