Last weekend we made the most of the recent good weather and headed up to Dartmoor for a weekend of product testing. Officially it was a weekend of product testing but in reality it was just a lovely weekend camping in Dartmoor exploring new places and trying out new kit.
Campsite
Our base for the night was one of our favourite campsites on the moors – Runnage Farm. Situated near to Postbridge right in the middle of the moors, Runnage has been a favourite of ours for many years. It is a small site with basic but adequate enough facilities and it has just the right laid back feel to make you feel like you are camping right in the middle of the moors (which you are really). There is a lovely little stream goes through the middle of the camping field and you are allowed fires which is basically our kind of camp site, and it only costs £6 per person a night! Oh, and the best bit is there is no WIFI and i couldn’t get a signal on my phone – it’s good to disconnect from modern life now and again.
Fire Tripod
So, the product we were testing on this occasion was a Fire Tripod. We think it is very important for us to know and use a product before we offer it to our customers. We also wanted to find a traditional forge based in the South West. After a while researching we found Tim Lloyd of Lloyd and Co Blacksmiths based in Dorset. Tim makes a variety of hand forged items and is also open to commissions. We were particularly interested in his campfire cooking products and chose the cooking tripod. There were 2 sizes to choose from, the 110cm and the 150cm. We chose the 110cm, which Tim calls the 2 in 1 tripod. With this model you have the option of using 2 uprights and having the third as a hanging rack. The tripod is made from 10mm solid steel and we also ordered the round hanging grill and extra set of hook and chains.
Dartmoor bound
So armed with our trusty 4m bell tent and new fire tripod we headed for the moors. After a little bit of exploring via Burrator Resevoir, Leather Tor and Wistmans Wood, all recommended locations, we arrived at Runnage Farm. Once the tent was up we were keen to get the fire lit as we were pretty hungry and wanted to get the burgers cooking (the butchers in Moretonhampstead does the finest burgers known to mankind by the way!) The great thing about Runnage is the there are little fire pits dotted around the camping field, so we chose our spot next to one which was just the right size for the tripod. The tripods are so quick and easy to erect so once the fire was going we were ready to cook. The extra hook and chain set was very handy to adjust the cooking height but Tim also does a trammel hook which would probably be easier. There were only 2 of us so there was plenty of room for our meat and we could have fitted a few more. On this occasion we didn’t use the tripod as a hanging rack instead we put our Dutch Oven in the coals on the edge of the fire.
All in all we were very pleased with the fire tripod. The construction was simple but solid and well made and i’m sure with care we will have many years of campfire cooking ahead of us.
