Duke of Edinburgh awards kit

[blue matt]

Any of your children done the D of E stuff

My Daughter is doing it, she has her sports covered, she has he volunteering sorted ( teaching netball and swimming )

She is going to do her first Hike in Oct

So i have decided on a pair of boots for her, no drama with that, not spending the earth on them as she will only wear them a few times

Got a decent sleeping bag, jacket and layers

so looking at Cooking stuff and deciding on sleeping mat and rucksack, not of course weight will come into it, so either self inflating mat, or a foam mat, the later being the lightest

Now the rucksack, imho the army have perfected the rucksack, the 60 L must be the best bet, the Molle system works really well, so why look anywhere else ? ? ?

cooking, looking at the highlander blade, great kit, or might choose the welsh made BCB Crusader

any hikers ? ? ? or people who have had kids do the D of E hikes offer any advice

[chipspie]

ebay

chipspie

[El Gwapo]

Not done DoE but do a lot of long distance lightweight hiking in Alps, Pyrenees and Corsica. I don't use army gear. Its durable but too heavy for what I need. I try to keep my pack to around 15kg max (minus water) for weeks wild camp. Not sure how long the walks are on DoE, is it more of a navigation test than distance?

The "big four" are boots, tent, rucksack and sleeping bag.
1. Spend any spare on boots. She wont thank you if she gets blisters from cheap ill fitting boots. It will spoil the experience. Try them in the shop with walking socks on. They should be comfy out of the box.
2. Tent - is that provided? Too much of a subject to go into here!
3. Rucksack- again the fit is everything. I use a 65L Osprey for week long wild camp. I keep it below 15kg inc food but minus water. I have an old 65L Berghaus Bioflex in more than usable nick if you want to take a look. Yours for a small donation. You'll need to check it fits her though, its a mans not womens. Ill chuck in cook set if you want one of my spare older ones.
4. Sleeping system - assume you've gone for a synthetic bag. Make sure she takes a down jacket for extra warmth. And remember down isnt waterproof so a good rain shell coat ie gortex or other decent waterproof fabric

If this is a one off, try to assemble the kit, don't buy top end as you prob wont use it again but its worth getting decent boots

[chipspie]

YES NEED GOOD BOOTS I HAVE UP THE GOWER

CHIPSPIE

[The Bloop]

Isn't the cooking equipment provided for her?. My son is doing his bronze hike this weekend and the tent and cooking equipment is provided by his scouts group. All the other stuff we've got ourselves.

[Taffster]

I did DoE back in the day. 1989-91 to be honest.
Don't scrimp on the boots. If anything that's where you need to spend the money on a good fitting, comfortable pair. Halfway through a long hike in ill-fitting boots will not feel good when the blisters start developing. She won't want to put the boots on in day two.
I still have the exact same boots today as I did in DoE in '89. Yes, she might only go on a handful of walks/expeditions with DoE for her award. But there is every chance she'll continue to walk after her award and she'll get full use out of the boots. I've used mine every year since and I'm not a big walker.
I can say the same about the sleeping bag and rucksack. Still have the same ones today. And still use them. Both got hammered in my twenties. The rucksack was invaluable at uni, carrying my stuff back and forth at the end of term and for visiting mates. And for holidays abroad. Likewise the sleeping bag for weekend trips to mates houses or for visitors.
And it can be cold in a tent in autumn/spring on expedition. A decent sleeping bag is essential.
I appreciate it's a considerable cost, but your daughter will definately get value for money from them beyond her DoE award.
And if not, and she ditches them to the back of the cupboard? There's always e-bay.

[blue matt]

thanks all

Happy with the boots, they have really good reviews and are not costing alot of money, they are from Decathlon

I will ditch the army rucksack idea then, they walk for a day, camp, then walk the next day on the final walk, which will be next year sometime, this hike coming up is only a day one

i did not think about a Jacket, she was talking about wearing her north face one, which i know is waterproof, not sure of all day rain though, might get her a full waterproof over jacket type of thing, but of course we are adding the weight

Reply to the Bloop, just the tents are supplied, down here ( wiltshire ) the council used to run it, then with cutbacks they have ditched it, so the school has taken it on, but will only provide tents

[The Bloop]

My sons scouts group use trangers for cooking.

https://www.simplyhike.co.uk/product...nt=41317594440

Could be worth you as a group pooling together to get one or two. Taking one each will just be extra cost for you and extra carriage for your daughter. Larger sizes are available

[blue matt]

My sons scouts group use trangers for cooking.

https://www.simplyhike.co.uk/product...nt=41317594440

Could be worth you as a group pooling together to get one or two. Taking one each will just be extra cost for you and extra carriage for your daughter. Larger sizes are available

cheers

looks a nice bit of kit, i do love buying stuff like that, we have so many BBQ's and the like, as i love the design of them, waste a hell of alot of money it seems

funny enough i had this added to my ebay list

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-Spiri...oAAOSwTM5Y305S

very similar, to which i was going to add a army mess tin or a billy can

I hang around a few preppers forums ( it entertains me ) so always see different idea's, infact i own 4 Army mess tins for some crazy reason ?? ?