clothing & kit; food & drink

where to buy your kit

Please support independent outdoor goods shops. They are not always more expensive than the large shops, but even when they are, the difference is what conscientious buyers pay to keep a bit of variety on the high street and prevent Britain sinking further into conformist homogenous corporatism.

My favourite shop is Taunton Leisure -- I shop at their branch in Bristol, and when that is not convenient, I use their Internet shopping facility.

I buy my climbing gear from Dick's Climbing, also in Bristol. I'm not an experienced climber and I need lots of advice, so I go there in person, rather than buying via the Internet.

There are good independent shops all across the country, and especially in the towns near the mountains and popular hiking routes.

your kit

First of all, please make sure you have a good loud whistle, preferably on a lanyard around your neck and not buried at the bottom of your rucksack.

So, what should you wear, and what should be in your rucksack?

These questions are difficult to answer, because there are so many variable factors, for example, where you are going, the weather forecast, how fit you are, how experienced you are, whom you are with, and your longer-term plans.

clothing

So, specifically, what should you wear? Well, I'm not going to wriggle out of giving you an answer, but I'm not going to give any specific advice without meeting you first, and finding out what you want to do and what clothing and kit you already have. We don't have to go shopping together, but we do have to chat together.

Alternatively, you could just go into an outdoor goods shop and ask for advice. Although they are in the business of making money from selling kit to people like you and me, shops are generally a good source of information and advice, and shops with a reputation to uphold will not try to sell you things you do not need.

If you do not already have any suitable kit, I do not want you buying a lot of expensive gear and then finding out that you do not like mountain hiking -- that would be a waste. You can get a long way with just a few items of basic low-priced kit, so start there. Then if you do like mountain walking (and I hope you will), you can build up your kit gradually. Remember that even low-priced hiking clothing is far better than everyday clothing for mountain use. On the other hand, if you want to buy the best gear you can afford, and you are sure that you are going to use it more than once, go for it! Good kit is a joy in its own right.

Actually, you probably do have some suitable items. Boots? (not wellies -- hiking boots) A waterproof, windproof, breathable jacket or cagoule? A hat? Gloves? A fleece? Waterproof, windproof, breathable over-trousers? These items are the basics that you need to get started, and you may have many, or perhaps all of them, already.

If you are already fully equipped, lucky you!

in your rucksack

There is some good general advice from the Ramblers' Association here, and good additional advice for mountain walking here. However, these lists taken together are a counsel of perfection, so if you haven't got all the kit listed (or any of it!), don't worry: just give me a call and we can probably sort something out.

food: For food on single-day (or single-night) hikes, I recommend very rich high-protein flapjacks. I bake my own, but you can buy good ones in outdoor goods shops and in health food shops. I sometimes carry tortillas filled with mushroom paté: this is a welcome alternative when the weather is hot and flapjacks are too cloying, or in the evening when the hike is not finished but a good wallop of nutrition is needed.

drink: Instead of plain water, I recommend either isotonic sports drinks (Nuun is the best) or my own recipe, consisting of 50% cloudy apple juice, 50% water, and a pinch of salt for every litre. If you start out well hydrated, You will need about 2 litres for a summer's day (more if it is absolutely baking), and about 1 litre for cooler weather.