Owlbebak

Beware!! Transferring A Blog To Another Blog Site May FAIL!! I started my first blog at Vox.com. It was a great site with lots of features and a wonderful community of Bloggers who linked together. Vox was then sold and the powers that be decided to close it down. They gave the option of moving our blogs to another site they had or Wordpress. I chose the free Wordpress site since they were an open source software company. Since it was set up very different from Vox, I lost interest in blogging. Just recently I have regained my interest and I decided to move the Wordpress blog to Blogger. The move was successful so I thought I might as well delete the Wordpress site, which I did. Unfortunately, I failed to realize that all my blog photos and videos didn't transfer, but were linked to the Wordpress site. Soooo, now my old blog entries on Blogger have no photos or videos. What a disappointment!! Life goes on, so I will move forward with new entries and maybe go back to certai...

My Super Cat Alcohol Stove A few years ago I decided to try to make a Super Cat Alcohol Stove so I could test it and potentially take it on some backpacking trips. Alcohol stoves are very popular with Thru-hikers due to their lightness and simplicity. They are also very cheap to make! The can used to make the stove typically cost under a dollar which usually is a cat food can or potted meat can. In my case I bought a Hormel potted meat can since I don't own a cat.  Making the stove is very simple and I chose the most basic design. This stove, I believe was created by Jim Wood and all the information is at his website. The method I used to do the holes was to make a heavy construction paper template, copying his hole design, marking on the circular template and then using a paper punch to punch the holes. I then wrapped the template around the can, taping it and then using a magic marker drew the circles. Once drawn, I removed the template and used my paper punch to punched the...

Buying a new HDTV can be a very confusing decision. LCD TV, DLP TV, Plasma TV, 3D TV, the list of types seem to change by the day. In the not too distant past, Plasma TVs were the rage, but then the newer LCD TVs took over. Now, we have the comeback in Plasma TVs due to improved technology and design. In my research, I have found one Plasma TV that offers an excellent price point with a wide range of features. That TV is the Panasonic TC-P42S30 Viera 42" wide screen Plasma TV which offers 1080 p, 1920 x 1080, 16:9, 600 Hz, HDMI, USB and has the Energy Star rating. I suggest you take a  look at this Plasma TV if you are in the market.

THE NORTH FACE HEDGEHOG GTX XCR III Recently I switched to a lighter boot / shoe for backpacking since most of my hiking is geared toward ultralight. My first hiking shoe was a Merrill brand. It was light with a Vibram sole with Gore-Tex outer waterproof shell. I liked the shoe. Besides backpacking in it, I wore it daily and went on 4 mile trail runs a few times a week. Eventually, the shoe wore out and I went on the search for a replacement. I  basically wanted the same features, but I decided to try another brand so I could compare performance for future purchases. I decided on The North Face  Hedgehog GTX XCR III. This shoe is superior to my Merrill in terms of insole padding, aggressive Vibram sole and lacing eyes. It provides better support and the fit size is accurate. I wore it a daily for a few weeks, then went on a vacation and hiked 13 miles in the Smoky Mountains. No blisters, not issues. The Gore-Tex served me well due to the many wet areas I had to cross....

I just finished reading an absolutely fantastic book! A story of survival that was miraculous, where the polar expedition of Earnest Shackleton and crew were ice bound in the Antarctic and fought to beat all odds and survive. This book ranks at the top of my list and I highly recommend this book if you love adventure survival stories. Amazon.com - Read eBooks using the FREE Kindle Reading App on Most Devices

I read about this new product developed mainly for third world countries to help cope with unsanitary waste disposal systems. I naturally thought it might be a good solution for backpackers too. The basic idea of the Peepoo is: "The Peepoo (pat.pend) is a personal single use toilet, that sanitise the human excreta shortly after the defecation, preventing the faeces from contaminating the immediate as well as the larger environment." Take a few minutes to read the following links: Peepoo The New York Times Read and post comments | Send to a friend

I finally got around to making the video of my backpacking trip hiking on the Bartram Trail in Georgia. The complete story of the trip can be found at this LINK with photos. Read and post comments | Send to a friend