January 2016 Archive

24
Jan
2016
jloomis

Snow Camping near Elk Lake - Detroit Ranger District, Oregon

Picture of snow camping near Elk Lake, Oregon

The annual snow camping trip with my friend Kyle had finally arrived. Unfortunately the weather forecast was less than stellar, with rain in the mountains in January. That's Western Oregon for you: never predictable which makes planning anything in advance difficult.

17
Jan
2016
jloomis

Suboos Gen 2 Ultimate LED Tent Lantern Review

Product Rating: 
4
Picture of Suboos Gen 2 LED Tent Lantern

Features:

The Suboos Gen 2 Ultimate LED Tent Lantern features 3 light modes: 280 lumens on high, 100 lumens on medium, and red light on low. It will run off one or two 18650 Li-ion rechargeable batteries (2 included) and can charge them via USB. The Suboos Gen 2 Ultimate LED tent lantern can also be used to charge mobile devices.

16
Jan
2016
jloomis

Eskimo FatFish 6120i Pop-Up Shelter Review

Product Rating: 
5
Picture of Eskimo FatFish 6120i Pop-Up Shelter

Features:

The Eskimo FatFish 6120i features up to 23% more fishable area than shelters with similar capacity and size. The FatFish 6120i is built with fully insulated 300 denier IceTight™ fabric which features a 59% higher thread count than similar shelter skins. The portability, durable design and materials, ample storage pockets, removable windows, and two doors make the Eskimo FatFish 6120i pop-up shelter a great winter tent.

10
Jan
2016
jloomis

Twin Lakes Snowshoeing with our Mini Adventurer

Picture of Katie and Julian snowshoeing to Trillium Lake, Oregon

It has been a while since Katie and I have snowshoed, so we finally planned a trip Sunday to Twin Lakes. Our Mini Adventurer traveled along on my back. Twin Lakes are a pair of hike-in lakes near Frog Lake about 8 miles SE of Government Camp, Oregon. It's about a 2.2 mile hike each way to the first lake (the bigger of the two). It was a beautiful day today with the temperature around 28°F with partly cloudy skies. Frog Lake SnoPark was already packed with dog sled racers by the time we arrived around 8:15 AM.

10
Jan
2016
jloomis

ThermaCELL ProFLEX Heated Insoles Review

Product Rating: 
4
Picture of ThermaCell ProFLEX Heated Insoles

Features:

ThermaCELL ProFLEX Heated Insoles charge in 4 hours using a USB port or wall charger. They are operated by a small wireless remote. They feature removable lithium-ion batteries and extra sets are available as spares. The ProFLEX Heated Insoles can be trimmed to fit most shoe sizes.

09
Jan
2016
jloomis

Barlow Creek and Bonney Meadows Snowmobile Ride

Picture of snowmobiling at Bonney Meadows, Oregon

While Julian spent the day with "Grammy", Katie and I went to the mountain to snowmobile. Originally we planned to ride from Frog Lake SnoPark, but it was too busy with dog sled races, so we ended up nearby at Skyline SnoPark. It was snowing lightly and about 24°F which was quite a bit warmer than last weekend.

02
Jan
2016
jloomis

Snow Camping near Clear Lake, Oregon

Picture of snow camping near Clear Lake, Oregon along Clear Creek

It's the new year, so it's time for another adventure - snow camping with a two year old. Even through we were working around a toddler's schedule, we still managed to leave only 15 minutes later than I wanted. Luckily we still made it to Skyline SnoPark before it became crowded. It was 9°F when we arrived with moderate wind and snow flurries. It was definitely going to be a cold snow camping trip.