Marmot Helium Membrain

My spring and autumn bag, could be used in summer but would be really hot!

It's an unusual little bag this.. it's quite roomy with a wide cut and doesn't have a neck baffle so its not terribly efficient... but... it's got really high quality fill of 850 rating, box wall construction and it's waterproof too.

It packs down to virtually nothing and is really light.

I did have a Rab Neutrino 600 endurance before this, whilst the Rab was a more efficient unit in terms of maximum warmth for a given weight (this is a bit lighter).. this does feel better made, it lofts really well and quickly and if I do get caught out and its colder than expected the extra roominess allows me to wear a down gillet or jacket inside to bulk it up.

the zip is just a regular zip but the membrain material is reinforced along the length and doesn't catch in the zip too often.

the addition of a neck baffle would be really nice though.. might find a friendly seamstress :)

Rab Expedition 1000

Yup it's a monster of a sleeping bag! way too warm for most of my trips, but given the bulk of a sleeping bag is primarily from the outer and the zips etc, the additional fill really doesn't add too much to the overall weight or packsize.

This bag is designed for full on expeditions so its again quite roomy.. with enough volume for a big fella wearing clothes and boots if needed. I'm obviously loosing efficiency in having this extra space.. but the upside for me is that I can have the zip open and roll over without an arm or leg being exposed to the air.

Like a lot of the new Rab bags it has targeted fill zones, more fill around the neck and head, chest and feet, but less on the midsection and legs. This is great and quite noticeable as I tend to get prickly legs if i get too hot as I sometimes do in the Crux.

Downsides... the zip does tend to catch if you aren't careful, the material on either side is quite thin and drapey so gets snagged easily. I've never had any damage but its probably only a matter of time.

Crux Torpedo 900

Another beast of a sleeping bag... this one is my goto winter bag... it's made from event material so its waterproof and breathable, its got lots of high quality down an lovely thick baffles on the zip and neck.

The zip is a water resistant affair, which does reduce the draft massively when combined with the zip baffle.

The fit of this is much tighter and the medium size I have fits me perfectly at 5'10" and 65kg
Although the rating on this isn't as high as the Rab expedition 1000 it does feel a lot warmer to me... probably just down to the fit for myself.

The quality here is exceptional though, it feels bombproof and the zip has never once snagged.

The North Face Tent Mules

I've tried quite a few different down slippers and boots but these are the best I reckon... they are the ideal compromise between warmth, comfort, weight and durability.

They are comfy enough to wear all day, they are warm enough without cooking your feet.. they are durable enough to wear for a midnight bathroom break but soft enough to leave on in your sleeping bag if needed for a bit of extra warmth.

Extremities Super Windy Took hat and Marmot wind/waterproof gloves

These are great bits of kit... it was really difficult to find a pair of gloves warm enough for winter use, thin enough for operating a camera and ideally water resistant.. these have done the job amazingly well. the insulation isn't extreme and after a long wait I will probably have my hands in my jacket pockets to keep warm, but whilst setting up, shooting and pitching tents etc these are great.

The hat is super warm too and a great option for those like me who are allergic to wool !

MSR : Windburner Pro 1ltr

A great little cooker.. works with a radiant burner rather than a conduction flame. This combined with the screening makes for a very wind tolerant setup. its also remarkably efficient.

The canister stand is a bit rubbish to be honest, I'll probably get the metal MSR accessory version.

I perhaps should have opted for the larger 1.8ltr version for the improved stability and packing with a 230ml canister, the 1ltr will only take the small canisters which are a bit expensive.

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MSR : Windburner pro skillet

A pretty good little addition to the cooker.. a good size I'm a creature of habit so my usual winter mountain meal is chorizo, onion and uncle bens spicy mexican rice. This skillet is just the right size for that.

The only issues are that it doesn't actually lock onto the burner and doesn't incorporate any heat exchanger to better distribute the heat so it does tend to burn the middle of the pan and leave the outer cold. the other niggle is that the folding handle is going to scratch the non stick coating when folded, it could have been made with a silicone coating maybe.

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Katadyn Pocket water filter

My heavy duty water filter.. after using a couple of others (Katadyn vario and MSR) with issues of breakage or leakage, i opted for this proven unit...

the downside it is quite heavy.. but then its removing the need to carry so much water on a trip as you can drink from any stream or lake.

it works well with a reasonably quick action and flow rate. I have modified the outlet to provide a quick connect to a camelback tube so I don't have to pull my camelback out of my backpack. Although much of the time I just use a nalgene water bottle these days.

Oakley Range Photochromic sunglasses

My outdoor sunglasses.. they are huge ! but the distortion is minimal, clarity excellent..

the downside of the large lens is they do fog up on occasion if the wind drops.

These are non polarising reactive lenses.. so they darken with UV light. being non polarising is great for digital photography as I often use circular polarisers on my lenses and polarising glasses would result in weird effects through the viewfinder!

Terra Nova Quasar 45

My ultra light backpack, suitable for single night winter wild camp trips.

Its not the most comfortable with only a basic harness system, but it does the job and weighs virtually nothing.. I think I would recommend the Osprey Exos 46 instead though as for just a touch more weight you get a much better harness system to carry the load.

Seems pretty durable though

Arcteryx Altra 62

A great backpack... big enough for a weeks expedition or wild camping for a couple of nights with a load of camera gear inside.
The major selling point of this pack is the opening, there is a u shaped zip that runs all the way around the front of the pack so you can open it up and access any of the interior items without having to unpack the bag from the top. this allows much more efficient packing for mass balance rather than access.
the harness system is excellent also with a rotating hip belt and adjustable shoulder straps for not only height but width too. After a few days carrying the pack its nice to just move the pressure to a new spot and give your shoulders a rest.