Hot Tenting 2015.

This past weekend I had the absolute pleasure to be invited to head on up North to partake in some Hot Tenting. It was very short notice, but heck... that is definitely what it is all about. The week before I received a text message from friend and owner of COEC Tim Foley to see if I wanted to go camping with himself and Canadian Legend and fellow Miltonian The Happy Camper himself Kevin Callan. Needless to say my response was "Yes!"

 

Saturday morning came and Tim and I were to meet Kevin just outside of Kawartha Highlands at the local grocery store. We arrived a tad late, and I was formally introduce to Kevin, we all made some jokes about how really cold it was and quickly hopped back in our warm cars and off to the trail head.

Tim Filming or Hiding?

When we got to the trail head we loaded our freight toboggans up with all our Gear, tied it all down and began our trek in. As the snow squeaked beneath my feet, I could tell that it was a perfect day to be walking. With the snow so cold it acts more like sand, boots don't get wet, if you kneel or sit, again it brushes right off leaving no water. Perfect for walking. As we hiked among the beautiful hemlock forest through the park we stopped every now and then to take some footage for some upcoming videos that Kevin put through his YouTube page. As the bystander it was really interesting to see how these shorts come to life and the amount of work that Kevin, and in this trip Tim puts into it. Amazing.

 

We made it to camp and got the Trangia going for some tea to warm our bellies. After that we split up the tasks from setting up the tent to gathering firewood for the long winter night ahead.

Before dark we had a good pile of hemlock for the night, the tent was cozy warm, with snow melting on the wood stove. As we all joked inside the tent...mainly about me; I was on snack duty and did not want to disappoint, So I brought about 6 lbs of GORP, two HUGE chocolate bars, smoked cheddar, and a whack of gummy berries. Which I knew was complete overkill, but better be looking at it, then for it ...right? and as Tim and Kevin enjoyed their camp chairs I slumped on top of buckets from kitty litter slipping and sliding every which way.

The night was filled with conversation and stories about camp trips, gear reviews, idea, and insights. It was also filled with some scotch, bourbon, pipe smoke and the beautiful crackle of the fire. As we grew tired around 11pm, we all huddled in our sleeping bags. Kevin pulls out his camera and proceeds to ask Tim and I question about the day and winter camping.  And as he asked me the questions he did, I think to myself that these types of question should be asked at the end of each and every day. Questions like "what was your favorite thing about today?" or " if you could sum up the day in 5 positive words, what would they be?" Forcing you to reflect upon the positive and look at the day as a whole instead of the perhaps really crappy hour you had, or the small argument that happens. As I drifted off to sleep for the night to the sound of the fire and the wisps of smoke I too reflected on the day and all the hilarious chatter that happened.

 

We all awoke around 8 am, tent was freezing, bladders full. Kevin got the fire stoked, and going, I gathered the last bit of wood outside, and Tim got the all important coffee on the go. As things warmed up inside the tent we got all our sleeping gear packed away and switched the tent from sleep mode back to seating mode. Kevin made some back-bacon and slush eggs muffin sandwiched with warmed the guts, coffee was downed and before we knew wit it was time to break the tent down. It came down with ease and everything all loaded back on our toboggans for the trek out. After a couple more shots and some beautiful lighting through the forest we could see the roofs of our cars.How quick one night can be, Hot tenting is a great social camping experience. With the shortened days having a few people can make the camp tasks quicker and the long night seem bright with laughter and stories. I hope to get out again this winter after having a taste, but for now...this week the thirst has been quenched.

Thanks Tim and Kevin for a truly memorable weekend!

From Kevin Callan's Facebook page.