Inexpensive gear for beginners.

In this thread, I am hoping to throw out some ideas for people who wonder what gear to get if they want to head out camping in Ireland.

1. Tent
Maybe this Vango Alpha 300. At 3.65kg, it's on the heavy side. It's bulky. Over a hike of a few miles, the extra weight of gear will begin to tell, but I like it because it's quite good, waterproof, and well made. I've previously seen this for sale for €60. It's no mountain tent, and it is heavy, but I think that it's a reasonable tent for a beginner.

Alternatives: Vango Alpha 250 and Vango Alpha 200 are similar spec but smaller and a little lighter. The Vango Banshee 200 is a better tent with a better spec (more waterproof, only a little over 2kg, etc), but it costs more. It wasn't for me, but it looks like a good tent.

2. Sleeping Bag
In cold weather, I think that a serious sleeping bag is needed. Below are okay sleeping bags, which will not really do on their own for winter. The sleeping bag needs to be long enough to suit the person, so like anything else, it's best to do some research first. Highlander has some decent gear that's relatively cheap. Vango are a little higher priced but are generally good. Snugpak produces some good stuff.

The spec in this one looks good enough for general use. Highlander Echo 350. £43 + delivery from Amazon UK. This Highlander Echo 400 looks as though it should stand up to somewhat colder temperatures, if the spec and reviews are correct. At £47.75 + delivery, it could be a good option with a comfort limit of -2 degrees celcius.

This Vango Ultralite II is reasonable for general use.

Obviously, if you spend more, you'll get a better sleeping bag, maybe something filled with down, that packs away small and light.

3. Sleeping Mat
The sleeping mat is useful for comfort, but more importantly, it acts as a layer of insulation between you and the ground, stopping your body heat from escaping.

If you are just getting started, you may get away with a foam mat for a tenner, provided that it is not very cold.

Closed cell mats are better than ordinary foam mats apparently, but I've never tried one.

A basic inflatable Thermarest is a good sleeping mat which is pretty comfortable. Although not cheap, it's a good piece of kit. People who shop around will find places that sell them for more reasonable money.

Exped make great gear, but it's not cheap.

4. Rucksack
People who pack well can bring less gear and have smaller backpacks. Some people bring this down to a fine art. I'm not one of these people, so I like to bring a big rucksack and lots of gear for various activities. It's the wrong way to do it, I know. The ultralight backpacking people probably do it the right way.

Anyway, there are a number of ways to look at getting a rucksack.

First, if you intend on using a rucksack a lot, you might as well get a decent one. The one that I have is a now-discontinued Lowe Alpine that I got for £100 from ebay. I see this 65-85 litre Lowe Alpine rucksack is £112 + delivery from ebay. It gets good reviews here.

Secondly, if you are unsure if you are going to use it so much, or if you don't intend to spend that kind of money, you could look at something like Highlander, which has traditionally offered reasonable quality at very reasonable prices. This one is a massive 88 litres. It may be too big. Mostly good reviews, some bad. Something like this may be worth checking.

Thirdly, if you want something better, check out the Live for the Outdoors website. I think that it's a great site for gear reviews, overall.

5. Camping stool
Something like this is often sold for less than a fiver in Tesco. Fits in your rucksack. Much handier than lugging a camping chair.

6. Cooking gear
Some people don't cook at all. They just bring cold food. That's an option. However, if you want to cook, you could use some camping pots and a cheap hexamine stove. (I'm a bit wary of the hex fumes, so I don't use one any more).

People also use gas stoves, which heat food quickly. Something like this Vango Compact may be worth considering for £10 + delivery. It gets good reviews and is pretty cheap, but you may find that outdoor shops are the only places that stock the gas fuel. Probably worth checking a bricks and mortar shop like Millets or Great Outdoors for a price on this.

A really inexpensive option is this old Swedish Army Trangia cookset. At £15.99, it's pretty much for nothing. An upgrade from that would be this Trangia cookset. The meths fuel is easy to get for a Trangia. Mycroft H's Christmas Gear thread has more details along these lines.

7. Lighting
I think that this Cyba Lite lamp is good. It gives off 300 lumens - pretty bright. As an LED lantern, it claims to have a battery life of six days. You could just use a head-torch, of course. Cheaper and lighter.

People will also need warm clothes and waterproofs.

There must be a lot of other gear that should also be mentioned, but this is a start, hopefully.