Vedangi Kulkarni: All-weather bivvy freak
As the youngest woman to cycle around the globe, Vedangi has plenty of experience of sleeping outdoors.
What’s the chief thing you look for when choosing kit?
Waterproofness and sturdiness of the material. Regardless of where you’re camping or what you’re planning to do, if those two things are covered, your kit is gonna keep you dry and safe.
What’s your favourite piece of camping kit?
SLEEPING BAG! Whether it’s your first or thousandth camping experience, there’s no better feeling than slithering into your sleeping bag and huddling up against the soft material to warm up.
Advice for a good night’s sleep?
Reading while hugging a warm Nalgene water bottle. I think a warm Nalgene bottle is the camping equivalent of a relaxing hot bath.
Any unusual luxury items?
Hairbrush and Kindle. I know it’s gonna sound strange, but I always brush my hair before bed and after waking up. It just marks the beginning and end of my day on bikes/foot/skis. Kindle because I always, without a fail, read before bed.
Favourite camp breakfast?
Anything but porridge. Ideally, something savoury, be it leftover dinner or a pack of dried Expedition Food.
Any tales of bad kit choices?
Choosing to bivvy for three nights in a row in the middle of summer in Scotland (prime midge season) is up there with one of the worst decisions I’ve ever made. I didn’t have a hooped bivvy at the time and only had the Alpkit Hunka (the one that has the open bit near your face). Anyway, I basically got eaten by midges and had a really miserable time. I barely slept. The only way to keep them from entering my nose or mouth was to get in a foetal position in the middle of my bivvy and shoving a jacket at the open end of it. It was suffocating!
