Camping & Hiking Gear Camping & Hiking Gear Contributed By: L. S. Barrel Some of the finest and most affordable camping gear in the world is surplus U.S. military equipment. The nylon web gear is sweat and mildew resistant, it won’t rot, and it pretty much is one size fits all. If you get the pistol belt, I’d recommend that you also buy the “Y” harness for the belt. The “Y” harness helps to distribute the weight load away from your waist and move it to your shoulders. I’d also suggest that you get at least two canteens (with cups and covers) since you never know when you’ll need water out in the woods. Adjust the belt and harness so that the canteens on the rear part of the belt ride just above the large muscles in your buttocks. If the canteens are sitting on your “cheeks”, the belt is too low and may get in your way if you have to move quickly. It’s easier if a friend helps you adjust the belt and Y- harness. Military ammo pouches are just about an ideal place for granola bars and trail mix (if you have two, you could use the second one for carrying a “point and shoot” 35mm camera. You’ll want a sealed First-Aid bandage and pouch for emergencies. On the back of your pistol belt (between the canteens) is a good spot to carry a rolled up GI poncho... you never know when it might rain and you can make a hasty shelter out of one if it really turns nasty. GI pup tents (with ropes and poles) are the least expensive camping tents you’ll find. They ain’t roomy, but they do work. I’m partial to the old LC-1 (nicknamed “Alice”) medium size backpack for carrying camping gear. The outside pockets were just the right size for my shaving kit with towel, fresh underwear with two pairs of socks, and some Meals-Ready-to-Eat (MREs). In the large cargo area, I’d carry a complete change of clothes (in a protective, waterproof bag) at the bottom, a rolled up GI Intermediate sleeping bag, and my pup tent on top. The order was determined by what I might need to get at first. If the overnight temperatures were in the upper 40s or higher, AND no chance of storms... then I’d leave my tent and sleeping bag at home and just carry a GI poncho liner instead. Open up your poncho, put the poncho liner inside, fold lengthwise, snap the bottom snaps and poof! You’ve got an instant, waterproof sleeping bag. The lid of the Alice pack has a waterproof compartment for your maps. On the outside top of the pack I’d hang my GI folding entrenching tool, in case I had to dig a latrine hole. By using the garbage bag that my spare clothes were in, I could pick up trash and leave my camping area cleaner than when I arrived. Get soaking wet and cold while hiking in the rain? If you have a GI Triox heat tab (or Sterno), your poncho, matches, MREs, a full canteen w/ cup, and an entrenching tool (optional)... I can have you almost completely dry, toasty warm and drinking a cup of something hot in less than 10 minutes. Find a reasonably smooth patch of dirt as a place to sit. If you’re not already wearing it, put on your poncho and sit cross-legged. Break out your entrenching tool, leave it folded up and put it between your legs underneath the poncho (or if you don’t have an E-tool, make a small trench in the dirt between your legs about 1” wide x 6” long x 2” deep). Put a small piece of Sterno or a Triox heat tab in the trench or in the opening in the handle of your E-tool. Fill your canteen cup with water and add the instant drink or your choice from the MRE (coffee, cocoa, or broth) BUT only use about 1/3 of the amount in the packet, it is awfully strong. Light the Sterno/Triox and set your canteen cup across the trench or E-tool handle (you’ve made a small stove under your poncho). IMPORTANT: Pull the front of the poncho (by your neck) up tight against your neck and let the fumes and heat vent around the back of your neck and head. About the time the Triox tab or Sterno burns out, you’ll be nearly dried out, warm, and drinking a cup of something hot!!! (This tip is courtesy of an old NCO Academy instructor.)