The "Super Cat" Stove

Over the last couple of years my determination for having the lightest cook set has sort of taken over on my backpacking priority list.  I guess there is one drawback of ultra-light backpacking, I have become addicted to tinkering and unable to leave well-enough alone.  During my countless hours of reading reviews of various stoves, I stumbled across a couple that were light, proven, and backed by a tremendous audience. One was the rightly named the "SuperCat" and the other was the traditional "Pepsi Can Stove".  Just as the title of my blog states I am going to cover the SuperCat in this blog and save the "Pepsi Can Stove" for another update.

Normal stove on the left and simmer stove on the right.

The Butterfly Wallet

I just received my new Butterfly Wallet in the mail today!  I saw this wallet while I was forum surfing several months back and last week it popped back in my head so I decided to go ahead and order it.  I am one of the minimalist types that does not like to hold onto thick wallets, clips, or anything that creates unnecessary payload in my pockets.  However, as a result of carrying my cards and cash individually, I have lost and misplaced my belongings on several occasions.  This ultralight wallet is an great solution to this dilemma due to its size, or lack thereof.  The Butterfly Wallet is constructed of Siliconized Nylon, weighs in at 0.2 ounces, and is only 3mm thin when empty.  The stitching is of good quality without any defects,  but I must say I was bummed to find a "Made in China" tag on the inside.  They come in Black, Purple, Light Blue, Green, and what looks like a Navy Blue. Overall I am pleased with my purchase and for $12.95 it's another way to go ultralight in your day-to-day life. Finally all of my cards and cash in one place!

For more information on the Butterfly Wallet, check out the website @ ButterflyWallet.com

Shingle Mills Pathway

Shingle Mills Pathway is a meandering riverbank trail that follows the Pigeon River located in Vanderbilt, Michigan. In addition to the Pigeon River, the trail will bring you to two very lovely lakes, Section 4 Lake and Grass Lake. Both locations offer great camping with great panoramic views of the surrounding forest. In order to begin the loop, ideally you will want to park at the trailhead located on the opposite side of the highway from Pigeon Bridge Campground. 

The trail is what I would consider easy to moderate. Although it is mostly flat and clear of debris, some areas can be challenging such as the board walk through the Cypress Swamp and the climb to the Grass Lake Outlook. Just a side note, although the sign says Grass Lake Outlook, due to the heavy foliage you can't see anything other than tree tops so don't waste your energy walking out to the point unless you're looking for a nice bench to sit down and have lunch. I imagine at one point in time there was a nice view of the lake and I would love to see what it looks like but some things are not meant to be.

The Nordhouse Dunes

The Nordhouse Dunes have become one of my favorite places to camp in the state of Michigan. Typically I like to visit an area once and move onto someplace new the next time, this way I can see more of our country and it's parks but the Nordhouse Dunes seem to pull me back every year for a nice 3-4 day stay. The beautiful sand dunes, panoramic view of Lake Michigan, and the local wildlife make for a stay that is unlike any other.

A tip for any dog owner: A section of the beach has been made available to pets (which most do not find a lot of in MI). The northern section of the Nordhouse Dunes borders the Michigan Recreation Area, a car-campers delight. The beach north of the Recreation Area is reserved for pets and their owners.

The Porcupine Mountains

Having already been around the entire state of Michigan and having seen mother nature in her best, my wife and I decided to take a week long excursion to Porcupine Mountains State Park in the upper peninsula of Michigan. Although the Upper Peninsula is still in the boundaries of Michigan and the local tax payers eat and drink from the same pool as those below, you clearly feel as though you left the U.S. and entered an uninhabited euphoria of state and national parks. To the locals it is simply known as the "Porkies". Hello trip, meet my blog!

I figured the best way to go about describing our (my wife Dawn and I) experience would be to simply do a day by day walkthrough with pictures and hopefully good enough descriptions. I hope some of you are reading this, trying to determine if the Porcupine Mountains is somewhere you want to visit.