2011 Camping Gear Purchases/Wish list

[palmprincipe]

Wow - lots of nice stuff guys. Our needs are much more simple. Being former wildernes canoe

     campers basic car camping in a 6 man tent is pure luxury! We just purchased a Kelty Camp Kitchen to free up space on the table. It is portable, light, compact and has plenty of room. The next toy will be a nice 19" or 20" Gransfors axe to split wood

    . Last year we got a cot bunk for the girls to make room in the tent. We also got a portable coctkail set. It has 4 flasks, 2 shakers and 2 martini glasses - all non breakable and in a slim case. The ice guy has never been more welcome.

[CampADK]

I think as we get older we tend to collect more crap

    ola LOL.

I used to tent in a pup tent for many years with virtually nothing. Later 'upgraded' to a 12x12 Eureka with a simple setup, the teardrop and now the Airstream. Fish Creek kind of lends itself to bring more 'stuff', including boats and toys. We still like simplicity too, but on other 'non Fish Creek ' trips.

How are the Gransfors axes for slitting wood

    ? I have a long handled axe as well which usually works well if there is a base to split on (hand rock or flat piece of wood), not so well otherwise. This year I'm going

     with the manual foot splitter... we'll see how that goes.

A portable cocktail set should come in handy indeed!

[Al Les Palace]

How are the Gransfors axes for slitting wood?

We bought a Gransfors large splitting axe in the 1990's. It works pretty well - on all but maybe a few of the occasional 15" dia green logs. Is a combination of a sharp cutting edge with a sharply curved taper to a thick head like a splitting maul. I think back then we paid 1/3 - 1/2 of the current price. Definitely well built to last lifetimes. Has a 27" handle
http://www.boundarywaterscatalog.com/br ... 4,756.html

Also have a smaller snow

     & Neally kindling axe for smaller work. Also less pricey back then.
http://cspoutdoors.com/snownealpenb.html

Be interesting to see how your splitter works out. We are trying to downsize all the camping junk we carry, though!

I usually spit on a thick board or sometimes carefully on the ground. The splitting axe slows quickly as it penetrates and hitting the ground can be avoided with a little care.

I never bash/crack the FCP fireplaces by splitting wood on them like I see some doing!

[palmprincipe]

We have a 19" Gerber and it works well - as long as it is sharp. The Gransfors has a heavier head so it should do a better job. I also never use the fire pit to split wood (it is sad to see so many destroyed pits), there is always a stump to be found for spliting. I actually enjoy splitting wood so it is not a chore at all.

[kkirsch]

My 40 year old Gerry Mountain tent finally gave up to UV damage last year. Was a great tent and kept my son or myself comfortable in the most nasty of conditions. Been looking at a Vaude Hogan ultralight. Was reading a review of it that said " if I knew armagedon would occur tomorrow I would buy that tent today" Sounds like that will work for me.http://www.vaude.com/epages/Vaude-de.sf/?ObjectPath=/Shops/Vaude/Products/15767/SubProducts/157672130&Locale=en_NL&NavSignature=5,5,1