December 2018

Winter Backcountry Camping with Shirley – Testing out my new BCC Sled!

By |2018-12-20T13:14:05-05:00December 25th, 2018|Categories: Adventure, backcountry, backcountry camping, camping, Canada, crownland camping, Exploring, Hiking, hot tent, Nature, Ontario, Outdoors, pulk, pull in, sledding, tent, winter, winter camping|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I met Shirley a few years ago in the go home like parking lot. I was there to do an interview with Shawn James from my self-reliance and she was on her way out of a trip.  We chatted on social media throughout the years and have met a few times winter camping at Mew Lake. A few months ago we decided we should do a winter camping trip, so we planned one for this [...]

November 2018

Hot Tent Stand – How to Erect a Hot Tent Without Staking it Into the Ground

By |2018-11-13T17:06:58-05:00November 13th, 2018|Categories: Adventure, backcountry, backcountry camping, camping, Canada, DIY, education, homemade, hot tent, Nature, Ontario, Outdoors, tent, winter, winter camping, winter camping tips|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Last year I built my second hot tent.  This one specifically to take into the backcountry. The first, the tipi was made to do so as well but after a trip with my friend Ashley from Young Outdoors, I realized that was never going to happen, well, not solo at least. The tipi and stove weighed in at just over 100lbs without any gear!  Split between 2 people it was okay, but solo, was something [...]

May 2018

Packing for my 5 Day Algonquin Canoe Trip

By |2020-06-05T09:35:56-04:00May 22nd, 2018|Categories: Adventure, Algonquin, Algonquin Park, Algonquin Provincial Park, alone, backcountry, backcountry camping, Bear vault, camp, Campers, camping, Canada, canoe, canoe camping, canoeing, dehydrated food, education, enthusiasm, kiosk, learning, Ontario, outdoor products, Outdoors, paddle, paddling, solo trip, tent, tentcamping|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Since starting my blog and youtube channel, I have gotten a lot of requests from people to see what I pack for my trips, so today I am posting what I packed for my 5 day Algonquin trip last summer.  This canoe trip, was not only the longest trip I'd done solo, but also the first time I was portaging a canoe daily to get to each site.  I had only portaged a canoe myself [...]

March 2018

The Outdoor Adventure Show 2018 – Toronto – Day 2 of 2

By |2018-03-04T18:23:11-05:00March 4th, 2018|Categories: Adventure, backcountry, backcountry camping, backcountry custom canoes, camping, Canada, canoe, canoe camping, education, enthusiasm, Exploring, Hiking, hiking trails, homemade, inspiration, kawartha, kawartha highlands, kayak portaging, Kayaking, Nature, newkayak, Ontario, ontario parks, ontario sea kayak centre, Ontario Trails, ontarios highlands, Outdoor Adventure Show, outdoor products, Outdoors, outdoors show, paddling, shawn james, tent, tentcamping, tips, toboggan, trade show, training, winter camping, winter camping tips|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It was Sunday, February 25, Day Two of the Outdoor Adventure Show for me!  I woke up feeling very tired and already having a slight headache, I wasn’t quite sure if I should just head home, or head back to the show? After getting up and getting ready, putting some peppermint oil on underneath my Lure buff,  a.k.a. today's head bandage, I decided I would be good for a few hours.   I was very excited to [...]

January 2018

New Years at Mew Lake in Algonquin Park – 2017/2018

By |2018-01-16T18:30:55-05:00January 16th, 2018|Categories: Adventure, Algonquin, Algonquin Park, Algonquin Provincial Park, camp, Campers, camping, campsite, Canada, carcamping, cold, cooking, enthusiasm, Exploring, hike, Hiking, hiking trails, homemade, hot tent, Mew Lake, Nature, Ontario, ontario parks, Ontario Trails, outdoor products, Outdoors, Parks, Provincial Park, scenery, scenic, teepee, tent, tentcamping, tipi, Up north, walks, water, waterfalls, winter, winter camping, winter Wonderland|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

While saying goodbye to 2017 and welcoming the new year, it was only proper that I mark the occasion by camping. I spent the last day of 2017 and the first day of 2018 in a chilly winter wonderland in Algonquin Park, with some of the awesome people I've met through a shared passion, a love and respect of the outdoors, that brings us all together. I arrived at Mew Lake early Saturday morning. It [...]

Killarney Solo Winter Backcountry Trip – Ice Ice Baby -44

By |2020-04-22T15:19:28-04:00January 6th, 2018|Categories: Adventure, alone, backcountry, backcountry camping, camping, Canada, crack, creek, creeks, Exploring, Hikers, Hiking, hiking trails, homemade, hot tent, killarney, Killarney Provincial Park, Nature, Ontario, Outdoor Adventure Show, outdoor products, Outdoors, Parks, pulk, pull in, scenery, scenic, sledding, snowshoe trails, snowshoeing, Solitaire, solo trip, tent, tentcamping, walking, winter, winter camping, winter Wonderland|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I have always wanted to do a winter backcountry trip in Killarney, but due to the tipi being so heavy and not having a clue where to go, I hadn't made it there as of yet. Over the summer, I had stopped in to visit the lovely staff at the office at George Lake.  I was doing a 5 day, 4 night solo trip and I had a few questions.  I got all the answers [...]

Hot Tent Backcountry Trial Run – How to Stake a Hot Tent When Camping on Rock

By |2018-01-02T17:19:19-05:00January 2nd, 2018|Categories: Adventure, backcountry, backcountry camping, Campers, camping, Canada, Climbing, conservatationarea, Conservation areas, conservationarea, crownland camping, enthusiasm, Exploring, falls, frozen waterfalls, georgian bay, go home lake, hike, Hiking, hot tent, ice, Muskoka, muskoka trails, Nature, Ontario, Outdoor Adventure Show, Outdoors, scenic, sledding, snowshoe trails, snowshoeing, tent, tentcamping, tipi, toboggan, water, winter, winter camping, winter camping tips, winterglamping|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

A few weeks before the hot tent was done, I 'd made plans to take it out into the backcountry with my friend Sue, from Sue's Outdoor Crew.  She had spent the weekend before making a sled so she could carry her gear on it and some of the items needed for our weekend.  The day before our trip, we had some issues locating a good spot to camp as it's very difficult to find [...]

December 2017

How To Make a Hot Tent Camper Christina Style – Part 2 – Zipper and Preparing the Stove Jack

By |2017-12-12T18:08:04-05:00December 12th, 2017|Categories: Adventure, backcountry, backcountry camping, camp, Campers, camping, camping tips, Canada, cold, DIY, education, glamping, homemade, hot tent, inspiration, learning, Muskoka, Nature, Ontario, outdoor products, Outdoors, solo trip, tent, tentcamping, toboggan, true north, Up north, winter camping, winter camping tips, winter Wonderland, winterglamping, winterinthewild|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

In November 2015, I built a DIY Tipi hot tent.   It is awesome and I love it dearly, but unfortunately, the tipi is not made for the backcountry. I took it on a few small trips last year and very quickly realized it weighs a tonne.  I hadn’t realized how much until I had made a statistics sheet about it for winter in the wild and was amazed to see that it weighed about 65 lbs and with [...]

November 2017

East Paint Lake – Relaxing with Snakes

By |2017-11-21T19:34:52-05:00November 21st, 2017|Categories: Adventure, alone, backcountry, backcountry camping, camping, campsite, Canada, Exploring, fish, fishing, kayak, kayak camping, kayak portaging, Kayaking, Nature, Ontario, ontarios highlands, outdoor products, Outdoors, paddle, paddling, portage, portaging, scenery, scenic, solo trip, sunrise, sunset, swimming, tent, tentcamping|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I had been go go go and I needed a bit of a break. I,  of course, didn't want to stay home though, so I planned a quick trip to one of my favorite areas, the Haliburton Highlands Water Trails.  I found a site on a lake called East Paint Lake that was all by itself.  To get there I just needed to do a short paddle and an 823m portage. Easy peasy!  Booked it [...]

Go to Top