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It's not that easy to find a wild camp spot - ultimately how easy depends on when you do it and the level of risk that you want to take. In one of the videos I watched before doing it, they camped beside the Darent itself, but it looked a bit public when I passed that spot. I personally prefer to tuck myself away somewhere out of sight. I also like to set up camp while I can still see, so that tends to lead me towards choosing much secluded spots too. I do have a water filter, but as a matter of policy I never use it in the lowlands like this due to the high risk of nasties in agricultural run-off.

@@backpackartistthanks for the reply

Yeah, that's us descending to Shiel of Glentanar on the way to Mount Keen

It's a Stratospire 1

Indeed. And I was actually surprised how good a warm up for the Challenge it felt like. I feel ready and looking forward to it in a way I wasn't beforehand.

Thanks!

A nice idea, if you could find a way of making the lowland gap south of Lincoln interesting. But the only thing that really ties these areas together is that they have "Wold" in their names, so it's more a cultural association than a geological one for instance. Another way would be to start in Dorset and walk the Greater Ridgeway to The Wash, all on chalk, and then head up to the Lincs and Yorkshire Wolds. Then you're actually following the band of chalk bedrock. (This is pretty much what I'm doing with this project - aiming to walk all of these chalk ridges).

Yeah, it's good. Very comfortable, and handled everything I've tried to carry in it. I've had it up near its official weight limit on trips when I've had to carry a lot more food than I'd normally, and it's been fine. It's my default pack for the longer trips. The only other packs I've had that come even vaguely close are the ULA Circuit and the GG Mariposa.

Thanks I am looking into them at the moment and it is always good to get first hand and a tried and tested review of them. Thanks

Thought that would be your favourite bit!

How did you get on with the rest of the walk?

Good! Made it all the way to Cockburnspath. Very nice scenery, especially between Sanquhar and Galashiels. I hope you can finish the walk next year: it’s really worth it!

@@afkeb941 Great. Well done!

Potentially could even be split into 3.

Yes, I do use the Tipik Pioulou and it is the XL. (But just to be clear for anyone else reading this, in this particular video I'm using the Liteway PyraOmm Duo!). I'm 183cm and am nowhere near touching the innertent of the Pioulou XL. At 260cm long the inner of the Pioulou XL is the most generous inner tent length of anything I've used. Tipik's website states that the Pioulou XL is suitable for people up to 200cm tall, so I think it will fit you fine. At 183cm tall, I generally look for an inner that's 230cm long or more. Depending on how vertical the bathtub sides are at that length I will at worst just touch the innertent, so anything more vertical or longer is fine. Clearly, a big caveat here is that whether or not you touch the inner depends to some extend on what you're using for a sleeping mat - a really thick one will shorten the effective length as you'll be higher up the pyramid, but I think you'd still be fine in the Pioulou XL even so. Finally, I have to say that I love the Pioulou XL. It's my least necessary tent, but probably my favourite tent. I've had it out in some pretty uncomfortable weather and been surprised how well it's done. Given the lack of inbuilt vents, it's at its best in the summer when you can open it up, but I've been impressed how well it copes when you need to hunker it down (see my TGO Challenge 2022 videos for that!)

@@backpackartist thank you for the fast answering. My sleeping matrass was a sea to summit wich was 10 cm thick. Im going to a thermarest neo air xlite. So. I will drop some cm. I certainly think this will be the tent for also because of the hight of the inner. Soon i will decide of i gonna order one. Thank you again for the answer.

Thanks and welcome

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@@backpackartist found hiker and dog dead in glencoe area this week

@@beecee6850 I wondered if that's what prompted your comment. Rest assured, I have no current plans to climb that hill, or to fall off it.

I mean, there IS signage but some of it is a bit the worse for wear; some of it points the other way to what the map says; and some of it appears to be outranked by other path's waymarks (esp the Monarch's Way). All this adds up to the fact that you can't totally rely on it, just as you can't totally rely on the OS map.

It took me 9 days carrying camping gear and it was hard work. I reckon it's also the hardest trail logistically I've ever done - although unsurprising when still lots shut post-pandemic and its remoteness.

I camped. Accommodation is scarce.

@@backpackartist oh nice one. From what you saw while walking, was there a good number of wild camping spots around?

@@kinetix9178 No. Finding a discreet spot was hard and I had to rely on darkness to provide stealth. Doing it in January helps as people tend to make a dash for home rather than linger into the darkness as they would be more likely to in summer.

Thanks!

Not especially. It's probably about as noisy as any other tent in strong winds, but it sheds the wind quite well, so it sounds worse than it is.

That's 4 for me and I think 7 for Darren

Isn't it just.

It's a Rab Vapour Rise Alpine Light: www.gooutdoors.co.uk/16256695/rab-mens-vapour-rise-alpine-light-jacket-16256695 Great bit of kit

Fingers crossed that they will revert to the more traditional start process. We certainly weren't unique in our isolation though, but starting on the last start day and taking a route that deliberately finished on the last day probably did make it worse.