What do you take out with you?

[russ]

It has to be a flask of Hot Vimto for me.

never tried that one. I like Vimto, just can't imagine it hot. May have to try it one time.

[Psychobilly]

Vimto and Vodka slush.... Hmmmmm....

[Teddy]

Russ , your missing out mate.

Hot vimto is the daddy in winter times. easy to make in a flask. i cant get tea or coffee right , how much sugar , milk etc.

Honest mate , throw in a kit-kat and your done !!

Ribenna is also able to be used in a vimto shortage. in fact i want one now !!

[Ags]

Copy of astronomy now opened to sky map / monthly highlights, my mobile set up as a red light torch. I need to bring more stuff - lots of good suggestions here. I'll skip the bears though.

[starlady]

Coffee, warm hat and gloves, telescope and accessories.

I save the malt whisky for when I am finished, then I drink a toast to any new dso I managed to locate.

[russ]

Russ , your missing out mate.

Hot vimto is the daddy in winter times. easy to make in a flask. i cant get tea or coffee right , how much sugar , milk etc.

Honest mate , throw in a kit-kat and your done !!

Ribenna is also able to be used in a vimto shortage. in fact i want one now !!

Right okay, no worries, i'll give this a try. But when you say throw in a Kit Kat, is that throw a Kit kat in the lunch box or throw it in the flask too.

[Teddy]

Ha ha I am not mental Russ.

[Si W]

Buckets of Strong Coffee to keep me awake, Mars bars, Jaffa Cakes, and Ciggies. I'm usually bouncing of the garden fence by 4am......

Simon

[simon84]

I dont take anything out with me, my wife always keeps me well fed and watered. I've always loved Jack Daniels single barrel myself, no ice or coke with it. Keeps me quite warm inside.

Other than that a good Bovril, which always reminds of when my Dad used to take me to see Southend United when I was a boy. Happy days.

[Beulah]

Hey Russ, that's not such a bad idea. It works when you drop digestives into coffee....

[Gy Stargazer]

Bottled Water and chocy biscuits is the way for me.

Tried energy drinks once on my first all nighter but the caffine causing my hands to shake ment i couldn't focus very well.

Keep a blanket in the car for if i'm going to an area out in the fields.

Something to either sit on and put laptop on or wrap up with to stay warm.

[GJBC]

coffee, foot and hand warmers and loads of coats that i tend to lend to others who forgot theirs. oh and my copy of "the observers Sky atlas" by E Karakoschka. priceless and has answered the question of "where is xxx" so many times.

Grahame

[DAusten]

Well, judging by the weather report for tonight, my hip flask is on standby. I may even give the Vimto a go..

[Tantalus]

On warm summer nights I'll have a few bottles of Bishops Finger or other ale, and on cold nights it's Southern Comfort to warm the cockles. Never heard of Licquorice tea though, I'll have to try some of that...

[Talitha]

I love the different perspective you bring to these discussions.

Have you had any encounters with bears when observing?

Not exactly an encounter, but yes... and it's the only time i ever packed up and headed home because of an animal. The Bear was wandering around huffing. It started due north and was pretty faint, then it moved to the NW and got louder (closer). Then it was suddenly to the NE and much louder. This happened before i made the Starpad, so instead of being in a 5' tall, 8'x10' chain link windbreak, i was standing on the grass in a truck path of a Christmas Tree plantation with nothing around me except shoulder high trees and the sound of a pretty big animal that i was hoping i hadn't ticked off by being there, lol.

Huffing can be a sign of aggression, or a warning that something's invading the Bear's space, or simply a way for them to identify a smell. Since i didn't have any food with me, i'm guessing the Bear was circling around trying to figure out if i was friend or foe. TBH, i really didn't want to stick around long enough for it to decide.

Food is the #1 attractant for Bears, and once they associate a specific location with food, it takes a bit of convincing to make them change their minds. About 5 years ago, a Sow and her two Yearlings tore my garden fence down three times (in as many months) to get at the bird feeders. I stopped feeding after the first incident, but my garden was now on their hit list, so they kept coming back. I was home when it happened the third time, and although it was thrilling to see three Bears in my garden, enough was enough. They may look like big lumbering animals, but it was incredible how fast they scrambled over the fence when they heard the .22 automatic being fired into the ground about 30' behind them (needless to say, they never came back).

Once in a while i see one walking down the old driveway path, their fur is like the thickest black velvet you can imagine. I step out onto the deck for a better look but they always scoot into the underbrush when they hear the door. They're pretty cool to have around, except when their nose gets them into trouble.

Here's a hand-out from the Tomahawk Scout Reservation regarding Bears.. i hope you find it interesting.

And now, back to our regularly scheduled program.

[GJBC]

and there's us grumbling when a fox get in our garden

we want photos.... please

Grahame

[marcdearn]

When the Bears are roaming around, it's not safe to have any type of food.

Sounds like my daughter is a bear......