The Outdoors Station - Audio

Following on from a question for one of our listeners here are the gear reviews from the 2009 TGO Challenge. Andy Reviews; Terra Nova Solar 2.2, ULA Conduit, PHD Minumus 400, Nite Lite Torso Pad, Paramo Third Element, Icebreaker Merino Wool, Silkbody, Paramo Stretch Pants, Montane Featherlite Pants, Inov8 Terrocs, Sealskin Waterproof Socks, Titanium Cook Gear, MSR Mug Mate, Pacer Poles, Gloves, Tilley and Paramo Hats. Shirley Reviews; Laser Competition, Osprey Atmos and Exos, NeoAir, Marmot Hydrogen, Equinox Mummy Bivi, Rocklite 315, Cioch Waterproofs, Icebreaker Base Layer, Klattermusen Down Smock, Primus Micron, MSR Titan Kettle, Pot Cosy, Pacer Poles, Crocs, PHD Down Boots. Bob Reviews; Terra Nova Solar 2.2 and Competition, NeoAir, Prolite 3, Primus Windshield, Pertex Bivvy Sheet, Rab Quantum 400, Silk Bag Liners, Crocs, Travel Tap, Rocklite 315, Montane Superfly, Gehwol Extra and Refreshing Creams, Leki Walking Poles.

In this podcast you can still hear the remnants of the flu bug which has hit Rose and I in my voice, as I try to do some last minute training on the local hills in preparation for the forthcoming OMM. Meanwhile Andy Howell, sitting in front of his log fire with his slippers on, is reviewing some excellent and quirky books for Winter reading. Plus, as an extra bonus, 'stovies' will be thrilled to hear about the portable titanium wood burning stoves produced by Four Dogs Stove, as I chat with Douglas Kerveliss from Minnesota at this years Wilderness Gathering.

In this podcast a couple of items catch Roman's 'lightweight eye' at the trade show in Germany as Pacific Outdoor Equipment are launching in 2010 some lightweight cycling panniers and a new sleeping mat to rival the very popular NeoAir. I on the other hand meet an interesting guy who produced the A-Z of Bushcraft DVD, not only that, but I hear about his background of many years filming and archiving protests and actions over environmental issues never seen on TV. So much so he's become a library for main stream media. Fascinating!

In this Podcast Rose enters her first Sprint Triathlon consisting of a 750m swim, 20km bike and 5km run and so I record her progress and atmosphere of the day for posterity. Roman interviews Andy Utting from Terra Nova at the Germany Show to get more background information regarding the forthcoming uberlightweight Solar Elite and Solar Competition tents. Also Andy Howell discusses the negative dangers of tourism on The Galapagos Islands with Richard Furlong at the Destinations Show. Rose sticks around for the results and race timings and gets quite a shock!

Part 2 of our epic little walk along the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path sees us visit a couple of bays which are surprisingly quiet, apart from a handful of Seals honking at us! The Honey Stove caters for us once again, with a little driftwood providing toasted Croissants and roasted Sweetcorn. The wide variation of the footing on the path itself makes for tough and slippy going, but the views are fantastic and the weather makes up for the previous wet night. Finally we get soft and visit a campsite, for a warm shower and a great meal in the local pub for a review of the 2 days. If only all weekends could be like this!

Another Big Day Out for Andy and I means another trip to the seaside. This time we arrive at Fishguard late Friday to start a weekends walk along the Pembrokeshire Coastal path towards St Davids. The weather this first wild camp evening isn't very good with horrendous rain predicted, so this means I struggle with the wood burning Honey Stove. However we cheer ourselves up talking about our new gear, the Duomid from Mountain Laurel Designs and the forthcoming Shangri-La 3 and Three Season down Quilt from Golite.

The time has come to start introducing numbered shows, now I've got one or two out of the way! This time Andy interviews Last Frontiers for help exploring South America, I think about another income via a photography course with Vale Training and Roman meets Carol Macdermot, the man behind the new Lightwave 60lt rucksack. Hope you like the new sound?

And so on our final day, our journey draws to a close. The weather of the last few days has eliminated the normal joy we would feel and you can hear our tired voices grateful to finally get down to the beach and dip our toes. Of course Shirley's navigation takes her to finish in a unique place which sounds equally reflective and peaceful, and she concludes her journey in the company of John Hesp. Andy manages to talk to Colin Ibbotson to one side and discuss the finer points of lightweight backpacking and how much of a difference it can make on something like the TGOC.

Rose, I and Shirley continue our various ways to Northwater Bridge Campsite and enjoy probably the best night of the two week trip, sitting in the sunshine with 50 or more Challengers sharing laughs, memories and magic moments which have gone to make up this years event. Here I'm pleased to meet once again Shaun Grund to see if the TGOC has lived up to expectations. Andy on the other hand can be found in the bar in Montrose chatting with Jon Hancock and Rob Hausam. Shirley as friendly as ever, makes a new acquaintance!

Food is always important on the Challenge as, on leaving Tarfside we all visit The Retreat for a slap up breakfast. While on the road to Edzell Shirley interviews John Hesp, David Albon, Sue Oxley and Ali Ogden and I chat to the famous 'Bothy Boys' Lee Wells and Tony Bowe about their trip, the pubs they visited and their thoughts on outdoor bloggers, or one in particular! Talking of which, Andy and Kate who are a day ahead of us chat with Mick and Gayle who compare the Challenge to their LEJOG and other long distance walks. And of course there's a certain amount of gear chat too!

With the journey coming close to the end, Andy and Kate decide to press onwards to Northwater Bridge Campsite to enjoy another day in the rain. Shirley on the other hand, puts all her navigation skills to the test and records her experience and trials of actually getting to Tarfside. We are already there of course, keeping dry and lazing in the tent reviewing gear such as the Golite Pinnacle and Lightspeed rucksacks, the NeoAir, the Montane Venture and Superfly Jackets and trousers, Inov8s, Crocs, Primus Windshield and Pot Cosy plus more. In between times I also chat to fellow Challengers, Alistair Hunt and Darren Christie.

The day starts calm enough, however the gloomy menacing clouds become darker still as the weather takes a turn for the worst giving Andy and Kate a reason to get to Tarfside very early. We head up out of Glen Colva into the storm with zero visibility for a long day with serious navigation issues and lots of pacing. Shirley and Colin are forced to take their FWA and not climb Mount Keen as planned. However in the middle of it all she does have chance to give us all a quick gear review regarding the Osprey Exos, the NeoAir and Glamaig jacket from Cioch Clothing

We all finally leave that wild flesh pot known as Braemar and head in different directions to clear our heads and enjoy probably the last wild camp of the trip. Individually we share our thoughts about the warm welcome and great entertainment at The Moorlands Hotel, which was second to none. All Challengers enjoyed chatting with locals and listening to live music until late in the night, a great atmosphere. I'm sure this Hotel will form the base for future meetings in this village, as the Fife Arms unfortunately still gives off a very dismissive air towards Challengers, which has sadly got much, much worse over the years.

Shirley still keen to hear if the ghosts have disturbed those in the bothy, is up early interviewing people still in their sleeping bags, while outside it continues to pour with rain. As it her last day, Beth gives us her thoughts on the event and a mini gear review. The weather makes us all change plans and head into Braemar a day early, to find a place to rest and dry out. We head for the SYHA where I meet the managers Alistair and Sarah Hubbard and discuss the impact the Challenge makes on the town. I also get chance to sit down over a cup of tea with Alan MacDonald, Brian Martin and Mike Gillespie to see where their journey has taken them so far.

Shirley awakes thrilled to still be the new owner of an Osprey Exos so expect a full review later in the series, while we bask in the early morning sunshine at Glen Feshie. Andy and Kate enjoy a good night at Coylumbridge Campsite before heading over the Lairig Ghru to Derry Lodge. High winds force us all to make changes that day and fall back on our FWA. Andy gives listeners a good overview of what to expect in the Lairig Ghru and Shirley finally starts her paranormal camping, getting up in the middle of the night searching the landscape for ghosts.