Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Discussion of all things non-11 Plus related

Moderators: Section Moderators, Forum Moderators

Post Reply
11 Plus Mocks - Practise the real exam experience - Book Now
Stroller
Posts: 1546
Joined: Thu May 17, 2012 9:39 am

Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by Stroller »

We're occasional campers without legacy family know-how. We choose secluded caravan-free sites over busy ones and as a result the facilities are usually basic. We have a little gas jet, can boil water for coffee and prepare simple food that can be cooked quickly in a saucepan. Mainly we'd either eat out or have food that is intended to be eaten cold. DD loves camping, so we may need to improve on the culinary side of things.

Where we camped this year allowed camp fires. A neighbour had a very impressive modern equivalent of a cauldron suspended from a crane (a.k.a. a Dutch oven?). :D Not sure whether naming is permitted, but the brand they had is a hyphenated version of something people gather around on Guy Fawkes night. Various components are available and apparently it's cheaper to buy them piecemeal.

Does anyone have this system? Or can you recommend a comparable one that does the job very well?

While I'm at it, another family nearby had a great lantern style light that hung at about sitting height from an iron crook. Possibly containing real candles? No idea what the make was, but I admired it from afar. Anyone know of a similar one?

Is there anything else that would make this all a bit easier? (Short of a surfer dude van complete with kitchenette :lol: ).
Buying online? Please support music at TGS. No cost to you. Fundraising makes a difference.

Tiffin Girls' School has a designated area; see the determined admission arrangements. Use the journey planner. Note the Admissions timetable and FAQs.
southbucks3
Posts: 3579
Joined: Tue Dec 18, 2012 11:59 am

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by southbucks3 »

Personally I like an easy life, not a showy one when catering in a field. Cooking on the fire is limited to marshmallows and toast. Dutch ovens are best for conspiracy theory survivalist, holed up somewhere in the hinterland. I have a wonderful one click instant gas stove, that cost about ten pounds and re- heats a Tupperware tub of curry poured into a camping pan, to perfection, the cartridges cost about two pounds each and heat several kettles worth. The shepherds crook candle lamps are available from most wilkinson stores or garden centres, but we use led lamps bought from blacks and I have a string of solar fairy lights, so I can find the tent after a late night loo visit.
The thing about camping in quiet sites, with few facilities, is that there is rarely any tent and gear "one upmanship" found, unlike on the bigger sites. Often people are in small tents, with crappy cars and scruffy dogs, enjoying sitting around until midnight half tucked into sleeping bags and wearing woolly hats, drinking cheap wine from plastic mugs, playing cards in dim light. :lol: Make the most of it, and feel sorry for those poor folk encumbered with their fancy pots and candles, as you pack your whole holiday into one plastic tub!
erisindevon
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2012 9:16 pm

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by erisindevon »

We do cook quite a bit on the campfire (we're Scout leaders, so we get plenty of practise when we lead group camps!), but we don't use the tripod/dutch oven type of thing. A grid over the fire works perfectly well - you can grill stuff on it, and you can sit pots and pans on it too. We have a portable fire pit (like this one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gardeco-Lucio-P ... s=fire+pit" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;), mainly purchased to allow us to have a fire at sites that didn't permit them on the ground - and the grill on that is ideal. In my view, campfires are essential if you want to stay up in the evening without freezing!!

Setting up to cook over a proper floor-based fire is definitely doable, but trickier, as you're at the mercy of whatever stones or bricks you can find on the site.

A friend of our swears by his muurikka griddle pan for cooking any kind of meat/fish (we're veggie, so not so useful) and pancakes/flat breads. He also does the tripod thing, but it all feels like too much effort to me.
Stroller
Posts: 1546
Joined: Thu May 17, 2012 9:39 am

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by Stroller »

Wonderful replies - I really enjoyed reading them and I promise to get a grip! :lol:

Thank you.
Buying online? Please support music at TGS. No cost to you. Fundraising makes a difference.

Tiffin Girls' School has a designated area; see the determined admission arrangements. Use the journey planner. Note the Admissions timetable and FAQs.
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by Yamin151 »

southbucks3 wrote:Personally I like an easy life, not a showy one when catering in a field. Cooking on the fire is limited to marshmallows and toast.
The thing about camping in quiet sites, with few facilities, is that there is rarely any tent and gear "one upmanship" found, unlike on the bigger sites. Often people are in small tents, with crappy cars and scruffy dogs, enjoying sitting around until midnight half tucked into sleeping bags and wearing woolly hats, drinking cheap wine from plastic mugs, playing cards in dim light. :lol: Make the most of it, and feel sorry for those poor folk encumbered with their fancy pots and candles, as you pack your whole holiday into one plastic tub!
Ooh harsh! We have a massive massive tent, just because we find it so hard to be cooped up together, esp if it's wet, and we also generally have electric hook up because I want to be warm, and we play a lot of board games and have never found a decent enough battery light to make game playing possible. We don't engage in one upmanship and can tick on all your other items for less competitive camping, woolly hats, cheap wine, or no wine now, plastic cups.
For us, we wanted a cheap holiday, boys love the campsites, but I didn't want to be cold and miserable. This was quite a problem this holiday, an earlier week was roasting hot, but our later week was fine during day but absolutely freezing during the evening and night! Woolly hats all round and absolutely no pride or glamour involved!
I would recommend a cadac for the original poster. Has lots different elements, runs on gas, heats really efficiently, can come with a griddle but also a big wok like fitting, and also a flat one, great for the morning bacon!!
southbucks3
Posts: 3579
Joined: Tue Dec 18, 2012 11:59 am

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by southbucks3 »

Yamin151 wrote:
southbucks3 wrote:Personally I like an easy life, not a showy one when catering in a field. Cooking on the fire is limited to marshmallows and toast.
The thing about camping in quiet sites, with few facilities, is that there is rarely any tent and gear "one upmanship" found, unlike on the bigger sites. Often people are in small tents, with crappy cars and scruffy dogs, enjoying sitting around until midnight half tucked into sleeping bags and wearing woolly hats, drinking cheap wine from plastic mugs, playing cards in dim light. :lol: Make the most of it, and feel sorry for those poor folk encumbered with their fancy pots and candles, as you pack your whole holiday into one plastic tub!
Ooh harsh! We have a massive massive tent, just because we find it so hard to be cooped up together, esp if it's wet, and we also generally have electric hook up because I want to be warm, and we play a lot of board games and have never found a decent enough battery light to make game playing possible. We don't engage in one upmanship and can tick on all your other items for less competitive camping, woolly hats, cheap wine, or no wine now, plastic cups.
For us, we wanted a cheap holiday, boys love the campsites, but I didn't want to be cold and miserable. This was quite a problem this holiday, an earlier week was roasting hot, but our later week was fine during day but absolutely freezing during the evening and night! Woolly hats all round and absolutely no pride or glamour involved!
I would recommend a cadac for the original poster. Has lots different elements, runs on gas, heats really efficiently, can come with a griddle but also a big wok like fitting, and also a flat one, great for the morning bacon!!
I wasn't having a go. :oops: we only do this on little sites, the one we are camping at tomorrow is 1/2 a mile from the nearest road, the only big thing we drag along is the boat and tent itself.
Big sites, bring it on.....I show off terribly, I even pack tablecloths and woolly rugs, and we have a 9 man tent you can park a car in. :lol: I hide the block of trex and use the mini bottle of pure extra extra extra virgin olive oil to cook the bangers in. I also dot around my collection of wind socks and Swirly windmills. Our base is the equivalent of my big fat gypsy tent. :lol:
I do love the minimal camping though....feral kids, filthy feet, and not a care!
Last edited by southbucks3 on Sat Aug 30, 2014 11:19 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Yamin151
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:30 am

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by Yamin151 »

southbucks3 wrote:
Yamin151 wrote:
southbucks3 wrote:Personally I like an easy life, not a showy one when catering in a field. Cooking on the fire is limited to marshmallows and toast.
The thing about camping in quiet sites, with few facilities, is that there is rarely any tent and gear "one upmanship" found, unlike on the bigger sites. Often people are in small tents, with crappy cars and scruffy dogs, enjoying sitting around until midnight half tucked into sleeping bags and wearing woolly hats, drinking cheap wine from plastic mugs, playing cards in dim light. :lol: Make the most of it, and feel sorry for those poor folk encumbered with their fancy pots and candles, as you pack your whole holiday into one plastic tub!
Ooh harsh! We have a massive massive tent, just because we find it so hard to be cooped up together, esp if it's wet, and we also generally have electric hook up because I want to be warm, and we play a lot of board games and have never found a decent enough battery light to make game playing possible. We don't engage in one upmanship and can tick on all your other items for less competitive camping, woolly hats, cheap wine, or no wine now, plastic cups.
For us, we wanted a cheap holiday, boys love the campsites, but I didn't want to be cold and miserable. This was quite a problem this holiday, an earlier week was roasting hot, but our later week was fine during day but absolutely freezing during the evening and night! Woolly hats all round and absolutely no pride or glamour involved!
I would recommend a cadac for the original poster. Has lots different elements, runs on gas, heats really efficiently, can come with a griddle but also a big wok like fitting, and also a flat one, great for the morning bacon!!
I wasn't having a go. :oops: we only do this on little sites, the one we are camping at tomorrow is 1/2 a mile from the nearest road, the only big thing we drag along is the boat and tent itself.
Big sites, bring it on.....I show off terribly, I even pack tablecloths and woolly rugs, and we have a 9 man tent you can park a car in. :lol: I hide the block of tree and use the mini bottle of pure extra extra extra virgin olive oil to cook the bangers in. I also dot around my collection of wind socks and Shirley windmills. Our base is the equivalent of my big fat gypsy tent. :lol:

I do love the minimal camping though....feral kids, filthy feet, and not a care!
Big Fat gypsy tent, I love that! :lol:
I know you weren't having ago, it's just that I am very proud of my sluttish status, even on a big site with lots of equipment, but did have the misfortune to be a family in a group of families where one kept producing a waitrose finest equivalent of very blood thing I produced! Coffee (aldi for cafetiere but do have to have proper coffee!), wine, even ****** crisps! Was real one upmanship!

.? Shirley windmills?
southbucks3
Posts: 3579
Joined: Tue Dec 18, 2012 11:59 am

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by southbucks3 »

Swirly....I got auto corrected. :roll:
Stroller
Posts: 1546
Joined: Thu May 17, 2012 9:39 am

Re: Beyond sleeping in a tent with a primus for coffee

Post by Stroller »

southbucks3 wrote:Swirly....I got auto corrected. :roll:
Phew. I couldn't face another camping kit Internet trawl right now. :-)
Buying online? Please support music at TGS. No cost to you. Fundraising makes a difference.

Tiffin Girls' School has a designated area; see the determined admission arrangements. Use the journey planner. Note the Admissions timetable and FAQs.
Post Reply
11 Plus Platform - Online Practice Makes Perfect - Try Now