Over and above the obvious items like tools,water a fire extinguisher and a recovery kit there are 5 items that I never leave home without.
Knives
I take a selection and always have a super tool with a blade,my favourite being a Swiss Army Tool or a SOG,both have robust cutters and a full size pliers. I also take a fixed blade Kershaw knife which is useful around camp and for a variety of tasks as well as a smaller pocket knife with a clip , they work hard but they are all reliable. If I had to change the fixed blade I would opt for the swedish “Morakniv” which is locally available.
Cooking
I am a Cadac fan and have used their cookers and braais on numerous trips so will stick to Cadac as spares are readily available throughout South Africa.My backup for a quick coffee is a small “Peak” dual fuel stove which I run on Benzine.
First Aid Kit
We have discussed this on numerous occasions but I always carry a First Aid kit in case of emergencies or even a graze or minor cut. Bandages,Plasters,Dressings creams and suchlike are the main contents.
A Fridge
I use a 40L Engel but National Luna is an excellent local brand,generally I run mine as a freezer which also allows me to freeze ice packs for a cooler box that contains salads and suchlike.
Tent
I have used a variety of tents and have disposed of the smaller hiking versions as I got older as well as the larger heavier canvas dome tents. My last few trips we stayed in B+B’s and tented camps so for emergency use I have opted for a Campmaster tent available from Makro which provides excellent value for money for my infrequent use.
Not in my five essentials but always in my car is a “Michelin” tyre pressure guage, an ARB compressor and an Atlasware flask ,made in Germany this little beauty ( 500ML) keeps things hot or cold for at least 24 hours if not longer.
If you have a favourite item please let us know about it we love to hear hints,suggestions and good advice at www.allterrain.co.za
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