Outwell e-cAmp Magazine March 2014

ecAmp Rural retreat

Cheesy goodness

Knots for campers

Kathryn Whelan checks out a simple, friendly Certificate Site located away from it all on a working farm in Shropshire

Cold weather camping requires a hearty soup to warm you up – and Guyrope Gourmet has just the recipe to fit the bill

An experienced camper needs to know their knots and John Traynor demonstrates four that will help in many on-site situations

Read more on page 4

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Read more on pages 6-7

ecAmp Magazine

e e-cAmp magazine March 2014

ecAmp magazine ecAmp Magazine

INNOVATIVE FAMILY CAMPING

ecAmp Magazine ecAmp magazine WIN

Three chic touch-operation Aquila Deluxe lamps up for grabs in this month’s easyto-enter competition CHECK IT OUT ON PAGE 8

Supporting environmental charities

editor’s welcome

clive garreTt

Our very own Outwell camper

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ish lists and new gear feature prominently at this time of year. There are some real bargains to be picked up as retailers clear the shelves ready for the influx of 2014 products and major public shows tempt visitors with a wealth of offers.

As I write I’m looking forward to meeting up with campers at the February Caravan and Camping Show at Birmingham’s NEC. I love the craic and the chance to chat with other Outwell fans about the Outwell community, camping and the skills needed generally to enjoy outdoor living.

Yet, while I really look forward to meeting fans on the stand, I look forward more to sharing the camping experience with you out in the field. My wife, Tricia, and I will be out and about more this year – visiting rallies run by the friends we’ve made through the unofficial fan clubs on Facebook and organising our own simple camps.

In fact, we’ve put a camp together for the end of March where we hope to try out a

new tent at a local campsite before we travel farther afield. Fancy coming along? Too late, I’m afraid. I posted the details in the events section on our Facebook page and we got more than 30 campers book up within the first week!

While on the subject of new tents remember it is essential to check your latest purchase as soon as you get it home. Go over it with a fine toothcomb before you pitch it and question anything that worries you with your supplying retailer. Then pitch your tent and repeat the exercise. Give yourself plenty of time to do this before you actually want to use your tent for a break.

Use this time to become familiar with pitching and to run a hose over a polycotton/ cotton tent to help the thread seal those seams. Any drips can be taken care of with a small dab of seam sealant.

Preparation is key to enjoying camping so get that gear sorted and ready for action.

You’ll find various features in previous issues of e-cAmp that will help.

It is also worth using these colder months to learn and practice some new skills. A favourite of mine is ropework – a knowledge of which will make day-to-day outdoor life a little easier and could save your holiday.

Besides, it can provide hours of fun for all the family. Check out this month’s feature…

Happy camping!

Clive Garrett Editor

content 3 Meet the fans We meet Lisa Perks who is a regular family camper at Outwell Camping Club events

3 Open Air John Traynor takes us on an off-beat ramble through an outdoor writer’s camping life

4 Site reviews Kathryn Whelan camps at Upper Brockhurst Farm – a peaceful little campsite in Shropshire

5 Cooking with Outwell Guyrope Gourmet, Josh Sutton, rustles up a tasty dish guaranteed to warm you up in the coldest weather – Stilton and leek soup

6 Technical feature An experienced camper will have mastered many practical skills and the ability to tie the right knot to do a job is just one. John Traynor highlights four to practice

8 Image of the month Winter isn’t stopping you posting pics

8 Competitions Our easy-to-enter competition could net you a chic table lamp

Editorial Issue: March 2014 Editor Clive Garrett editorial@outwell.com Publisher Lotte Simonsen los@oase-outdoors.dk Design Kaja Damgaard Please note, email addresses are for editorial use only – product related emails should be sent to info@outwell.com Copyright © 2014 Oase Outdoors ApS. All Rights Reserved.

Use of information, content and images only by written approval from the editor or publisher.

The views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of Oase Outdoors. Every care is taken to ensure that the content of this magazine is accurate, but we assume no responsibility for any affect from errors or omissions. While every care is taken with unsolicited material submitted for publication we cannot be responsible for loss or damage.

Hats off to all Outwell fans who have been camping over winter. This pic was sent in

by Kil Sun Jung from the Korea Camping Club. That’s dedication…!

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meet the fans

open air

It’s a family thing Outwell campers may know Lisa Perks, pictured here with her family Darren, Grace and Noah. And her mum, Marlene. The Perks certainly add life to the campfire party and are a delight to camp alongside. You can also meet Lisa on Facebook, where she enjoys talking about camping life.

She takes up her story…

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um is to blame for our camping addiction. She said our children needed to experience camping like I did as a kid. We reluctantly agreed to go just the once and came back hooked. It’s our off-button – complete relaxation away from the stresses and long hours of running a business, providing total quality family time in which we can all enjoy the freedom that camping brings for the children.

We also love the last minute we-can-go-this-weekend/ week’ lifestyle we lead (nothing to do with my lack of planning skills, honestly!)

We love Outwell tents for they come with lots of extras that have now become necessities. They are all great quality tents that we have every confidence in, whatever the weather.

We have become slightly Outwell Tent obsessive in Lisa is an Outwell addict and owns six of our tents, including a Hawaii Reef with an obvious new extension that she was using when we met her at the Nantcol meet last year. It certainly stands out from the crowd when pitched on the meet’s ‘Outwell Row’ and you’re guaranteed to wake up on a sunny day – no matter the weather outside.

this family, but I think that our favourite favourite tent is our Hawaii Reef. Its Retro 70s colour takes me back to camping as a child, and is our ‘sunshine on a rainy day’ tent and gives us all a bright, happy, warm feeling when we’re in it. We love that it’s a ‘three spaces up in one’ tent so it’s ideal for both weekend and longer camps.

Our favourite camp site is a close call. We love Nantcol, but just over the hill from Nantcol Waterfalls is a beautiful little site called Hideaway in the Hills, Dinas.

The kids have the freedom of the woodland, making dens and playing in a little stream.

There are also great walks from the site and you can hire a Canadian Canoe for a paddle on Dinas Lake. Fire boxes can be hired and logs are delivered to your tent.

As well as walks, camping has given us the opportunity

to try new things with the children, like high rope climbing and body boarding.

You can’t beat ending a busy day by sitting snuggled around the campfire with a little glass of something nice.

Our favourite camping equipment has to be our Outwell cooker. Two large burners that cook up a chilli or boil the kettle in no time. It also has a griddle plate that doubles up as a spoon rest in between chilli stirs. We also love our Camperlux sleeping bags that keep us toasty and snug in all weathers.

Our advice to camping newbies is research your tent well – and then decide on Outwell. Invest in warm sleeping bags and enjoy outdoor life. Join the Outwell/ Outwell Camping Clubs on Facebook. They are great places to get advice, make friends and camp with other fans on Group Meets.

John Traynor with an outdoor writer’s ramble through camping life. Follow John on Twitter @jtopenair

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orget those New Year resolutions. For me 2014 is about revolution. After years of a backpacking-influenced practicality concerning food, it’s time to introduce quality, versatility and adventure into my campsite cooking.

I blame the Guyrope Gourmet, Josh Sutton. At Oase’s Kenilworth event last year, his on-site breakfast of smoked salmon, scrambled eggs and blinis left a deep impression that has been fuelled by spending many hours flicking through his inspiring campsite cookbook.

Recipes are guides to be interpreted rather than followed slavishly. Amended to suit personal taste but offering a solid foundation from which to be adventurous.

But, while watching Josh rustle up a meal it became apparent that effortless cooking is down to organisation: having quality ingredients, pans and utensils to hand and enough work surfaces to prepare are key. So, a proper stove stand and shelves combo with extra work surface will be a priority purchase for my holidays this year and beyond.

In fact, eating will also be enjoyed at a large table with comfy chairs. After all, food that takes time to prepare deserves time in which to be appreciated. And what a joy to have space for everything rather than be shuffling plates, condiments and bottles about. Dining for me will be more like cooking and eating at home and become a core part of the camping day.

Room to cook and eat is only part of the story. My kit will see the addition of an efficient electric coolbox to extend meal options. Combined with buying fresh food daily, the package should transform life on site. My mouth is watering already…

Josh has certainly inspired me but I’ll leave the ukulele to his nimble fingers.

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Site reviews

Rural retreat

Above: Simple pitches on this working farm combine with a wonderful nature area to make this site a peaceful family retreat

Kathryn Whelan camps at Upper Brockhurst Farm – a Camping and Caravanning Club Certificated Site near Blymhill in Shropshire. It’s a peaceful, simple site that is the perfect weekend retreat from modern life.

The site he reasonable pitch fees for members reflect the site’s fairly basic facilities – although all six pitches have electricity.

The site owners are very friendly and helpful but this is a working farm so they are often elsewhere (they do sell delicious eggs from their chickens for breakfast). Unless the site is busy there is a certain latitude in arrival and departure times.

The generous-sized pitches are flat with slight dips and slopes in places. The ground can be a little stony and exposed so come prepared with rock pegs and pitch well.

Each end of the Portakabin-style building houses a toilet and a shower cubicle; one male, one female, and all kept spotless.

There’s plenty of hot water but no dishwashing facilities.

The playground is a tyre swing hanging from a tree in a delightful little nature trail area adjacent the site.

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Upper Brockhurst Farm Blymhill Nr Shifnal Shropshire TF11 8NE Web: campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk Tel: 01952 850225 Facilities • Six electric pitches • Toilets and free showers • Chemical disposal point 4 e-cAmp magazine March 2014

The area You need a car at this remote site unless you’re feeling energetic and follow a public footpath across the fields to a small shop and pub on the A5, or to nearby Wheaton Aston.

But it is a great base from which to explore nearby attractions, including: • Weston Park stately home is just a couple of minutes drive away.

• Visit Boscobel House and The Royal Oak – King Charles II famous hiding place.

• Check out more than 70 aircraft, exhibitions and features at RAF Museum Cosford.

• Retail therapy? A 20-minute drive will get you to Telford or Wolverhampton.

• Iron Bridge and the home of the Industrial Revolution lies nearby. Several museums can be found around the Ironbridge Gorge.

• Nearby Bridgnorth is home to two unique heritage railways.

• For the younger members of the family try Wonderland in Telford Town Park.

• Eggs for sale • Nature area • Dogs welcome • Ice pack freezing • Certificated Sites are for Camping and Caravanning Club members only. Nonmembers can join on site Tourism Information We use virtual-shropshire.co.uk Tel: 01952 230032

Eating out We chose to walk across the fields to nearby Bradford Arms only to find it closed – must check opening times! Although not cheap The Royal Oak at Bishops Wood serves up quality, home-cooked food that’s wonderful – a side portion of onion rings feeds two. The pub also serves local real ales.

Above: The facilities are a tad basic but clean and well kept Eat local Besides those delicious eggs that you’ll be tempted to buy from the campsite you can also find a number of great farmers market in the area, including Telford. You can find out more here. Also, nearby Shifnal has a Twitter feed for all the latest news on its farmers market @Shifnalfarmmkt Did you know?

A horse named ‘Shifnal’ won the Grand National in 1878 with odds of 7-1

guyrope gourmet

Cheesy goodness

Shoppin g list

Stilton and leek soup

Ingredie nts – S erves fo ur ✓ 500g floury p otatoes ✓ 500g leeks ✓ 1 l1itre vegetable stock ✓ 50g b utter or Flora – ✓ 100g c not olive rumbled oil!

Stilton ✓ Two – not rin tablespo d o ns chop parsley ped fres h ✓ Salt a nd peppe r Enjoy!

This is a great take on a classic soup. It is worthwhile taking some time to shred the leeks finely as that will greatly improve the texture of the finished product. You can vary the ‘strength’ by altering the amount of Stilton that you add, but I like mine with a good old cheesy kick.

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Cookbook news

elt the butter and shred the leeks finely – cook until softened. Add potatoes, diced small, and cook for five minutes. Add hot stock and bring to the boil. Simmer for 30 minutes or so until the vegetables are very soft. Mash the potatoes into the soup to thicken the texture Crumble in the Stilton, little by little, tasting as you go. Stilton can vary greatly in strength and when you have reached a balance between the richness of the Stilton, the silkiness of the soup and the taste of the leeks then stop.

You can add a drop of cream if you want a more ‘velvety’ texture to the soup. Add salt and pepper to taste and finally the chopped parsley right at the end as you serve it up.

Serve with freshest crusty bread you can get your hands on.

You can find more delicious recipes from Josh in the new Guyrope Gourmet cookbook, published by Punk Publishing with our support. And you can support the author by purchasing your signed copy from the Guyrope Gourmet website here.

We would love to hear from all budding Guyrope Gourmets and share your recipes with other Outwell campers in e-cAmp magazine – just send them with a few images to editorial@outwell.com

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Technical feature

Top knots f r camping

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xperience isn’t just down to the number of nights that you might spend on a campsite. It is also down to learning skills that help you meet the numerous challenges that you’ll eventually encounter when living outdoors. And these skills are normally great fun to hone so that they become second nature, falling naturally to hand when you need them. Ropework is one such skill and John Traynor starts you off with some easy, but useful, knots to master

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Above: An experienced camper will learn skills like knot work and whipping to make camp life easier and to help deal with emergencies, like broken poles or quickly adding and adjusting additional guylines

ost people know two knots – the basic thumb knot and the bow used for shoe laces and gift wrapping. Many will even know the left-over-right-and-under, right-over-left-and-under of the reef knot.

But there is a wealth of knots that will help and entertain a camper.

Ropework has its own language and this gets quite involved as you start to categorise knots and delve further into subjects like splicing, lashing and whipping. But here we’re only going to mention two terms as we look at four useful knots and these refer to the rope. The standing end is the part of the rope at rest and working end is the end of the rope that is on the move.

Have short length of rope, cord or string in hand and tie it as you follow the instructions. Something fairly thick and colourful will help a beginner and a second length with a smaller diameter will help you learn useful ways to connect two different sizes. There are even knots for tape so you might eventually want a length of that to play with.

Keep the rope handy and practice whenever you can – while you’re watching television is a good time. Your aim is to tie the knot without thought or look so the process is fast and natural. You may need this skill to quickly deal with a problem in the dark!

Fisherman’s Knot

Tarbuck Knot

Two different diameter cords are used here for illustration purposes but this is used to join ropes, cord and string of similar thickness or to create a loop.

Place the two ropes side by side, tying a simple overhand knot in the working end of one around the other.

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Master this for creating a friction knot that provides an easy way to adjust the tension in a tent or tarp guyline.

Form a large loop and take the working end through the loop and around the standing rope three times

Repeat this with the other rope so each is now connected to the other by a simple overhand knot. Tighten each knot by pulling on the working end of each rope.

To complete the third turn bring the working end over the completed turns and around the standing rope.

Pull the other end (standing end) of the ropes to draw the knots together to form and tighten the completed Fisherman’s Knot.

Tuck the working end over and beneath itself before tightening. Make sure the turns sit neatly next to each other.

As shown in our pictures, two turns can be used for speed but three will grip better if large loads are expected.

technical feature

Clove Hitch

Round Turn and Two Half Hitches The Clove Hitch is really handy for quickly securing a tarp or washing line.

Hold the rope and form two loops – overhand and underhand – as shown.

This is a reliable little cracker with many uses from securing loads to tying that guyline to a ring or pole.

Slip the working end around the object (pole, ring etc) twice. Run the working end over the standing rope and under itself on the second turn.

Adjust the loops to make them the same size and place the right loop over the left.

The first action is the Round Turn with a Half Hitch. To help lock the rope you repeat another turn of the working end around the standing end before running under itself.

Place both loops over a post, peg or stake, or insert a pole, and pull to tighten.

Tighten to create a secure knot.

Be prepared…

Ropework is strangely addictive and can provide hours of fun for all the family. Children love ropework and the possibilities that the skill opens up in terms of play, like building dens. And adults will find a myriad of uses for those knots around the home, from securing the old carpet when you take it down the tip to attaching the roses to the trellis. Complicated knots are a real art form, too…

As you become more proficient you may want master such skills as splicing (the interweaving of individual strands of rope to create loops or mend/attach ropes) lashing (construction using ropes) and whipping (reinforcing or tidying something with coiled cord). As our main picture shows, the latter is particularly useful when mending tent poles and a temporary repair made this way can be surprisingly strong and resilient.

As your skills develop your repair kit will suddenly aquire useful lengths of twine, cord, rope and whipping twine. Unusual tools may make an appearance, including marline spikes, thimbles, fids and more. You may even find a use for shackles and other sailing/ climbing hardware.

There is plenty of online material to help you develop your skills but there is also a wealth of good books, including the Collins Need to know? book Knots.

For more decades than he might care to admit outdoor writer, JohnTraynor, has been one of Europe’s leading outdoor industry commentators, as well as editor, broadcaster, columnist and journalist. He is also author of Lightweight Camping, published by Cicerone.

your tips Time to share tips that you find help improve camping life! Each month we publish a few from our postbag so drop us a line to the usual address, editorial@outwell.com and help us spread the knowledge...

• When camping with young children and putting them to bed leave the bedroom door zip pulls at the top of the doors out of their reach just in case they try to roam at night. Better to stay safe than sorry.

Hank Waddingham by email • Switch from traditional towels to Outwell Micro Pack Towels. There is a tremendous saving on packing space in the car and tent. Plus, they dry so much quicker. Yet somehow they still manage to dry you at least as well as a normal towel. What’s not too like about them?

Andy Clutterbuck by email • Always book your camp sites for next year during your Christmas break, you get in first and bag the best pitch! Jacqui Sclanders by email March 2014 e-cAmp magazine 7

image of the month

Winter posts in pics!

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he weather may be too cold for many to even contemplate camping but this is the ideal time to maintain and adapt gear ready for the forthcoming season. Kil Sun Jung from Korea posted pic 1 of his handmade Montana 6 roof canopy!

Others, like Sarah Day (pic 2), had visitations from Santa who must have been raiding our warehouse judging by the number of pressies discussed online.

Some were camping, like Paul Meads (pic 3) who has managed to camp every month in 2013! And Lisa Perks’ pic 4 shows how much room is needed to dry kit out on return.

Our choice is pic shows how an Outwell tent survived the New Year gales – it was a great video that Karen Murphy posted…

We always love to see your camping pics so please post them on Facebook or email them to me, Clive Garrett, at editorial@outwell. com – they could be our e-cAmp Image of the Month or the next big winner for 2014…

Escape to the outdoors Love my Amarillo 6 tent, just wish I could get away from everything in it now!!!

Wendy King via Facebook

The e-cAmp Image of the Month

Win a tabletop lamp Nothing quite adds class and romance to the dinner table as a wellpositioned, attractive light and we have three of our popular, smart Aquila Deluxe lamps to give away in this month’s competition

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he Aquila Deluxe is a real looker that will grace any table. And at 26cm x 11.5cm it takes up so little room, leaving ample space for food and drink.

Powered by three AA batteries its 24 superior-performing LED’s provide gentle light for around 30 hours without the inconvenience of a trailing mains lead. It even features a USB port for cord operation to provide a little extra illumination for when you’re using your computer to post on our Facebook page!

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It’s not just good-looks that make this lamp so smart. It also features touch-operation that allows you to cycle through the light settings – low, medium, high and off. Just touch the smart metal insert on the tip of the lamp to get instant light. It provides a great talking point when entertaining guests.

For a chance to win one of these superb lamps just visit the competition page on our website and follow the links. The winners will be notified by email as soon as possible after the close date.

Three up for grabs!