It’s very rare for me to add any item to my “base” hiking kit. (It’s too heavy already.)
The new essential must be very valuable. Or very light.
The All-in-one Map Tool is both. I carry it with my map and compass.
Bob Moseley from Brooks-Range Mountaineering Equipment Co. asked me to test this award winning product.
I took it with me on a solo kayak hiking trip out of Bamfield, British Columbia on the west coast of Canada. Since the weather was good, I was able to paddle directly to the Deer Island group, the closest to town.
It was a great, relaxing trip. I saw bear, seals, sea lions and nearly stepped on a baby puffin.
Normally mornings on this, the “Shipwreck Coast” are fogged in. On a previous trip to the nearby Broken Group Islands we were a number of times confused in the fog. It’s essential to know where you are on the map, have an exact compass bearing, and a good estimate of your speed and distance to the next island.
The All-in-one Map Tool is ideal in this situation as it has 6 different, easy-to-read map scale rulers to help estimate distance.
More photos from this trip – flickr
Sadly I had atypically excellent weather and did not need to do any dead reckoning in the morning.
So I’ll take it heli-hiking into the Tombstone Mountains in the Yukon in August. Certainly I should have a good chance to get lost there, having to rely on Topo, compass and map tool for survival.
All-in-one Map Tool – US$18 – Brooks Range Mountaineering Equipment Co.
besthike.com 
I came across your blog post when searching for ‘Bamfield’. I recently wrote a novel (an Amazon bestseller) where the main setting was Bamfield. Whale Song also features Victoria and Vancouver.
I’m from Vancouver originally and spent a lot of time of the Queen Charlottes and on Salt Spring Island. Although I don’t kayak, I have a friend who has kayaked all over these areas. There is something about the ocean…and the wildlife. 🙂
I hope you had a memorable time.
Cheryl Kaye Tardif,
author of Whale Song, The River and Divine Intervention
You should get out in a kayak, Cheryl.
: )
Here are a few more of my posts on Bamfield on my personal blog:
http://rickmccharles.com/index.php?s=Bamfield
Hey Rick:
The last time I was in a kayak was about 4 years ago. I had a blast, even though I had been injured in a boating accident earlier that day and had bruised ribs. 🙂
Now I enjoy whale watching boats, speedboats…a cruise would be awesome…hehe
Thanks for sharing your posts on Bamfield. I enjoyed the one about the property…and skiff. lol
It’s odd but when I wrote Whale Song I had to do all my research online and from people who had been to Bamfield. I even exchanged emails with a woman from the marine biology station.
Last year we almost made it to Bamfield. One day…it’s on my life goals list. 🙂
According to people who have been there though, I gave a reasonable description, although Whale Song is fiction. I must have been there in spirit!
Happy kayaking!