The military maggot
Late summer and early autumn is a great time for having wild-camping and bivvying adventures. So, here’s an old Army tip for packing and organising your gear, whether you are going to camp or bivvy. Unless weight is the over-riding factor, it’s almost always worth carrying a bivvy bag regardless of whether you are already carrying a tent as well. It helps keep your sleeping bag dry in the rucksack and in the tent (when condensation can be a problem).
Many people carry their sleeping bag in its stuff-sack or compression bag, packed right down at the bottom of the rucksack. This creates a small cylinder of concrete which takes up a large chunk of space in the rucksack but makes the nooks and crannies of space around it virtually unusable and inaccessible.
Instead, pack your sleeping back inside the bivvy bag and then, starting from the toes of the sleeping bag, start stuffing it down into the base of the rucksack. Be strong and assertive, and keep pushing it down inside hard. At first, you will think that it’s taken up 80% of your rucksack (and it might have), but as you pack other items on top, you will gradually push the sleeping “maggot” further and further inside, compressing it all the while, until it has perfectly filled every space at the bottom of the rucksack. When you arrive at your camp or bivvy – hey presto, it pulls out in a second and is already waterproofed and ready for use!
