Hiking, Scrambling, Mountaineering, and Climbing

Interesting. I’ve had more positive experiences with lancing blisters. As long as I’ve kept the skin protecting and avoided the skin tearing off afterwards, it’s usually resulted in a less painful and smaller wound to heal.

I am definitely in the never lance camp

I’ve drained it and let it dry overnight and put compeed on.

There’s no way I was getting my boots on otherwise.

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That's a whopper.

I'll be wearing Nepal Extremes for the next ten days or so...I expect similar carnage.

I have never managed to find the perfect fit mountaineering boots. Hoping that heel taping will save me this year.

My Hanwag boots have been great but it was hot yesterday and sun from above and hot tarmac from below meant my feet ballooned early afternoon. Even loosening them didn’t help.

A mere 15 miles to do today. Piece of piss after what we’ve been doing this week.

I found generic KT tape was great at protecting my boney heel that is the destroyer of worlds, I mean boots. (Will eat a hole in padding of boot in 100 miles)
How is there even room for that and a compeed in your boot?

There wasn’t room - hence I drained it. My right foot is like new today.

Left heel on the other hand is a train wreck.

Ah, missed you saying that! Hyponotised.

GTX boots are the devil, on TMB we crossed paths with someone who had newish boots, but worn in. In the heat her feet swelled so much she had to do 75% of it in flip flops, with her boots kicking her in the arse every step.

It’s been 192 miles of punishment for my feet. They got soaked in the Lakes when we had to cross swollen streams in pouring rain which didn’t let up for 72 hours. You can’t dry boots in a hostel when 30 people are trying to do the same and there’s one fan heater.

I’ve learned that you can heat a decent sized pebble in a jet boil and put it in your boot to get it drying faster.

The second half of the walk has been four consecutive days of 20-27 miles which is uncharted territory for my feet. It’s been a great walk but the itinerary was more masochistic than it needed to be.

It blows my mind that the record is 38 hours.

I’ve learned that you can heat a decent sized pebble in a jet boil and put it in your boot to get it drying faster.

For multi day trips I take a USB power pack and a pair of small usb fans. Airflow dries wet boots overnight even in cold and damp conditions. Adds 250g to my pack but for me it's worth it.

Jesus, that's a brutal 4 days.

Anybody need a Petzl Verso belay device? I've got two spare. Both only used a couple of times and are pristine.

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My boyfriend suggested we quit our jobs and hike the Appalachian trail and I'm now obsessed with the idea. I'm very aware that I'm having a midlife crisis.

I'm also obsessed with watching videos of speed climbing after seeing it for the first time during the Olympics.

Little run down of our Wainwright’s Coast to Coast walk:

St Bees to Ennerdale 15 miles
Ennerdale to Rosthwaite 15 miles
Rosthwaite to Patterdale 19 miles
Patterdale to Shap 17 miles
Shap to Kirkby Stephen 21 miles
Kirkby Stephen to Reeth 24 miles
Reeth to Danby Wiske 27 miles
Danby Wiske to Clay Bank Top 21 miles
Clay Bank Top to Grosmont 25 miles
Grosmont to Robin Hood’s Bay 15 miles

In hindsight, probably a tougher schedule that we needed to do. I think when we planned it, my companions had work commitments which have now vanished.

We set out to do more camping that we ended up doing. After getting drenched in the first four days of the walk, we ditched our tents after three nights of camping and managed to find hostels, B&Bs etc. There’s no way I’d have finished without being able to dry stuff each day. Even after the rain stopped, our boots were getting wet on the moors.

None of us had ever done so many back to back long days like those in the second half and it was a slog at times. We ended up eating a huge amount of pub food and sandwiches which has left me feeling quite disgusting inside. I never want to see a gammon steak or chip again.

Met some great if rather odd characters along the way.

My feet are ruined. I still can’t get normal shoes on. I think for me, it’ll be three/four day trips for now unless I decide I fancy the Camino de Santiago.

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Congratulations!

Recommendations for waterproof (over) trousers? Mrs EB and I are doing three or four Munro with wild camps in Glencoe in mid September, so want to be prepared for the drizzle and shizzle

Had a cracking day up Ben Vorlich yesterday

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Arcteryx Beta SL? bit expensive, but good & in the outlet sale, if the size is available:

https://outlet.arcteryx.com/gb/en/shop/mens/beta-sl-pant

Or at Trekitt:

https://www.trekitt.co.uk/clothing/trousers-shorts/arcteryx-mens-beta-sl-pant-black__36829?currency=GBP&chosenAttribute=23145-BLA-XXL&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI6-bSgPK38gIVj8LtCh1qjAJuEAQYBSABEgI6fvD_BwE

Ta. Bit spendy although probably excellent being Arcteryx, I've maybe max budget £100

Berghuas Deluge come in all shapes and sizes. GF was able to get long womens cut. Unfortunately,Amazon are the best if a non-standard leg length.(Short,Reg,Long) They are much better than their price indicates, although not goretex, if that matters.

Yeah, that's fair for a bit of kit not that often used. Prices of outdoorsy kit have rocketed recently too, unfortunately.

Oddly, I take the opposite approach to cycling trousers - get the cheapest possible and treat as semi-disposable - when they get too worn at the seams and lose their proofness after a couple of years, lob them. Currently rocking some Aldi specials to work and back. A bit boil-in-the-bag. But keep me dry.

I had two pairs of these never used, nicked from my camper van when I had it a few years ago. They also nicked a four season sleeping bag, a double gas burner stove/hob and my Sat Map GPS and loads of cards which grips my piss to this day

Cheers, I'll maybe check Deluge out again

+1 for berghaus. I've had mine for >10yrs, still going strong. Goretex.

Paclite are Goretex I think

Walked up to the Hörnli hut today. Only about 700m up and down. Bloody wrecked!

Have done more hill training in the last year than I've managed in my entire life and when I get a chance to use it, it hasn't helped!

We've got 1,800m up and down tomorrow. This could be ugly!