Bill Purcell, Author at The Bushwalking Blog

Author: Bill Purcell

Review: Lander Moab iPhone Case – protection from drops, deadly degrees, and the dark?

Posted by Bill Purcell | 22 Sep, 2017 | 0 |

Lander is a US-based manufacturer of mobile phone cases and accessories, and this is their Moab model –an iPhone case with features specifically intended for expedition style outdoor use. While it sports more trademarks than flies at a barbecue, the two features of main interest are: Thermoline: “Protects from Extreme Temperatures” Illumifind: “Reflective details for quick location in the dark” Extreme Temperatures. What’s the problem? iPhones have an operating temperature range of 0° and 35° Celsius. The issue is not just the inadequate range- it’s also the speed at which these temperature limits can be arrived at. Due...

Review: MSR Lightning Axis Snowshoes – Can they really cure an ice-cream headache?

Posted by Bill Purcell | 30 Jun, 2017 | 2 |

My first overnight cross country ski tour was on the Bogong High Plains, in perfect sunny weather. After a minor speed wobble, I plunged face first into the snow, my sweaty brow producing an instant and crippling ice-cream headache. A nanosecond later the back of my head was punched deeper into the snow by the sudden and unexpected arrival of my 25kg backpack. I lay face down, starfished, immobilised, and brain frozen, while I worked out the extrication sequence (stocks off, hip belt undone, sternum strap, shoulder straps off, shrug pack off, roll over, align skis, stand up, expel...