At some point I’ll write reviews on my hammock, underquilt, tarp and all the other paraphernalia involved in setting up for hammock camping. For now, I’ll share some of the things I’ve learned so far.
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A two-day hike at Hercules Glades to try out my new tarp and underquilt for my hammock. By taking a long route, I hiked 10 miles from the Coy Bald trailhead to Long Creek Falls and back.
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If you are planning on going to Hercules Glades, Bar K Wrangler, or the Glade Top Trail from Springfield via HWY125, there is a 36-mile detour in place while the bridge at Swan Creek is replaced.
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The last time Ginger and I went backpacking together was in August 2017. Family events, work, and lethargy has gotten in the way. For this trip, Ginger chose the trail — Hercules Glades Wilderness, Pees Hollow trail, and I chose the route — Counter-clockwise.
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An unplanned two-day hike at Piney Creek Wilderness.
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Pees Hollow Backpacking Trip – My new Hammock arrived last week and I couldn’t wait any longer to try it out.
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I spent a lot of hours researching hammocks before deciding on the Chameleon. I’m not going to say much about it until I’ve spent a few nights out on the trail, but my first inspection and impressions confirm what I’d read in the reviews, It’s very well made.
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It was time to go out on my long awaited backpacking trip with a hammock. Plan ‘A’ was for us to go on a quick, one-night visit to Hercules Glades Wilderness. When Ginger decided she wasn’t going, I quickly came up with Plan ‘B’ which transformed the quick one-nighter into a solo three-day, Friday through Sunday trip.
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I’ve been wanting to try hammock camping for quite a while. I’m reluctant to purchase all the necessary gear unless it’s something I’m sure I will be comfortable with — and in.
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I do not like bear bags. Well, that’s not strictly true. I’ve nothing against the bags or having to hoist all the camp food and ‘smellies’ up into the trees … What I don’t like is hanging them, nor do I like stumbling around the forest in the dark looking for a ‘misplaced’ bag.
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We took advantage of some days with reasonable weather in January and went hiking in Busiek State Forest and Wildlife Area. Busiek is just 20-minutes from Springfield, so for us, it’s a great place for a quick day hike.
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A warm break in the weather sent us scurrying out to get some miles on the trail, this time we opted for Busiek’s Orange Trail.
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Just to manage expectations – if you want detailed instructions on how to make and light a campfire mosey on over to YouTube – there are hundreds of videos that’ll give you ideas. Here I’m just going to chat about fire lighters, share some fire making tips, and mention the tools we use when car […]
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My new everyday carry knife / multi tool. It weighs less than my Milwaukee Fastback or Swiss Navy knife. It has a carabiner and pocket clip – which was a must-have for me. The tools include pliers, side cutters, screwdriver (Phillips and flat bits) and, of course, a bottle opener. The only tools I miss […]
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In 2016 we took a serious look at why we weren’t getting out backpacking as much as we’d like. Work was one of the major obstacles, but we also identified several gear issues that caused problems. One of those ‘pinch points’ was our cooking system. We wanted something lighter, smaller and simpler. I love both […]
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Back in 2010 our outdoor recreation goals very quickly evolved. Within three months of our first weekend camping trip we’d bought kayaks to get out on the lakes, and in less than six months we went from car camping to backpacking and hiking. From the start we had difficulty finding campgrounds and sites as they […]
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We went eclipse backpacking on the Ozark Trail. The eclipse was more popular than I anticipated. My plan had been to wait until seven days before the event and pick a destination. I picked seven days because the weather forecast would be more reliable. Unfortunately, waiting that late meant that everything was already booked (and […]
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July 21 I took Luke for an afternoon kayaking on the James River at Springfield, Missouri [12 pictures].
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I’m used to herons who usually make a lot of fuss and then fly away. This Great Egret stood his ground, so I was able to get a decent picture. Great egret on Wikipedia
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The weather this weekend has been wonderful (especially considering it is still February). However, we’ve not had a chance to get away backpacking as we had commitments in town on Saturday. Today we went on a short hike at Busiek, hiking a little over three miles with around 700ft of elevation climbed. Remaining true to our recent experiences, […]
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The next couple of months are going to be very busy for us, and opportunities for getting out hiking or backpacking will be limited. The prospect of a spell of warm Ozarks winter weather gave us a chance to squeeze in a midweek backpacking trip. We rearranged our work schedules and took off to Hercules […]
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When we stopped hiking / backpacking, we didn’t mean to. It started with a family wedding that coincided with our annual spring break trip, then work got busy, and all of a sudden years had passed. We tried to get out last year. We managed three short day hikes. In marketing you look to removing […]
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We decided to fit in a quick hike at Busiek this weekend. We were originally planning on going backpacking at Hercules Glades, but life (this time in the form of pet-sitting for friends) threw a spanner into that plan. Not wanting to miss the opportunity to test some of the new backpacking gear we’ve bought, […]
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I’d have a whole lot of pack horses by now. This time last year (2015) we thought we were getting back into our hiking / backpacking stride, and we lost it. After about three hikes we stopped. Lots of work came in and we both spent most of the year tied to our desks and […]
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We’re still working on getting back in condition. Today, we wanted to increase the distance and elevation climbed while, not getting too wet and muddy, and not driving too far. We settled on hiking the complete Silver Trail at Busiek State Forest and Wildlife Area.
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