BCS Instructor Graham Melloy heads up onto the Arctic Plateau of the Cairngorms.

looking down into the Loch A’an Basin

After a very busy period at work prior to going out of the country for six months I found myself with some free time on my hands.  Apart from the normal family stuff on the calendar I decided that an overnight trip to the Cairngorms to shake off the cobwebs was just the ticket.  It was minus seven on the Moray coast when my son and I set off and it was still minus seven when we got to the ski centre car park so it was going to be a tester.

Between the pair of us we had more Fjallraven than the new Cotswolds in Inverness when we set off for our trek with the Kaipak 58 the bag of choice and having used it many times it still never fails to let me down.  Even though we were only out for one night with the temperatures as they were and the ever unpredictable weather that we have all experienced on the plateau we had to ensure we had all the necessary kit and this bag can take a fair amount without all the unnecessary straps and gubbins we find on gear these days.

The flat topped Shelter Stone Crag with Carn Etchacan above it

It was with relative ease that we headed up the hill skirting to the western side of Coire an Lochain with some detours due to ice patches up on to the plateau with striking views all round working our way across to Hell’s Lum Crag to get a good view of Loch A’an which was covered in ice with the plan to drop down to the shelter stone.  With the amount of ice on the ground and fast fading daylight the sensible decision was to backtrack and cross Coire Domhain towards Coire Raibeirt to find a nice spot to pitch the tent with good views.  We chose a nice spot to the south east of the Cairngorm summit overlooking the saddle with great views down towards the Fords of A’an.

The Keb Endurance 2 is a gleaming bit of kit and takes no time to erect though with the ground frozen putting the pegs in required some size 9 action!  Once that was up and our gear stashed we had a wander along the edge of Stac an Fharaidh along towards Ciste Mhearad taking in the views and enjoying the silence.  The temperature was still very low but the wind was definitely picking up when we got back to the tent in darkness to get some food on the go and my LED Lensor H7R.2 lit the place up like a football stadiums floodlights!  This sudden change of weather whilst not unusual definitely made us re-evaluate our plan for the next day.

Keb endurance 2 takes another pummeling, high on the Cairngorm Plateau. The summit of Cairngorm in the background

I had a Real Turmat beef stew tucked away in my bag left over from a previous training event with Rosker and having sampled these extensively in Afghanistan courtesy of the Danish Army I know how good they are.  My son though had to make do with a boil in the bag!  Once we were well fed and watered there wasn’t a great deal more to do apart from listen to the wind which was now howling and shaking the tent like crazy so it was an early night!  It was still cold and the Sarek 3 season down bag I have worked a treat with my home made silk liner. (Three panels from a

parachute…..try it!)   With the wind increasingly getting stronger I got up to check that the pegs and guy lines were still intact and I was nearly blown off my feet but all was well.  Sleep was interrupted by the wind throughout the night and at about 2am I thought the tent was going to take off but the guy lines held out and the poles stayed strong.  Daybreak brought a calm of sorts and the plan was to head off to Cnap Coire na Spreidhe and beyond to locate the El Alamein refuge but with a heavy fog and the wind picking up again it was the sensible thing to head down off the hill at our own pace.

So with plenty more excursions planned over the next few weeks before heading to warmer climates this was definitely a much needed shake out.  The Fjallraven gear never fails to amaze me and the Keb jacket was ideal for this trip with the Eco shell over the top when required.  The tent was excellent and the Primus Winter gas did exactly as it said on the tin compared to the normal Primus gas I also took along to conduct a comparison.

Here’s to the next one and a bit longer and hopefully more snow!

Ever heard of Ake Nordin? You’d be forgiven if  you haven’t.  Ake lived in a town called Örnsköldsvik in East Sweden, a keen scout and outdoors man that was not entirely happy with the rucksacks and outdoor equipment of the day.  At the age of 14 and prior to a trip to the Västerbotten mountain range Ake borrowed his mothers sewing machine, and after knocking up a satchel made of strong cotton, attaching it to a wooden frame (he knew that carrying equipment on his back required it to be close to his back with a high centre of gravity) he had produced one of the first multi-day hiking rucksacks.

Soon friends were commissioning him to do similar for them, orders from local Sami reindeer herders that spend weeks in mountainous terrain would soon follow. 10 years later he would register a new company at his familys 1 bedroom flat and name the company Fjallraven. Humble beginnings.

One of the things I love about this story is it perfectly illustrates that “Necessity is the mother of all invention”.  Many outdoors men and women of the day just accepted that the they would have to carry their equipment in ungainly, un-shapely, sagging and uncomfortable sacks strapped to their shoulders. Young Ake had other ideas.

There’s plenty of stories of similar pioneers in the outdoor world; from Yvon Chouinard, pioneering rock climber, environmentalist and owner of Patagonia clothing. The young Chouinard recognised that Pitons (metal spikes hammered into rocks for protection) were damaging the rock. Along with Tom frost he designed a new and “cleaner” way of protecting rock routes by producing chocks/stoppers/hexentrics.

Closer to home (Scotland) John Cunningham and Hamish Macinnes during the 70’s, were experimenting with curved ice axes and refining “front pointing” techniques for ascending steep ice. Hamish Macinnes was the inventor of the first technical all metal ice axe, along with the the Macinnes stretcher still used by MRT worldwide.

North Face of Ben Nevis, Tower ridge centre.

It’s easy to digress from the main subject matter, however, the point is that many of the pioneers in the outdoor equipment world designed their products as a direct reaction to problems they were facing whilst “out in the nature”. The Fjallraven Kaipak range has been designed using the same processes.

The Kaipak comes in three sizes the 28 litre (day trips and summer use) the 38litre (day trips summer/winter, 2 day trips low level) and the 58 litre (multi-day trips, summer and winter). All the guys at BCS use theirs as their main “teaching” rucksacks, as depending on the length of course that we are running there is enough room in the 38 and 58 for group as well as personal gear.

One of my biggest pet hates nowadays is finding a rucksack that doesn’t have hundreds of superfluous straps attached to it. There seems to be a gimmicky trend from some of the big rucksack producers to try and sell a pack based on the amount of equipment that can be strapped, attached and hung from the outside. These extra straps if not taped up can become your worse enemy in poor weather conditions, I’m sure many of you can identify with being repeatedly slapped in the face whilst trying to take a bearing.  The Kaipak range is simple, minimalistic and sticks with a small number of features that are “bomb proof” and won’t let you down.

First impressions of the Kaipak is that it’s clean, simplistically functional and almost utilitarian.  The Kaipak is made from G1000 heavy duty fabric, making it immensely hard wearing and can be treated with Greenland wax if necessary. Anyone familiar with Cairngorm Granite will testify to the fact that a single seasons use can trash most outdoor gear, yet after 3 seasons worth of personal and professional use the G1000 on our Kaipaks is still looking sweet…….a recurring theme for anyone that owns “historic” Fjallraven clothing.

An absolute must for me personally is a “floating lid”, which the Kaipak 38/58 both have, this allows you to stow the pack full to the brim without putting unnecessary strain on the fastening clips, it also keeps the Kaipak looking neater when fully packed . The top flap is surprisingly spacious for keeping headtorches, spare gloves, hat and anything else that need to be go to quickly.

Inside the top flap there is a waterproof cover in UN Blue, perfect for keeping the Kaipak dry in downpours, but as you may know UN Blue along with orange is one of the first colours picked out by the human eye…..be safe, be seen!

Bradley on the poorly protected/exposed 2nd pitch of January Jigsaw, Glencoe

The front of the Kaipak has a large full length zipped compartment for keeping water proofs in, minimalizing “faff” time.  The sides of the pack are equipped with clever cinches that allow you to attach walking poles autonomously from anything else you want to attach on the sides, the cinche itself is metal so isn’t affected by “icing up” during the winter.

The shoulder straps are the perfect width for spreading load across the shoulders and the Aluminium frame and padding on the back structure is spot on. Another great feature on the 38 and 58 is the large hip belt that is exceptionally comfortable, and the two small pouches attached to it are handy for keeping essentials in.

As companies get bigger they tend to lose touch with who their client base is, why they started selling outdoor equipment in the first place. There’s many big brands out there that are not selling equipment as a result of listening to what outdoor recreationalists need from an outdoor garment and are instead focusing on what the market determines from a sales point of view. Fjallraven, despite their growing popularity are still pushing for innovation, when you buy a Fjallraven garment you also buy into their “ethos”.

On a personal note out of all the Fjallraven gear BCS use the Kaipak is probably my favourite piece. It’s proven itself on many different occasions from woodland, mountain and winter use.