Crocs are the most effective camping shoes

I've been doing some research on water filters for camping. Right now I've got a UV light stick, but I want to get a filter to be double sure. If you have any reviews of the follow products, post them! All of these products are as listed on REI.

MSR sweetwater

http://www.rei.com/product/617913/msr-sweetwater-water-filter#tab-specs

.2 microns/ 750 L/200 Gallons per filter

$89.99/ replacement filters about $40

Katadyn

http://www.rei.com/product/830746/katadyn-hiker-water-filter

.2 micron (protozoa and bacteria)/1150L/303 Gallon per filter

$69.99/ replacement filters about $40

Coghan’ s 8800

http://www.rei.com/product/888147/coghlans-water-filter-2015-overstock

.2 micron/50 gallons per filter

$14.73 on sale/$13 for replacement filter

My starter kayak was hatchless. While I could access the back by reaching through the sides of the built in seat, it was a pain, and basically wasting the whole back boat interior. So, I installed a hatch!


The hatch was a christmas gift, but are affordable on the typical amazon/ebay. Screws weren't included, so I ran out to menards to get some flat ones. 

First, i took a sharpie and drew a circle around the inner hatch circle, giving me a line to cut out. Then I used a drill to cut an initial hole in the boat. It was a hole big enough for step 3, the tiny hacksaw i used to cut around the line. After sawing for about 20 minutes, I punched out a hatch shaped hole. From there, I gorilla glued and screwed in the new hatch. The glue is to form a water tight seal around the hatch. Since the hatch is located on a cargo depression of the boat, I wanted to made sure water wouldn't pool/pour in. Basically, the screws anchor the hatch in, and the glue seals it. Gorilla glue expands, so it would fill in all gaps as it dried.

From there, I just had to scrape off the excess glue (once it's done drying/expanding), and we are done!

Easy project, took no more than an hour of labor, plus dry time. 


Unfortunately, this was on my stolen kayak, but experience is worth something.

Some oddball gear that I've found useful. Included are a a couple of shopping links too!

-Surgical tubing: For starting a fire. Air is a underrated tool towards getting some embers going. A surgical tube under your kindling can be used to get air to the most important part of the young fire.

-Barometer: Provided you know how to use it, you can get fairly accurate weather forecasting without a cell or radio signal. Decent battery powered barometers can be found for under $40 now.

-Radio: My favorite radio is a hand crank flashlight/battery combo. I still use my headlamp and keep a backup mini light. The radio is nice should you need a forecast or want to listen to something.

-Solar battery/charger: I've got a nice unit that is a 2x3 solar panel with a built in 8 amp battery pack. I use it to charge batteries, as well as the occasional dead phone. It's about a pound, but a good way to keep me from lugging a ton of extra batteries on a long trip.