Building on the threads focusing on the differences in behaviour/equipment when going solo vs in groups, what "extras" or comforts do you guys take whether it they be to keep you occupied or simply to make life a little more comfortable?

Personally I'll bring a book or 2 and have brought a small iPod (although I plan on switching to a am/fm/weather radio and potentially an e-reader) and plan at testing my hand at fishing with a small ice rod/VERY minimal tackle box this coming season.

Less. And while I do bring a book, if there is more than one edition available I will bring the one with the smaller print.

I am tempted to cook more appetizing meals for company. When solo, I don't much care for elaborate meals. I don't even bring a bowl.

If no portages, I bring two cameras..one with five lenses..and a very bulky Pelican box.

I'm usually very immersed in photography when solo - much more so than with a group. However, I also like to bring along a musical instrument to play around with. When kayaking the Superior coast I brought a carbon-fibre travel guitar. I put it in a dry bag and bungeed it to the stern deck. An excellent pastime when windbound on one of those beautiful Pukaskwa beaches.

Last year in WCPP I had too many portages to even think about lugging the guitar, so I brought along a Native American Flute, tucked into a PVC case. It fit neatly into my pack. A simple, but haunting instrument when played on the edge of a boreal lake beneath a silent, star-filled sky. The loons even responded to it at times.

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www.mikemonaghan.ca

My Spot device gives me extra comfort while solo.

On the new gadget front would be our iPod Mini. It's quite the multi tool.
Music, TV, camera, video, games (anything you can imagine), stored information (maps, pictures, etc..), diary.
Then there's the apps... Audubon wildlife and plant books, animal tracks, weather, stargazing, camera...
I'm sure there's a ton more. So far, that's what we use.

Do you bring a solar charger? I've been trying to move away from rechargeable batteries/cables/solar cells that they seem to require on longer trips in favor of a couple extra AAAs, but sometimes I really wish I had some extra juice for the camera.

everybody has different priorities. i have evolved my clark hamock and insulation to get a great nights sleep,usually better than home. after that a chair is the thing i add when i can go a little heaver. my latest experiment after many lightweight chairs is an alite mantis chair. a dry warm pair of shoes with socks is another luxury so i dont have to wear my wet keen sandles after i get to camp. even in warm weather,those dry warm socks and sneakers feel real nice.
turtle

Other than more photography gear, like Mike, I tend to bring less comforts, eating simpler, like Kim. The activities I tend to do more of are photography, and reading. Maybe a bit more exploratory hiking too, but that lends in to the photography.

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-Jim-

"Paddle faster, I hear banjos!"

Binoculars... spending some time viewing landscapes and wildlife in detail may be better suited to solo trips, since there's nobody else around to distract you. I can spend a lot of time up on a campsite with a view or on a cliff, taking it all in. For me, it's worth spending money for higher-quality optics, since I'm usually out there to see something, and binoculars allow one to see much more.

Radio... at night and when I'm too tired to read. Also during the morning coffee listening to the weather reports.

A canoe large enough to lie down in... at least, large enough to be able to sit on the floor, stretch out, put your feet up on a thwart and rest your back against the seat. Time to relax if you're tired of paddling. And if the woods are crawling with biting bugs, there usually won't be any out on the water.

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I don't think us camera people would call all the lenses and stuff as comfort, except for the fact it gives us a reason to stop and watch the world.

Besides a radio, mostly for rainy days or just lying down when I can't sit anymore.....
MY stool for sitting by the fire.
Trekking poles now... but there not that big.
A little bit of wine for diner...
But I have noticed I eat a lot less than even 5 years ago and that is a good thing.
Always a "special" meal for the first night out and breakfast the cooler the weather, the more special you can take.
I like my 3 man tent with vestibule, lots of space to stretch out in.
And extra hiking boots.....I usually get one pair wet one way or another...
Jeff.

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Choosing to save a river is more often an act of passion than of careful calculation. You make the choice because the river has touched your life in an intimate and irreversible way, because you are unwilling to accept its loss. — (David Bolling, Ho

When solo I tend to take less luxury items. Unfortunately my solo trips are usually only overnight jaunts as free time is hard to come by. I agree with the eating simple group. In the summer i often dont take a stove and eat cold prepped meals. I do however bring way more fishing gear, two or three rods, maybe a small net and tinfoil for my one hot meal if lucky. Oh yeah and I never go without my faithfull dog! That begs another question, is it really a solo trip? Hmmm, I think I just started a new thread.

i get a similar feeling on overnights and even solo day trips as a long multiday trip,so for me,yes it's solo tripping. sometimes when i'm longing for a big solo trip,just a morning paddle in a deserted place helps a lot.
turtle

A really good scotch... or cognac. Your choice.

I've thought about bringing the bagpipes (Simpson did!)
Haven't done it yet though - need a set a little more weather proof

I also bring a 3 man tent and the Alite chair http://www.mec.ca/AST/ShopMEC/HikingCam ... -chair.jsp

Scotch is NOT a comfort - it is necessity haha

I don't like to gather fuel, make a fire, cook, and clean the dishes, so unless it's a long trip with some layovers, I'm likely to take a bunch of quality trail mix and some beef jerky.

A boombox that picks up satellite is a must. And my bongo drums.

And your solo trips are where? Remind me not to go there.