Well I’m still a bit of a newbie to all this bivying lark and probably like all newcomers over the past few months I’ve slowly upgraded my kit to more reliable stuff.

With my usual riding buddies absent I was desperate to test out some new winter kit this week with a trip to North Wales but I’ve never been on a solo trip before. Unfortunately North Wales was inaccessible (and also I think it would have been foolish to even consider it) so I settled for a slightly less glamorous adventure to the bottom off my garden.

In temperatures of -4 I put up my Alpkit tarp, making do with some borrowed tent poles until I can get some swish carbon ones off Stu (please don’t laugh at the guy lines my hands were VERY cold and I just chucked them on ) and then used my new “Stu Stove” © to brew up a lovely Horlics before tucking in to the peace and quiet of a leaking drainpipe and the flight path of Liverpool airport !

Just thought I’d share a couple of photos of my first ever solo bivi…







Next time I’m hoping it will be slightly further afield but what’s that saying “from little acorns…” ! :D

That looks like a chilly bivi! I also found all this snow too tempting and bivi-ed out in it at the weekend... Fresh would describe it well!

What is that tarp set up like? Do you not find it too drafty?

nice going and don't beat yourself up about staying local.

my only night out this month was within sight of the house but that's what could be managed this month and so that's what happened.

it's too easy not to bother if it's not possible to do something 'big' but now you've gained a little experience and will know better what to do when you are further from home. who knows, maybe you won't make a mistake when it matters because you learned a little something in your own back yard - it makes sense!

Nice one Barney... that look's proper chilly!
I'm too much of whimp for tarping :) esp. in the easterly winds we've been having recently. I used to be a bit 'scared' of sleeping in the woods on my own, perferring more open sites, but I've recently been discovering the benefits of the higher temperatures and shelter in the trees and I'm now a lot happier not freezing my butt off (thanks to the advise on here).
I've spent some time trying to minimise the condensation issues in small tents but that doesn't look like a problem with your minimalist set up

That's a good showing of will power. I'd probably find it harder to bivi out in the garden than in the middle of nowhere. The sofa or the bed must have been tempting 10seconds away!
Top effort