Category: Gear
Getting your kids to carry a pack while hiking teaches them important skills, like thinking about what’s essential gear. And toddlers who carry their own snack or water bottle take great pride in their growing self-sufficiency. But how much weight should children carry in their packs? Medical experts say a child’s backpack should weigh no more […]
Ever hear that an extra pound on your feet is equivalent to 5 pounds on your back? Whether or not that oft-quoted piece of backcountry wisdom is exactly right, one thing is definitely true: Hiking requires less effort in lightweight footwear. And therein lies the allure of wearing trail running shoes instead of heavier hiking […]
When it comes to understanding GPS technology, this particular term is one of the most common, most important, and simplest to understand of the lot. What is a waypoint? Simply put, it’s the coordinates to a specific location, usually described using one of two coordinate systems: Latitude-longitude or UTM (Universal Transverse Mercator). Conceptually, the terms […]
Yes and no, but mostly no. A tent footprint protects the underside of the tent from abrasion and moisture, helping to extend the lifespan of the tent and keep it drier on the inside. Footprints exactly match the shape of the tent, which minimizes the amount of fabric required for full coverage, and feature corner […]
Gore-Tex hiking boots are supposed to be waterproof, right? Well, they are—except when they’re not. My standard hiking footwear is a pair of Vasque Sundowner Classics, which include a Gore-Tex liner. I’ve worn them in nearly every outdoor condition imaginable and most of the time they have effectively kept my feet dry, yet I’ve found […]
What are the lightest tents and tarps currently in existence? Ones made from cuben fiber. For all the gory details on this megalight super fabric (including its outrageous cost), you can check out my recent post What Is Cuben Fiber? To find out which cuben fiber shelters are currently available (or will be soon), read […]
Patagonia has just unveiled a radical new species of goose down that provides more puff per ounce than anything else on the market. How did they do it? With some serious R&D and high-tech wizardry that prominently features the (suitably sci-fi) phrase “silicon-based plasma-bonding process.” The chemistry and science is undoubtedly complex, and involves all […]
How much weight will a tent add to your pack? It depends. Manufacturers list two weights for tents, trail weight and packed weight. Neither is truly accurate. Packed weight refers to how much the entire tent package weighs when you purchase it, including tent body, fly, poles, stakes, guy lines, stuff sacks, and other accessories […]
I continue to be astonished that tent manufacturers keep finding new ways to shave ounces. Surely there’s a limit to how lightweight a tent can get, but these five tents demonstrate that we haven’t yet reached that limit. This ongoing trend was highlighted once again in the new 2013 Gear Guide from Backpacker magazine—perhaps the […]
Snow stakes are designed to anchor a tent in compacted snow. They aren’t absolutely necessary to pitch a winter tent—you can also create anchors by using buried objects in the snow, or “deadmen”—but they are certainly convenient, if a bit heavy. Not a lot of companies make snow stakes, however, and the design is largely identical […]
Did you know that alcohol stoves produce only half the heat of white gas or a propane/butane canister stove? Here are the details, plus some thoughts on when the weight/heat ratio tips in favor of a canister stove. As I’ve written about before, alcohol stoves are an incredibly lightweight and compact option for cooking […]
I’m always on a quest to pack maximum backcountry calories for minimum weight, especially during the winter season when calorie burn runs particularly high. I’ve detailed the highest calorie trail foods out there in a previous article, Go Power: Tips for a Healthy, High-Calorie Trail Diet, but I must admit that one of my favorite […]
Discover the pros and cons of these two common pack designs. Over the past two decades, backpack design has increasingly shifted away from external frames to internal frames. Indeed, it can be difficult these days to even find an external frame design hanging on the wall at your local gear shop. But that doesn’t mean […]
Traction is on my mind this morning after a slip-sliding adventure to the bus stop over ice-glazed sidewalks so slick they might as well have been Zamboni’d for a hockey game. To prevent a tail bone-cracking, face-planting splat of pain and ignominy, here’s a quick round-up of the grippiest, most durable traction systems for your […]
Brightness is typically indicated in lumens, a measure of the total output of a light source. A classic Mini Maglite flashlight peaks at around 15 lumens. A typical LED headlamp puts out roughly 50 to 100 lumens. A 100-watt light bulb clocks in at around 1,750 lumens. The Torch Flashlight from Wicked Lasers, touted as […]
Brrrr….the coldest season is upon us, and that means breaking out the warmer gear. When it comes to a nuclear furnace of warmth, few things compete with a super toasty jacket or parka on top of your winter layers. Which begs the question: What’s the difference between a winter jacket and parka, anyway? The answer […]
Did you know that you can overlay every available USGS topo map on Google Earth for free? And that you can set it up in a matter of minutes? Here’s how: 1) Install Google Earth if you haven’t already. 2) Download the Google Earth topo map layer from the ArcGIS Services Directory (it’s the NGS […]
The Wapack Range rises above the dimpled landscape of southeast New Hampshire, a mountain range in miniature that offers wonderful hiking opportunities and many scenic vistas. The 21-mile Wapack Trail runs the length of the range and earns its name from the starting and ending points (Mount WAtatic and PACK Monadnock). When it opened in […]
As the seasons turn, I try to keep ahead of what my 3-year-old needs so that she can enjoy being outdoors. But she grew 4 inches in the past year, so the winter boots we bought big last spring were already too small when we tried them on this fall. Time to go shopping again! […]
The vast majority of outdoor equipment is made overseas, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find options that are made right here in America—you just need to know where to look. Online Retailers A few online outdoor retailers, notably REI, have begun consistently identifying which products are made in the United States. REI currently lists […]