Hi all, I am fairly new to this game and want some advice as to what I should carry in my rucksack for winter walks up to about 10 miles in the Peak District? Any advice no matter how basic would be gratefully received.
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 Some warm things - hat, spare hat, gloves/mitts, spare gloves/mitts, fleece, flask Some wetprooof things - cag, o/trousers, bivi bag Some tasty things - food, water Some finding your way around things - map (of the Peak District might be best  ), compass, gps if you've got one Some "Shit, I'm lost / injured" things - torch, whistle, mobile(?), first aid kit That should do.
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 summed up nicely there ian.
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 I'd generally carry a spare map as well, just in case your primary one goes missing. It may seem over cautious, but I've seen it happen and the middle of Bleaklow in low visibility isn't a great place to be mapless.
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 Flask is a really good one. I used to object to carrying a flask around because of the weight, but the wife always wants to take one this time of year. Have to admit that I've come around to the idea. Hot drink or some soup can be a real boost when you're cold...
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 Add spare socks to Ian's list of warm things : sink your foot in a hidden water hole and spend the rest of the day in icy sodden discomfort or worse... can also be used as mitts at a push... A decent unbreakable flask can be a very nice luxury. Put hot water in it and carry soup & hot chocolate sachets or coffee/teabags separately (flasks are very difficult to clean properly and you get more choice that way). Some people advise avoiding caffeine (as it is a diuretic) but I believe this concern is overblown and the benefit of a nice hot drink far outways this. Mike fae Dundee will probably suggest a hipflask to go with it! I'd always include firelighting kit and a decent pocketknife too. My firelighting kit includes cotton wool balls and a small tub of vaseline : seperately they make up part of my first aid kit for blister avoidance and dressings - together they make excellent tinder/firelighters. Sunglasses are also worth including. If it's snowy you can easily suffer from glare in winter and they can also help keep spindrift out of your eyes if the wind picks up. And the usual advice of leaving details of your planned route with friends or family always apply... Have fun...
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I did forget to mention the hipflask of Talisker or Glenmorangie. Very silly of me. I'd also a camera, but obviously it's not an essential in the way that say a wetproof or the hipflask might be.
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 first aid kit
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 Under the 'warm things' heading I'd include an extra layer or two (fleece jacket, or primaloft probably) useful for stops or for that emergency situation. A small sitmat is handy - the ground is cold (and wet?) to sit on at this time of year. Emergency kit should include at least a basic (orange plastic) bivi bag, but a group shelter is more useful.
I'd definitely agree with taking sunglasses (or even ski goggles) against blowing snow or hail.
But, question to John really, I really question the worth of a firelighting kit for Peak District day-walking - what would you expect to do with it? (OK, the answer's obvious, lol, but in what circumstances would you envisage using it?)
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 This works for me for some harder routes where I want to be as light as possible and still get a hot drink but try with caution... Flasks can be pretty heavy and if the route can guarantee water collection I take my stove and a small water bottle(old lemonade bottle etc) oh, cooking cup or a small pan and t -bag etc instead. It is lighter than a flask full of soup. It ads hassle and you have to get out of the wind to have much chance of heating the water without the stove blowing out! It doees mean stopping to make a brew and you may have problems unless you are 100% competant/ confident in your stove... You should therefore be prepared to drink cold water from the source if you have too. I also drink plenty of water before setting off and keep a selection of chocolate sweets in my rucksack and coat pockets rather than one big bar.
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Matt, I thought a bit about that before I even posted it. I think that I consider firelighting kit to be an essential item in any outdoors excursion in any conditions. I freely admit that it probably won't get used on a 10 mile jaunt in the Peaks... but getting in the habit of carrying it in your pack is no bad thing IMHO. I was also trying to make the point that it could be dual-purpose. What I take for first aid purposes needs only the addition of a fire-stick or matches to become tinder. For the Peaks, a mobile phone is probably the surest way of ensuring a quick rescue in the event of trouble - but further afield a fire for signalling might be the difference between being found and being missed. Plus you carry with you all the other uses of fire that our ancestors thought of for coping in the wilds long before we had waterproofs and satnav!
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 Ian summed it up well. Its more about taking extra clothes than anything else, hat, gloves and extra layers are the main thing as its 98% likely they'll be the things you'll actually want and need. For the other 2% I usually make sure I've got the usual, head torch, whitsle, first aid kit, compass, map of course and often take a survival bag too. I would be more likely to pack a small bic lighter and a tea light than a firelighting kit. Starting a fire in the wet Peak just doesn't happen and you'd be surprised when stuck in the cold how much heat you get off a tealight candles especially on your hands!
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... there are tea light candles in my firelighting kit... but that is starting to make me look like a boyscout! John
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You won't be the last... get it, get it?... < heres groans in the distance >
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 I know they aren't strictly 'in your rucksack' but - don't forget your gaiters! The peak district can be mighty boggy this time of year if you're heading off the beaten track. Make sure your nav skills are up to scratch too, it can be quite intimidating when the fog or cloud closes in on the peak plateaus.
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 I'd agree with Hayden, as I NEED tea to exist, I like to take a stove and pot to make tea in (Coleman F1 and an MSR titan). Flask tea tastes crap, and is usually cold! Taking a stove gives you a choice of drink, and the more you do it, the more you'll get used to it and end up making more interesting lunches. I'm sure others have mentioned it, but headtorch is pretty vital this time of year. Also in the Peak District, it your navigation or hill skills need touching up, contact Beyond Hope http://www.beyondhope.uk.com/ for some excellent one or two day instruction.
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| Edited: 13/12/07 15:16 |
It always amazes me how many people seem to take a stove onto the hills for a day walk to make their brews, yet I swear I've never once seen anyone boiling up on the hill during the day. Where do all go to make these brews? Do you have to hide behind the nearest rock, so you don't have to smile at the "milk and two sugars, please" you get from every passer by? 
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We never get very high up before we have to stop to make a brew, due to all the heavy brew kit we're carrying
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 Glad im not the only one! For day walks I take my homemade meths stove which all fits in my mytimug, fuel and everything. Im not sure exactly how much it weighs but its slightly less than a 100g coleman canister and peak ignition from bob and rose @ backpackinglight.co.uk I like the flexibility it provides. Also the little fuel bottle I have contains enough meths for 2 maybe 3 boils of a mug of water. This means that if the worst were to happen and I had to spend a night in the survival bag it wouldnt be quite as miserable. "I'd always include firelighting kit and a decent pocketknife too. My firelighting kit includes cotton wool balls and a small tub of vaseline : seperately they make up part of my first aid kit for blister avoidance and dressings - together they make excellent tinder/firelighters." John what role does the vaseline play in the firelighting kit?
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what role does the vaseline play in the firelighting kit?
Vaseline is petroleum jelly
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