August 01, 2004
Equipment Review
Several people who know that it is difficult to out-gadget me have asked for a summary of equipment that I deemed really necessary to carry outdoors. This is the summary of experiences with the equipment that supported me through the last three weeks outside civilization. I will only cover the highlights, feel free to mail me if you want to know more about a specific piece. I will not go into sleeping bags, tents etc. as the developments there are too fast.
Katadyn Water Cleaning Pump
Pros:
This is by far the most important thing to carry when staying in areas with doubtfull water supplies. The basic principle is a ceramic filter that is so fine that it filters out bacteria, salmonella, virii and algae to a degree that makes even a puddle on the wayside drinkable. A hand-operated pump sucks in the water and presses it through the filter cartridge on the way down. The Combi version I used has also an optional active carcoal filter stage against chemical polution, which we did not use as the water came from a spring and had only potential biological problems. The filter system is far superrior to the usual chemical treatment, as it leaves no residue (like the silver-ion based Micropur stuff does), works instantly (you get your clean drinking water immediately when you are thirsty, no waiting for the chemical to work) and is extremly easy to operate. Katadyn has a variety of different sizes available, I would recommend one of the larger ones as they get you done with the pumping job more quickly. The Combi comes with an adaptor for Nalgene / Sigg bottles, so you screw the bottle below the pump, put the input hose into the water source and pump until your bottle is full. Depending on the dirt in the water the filter needs to be brushed clean from time to time, but this is effortless and easy. The design ist very Swiss, solid, ergonomic and reliable.
Cons:
The plastic casing of the sieve on the input pipe is just too big to fit into an Ortlieb water bag (which would mandate an extra entry, just that they are so simple and reliable that there is no alternative to them). Also the adaptor to screw the pump onto PE bottles does not work as advertised, it just does not fit the usual 1,5l mineral water bottle. Of course it weights more then Micropur or other chemical treatments do, but this was no objection this time.
Helle Norway Knife
Helle Norway just makes the best knifes for outdoor use. I have a very nice, lightweight knife with a kork handle made by them, now for 10 years, and I still have to see a better one. The blade is still very sharp and flexible and the low weight does not bother you when carrying it around. Look for their fishing series, these are the ones made for real everyday use.
Cons: the leather holster has a strap for the belt that has a nice-looking and traditional, but not very robust fastening mechanism. Always need to make an extra knot.
Meindl boots
Still, there is no alternative to Meindl boots. They make the best, most robust walking machines. Expensive, but unbeatable when it comes to spending weeks in rough, sometimes wet terrain. They need to be cared for, but will not let you down if you apply a bit of proper treatment from time to time.
Solar Panel
Unfortunately I don't know the original manufacturer of the panel that I used to recharge the XDA2 and the Thuraya phone, it is sold by IDG Europe from Sweden. It is approximately DIN A3 size, has a aluminium backplate and a car cigarette lighter receptable. You can plug in anything that is satisfied with 17,9V and 20W peak power. The panel is robust and reliable, it delivers even under cloudy skies or inside a tent (on a sunny day) enough power to charge equipment. You need to choose the charging adaptor carefully though, I had a charger for the XDA2 that actually drained the battery when the panel gave too little power (like when the sun was going down). Overall I was extremly happy with living off solar power, it gives you a certain rhythm for the technology related activities. First thing in the morning is to put the panel outside to catch the morning sun, then watch how much power you consume during the day and put in a second charging session in the late afternoon to get enough power for the night.
Cons: still hellishly expensive. Time will fix this.
Thuraya Satellite Phone
Best means of voice communication when you are outside GSM range and inside their coverage zone. Calling home is cheaper with the Thuraya then roaming with GSM. The phone is small, lightweight, quickly charges from the solar panel without problems. Feels and smells like GSM, just a bit more delay cause of the satellite distance. Prepaid service gives you cost control, especially outdoors the reachabillity is superb. In cities it is difficult to operate as you need free horizon in south-east direction.
Cons:
SMS does not work reliably all the time to and from many networks, O2 seems to be the only one working more or less reliable. Thuraya seriously needs to fix their SMSC connectivity. Phone service had an gateway problem once, but that vanished quickly. Internet dialup is too expensive (data call surcharge is a bad idea). They should built in a small compass to easier find the satellite direction and they should fix the incoming data call handling bug in the phones firmware. Writing SMS with the Hughes Thuraya phone is crappy, no T9 is a serious drawback.
Petzl Head Light
A head mounted light source is a very convinient thing. You have your hands free, the light is always in your viewing direction. Petzl makes very reilable, bright and convinient head lights. The model I choose has both a 5 LED mode and a concentional halogen lamp. You select the mode with the lockable main switch. Halogen can also be focused. The battery pack is belt-worn and has sufficient power for four weeks of nightly medium-heavy use.
Cons:
Cable from lamp to battery pack is sometimes in the way. Carrying the batteries on the head would be too heavy though. An additional mode with only two LEDs would be nice, as the LEDs are extremly bright and tend to blind other people. You need to be carefull not to shine them directly into the face.
Pelicase Equipment Storage
Extremly rugged plastic suitcase. So watertight that it swimms if required. Can be used as a seat and locked with padlocks. I used it to store everything electronic that should not get wet. Performed as expected, no equipment damage despite serious rainfall and water in the tent.
Cons:
A bit heavy.
Garmin eMap GPS
I have it now for several years and it is still reliable and extremly usefull. Big display, simple user interface, good receiption. Vector-maps can be loaded into the device.
Cons:
only two batteries, and eats them for breakfast. Best use high-capacity NiMh-rechargeables. Not as watertight as other Garmin units, don?t rely on it when you go on a boat trip or into the rainforest.