This is one of the best pieces of kit for more than one reason and it's very cheap, fairly small, lightweight and easy to get hold of.
Military waterproof ponchos are used to cover not just you, but your back bag, holding the rain right off it and going a very long way towards keeping the contents dry. It's essential to keep your clothes and kit dry, and it's difficult to do.
They're fantastic for that, but the best thing about these is that the military ones with the metal ringlets at the corners and along the edges allow you to use ropes, preferably with bungy cords, to tie them to bushes and trees and turn them into instant shelters! You need at least one as a ground sheet too, so if the people you are with have all got one, you can make a waterproof camp very quickly indeed. That's why these are one of the best things you can buy, and why it's best to get others you'd be with, to have one as well.
You need to actually assemble your kit, and it's best to get them now, or they'll suddenly sell out. This has happened before with these. The military surplus ones are £10 or £15 in some places, and they're better than the lightweight ones for a number of reasons. They're stronger than the lightweight ones, really not much bigger when they're packed, and around a quarter to a third of the price of lightweight ones in shops like Nomad. The best place to get them in London is Portobello Road Market on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Don’t forget to open it and have a quick check that it’s okay when you buy it.
One of the people who sells them there is ex-British military, really knows his stuff, and can give you good advice about the best things to buy.
