Fish River Canyon - Gear Regrets!

[@notreallyasloth]

Literally this is the best sa yt channel ❤These tips are incredible thank you sm for documenting the hike so well!

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

Thank you so much for this really wonderful comment! You made my day!

[@WyeExplorer]

I like Black Diamond Ruth and people have convinced me that the Sawyer Mini is a must have bit of kit for saving weight mostly. Water here on the tops is pretty good but lower down could do with filtration. On a recent hike we ate some superb food from Blah Band - very tasty. Well, shame about the tarp and sand. I do like them and your Deuter sack, which is exactly the same as my brothers. A well presented video and top narration voice and all. Mark.

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

Thanks Mark! I agree: Black Diamond is a really fantastic brand and well worth the price tag!

[@WyeExplorer]

Roughing It With Ruth They are good and i know they have a good green corporate policy. Worth buying for this alone. blackdiamondequipment.com/en_GB/sustainability.html ATB

[@tonyperone3242]

I would suggest a coffee filter as a pre filter for water purification. Keeping out the larger sentiments would extend the life of the filter. Just a thought. Enjoyed the vid.

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

Thank you, that is a great idea! I will definitely try that out next time!

[@RobertvdSpoel]

Did you use a guide for the hike

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

We did not have a guide, but we did do this trip with other hikers from the Footprint Hiking Club.

[@1Gwakie]

Hey Ruth, please tell me more about the water filter you used.

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

Hi Terence! The filter I used was the Sawyer Mini: sawyer.com/products/mini-filter/ It did require frequent backwashing because of the high levels of silt in the river water, so filtering water was a bit time consuming, but the filtered water was absolutely great to drink! You can also get the regular Sawyer water filter, which was a slightly faster flow rate and so will filter a bit quicker: sawyer.com/products/sawyer-squeeze-filter/

[@Major.Tom.1973]

Always good to learn by checking out other people's gear, eh :-) I also learned a lot. Thanks for the video. I ended up never using my dishwashing soap + sponge. Turned out that washing my dirty dishes with sand was more effective.

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

Thanks Lourens, good to know! When are we going again :D

[@dawidbotha92]

Hi Ruth Very helpful video. We are leaving on this hike next week but would like to know something regarding the pre accommodation. Where do you recommend sleeping the night before the actual hike? Hobas or Ais Ais? Thanks Dawid

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

We slept at Ais Ais, and took the shuttle to Hobas. The accommodation at Ais Ais (the mountain or river rooms) was really awesome! Unfortunately I have no idea what the accommodation at Hobas is like as I have never stayed there. Personally I would stay at Ais Ais so that you get the shuttle ride over at the beginning of your hike, and don't have to organise to go to Hobas or get your car back at the end of your hike (when you might be pretty tired). The shuttle from Ais Ais to Hobas is fairly pricey now, but you can often find day-tripper tourists at Ais Ais who are driving to Hobas to view the canyon who may be willing to give you a lift there for free :) Enjoy your hike! I can't wait to go back!

[@marvintzerre]

Thanks for these further tips! That filter is indeed wonderful, even though it's slow. I'd recommend taking one small tent to share among several people - just so as to have somewhere sand-free and safe from baboons to put your gear and as an emergency shelter in the unlikely event of rain. Sleeping in the open air was fine, but having some sort of ground sheet to create a sand-free space around my sleeping bag would have been great.

[@RoughingItWithRuth]

Thanks for the input Martin! Glad that you had a good time on the Fish :D