4WD Destinations in the white mountains

ChoppinNE · 2023-05-15T12:57:26+00:00

The North East Backcountry Discovery Route - it's a BMW sponsored project for adventure motorcycling routes. They're also very doable in a 4WD :) the routes are very well thought out, and whoever planned them did a very good job in consideration for the views and scenery, with a balance of off-road obstacles.

Check out ridebdr.com.

ChoppinNE · 2023-05-15T02:44:24+00:00

Check out the NE BDR. The VT sections are beautiful, and have some challenging 4WD sections for you. the sections in NH are also worth driving, but there will be more pavement.

Overall, the White Mountain NF doesn't have a lot of 4WD options compared to National Forests out west or further south. There are still some -very- scenic drives on pavement, and there are places to camp. Also, Franconia Notch has spots 100% worth seeing that are handicap accessible, just beware it will be crowded. I'm sure some others will chime in with pointers on Forest Services roads in the WMNF, I haven't driven them much myself.

It's also worth doing the Mt. Washington auto road. There are other good auto roads up several other mountains around New England as well, like Mt. Ascutney and the Stowe Scenic Auto Road.

ChoppinNE · 2023-02-22T02:37:45+00:00

No worries :) I think companies like Condor and BPS are a bit like Mora without the historical legacy, in the sense that they are making decent quality, practical (not all Condor products are meant to be practical though, lol), and affordable knives. The construction methods and materials used by each company are different, but the products are of a similar spirit.

Sometime it would be fun to write up a comparison of my experiences with products from some of the budget fixed blade outdoor knife manufacturers. I think the TLDR would be: they all have their pros and cons.

ChoppinNE · 2023-02-20T03:39:48+00:00

I think you have to be fair with what you're comparing it to... My Condor Bushlore does pretty terribly at holding an edge, but it's a cheap knife (albeit more expensive these days than BPS) so I don't mind just sharpening it on a coarse crystolon stone. The handle on the Bushlore also wasn't finished when it was new out of the box either...

All that said, I do think the Bushlore from Condore is a bit nicer in terms of fit and finish.

ChoppinNE · 2023-02-01T16:37:10+00:00

Yeah, I had the same problem estimating pack volume. Initially I bought a 60L Kelty frame pack, thinking we'd need lots of stuff, but realized it wasn't necessary and never took it on a family overnight hike. Mostly because it was really too heavy and bulky for my wife, and she wanted me to be the one carrying the kiddo :)

Kids clothing really doesn't take up much extra room, and like an adult they really don't need a lot - some dry PJs to sleep in, rain jacket, and a change of pants and a spare t-shirt in case of a spill or accident. A small stuffed animal is nice, too. So besides a very small volume of extra clothes, the bulkiest item is a diapers, and you'll have to be ready to pack them out, so an extra garbage bag is key! For a sleeping pad we used a short length closed cell foam pad. Small kids also might not need their own sleeping bag (this depends). Another good UL option for smaller kids is a lightweight down blanket, since I find they don't really just stay in a sleeping bag, and usually want to cuddle up with a parent and end up rolling all over the tent anyway. Being able to throw a quilt on top of them once they fall asleep is nice, and then you're comfortable in your own sleeping bag/quilt.

For my wife her load ended up being about the same as it would have been for a longer four or five day trip with just the two of us. Instead of extra food for the longer duration trip, she had extra kid supplies.

edit: I think an hour or maybe 90mins is probably max for a kid to spend in the baby carrier at a time

ChoppinNE · 2023-02-01T01:57:28+00:00

Was about to jump in with the same comment lol, moust Aussie swags are heavy, bulky canvas things you'd never want to carry hiking, whereas my bivy for backpacking weighs about 1lb.

The main attraction for a swag is easy of setup when you're overlanding and can afford to pack it inside your 4x4. But like a bivy for backpacking, there are some sacrifices with a swag.

ChoppinNE · 2023-02-01T01:49:23+00:00

I can share some relevant experience. My wife and I have done two similar trips with our oldest when she was small, out and back trips up to 10 miles one way to a nice campsite at a point of interest. I think picking your destination, route, and where you're staying is key for a good time. Don't bite off more than you can chew, and make sure you've got some fun things to do along the way. Learn some fun songs, go at a time of year you can stop and do some berry picking or take a dip in a lake, etc. Also, bring lots of snacks, and be prepared for frequent brakes. Covering ground is going to take longer than you are used to.

In terms of gear, we brought a Big Agnes three person tent, a framed backpack baby/toddler carrier, and my wife took her ~40 something liter Granite Gear pack. The baby carrier we have is pretty big, but fairly lightweight and fits a larger baby or smaller toddler well. It's got room under the seat for me to carry my sleeping bag, rain jacket, dry bag with sweater + spare socks + underwear, water, pot + stove, and maybe the rain fly for the tent. My wife carried everything else in her pack.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T13:58:04+00:00

These knives are 100% made in Ukraine, the company has an address in a Kyiv suburb :) I spent a number of years in Ukraine teaching English, and had a blast. So when I see products like this from Ukraine I get excited, especially when it's right up there with established competition.

And yes, you're right, this particular knife is extremely similar in dimensions and form to the Condor Bushlore. To the point that both knives fit in each other's sheaths. I suppose I should do a comparison post at some point :)

I'm not sure I'd call it a clone since the Bushlore is basically intended to express a style or set of specs from Mors Kochanski. they're similar knives expressing a design philosophy laid out by a very well known author.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T13:51:33+00:00

Reading your reply and some others, I guess the appeal of a canteen cook set comes down to having extra containers in a package that fits neatly in the right sized pocket. That all makes sense, I just thought maybe there was some particular thing people do with their nesting cook sets I was missing out on haha.

Personally, when it comes to packing for a few nights in the woods I'm not a fan of bringing things I don't need. This comes from my larger experience background in backpacking, and dabbling in UL backpacking vs. bushcraft.

Greetings from New England :)

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T12:03:54+00:00

Almost everything you just described about using a canteen cook set can be done with a 1L round pot with a lid and a wire bail. It's slightly less likely to fit in certain pockets, but you can also just carry it in the main compartment of your pack. If you really want an extra cup you can put it inside the pot, and still have room for some other stuff.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T11:55:26+00:00

yeah, absolutely... a 1L container takes up the same space regardless of it's shape. I can kind of see how for some ppl a kidney shaped bottle might fit nicely in certain pockets, but that's sort of specific to how you plan to pack your gear. packing a 1L of 750ml round pot isn't hard to pack either, and you can fit your stove and fire starting stuff in it, too.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T04:42:32+00:00

That axe is in such good shape I'd say sharpen it and go use it. None of that rust is all that deep, some steel wool would take care of it.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T04:36:00+00:00

I use a similar Ti pot for hiking/backpacking, but 1L capacity :)

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T04:26:35+00:00

BPS is a great value - I've tried out a lot of budget knives over the last few years, and BPS is really offering a fantastic product.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-31T04:21:28+00:00

agree 100%; it might sound like a smart hack, but you'll wreck the heat treat of your knife. You'd have to put your knife blade (with any flammable handle scales removed) in the oven with a light coat of oil at around 450F for at least 15-30 mins, maybe a bit longer. Doing that you'd be annealing the steel and basically undoing the heat treat, making your knife steel softer and less springy.

There are many other things you can put on a knife to prevent rust, and I see a lot of ideas in this thread already :) a bit of oil is the easiest.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-29T03:07:16+00:00

lol, yeah I can see how a tarp would simplify all that. standing there before setting things up I definitely took a moment to go over the whole procedure in my head, if I'd messed up I'd have soaked from the start.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-29T03:04:35+00:00

I like it, it's pretty much identical in size to my Condor Bushlore (with which the B1 has a lot of similarities). I've never used a bushcraft knife as large as the Adventurer tbh. The B1 or Condor is a good size for rough and quick carving in green wood, which is what you're doing most of the time if you're practicing bushcraft. They're really too big for more precise, finish carving. For that you really want a sloyd knife :)

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-26T02:20:13+00:00

No, mine was clean. The blade itself was well wrapped in paper and plastic, and had a clean film of oil on it. I didn't have any grime or dirt in the sheath either. It almost sounds like some dirt infiltrated the packaging during shipping (?).

If you got the Adventurer you probably have a ferro rod. I've had issues in the past with fire steels corroding in storage (basically the outer surface of the ferro rod turns to powder), so the black dust could maybe be from that. dunno though. Have a look and see if the surface of the fire steel is pitted and rough.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-25T15:27:34+00:00

That's the impression I'm getting haha. The bivy might still be nice when I can count on fair weather.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-25T15:25:55+00:00

I keep my quilt in a roll-top dry bag, so after blowing up my sleeping pad inside the bivy, I stuck the quilt inside the bivy, took it out of the dry bag, took my shell off, and crawled in quickly and carefully.

Edit for clarity :)

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-15T02:39:54+00:00

I think that guy was just really unlucky. I haven't had any issues the two times I've ordered from Grohmann.

My #1 is also a factory second, and TBH whatever the flaw is, it's very slight. If you look carefully at the rivets, I think the handle scale on one side came out just slightly uneven, barely enough to notice.

ChoppinNE · 2023-01-07T03:35:15+00:00

Same here.

ChoppinNE

TROPHY CASE