Bushwalk Australia

Hi... many years ago i started using this style of preparing meals while snow camping, mainly in snow caves... now that i've returned to bush walking and have a few day walks done and cobwebs shaken out i'm looking at things i can do for multi day walks...

this is based around a 700ml Thermos brand insulated food container (although any insulated food container should do) ... this one has units that are standalone or can connect and stack vertically like a asian food carrier.. there are two sizes 750 and 325ml approx... i bought the 700ml version ($13.95 on sale at "victorias basement, sydney) and its about 350gm empty weight.. the "meal" i'm trialing as i write this is:

100g couscous, 3tbls dried mixed veg, 3tbls dried seasoned mince(chinese beef or pork floss may work better), 1 sachet ginger miso, 250ml boiling water... place all of this into the insulated container stir and screw the lid on... boil more water for a cup of soup... drink soup, resist peeking into insulated container till finished soup... once soup finished open container, stir and eat... main process is absorption "cooking" well actually its more re-hydrating... but it saves fuel by not boiling constantly and you don't have to watch it or worry about burning and then having to scrub a pan.....container doubles as a bowl etc...

Sounds good. You said u used snow caves. Did u just dig in and sleep in there. ?
just interested how u made and used them. Were they warm compared to out side etc. Ive never had to make or useintereste ive seen them on tv shows. Sought of like sleeping in your freezer. just interested

It sounds as though you don't need a 1/3kg thermos but just a pot cosy made of insulite or cc foam. Thats what many of us use for rice and other dehydes, Bring the ingredients with enough water to the boil, turn off stove and put the billy in the cosy, wait 10 minutes or so.

walkerchris77 wrote:Sounds good. You said u used snow caves. Did u just dig in and sleep in there. ?
just interested how u made and used them. Were they warm compared to out side etc. Ive never had to make or useintereste ive seen them on tv shows. Sought of like sleeping in your freezer. just interested

actually they are quite cosy.. fastest way to build one is to find a decent sized snow drift if you can step up a meter to where you want the lowest part of the door to be its best as the waste snow lands below you... cut a narrow corridor into the drift the same height as your self for about your body length.. now start curving down for about half your body length till you reach knee height (when you remove the snow from only the corridor try to take out large blocks and stack near you)
now start carving out a space to the left and right at knee height (this is your sleeping platform height) so you have a dome shaped cavern, carefully do so as you carve back towards the face of the drift.. you want a good half meter "minimum" of thickness top and sides, now after all that brick up the large opening fully and smooth snow over any holes.. ski for a hour or have a coffee..
Now carefully cut out at the base of the bricked up section the minimum you need to crawl in.. the top of this opening has to be below the level of the knee height platform, this is because cold air and any carbon dioxide from your cooking and candle will stay down there... (use your pack to cover the hole from the inside)
Once inside poke a small hole through somewhere to allow some ventilation, 1 candle will give you heaps of light and keep the place just on zero degrees and even if there is a full blizzard you are comfortable, you may want to place a marker or crossed skis above your snow cave just in-case someone skis over.. place a bivvi bag down and a sleep mat plus a snow rated -20 bag and your set.. remember that you need a insulated support for your stove or it will sink...
A nice snow cave home will take about 2hrs (only really for two at most due to dome size needed and related structural + heating issues) and if sited and built well stand several days use... I had a couple i made and maintained around Townsend and the Sentinel for most of a season... did find a squatter in one though...

a fast and dirty survival cave though will take about 20-45 min depending on your state but that involves digging a hole, spreading your skis and stocks across the entrance and covering everything with a poncho and that will give you a very hard nights sleep but survivable...

I suggest that until you are certain of your building skills you take a tent as a backup and remember to remove clothing layers as you go because if its a calm day you'll actually work up a sweat doing this... another tip is to use your ski tail first to check the depth of the drift.. sometimes there is a rock just in behind it as drifts usually form around things, so saves a dig just to find a rock...

Mark F wrote:It sounds as though you don't need a 1/3kg thermos but just a pot cosy made of insulite or cc foam. Thats what many of us use for rice and other dehydes, Bring the ingredients with enough water to the boil, turn off stove and put the billy in the cosy, wait 10 minutes or so.

true there is that option but I'm thinking of what I'm cooking with.. while its sitting i can boil another lot of water for soup etc as my cooking system is an ultra small one that has a 400ml cup as its only cooking pot, also the unit i bought has a good thermal capacity.. meal was still hot after 30+ min... there is a smaller version of the food thermos which i'll have a look at when I'm in the shop again...