t e r r y b n d

Terra Nova Solar Competition 2 tent

"A fantastic all rounder 2 skin tent at a very pleasing weight and packed size. If you're a bit of a cautious backpacker or careful with your pennies then I see no reason why you wouldn't want to go for this shelter over the slightly lighter and less stable options of most single arch pole tents. It covers most bases when heading out into the hills and is ideal for thru-hikers, weekend trips and mountain marathons."


Just when you think Terra Nova have reached the limits of tent design and weight, they come out the blue and smack you in the face with something unexpected - the Solar Competition 2 tent is one example.

A 3 season backpacking shelter that's strong and quick to erect with ample living space for one, a large porch, which packs down to a small size - all for little over a kilo!

What we're looking at here is a lightweight shelter that gives you comfort and security when out on the hills for the weight of a bag of sugar. A home for the night that weighs little more than Terra Nova's well known and highly respected Laser Competition - but with added stability and inherent strength.

Vaude Power Tokee UL 1 person tent

"...despite some foibles I really like the Vaude Power Tokee UL. It's a great solo backpacking shelter. It excels in many departments over other similar classed tents..."


Well, I've had this tent for a while and it's had tough run out on the hills. It's endured multi-day hikes and camps, calm dry evenings, batterings by gale force winds and of course good ole British rain has endeavoured to drown it too. And this lightweight one person shelter has withstood it all with impressive ease.

Essentially, this is a souped up version of Terra Nova's Laser series tents - that much is obvious. So, some of you will be interested (as I was) to see how they compare. And overall, the Vaude tent favours well.

High Wheeldon summit one cold Saturday morning

Apart from writing this wee blog post, I'm busy packing for my next excursion out into the Peak District National Park - thankfully the weather is looking a bit more promising this time round so fingers crossed it will be a productive trip.

Anyway, I'd just like to thank you all (old and new) for taking the time to watch my videos and read this blog. It's 2 years old this month and in that time it's had over 700,000 unique visitors with a shocking 25,000 visits on average every month in the past year. Figures that bewilder me in truth. I've no idea where you all come from and why. But I suppose it's a reflection of the ever increasing interest in outdoor pursuits.

It's been an absolute pleasure sharing my experiences with you all and perhaps for some intriguing as my new found career in the great outdoors producing videos has evolved and developed. It truly has been humbling on many levels when all I really want to do is spread the word on how wonderful and enlightening an experience it is taking in the beautiful landscapes we have here in the UK.

Dawn respite from camp - The Roaches, Peak District National Park

I'm not having much luck of late with regards to the weather. It would appear my "sun god" status has been revoked. After arriving in the Peak District on Friday I made my way to The Roaches in the south west of the park with fellow backpacker Mike.

I was planning on spending a few days in the Peaks filming and the forecasts looked favourable for me to capture some nice video of the area - alas as is often the case things turned out to be quite different.