Ft. Parker gear test hike

[Turgolanas]

Overnighter geat test weekend at Ft Parker state park in Texas with Cortharyn. We wanted to test winter gear without having to hike in, so we could get emergency supplies if we ended up freezing. Temps ranged from 60s-70s to feels like 7. Overall, gear worked well enough to do winter overnighters - we stayed warm, and the packs were reasonably comfortable. Some notes from the trip: 1. Winter gear has more of a bulk problem than a weight problem. 2. Camp shoes are a must. 3. long underwear to allow for layering on the legs is a must, as are mittens. 4. Soup uses a lot of water, and without water refills, that could be a problem when meal planning. Oatmeal is the same. Also, overnight oats don't work if they freeze solid overnight. 5. Definitely would be a good plan to go to bed before dark, temperature dropped like a rock. 6. Wind protection is critical. Our campsite was on the edge of a lake, and we had high winds most of the day. Not our choice for site, but site setup and proper wind blocking would have helped us stay warm.

Some pictures:

[Wilhelm]

Looks like a great deal of fun. Cold fun but fun.

[Manveruon]

Sounds like an exciting and very educational outing!

Question - not to derail things, but it’s been on my mind lately - can I get a little more specific info on the sword you’re carrying here?

[Taylor Steiner]

Awesome!

[Turgolanas]

Sounds like an exciting and very educational outing!

Question - not to derail things, but it’s been on my mind lately - can I get a little more specific info on the sword you’re carrying here?

That is a 15 in blade done by Everest Forge on Etsy, it's supposed to be a copy of Pippin's barrow blade from the movies. Honestly, this blade is what I think of when I think eket - it is a fantastic backup blade for a spearman, and I'm pretty likely to stop carrying my longsword and just carry this and my camp knife.

[Manveruon]

Ahhhh okay, that makes sense! I thought it looked a bit like Pippin’s sword! And you’re right, it does seem to have that general eked vibe! Thanks for the info!

[Elleth]

Very cool!

... is that an American army tent I see? How did it work for you keeping off the wind?
Looks like lots of cozy wools at least, and good companionship! How fun!

[Turgolanas]

Very cool!

... is that an American army tent I see? How did it work for you keeping off the wind?
Looks like lots of cozy wools at least, and good companionship! How fun!

It is, although it has buttons instead of snaps. More authentic I suppose, but a pain - I never split it into two parts because it takes so long to button back together. It worked fairly well for keeping the wind off, and I think we measured a 10-15 degree heat increase inside the tent. I did put my spare clothes/gear in place to block the wind through the bottom edge and our bedrolls had windproof shells as well. In the future I would probably bury the edges to help tuh the wind. I will say that our campsite was on a hill next to a lake with no cover, and we had high winds that day as well.

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[Peter Remling]

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[ForgeCorvus]

Thats the first one of those I've seen on here.
Treat them like orcs...... They're beyond redemption

[Peter Remling]

Thats the first one of those I've seen on here.
Treat them like orcs...... They're beyond redemption

Just for everyone's information: we are not exempt from trolls. Since 2009 the forum has either deleted the few who have gotten through or stopped them prior to them getting accepted. The number that has been stopped is in excess of 15,000. Yep, that's three zeros or roughly an average of 1,000 per year. Now in the past 10 years the average has dropped dramatically due to the acceptance questions that are asked. In 2010- 2014 or so we would have an average of 75 trolls per day.