Ever wondered just how much adventure you could enjoy?

Lots of people like the idea of adventuring, but are a bit unsure of their ability to cope - whether that be fitness, equipment or any of the little doubts we all sometimes suffer from…

Well, I’ve just got back from the Brecon Beacons National Park where one very happy customer, Matt, has just spent 4 days with us discovering exactly how to escape the office! Here’s a picture of him watching the last rays from over 2000 feet on a high mountain ridge where we spent our second night bivvying.

Good night Sun

Bivvying is the act of sleeping out without a tent or shelter, other than simple equipment such as a basha or bivvy bag (basically a body-bag made from breathable goretex), so the experience of being close to nature is second to none!

When it rains, you really feel grateful for that thin piece of fabric, and you learn quickly how to operate without moving around too much. Far from being uncomfortable, many people absolutely relish the experience, and discovering just how self-reliant they really can be.

There’s an old Army saying that ‘any fool can be uncomfortable’ and we take great pleasure in teaching our customers all the little ‘tricks of the trade’ so they can enjoy these wonderful outdoor experiences whilst keeping warm and dry (well most of the time anyway!)

If you want to give it a go for yourself then you can buy a basha, 5 or 6 bungees, a few tent pegs and a bit of para cord and away you go - trial and error is a great way to learn - keep it realistic and you should have  lot of fun! Of course we would be more than happy to fast-track you towards bivvy ninja-ness on one of our courses, and who knows, you could find yourself watching the sun set from a mountain top, a million miles from anywhere!

Details:

For those who are interested in the technical details of bivvying, this one was quite interesting in that we had effectively one sleeping above and one, below ground. Matt was using a Terra Nova single hooped bivvy of Flo-goretex, obviously above ground, whilst Duncan was inhabiting a shallow sink-hole with a standard British Army basha stretched horizontally across it.

Above and below..

What made this interesing was the relative advantages/ disadvantages of these approaches. Above ground bivvy tent - dry (ie not somewhere that will flood), easy but exposed to wind and somwhat restrictive vs. sink hole could (will) flood in heavy rain, acts as a cold air trap, but completely out of the wind and much more room to move around in.

So what was the result of the experiment? Below ground seemed to be the winner as Duncan (&Neb) reported being warm all night (this despite the aforementioned cold air issue) whereas Matt reported being cooler than comfortable.

Inconclusive? Yes, clearly this is no basis for making decisions about kit, but interesting nontheless. Which would I choose if forced to decide? Pure guaranteed survival purposes, take the bivvy tent - get in and stay in! For all round fun, flexibility and developing skills, go with the basha (but be ready for potential consequences)!

Sleeping on a mountain top - it’s the way to go..

This is information regarding the article published below in the Sun about Bob Spour and SAS Survival

Many of you will know that I was asked by SAS Survival (website unavailable) to run HILL and ENDURANCE courses (those that teach map reading, mountain skills and promote physical resolve, fitness and mental strength) and that I had done so on a number of occasions. Recently I have redesigned these courses in order to make them more accessible to a wider audience of people and they will continue to be available from North Ridge Adventure.

Recently I was caught up in the investigation by ARRSE (ARmy Rumour SErvice) which led to this story http://www.arrse.co.uk/Forums/viewtopic/t=48629/postdays=0/postorder=asc/start=11320.html and as you would expect,  was quickly validated by those who needed to know. Enough said - it’s old news and boring…

North Ridge Adventure trades on our reputation for excellence, and our ability to deliver quality, exciting and motivating courses to a wide range of folks.

What you get with North Ridge Adventure is 100% accurate, authentic and within our areas of knowledge.

**Accordingly, we will be delivering the ‘Fan Dance’ and ‘Ultimate Endurance’ courses as planned**

UPDATE SPRING 2010 - this event is now being run under the title ‘BEACONS BIMBLE’ - see website or www.runnersworld.co.uk for details. Entry cost is only £70 and half price for serving military who want to give it a go.

Now, before you read the article, and make your own judgements, I have to say - and no doubt I’ll be criticised for saying this : Bob Spour has been a charismatic, inspiring and prolific teacher in the realms of human confidence and ambition and furthermore he has helped many people on their personal journeys. I know for a fact that he provided training free of charge to students who couldn’t afford it. The truth of the matter - you decide…

Here is the article - http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/campaigns/our_boys/2445041/TVs-SAS-hero-Bob-Spour-is-a-fraud.html

Stay safe

Duncan.

All this weather is great for plant growth, so why not get out and do some foraging? Staples of the moment that everyone can collect easily and safely, are STINGING NETTLES, Jack-by-the-Hedge, and fresh HAWTHORNE leaves. All of these are easy and very edible, in fact tasty…..

On the 1st ever USP (Ultimate Self Protection) Trainers camp, I was asked to do a bit on outdoor living so I decided it would be fun to combine a firelighting lesson with a bit of foraging, to demonstrate just how easy some of this stuff is. There was a large group of martial artists on this course and they had been working pretty hard - what better way to restore the old energy levels than a nice warming fire, and a couple of handfuls of WILTED nettles. Some weren’t so keen on the idea but afterwards everyone agreed they were just as good as any other vegetable. Me I love spinach and other veggies, so I’m pretty keen.

If you want to know how to wilt your nettles, the best way is this:

Cut the nettles (wear gloves) a handsbreadth longer than the newer shoots at the top of the plant- so about 8inches, and you’ll eat about 4/5 inches worth of leaves. Then you just need to gently pass the nettles through the flames until all of the stinging hairs have been burned off (a good indicator is when the edges of the leaves start to go black and charred). Now simply strip off the charred leaves and eat them - should taste sort of nutty. Throw the stalks away, or use them to make a Ray Mears style rope bridge, as you prefer
Also springing up everywhere is COW PARSLEY, although really for use as a herb rather than a vegetable or salad leaf, you might question whether its worth the risk of confusing it with HEMLOCK (which will kill you). 

Dandelions are another tasty salad and you should ensure you find ones that haven’t been contaminated by dogs.
On the funghi front, St Georges Mushroom (Galocybe gambosa) and MORELS (Morchella esculenta) both fruit at this time of year (April, May) which is really unusual - If you’re lucky enough to find one good luck to you but remember CAUTION REQUIRED cannot be overstated with mushrooms. Garlic butter always goes well with fresh mushrooms (sauteed/fried in it) so I wonder what Jack-by-hedge leaves (mildly garlicky) infused in a little Virgin olive Oil would be like instead. If you try it let me know! 

If you want to give it a go, these suggestions are a great and safe way to start but  REMEMBER, peanuts are edible but to some people cause highly allergic reactions, so with every new food, just try a little bit 1st time, ie 1 or 2 leaves only and DO NOT FEED TO KIDS.

Good luck and have fun with it