Simple solo overnighter / Nothing fancy, but barbecue and campfire with the X-Fire 19 🔥🌲 ✌️ 🌳

Sometimes you don’t need a grand plan. No ambitious route, no extreme weather challenge, no new skill to master. Sometimes all it takes is a night alone in the forest, a tarp over your head, and sausages sizzling over an open fire. That’s exactly what this overnighter was about — keeping things simple and enjoying every minute of it.

Setting Up Camp

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I headed out in the afternoon with my Tasmanian Tiger Pathfinder MKII loaded up for one night. The weather forecast was mild for December — cold enough to see your breath, but no rain expected. Still, I rigged my DD Tarp 3x3m in a classic A-frame between two trees, with a Bundeswehr “elephant skin” tarp as a ground sheet underneath. Belt and suspenders, maybe, but I like a dry camp.

Underneath the tarp I rolled out my Exped Synmat UL sleeping pad inside its Exped Mat Cover — that cover is one of those small upgrades that makes a real difference, keeping the pad clean and adding a bit of comfort. On top of that, the sleep system: a Carinthia TSS Inner paired with the Carinthia TSS Outer, both in Multicam Black, tucked inside the Carinthia Observer Plus bivy. Overkill for the temperatures? Probably. But I’d rather be too warm than shivering at 3 a.m.

Firewood, Fire, and Food

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With camp sorted, I grabbed my Silky Gomboy Outback 240 and the Hultafors HULTAN Trekking Axe to process some dead standing wood. There’s something deeply satisfying about the rhythm of sawing and splitting — no rush, no deadline, just you and the wood. I had a decent pile within half an hour, enough to keep a fire going well into the night.

The star of this trip was the X-FIRE 19. If you haven’t seen one, it’s a compact stainless steel fire pit that doubles as a grill platform. I set it up, got a fire going, and placed my titanium grill grate on top. A few Bratwurst from the local butcher, slowly turning over the coals — nothing fancy, but honestly one of the best meals you can have outdoors. There’s no restaurant that can compete with food cooked over a campfire after an afternoon of physical work in the woods.

While the sausages were grilling, I boiled water in my Bestargot Titan French Press for a strong coffee. Ate everything with my trusty titanium spork, washed it down with water from my Nalgene Everyday Oasis, and just sat there watching the flames. No phone, no distractions. Just the crackling fire and the forest around me.

The Beauty of Doing Less

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I think we sometimes overcomplicate our time outdoors. We plan elaborate routes, buy the latest gear, chase the perfect Instagram shot. But the trips I remember most are often the simplest ones. A tarp, a fire, a good meal, and silence. That’s the reset I needed.

My UF Pro Monsoon XT Gen.2 rain jacket stayed in the pack, the UF Pro P-40 All-Terrain pants kept me comfortable all day, and my Lowa Renegade GTX Mid boots handled the forest floor without complaint. Everything worked, nothing broke, nothing was missing. That’s the mark of a dialled-in kit.

I crawled into my sleeping bag early, listened to the last embers popping, and slept like a rock. Woke up to a cold, misty morning, packed up with numb fingers, and hiked out feeling completely recharged. No fancy adventure story to tell — just a good night in the woods. And sometimes, that’s more than enough.

If you want to watch the full tour, you can find the video here: https://youtu.be/obgYnK9JcEo.