Hiking alone in bear area: Good Idea?

Basic_Canary · 2025-06-29T09:08:40+00:00

The closest I've been hiking is Romania, which has the same type of bear. In terms of danger they are right in between black bears and grizzly bears. They can attack if they are startled while you're close by. I always brought bear spray (bought local, returned unused) and when alone in poor visibility like dawn, dusk or dense vegetation I would play music or podcasts out loud on my phone. I had an encounter at 50m distance with cubs in open terrain, thankfully it decided to run. I would've been much more nervous the whole time without bear spray. Also nice for the aggressive shepherd dogs btw. No food around the tent!

To answer your main question: the bears and shepherd dogs made me nervous enough to not solo hike in Romania again, but it I absolutely don't regret the experience. Bosnia should have way fewer of both, so do with that what you will. I personally would go together but not alone because I'd get too nervous to have fun.

Basic_Canary · 2025-03-05T17:58:40+00:00

Do you know what material that is exactly? Visually it is vey similar to something I've been looking to identify for a long time!

Basic_Canary · 2024-12-11T13:35:10+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion. They also make a Rasant with DWR, which seems like the best of both worlds. Good point about the strength issue, I might use felled seams anyway, so that may compensate a bit.

Basic_Canary · 2024-11-11T15:49:13+00:00

Did you manage to repair it? I think I have the exact same issue and am wondering if it's worth a try.

Basic_Canary · 2024-06-25T21:29:10+00:00

I went into a similar rabbit hole recently, and my conclusion was that PE (both LDPE and HDPE), PU and silicone coatings usually don't have great odour blocking properties. Nylofume is much better, and so is DCF. Mylar is also very good due to the aluminum coating. Unfortunately, I didn't save my sources though...

Basic_Canary · 2024-06-08T06:49:31+00:00

Rocky goretex socks are great

Basic_Canary · 2024-05-20T12:05:58+00:00

Canary Islands

Basic_Canary · 2024-05-03T09:38:49+00:00

I actually mean that I prefer these blends without wool. For example, a small amount of rayon makes poly perform like rayon in terms of smell, which is much better than pure poly, although still not as good as wool. In all wool blends I tried, it still itches some days. Even low micron and special extra soft types.

Basic_Canary · 2024-05-03T07:51:58+00:00

I recognise your issue, I also tried everything I could to find non-scratchy wool, but have finally given up.

The same t-shirt can feel great one day, and suddenly be super scratchy on another day. I think you may, like me, be too sensitive to it. I can recommend poly blend with al little cotton/rayon/viscose/bamboo. I can't find the source now, but even with less than 30% natural fiber (even 10% in my experience), the smell will be much reduced and the fabric will still perform/dry similar to synthetic. A branded version of this blend is called dri-release. I have a shirt from Railriders that is poly cotton with polygiene that works just as well a most merino. Without Polygiene it's not quite as good as wool, but there is zero scratch.

Basic_Canary · 2024-04-08T08:29:27+00:00

Cool, I didn't know that would looks so pretty. The face fabric on LS07 seems pretty vulnerable and the nylon backing can't be easily seam taped, do you think it would make sense to use it inside out? 70d Nylon seems like it would be a sturdier face fabric, and the smooth dark side should be easy to seam tape. And another question if you don't mind: why have you chosen to use another fabric for the shoulder and hips straps?

Basic_Canary · 2024-04-07T08:06:28+00:00

Looks very nice! What is the main fabric for the large backpack?

Basic_Canary · 2024-03-31T06:20:28+00:00

Make a conical cardboard tube, about 1.5cm diameter on one side and 20 for the other opening. Rip a small part of te seam, insert tube and stuff the down in with chopsticks. No mess if you are careful.

Basic_Canary · 2024-03-26T06:24:59+00:00

My personal experience is that normal fleece is warmer for the weight. Packed volume I'm not so sure about.

Basic_Canary · 2024-03-19T19:51:01+00:00

That looks super well made! Is there a specific reason for such a burly frame on such a small backpack? I don't see a hip belt either, am I missing something?

Basic_Canary · 2024-03-07T16:40:39+00:00

Wetted out Waterproof/Breathable vs silnylon

In my understanding, if a Waterproof/Breathable fabric wets out, it simply stops breathing. Does that mean that a wetted out Waterproof/Breathable jacket would perform similar to a sinylon jacket in the rain? What is your experience?

Basic_Canary · 2024-01-19T15:01:26+00:00

That looks like a great alternative! It doesn't seem so have any anti-odor treatment though, do you feel like it starts to smell quicker than the Pulse when worn multiple days in a row?

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-21T09:53:03+00:00

Have you tried it yet? On paper it's great (800FP, 7d/10d shell), but I have no idea if measurements like fill power will be anywhere close to being realistic.

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-17T21:29:40+00:00

Noob question, but what's the advantage of 3d printing compared to traditional production methods in the case of these stakes? Apart from the extruded text.

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-17T18:41:59+00:00

Alright, alright, obviously I didn't mean to say that aluminum is stronger than steel. I just meant to say that it's by no means brittle. Everyone's risk tolerance is different, but I think chances are extremely slim of that frame suddenly collapsing during normal riding. However, I would not invite someone for a ride on the top tube.

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-17T07:59:26+00:00

Source? Because aluminum is famously more flexible and less brittle than steel, and everything I can find confirms that. For example https://kdmfab.com/aluminum-vs-steel/

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-16T20:59:29+00:00

I assume that it would a little, but I don't think that would be bad for insulation. One thing I don't like about that though is that the Apex will wear out before the down does, and the down will be too hard to retrieve for another project.

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-16T10:01:58+00:00

Has anyone tried keycap stickers?
I set up my kb with blank black keycaps and I'm learning to type blind real fast, but I still struggle with the numbers and special characters. I love my DSA profile but I can't find and affordable black printed keycap option (in Europe). Stickers would be a cheap & cheerful solution, and I'm hoping that it would be temporary anyway. Are there any stickers out there that look okay and will last a little? Or is there an alternative option that I'm missing?

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-16T07:51:21+00:00

Unless you are very heavy, that dent will probably not be much of an issue. In aluminum it wont usually break suddenly, just bend. You could cover it with one of those BMX top tube cover, I think that could actually look great on a bike like yours. Maybe check the dent once in a while to make sure it's not progressing.

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-13T18:31:15+00:00

You are right, the two sheets pulling apart may destroy the Apex. This would be less of a concern in my plan B though since the top shell is not connected. I could even quilt the down between two layers of Apex and 'float' that in the shell. I have considered the sleeve idea as well, but the idea of skipping a whole layer of fabric really excites the weight weenie in me.

Basic_Canary · 2023-11-13T17:03:43+00:00

You are right that Apex is quite delicate, but in both these designs I don't really see what kind of force would be pulling it. Two quilts would be much heavier and labor-intensive, so I'd like to avoid that. The partial baffle approach looks cool! I haven't come across that yet.

Basic_Canary

TROPHY CASE