Why does it always rain??

So last Friday it was raining. Why was it raining? Because I was going camping thats why. For some reason it always seems to rain when I go camping-just ask Mr. Andy Clemence. So on Friday we pack the car in the rain, skip bringing the bikes (because of the rain), get the ice and my favorite breakfast meal from Dunkin Donuts- a bacon, egg, and chz on a cinnamon raisen bagel with a mountain dew, and head off in Joy's PT Cruiser to Mt. Monadnock State Park in New Hampshire.

When we get there, it is still raining, but it looks like it will clear up soon. The park is absolutely empty-no hikers or campers yet. We check in and walk around the campgrounds for a bit untill it stops raining and then we setup our gear in Thomas fashion-tent (with rainfly) ontop of the tarp, a screened canopy over the picnic table (for bug free eating), and extra tarps to cover the bikes/camping chairs and to hang with rope to go over the tent if it really gets bad. Luckily, it clears up and is rainfree the rest of the weekend.

Of course I have all my other gear with me as well. You can never be too prepared! I've got a hatchet, collapsable shovel, two machetes (ones from the Domincan Republic), multiple fixed blade knives, lots of extra rope, maglites, my two burner propane camping stove, lighters, matches, lantern, etc, etc. And thats not to mention all the gear I actually carry on me when I go hiking-my survival gear as I like to put it. More on that in a bit. This year Joy and I actually purchased "real" hiking backpacks. I got the Kelty Redwing 3100 (as in 3100 cubic inchs of space) and Joy got the Kelty Redwing 2500 (specifically made for women) and we hope to do an actual backpacking trip next year (just a few days) so these should be plenty of space. Besides having all the usual padding, straps, pouches, etc, I really like the pack because it has two spots to put water bottles that I can reach without taking my pack off, which is great for quick swigs of water when hiking. (And yes it is CamelPak compatible, but I haven't gotten into that yet)

So, as I said, when I hike, I carry my "survival gear" as I like to call it. After all, it is not the fact that you might never get lost, but the fact that IF you do you will be all set. My typical hiking clothes are a t-shirt, cargo shorts, and my adidas shoes. (I really need to invest in real hiking clothes-all mine are cotton which is about the worst thing to wear for hiking. Why? Because it absorbs moisture and takes forever to dry. Synthetics and other things actually move sweat away from the body and insulate better even when wet. But I digress) I also usually wear my camo boonie hat. Good for keeping the sun, rain, and suprisingly bugs out of your face.

In my pockets are the following:
wallet (duh)
Cold Steel Recon 1 tactical knife -spear point of course. I would love a nice ka-bar, but this thing rocks because as a foldable it fits nicely in my pocket, but the blade is still 4" long, illegal in most states. Especially RI, and I do happen to carry this knife around a lot. Can you imagine me getting arrested for illegal possesion of weapons? Now that would be funny. But yeah, this knife is great for cutting, sawing, even spreading peanut butter and jelly...
Swiss army knife You can't go camping without this just because of how much it actually does for so little space! (yes, you could always use a multi-tool, but they are a bit bigger/heavier)
Treo 700w Why? Its my phone, can take crappy pictures (1.3 MP? Still no match for a decent camera), and does lot of other things, could actually use google earth if I could find a signal...
and my new toy, the Suunto Vector Suunto Vector This thing is just sick in how much stuff it actually does. Altimeter, barometer, compass, thermometer, tons of recording logs, ascent, descent speeds, etc, etc. Oh yeah, it also tells the time, has 3 alarms, a stopwatch and timer. Yeah, this thing is sweet. This would be the first time I will be testing to see if the altimeter works though. I know the barometer works, the compass works, the thermometer works (just have to take it off to get an accurate reading-body heat). Did I say that this was a sweet watch? You get the point...

Then I have my Kelty 3100 Redwing with the following:
2 aluminum water bottles (about 28 oz of water each) You always need water
A little Suunto Compass/thermometer strapped to my pack. Not actually sure why I got this, prolly thought it look cooled.
lunch bag with lots of extra food You can't have enough snacks, including peanut butter crackers, nuts, slim jims, chex mix, etc
Rain jacket Mountain weather is unpredictable
rope You always need extra rope-thank you boondock saints!!
army survival manual Because I actually don't know how to survive, this thing will tell you how to hunt, fish, fix wounds, build shelters, etc.
map of area duh again
photon led flashlight small, yet bright
Pocket Survival Kit Its got everything you need to survive if you get lost, including whistle, duck tape, firestarter..
adventure medical kit first aid of course!
waterproof matches
bug repellant

All that is about a 12lb backpack with food and water. Which is not too bad. On saturday when I do Mt. Washington though, I'll be adding in some extra clothes, I have no intentions of being caught in a snowstorm unprepared. So thats my survival gear, but as you will come to find out, my survival skills suck!!