GGTBod's 2016 Adirondack Adventure

[GGTBod]

Greetings fellow paddle strokers, pitch peggers and shelter stakers, i recently had meself a right good ol'e adventure up in them there hills and valleys of the Adirondack State Park, i'm slowly getting my head around the idea of a literal trip report or two but i am currently assaulting the raw camera data, so far I have made several videos and uploaded them to Youtube.

Each video is a stand alone production so you do not need to watch them in order unless you want to

Part 1 Covers days 1 and 2. Getting to the first campsite and exploring the Raquette Lake outlet by canoe

Part 2 covers days 3, 4 and 5, Campsite tour, paddling and fishing all over Forked Lake and a trip down to Buttermilk Falls

part 3 covers day 6 The Exploration of Little Forked Lake by canoe

Plain English subtitles available for all videos

I shoot and edit chronologically so you see things as they happened, this is done in the hope of the viewer (myself included) getting the feeling of being along for the ride, nothing staged or rehearsed or set up just cameras shooting a lot and then trying to remove the boring bits during editing, to myself even the raw data is filled with good memories but with the edit i am hoping i have made videos which are entertaining to more than just those who were there.

Feedback is greatly appreciated, many more videos to come from this great trip

 

[sweeper]

I think I saw your dad's van on the way out, hoping it wasn't him as it appeared if it was his he was going to be even later then he said.

With that 16 minute smile it looks like you're having WAY too much fun.

 

[GGTBod]

It might have been him as he definitely arrived later than expected, he didn't get to the lower dam until 4.15pm and we got back to the site after sunset but about 40 minutes before darkness, just enough time to get him set up.

I'm gonna have to watch again for the 16 minute smile, i done a lot of smiling on this trip

 

[Odyssey]

Aaaah, nice! Don't ya just love it when all the world's so calm you find yourself paddling through blue sky and clouds both above and below. Thanks for that GG. I can't wait for the next instalment of your Adirondack canoe trip.

 

[GGTBod]

Thanks Odyssey it really was one of those crystal clear calm days, all the rarer that it was in the middle of October, plenty more to come i just finished watching the raw data for the next day whilst mentally editing it, just need to do it for real now

 

[coldfeet]

Very cool, thanks for sharing. My son has a Go Pro, I need to try it one day. Take care.

 

[stripperguy]

Very nice!
Are you the hardcore dude that Robin bumped into on Lows Lake?
I used to work with a fellow that grew up in Glasgow...
Anyway, I have a million questions for you, but I'll keep it short for now.

How did you decide to visit the ADK's?
How much of the gear in your video did you bring with you?

I thought that was Forked Lake, the profile of Blue Mt is hard to miss, looks like you had perfect weather!

 

[GGTBod]

coldfeet i would get stuck into that gopro, get the youngun to show you how it works, they are great, i now feel all those years of humping around various sized camcorders and paying through the nose for them all was worth it as personal video cameras are now really excelling, so simple to use and they capture quality footage, the only downside is mounting madness, no matter how many you take you could always take and use more.

stripperguy I am the fellow that Robin bumped into up at Lows Lake but you are correct this video is Forked Lake and the Raquette River, i've got seven days of footage to work through before i get to the Bog River Flow footage. I first went to the Adirondacks back in 1988, me and my father buggered off for the weekend to escape a domestic situation and went to Forked Lake (me for the first time and him for the second), so Forked Lake always gets a visit (out of season) at some point if i visit USA.

A lot of the gear you see in the video is my fathers like all the grills and coolers, he loves camping but to him grillings steaks on his portable grill is a big part of that, when the cat is away the mice will eat lots of things she wouldn't normally let him get away with kind of thing, when i am doing my thing i live on dried food that i have carried and i don't like carrying things, i make good hearty food from the dried provisions but that's another story.

For my kit i have a rolltop rubber dry bag 120ltr with all my clothing and bedding inside, a 60ltr rolltop rubber dry bag rucksack for my tarps and kit and a 20ltr rolltop rubber dry bag for my food that i rope up into trees to keep the bears away, i add from this when my father leaves from his kit a single camping chair.

Full kit break down for 3 weeks wild camping, ill do clothing separate if folks are interested

self inflating 4 season ground mat (5cmx60cmx180cm )
1 x inflatable flock pillow
1 x sleeping bag
​2 x fleece sleeping bag liners
DD tarps travel hammock (used on the ground only as a waterproof bivvi/bugnet)
DD xl tarp (4.5mx3.5m) + 4 x 2m self made guy lines
DD L tarp (3mx3m) + 4 x 2m self made guy lines
20 plastic heavy duty pegs (stamp ins)
2 carbon trekking poles + walking cane
3 x 30m 550 paracord
1 x wilder forge fixed knife blade (4 inch)
1 x dc4 wetstone
1 x bacho laplander folding saw
1 x self made basic first aid kit (sanitise/blister/burn/cut/medicate)
1 x woodgas twig stove
1 x 900ml kettle
1 x steel crusader cup
1 x 1.5ltr pan and lid
1 x spoon
1 x teaspoon
1 x self made fire kit (firesteel/prepared emergency tinders/collected local tinders like fatwood, cramp ball fungus, birch bark, cat tail seed pods fluff etc etc)
1 x 7ft spinning rod and small box of various lures and extra 6lb line
1 x folding bowl
1 x wash kit (homemade soap/nailbrush/toothbrush/toothpaste/mouthwash/comb/non stick scourer and small bottle of wash soap for my pan)
1 x roll top sylnylon toilet bag (paper/baby wipes/lighter, i make a digging stick)
3 x paddle specific waterproof local maps
1 x compass
2 x foil emergency blankets
1 x 2ltr hot water bottle with a wool cover


tech
1 x 14w solar panel
4 x pebble usb battery packs (8500mah each)
1 x Base usb power pack (20000mah)
1 x gopro 4 silver + 2 spare batteries
1 x gopro 4 session
1 x underwater gopro light
1 x Elephone P9000 cellphone
1 x garmin 64 gps
700GB of memory cards for the cameras and enough wires to drive you half crazy
a collection of various mounts for the cameras
1 x 5ltr Lifestraw mission water filter and spare filters

i think that i everything, if i missed something out and realise i'll edit to add it

 

[Robin]

I enjoyed your video Bod and thanks for taking the time to list your kit, good stuff. I'm looking forward to your Lows Lake edition.

 

[snapper]

Can't wait to check out your video. I saw your posting yesterday on the Bushcraft site but wasn't able to watch it then either. Hopefully the end of this afternoon will be a bit more quiet and I'll be able to enjoy it while my dog sleeps under my desk; at least that's how I want to end my afternoon

That's all for now. Take care and until next time...be well.

snapper

 

[snapper]

GGT Bod - Just finished watching the video. Thanks for sharing that with us. I've been on Forked Lake many times but loved seeing your perspective. I also noticed your casting method. I've never seen it done that way; flipping the bail with one hand and then beginning to reel in your line. Is that something you came up with on your own or is that an "across the pond" method we don't know about over here?

That's all for now. Take care and until next time...be well.

snapper

 

[GGTBod]

Thanks for the feedback everyone, snapper never really thought about the reeling thing or realised i done anything different to anyone else i sometimes flip the bail arm to shorten the length of the cast, that might be what you are referring to seeing in the video

 

[GGTBod]

Robin i should have plenty of footage from up that way but i can't remember if i caught you on film so to speak, we were both too busy filming our alone in the wilderness shots

 

[GGTBod]

Just added another little video, I get asked a lot about what i eat when i am doing my trips and my answer is always rehydrated one pot meals all made from dried foods, this little video is showing my method for a hearty beef stew or broth, be warned some of this is shot using a head mounted camera so it is in fact a highly sophisticated (possibly dangerous in the wrong hands) beard simulator and must be approached with caution by anyone unaccustomed to beardlife, you have been warned please use with caution and moderation and definitely not whilst under the influence of anything without a sober sitter and a safeword

 

[Odyssey]

Well there ya go, I learn something new every day. So I'm NOT supposed to lick the spoon when cooking for other people?
That was a nice looking bowl of stew! Maybe in a later film we'll see more of your twig stove in action? I agree, who doesn't like a good cuppa tea after a meal. Thanks GG. (BTW, I love that Geordie accent.)
Also thanks for that gear list. I love seeing what others take along on trips.

 

[snapper]

Thanks for your cooking video. Always great to see what other folks do. I'm a one pot meal kind of guy myself when alone or with one other person. I think it's just easier for each person to take care of their own nutritional needs/wants that way. I haven't used my twig stove much but it's nice seeing one in action. This might be what prompts me to get it out and give it a try.

That's all for now. Take care and until next time...be well.

snapper

 

[GGTBod]

I really love one pot cooking on mywoodgas twig stove, my twig stove is the number one guaranteed piece of kit (after my knife) that goes with me every single time i go into nature, put simple with the addition of a small flattish rock i can have a real fire anywhere outdoors leaving absolutely zero trace behind after a simple clean up, i can cook and boil water for purification and beverage purposes and also get warm in a tiny space, once you get it going it will burn anything you can fit inside the firebowl.

Anyone who is not familiar with woodgas stoves and why they are different to a basic hobo or box stove might enjoy a little informative video i made last year about mine

Someone who enjoys those sciency hair product commercials made one too

 

[GGTBod]

So I'm NOT supposed to lick the spoon when cooking for other people?
I agree, who doesn't like a good cuppa tea after a meal. Thanks GG. (BTW, I love that Geordie accent

Yes, spoon lick, bad, very bad.

You sound very familiar with the Geordie accent???

 

[Odyssey]

Thanks for that woodgas stove demonstration. Excellent!

(I recognized your accent from television. I watch too much TV sometimes.)

 

[GGTBod]

Odyssey I almost dread to think the mad array of Geordies you might have seen on a TV