Видео

Been away working for a while so just catching up. Thoroughly enjoyed your walk through Skye. The mist and the mountains and the water, something magical there, it calls us home. Thanks for posting.

Was round here at the weekend Ray. Parked in Bair Atholl, walked up Glen Tilt, crossed the bridge upstream of Forest Lodge and camped above Luib Mhor, about 750 m. Up over the middle peak of Beinn a' Ghlo next morning and then direct route down to the track and a lovely walk downhill to the car listening to the cricket (England v West Indies). Had been in Scotland doing field survey work Mon - Fri so was absolutely shattered by the end. Drive back to England was a challenge. Great part of the world. Atb

Hello, why duomid and not solomid xl?

For me the moment was when my MSR got smushed by the wind on Kinder Scout. Got a Soulo for winter and mountain trips and if you're the sort who likes to push it, it's worth every penny.

Nice review, thank you

Are you ok now with the quality of this we tent or any more we problem pop up thanks , interested in one but ill wait on your reply

sorry, can i ask what are those things attached to your trek poles?

thank you for another good video.. what do you think about this tent now? i m thinking if it was a better option than my fjallraven abisko lite 1, due to thicker materials and inner space.

Well filmed and added video, one of the Top for me

You're right about following your instincts, l sometimes just get the feeling about a place that says it's not right and I move on. My cousins are half from the Badayou tribe of Borneo and I recently spent some time in the jungle with them. They're very big on avoiding particular spots they consider 'spiritually unclean', they believe in all sorts of tree and water spirits some friendly, some evil, some okay but to he respected. I am pretty atheist but can't help but think in that way out in nature, maybe Im a pagan at heart. Anyway great video mate

Heres an email I sent to Tera Nova about their tent, would love to know what you think mate. Cheers! Here: Dear Terra Nova, I've been a hiker and wild camper for about 20 years and have recently purchased the 2023 version of your Southern Cross 1. It's a fantastic tent for many reasons. The overall shape and pole configuration is superb, it sits on the ground like a limpet and is very wind resistant and strong. The weight to strength ratio is incredible and it's a really beautiful design. However, having spoken to other owners of this tent online and in person we all agree on two simple design changes that would turn a fantastic 4 season tent into the best 4 season tent on the market beating all your competitors. 1) Make the tent 20% larger. I am 5ft 10", by no means very tall but I struggle to lie down and move about in this tent without touching the sides or roof. Obviously this would add a small amount of extra weight, but presumably not even 20% extra weight as lots of features would stay the same (e.g the same number of tent pegs, the same fastening/guyline points, same metal zips, internal pockets etc). If you could add 20% more room for 10-15% more weight than it would be perfect and still weigh in at less than 2kg (still less than comparable 4 season freestanding tents like the Hillerberg Soulo and the Nortent Vern 1). If the 'Southern Cross 1' is about 1.6kg and the 'Southern Cross 2' is 2.4kg surely you could do a 'Southern Cross 1 PLUS' for about 1.9kg? "Southern Cross 1+" that's your marketing right there. Note: most of us don't want a 2 man tent for 1 man backpacking trips, we want a 1 man tent that does the job, and if it's really "4 season" it needs to be able to store winter gear and be liveable for long periods of time when the weather is horrible. 2) Replace that garish red pole. Presumably most of your customers live in England and Wales where wild camping is semi-legal at best in most places and even in places I've camped where it's legal like Scotland and Norway it's comforting to be a bit stealthy. A gold or burnt orange metallic colour would still look really cool up close and contrast with the green material but would blend into the landscape way better from afar. What's the point in having a really low-profile green tent that can hide in the woods if you have that massive red pole? It's a red rag to a bull where angry farmers are concerned (no puns intended). 3) Okay I said only two changes, here's a third small one: I used to own the Helm 1, that plastic buckle at the bottom of the flysheet zip is brilliant. Quite reassuring if the zip were to fail and really takes the pressure off the zip in heavy winds or snowfall. You could make it even lighter and more robust by using one of those aluminium buckles (the sort you see on mountaineering bags). Sorry I am sure you get a lot of annoying emails from wannabee tent designers, but I really do love this tent and would love to see this upgraded version. There really would be no other tent that could compete with it. I would love to know your thoughts on my suggestions? Best wishes,

Welcome to bikepacking Ray, as you said - you can cover many more miles, plus the bonus of nothing heavy on your back. Even when you have to walk, the bike acts like a walking stick ! I use a homemade silny tent that the bike holds up - so no poles to carry. How did you find cycling in those walking trousers ? I think you may like the comfort of padded cycling specific trousers, especially when travelling long distances. For waterproofs gear, I prefer the traditional bike cape (although with modern materials) and gaiters over midi boots. I find a couple of merino neck gaiters, which can be used in various ways and stored on the wrists, invaluable. ( neck / head / balaclava / doubled up etc ) Also an ultralight Windshirt I find essential. Look forward to your future bikepacking trips. ATB

What you didnt really like about this tent? Maybe difficulty to set it up properly everyday or smth?

Good effort pal. Weather is being manipulated. Geo engeneering and HAARP. Just another conspiracy theory though

Glad you managed to complete the trail on the second approach. Glasnakille is really unfriendly for wildcampers. We managed to find a spot to sleep at the end of tarmac (going north). Undoubtely Portree became crowded these days. But still nice place for a good food and resupply. You skipped the part on the hills toward the Needle. They kicked us really hard (we had two attempts there) :) The Flodigarry Hotel was the place where we were drying our boots as we got soaked in the very first meters of the trail near Duntulm. Anyway it is nice to refresh memories watching your video. Good job. Take care.

Great companion, great spot, set of ciders, midges on board. Just perfect. Now I'm gonna watch the clip from Murray's point of view :)

Hi Ray. Love your chanel. What's that piece of music that plays when you're putting the tent up. It's superb. Very atmospheric.

Did you have any issues with the fly touching the inner in windy conditions?

I've got the Southern Cross 2. Decided I wanted a true 4 season for solo camping. The extra room, and head room are great for long nights, especially as I am 6ft 1in. Not had issue with condensation on the inner, even with the outer being healily frosted inside and out.

I slept in this building back in 1979, it had a roof then. We were camping in an upstairs room, a board placed in the window fell inwards on top of my friends head, it had been there for a while and without being touched or shook it fell…we only found out the next night at Ossian that it was haunted.

Great video Ray. Always look forward to them. What is your preference. Expedition Foods or Sea to Summit.

Nice one Ray, glad you got to complete the trail 👍🏻. I have a Lanshan 1 Pro so would definitely like to see the modifications you made. I think it’s a great tent. ATB!

Beautiful place , but you spent the night talking about your tent !😮

Gonna do the WHW next year. I've had a bad experience with your Jock midges, so what months ( or dates) would you avoid?

How come is so hard to find videos like this of dometic tents. Are people not buying them?

Great vid! I’m sure you have been asked a hundred times- do you have a link to the waist pack? - Ribzpack , just seen on the gear list 👍🏻

I did this hike last week. Sad to see the missing person signs still up for Neil Skinner. I saw his memorial plaque where his possessions were found. Thanks for the video.

Great video, I really enjoyed this!

Good thoughts on tents..i would love to see you trying abisko lite 1..

I thought Lanshan 1 didnt need seam sealing ? Good effort

Loved the Music Glen Tilt is a Brilliant Place and have cycled it many times. Glad you have a front fork big improvement .many Thanks.

They must be drowning in money if they can make a drama over a paying customer even before they have opened...

like you makes sense the route you took very good vid . see you have an Audi still have the Volvo?

Enjoyed watching your video.. Quite an achievement!

Poor weather, we walked North South, couldn't do the Trotternish Ridge. Wind and Rain, a night at the Look Out Bothy. apart from day's 1 and 2 we had good weather.

Thank you for the fantastic vlog, Ray! I was surprised about the long stretches of tarmac, but the trail sure is stunning... At the time of the vlog's upload I was just on my third (and successful) attempt to walk the West Highland Way. I'm hooked on hiking and (wild) camping and it's also because of you and your work. Thank you for that! I was thinking about tackling the East Highland Way next. Can you recommend it? All the best, Matthias

Alwa a pleasure to watch your videos ,thanks for sharing

My wife and I camped at Sligachan in the eighties it was when dome tents were just coming out, well a massive storm hit at night and the tent was being blown flat on us and I’d never known winds like it, when daylight came we went to go to the toilet and wash room and the campsite was nearly empty, we then saw loads of tents blown into the loch and people had shelters in the toilets. Then there was the wee beasties of course being a bog there were millions of the little *********😂

Wow ! You did what took me two days in one day. Lol. I'm heading back this Sept to do it again but one day faster.

Looked a great trip, keen to do it myself one day. Would be interested in hearing more of your thoughts on the tent and seeing what mods you did.

Great video Ray. I’m with you on that one for the lightweight boots. I wear Scarpa Maverick Mid GTX and they are fantastic. The rabble (as you put it) in Tyndrum is easy compared to Portree haha.

Love to see a kit review also like to see tent mod great video as always

Hi Ray Thanks for takin me along on the Skye trail and I’m glad it worked out so it’s definitely a route I would like to do. 👍 I’ve not done much this year as weather has bees bit rubbish. Anyway ATB Ray 🍻🏕️🙏

I did the trail in 2017 and I could image that walking northbound is a good option too. Skye is fantastic but nowadays there are to many tourists. Even though I am one of them 🥴And I understand if the locals are feel annoyed from the tourists.

Good to see your back out on the trails Ray excellent video as usual mate. Could you do a video on the mods you done on the tent I'm nearly 6ft in height do you think this tent would be OK for my size cheers

Brilliant I enjoyed your video yes tourists and one day hill walkers are a pain just visit the wonderful snowdonia it’s a nightmare up places like snowdon anyway take care and thanks

Great video Ray, my partner and I always look forward to your videos, glad to see you out and uploading again! Would love a tent review and run-down of the kit you used.

I did it North to South and i have to say i think you may have a point in South to North. Also, so glad you're back making hiking videos. Your knowledge and relaxed style is just wonderful to watch and listen.

3:12 what stove is this? Looks very thought trough. What fuel do you use?

Excellent video as usual Ray, scenery superb, one day I’ll get there, may not do all the walk but I’ll manage part of it. Be lovely if you could film a full winter camp there, I bet it’s stunning in winter