[Sca-cooks] OT Air Mattress (was Pennsic Pity Party)

[UlfR]

Stefan li Rous <StefanliRous at austin.rr.com> [2006.06.01] wrote:
> UlfR mentioned:
> Sounds good. But Reindeer furs, untanned or not, are rather hard to  
> come by over here.

Caribou is very, very close enough.

> Why untanned? Because they are too large to tan? Don't they begin to  
> stink or rot after a fairly short time period?

In damp climates that is true, but if you keep them from being
constantly damp or wet that is no problem. They are simply more durable
that way, and there is no reason to have a soft, flexible hide as a pad
underneath you. I use one instead of foam pad or thermarest when out
canoeing ir hiking, and simply roll it up and tie with a leather tong.
If damp/wet is likely (e.g. in a canoe) I place in a stuff sack with a
plastic liner.

> Yes, this does work fairly well. However, it is rather important to  
> avoid rocks that might absorb some moisture, such as sandstone.  
> Otherwise this trick can get a bit too exciting.

Simply don't heat them too much. Just place them on the edge of the
fireplace (as part of the fire ring silly people thinks is nessesary to
avoid wildfires). 

> If you are concerned about these rocks being too hot, you can also  
> use this technique to simply warm your bed and then remove the rocks  
> and put them back around the fire.

If they are too warm for the bed they are almost certainly too warm for
your bedclothes. 

Another trick is to fill a metal bucket or pot with hot rocks and
place under the bed. As long as no flamable materials can get too close
to them (with this technique you can get them hotter, and use larger
rocks) you should be perfectly safe.

UlfR

-- 
UlfR Ketilson                               ulfr at hunter-gatherer.org
Two's company. Three or more is a breach of the Sexual Offences Act 1967