Four Days in Desert Heat
I paid a visit to Kfar Maimon along with 40,000 other demonstrators trying to reinforce Gush Katif, A totaly non violent protest although the cops planned to be brutal if we marched on toward Gaza.
Back on topic what did I learn from this expedition.
Mobile phone networks were overloaded this town has a population of 800 and over 40,000 plus 15,000 soldiers and police were using the network, I had to keep trying to redial untill I got through.
Mobile phone charging:
I carried 3 spare batteries and a crank generator to power the phone, untill the last day when I got lazy the freeplay freecharge for motorola phones worked well. The internal battery storage function appears to be broken but the crank for charging worked fine. A half hour cranking moved the phone from 1/3 to 2/3. I have large strong hands so i was able to continue cranking, but ergonomics could be better.
Washcloth and baby wipes were invaluable you wouldn't belive how sticky and stinky you get after 4 days in humid 40deg C heat (100ish F). We had access to a plumbed toilet with a sink so we could wash t-shirts underwear and ourselves.
I packed 20L of water (about 5 gal) since we were not sure if we would have resupply and counting on 3 full days me wife and baby. Humus is no good it goes bad too fast. Pita is good for 2-3 days before mold sets in. Tuna is excelent, but how much can you eat? We took boiled potatoes and steamed carrots, next time we will roast them for longer life. Dry fruit granola rasins are all good, mostly look for light, dry, and ready to eat.  ¶ 6:18 AM