backpacking

Post image for The Struggle to Put On a 143-Pound Backpack

The Struggle to Put On a 143-Pound Backpack

by steve casimiro on April 10, 2013 · 0 comments

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By any measure, Swedish adventurer Goran Kropp was visionary, kind, and bold. Everyone he met, it seems, was touched by his humanity, and his death in a climbing accident robbed the world of an extremely bright light. Kropp, however, was also very, very strong. This little clip of him attempting, then succeeding, to put on [...]

Post image for Gear Review: Marmot Nabu Soft Shell Jacket

Gear Review: Marmot Nabu Soft Shell Jacket

by michael frank on March 13, 2013 · 1 comment

one response

If life after Gore-tex is Marmot’s Nabu Jacket, life is good. Yes, there’s still a place for Gore (it’s called Seattle), but for most other places and conditions, the Nabu, which is built with Polartec Neoshell, is it. On one winter hike, the steeper and faster I went the better, in as much sleet and [...]

Post image for Gear Review: Lowa Focus GTX Lo Hiking Shoe

Gear Review: Lowa Focus GTX Lo Hiking Shoe

by michael frank on December 21, 2012 · 1 comment

one response

I gave up heavy boots long ago, and Lowa’s Focus GTX is a perfect example of my trail choice now, whether I’m just out for the day or humping 40 pounds over a long weekend. Yes, if I were going to tackle a five-day outing on the PCT I might want a boot that would [...]

Post image for Made in America: C.C. Filson

Made in America: C.C. Filson

by michael frank on December 17, 2012 · 3 comments

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At the Filson retail store in the SoDo neighborhood in Seattle, in the literal shadow of Safeco Field, home of the hapless Seattle Mariners, a cop and his partner stroll in the door. It’s not a bust. The officer’s personal Filson belt has popped a rivet. No problem, the factory happens to be in the [...]

Post image for GEAR REVIEW: Patagonia Capilene 4 Expedition-Weight Hoody

GEAR REVIEW: Patagonia Capilene 4 Expedition-Weight Hoody

by michael frank on December 14, 2012 · 2 comments

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Hoodies have been cool at least since the Middle Ages. And for sheer function, Patagonia’s Capilene 4 Expedition-Weight Hoody might last until the End Days. Here’s why: It’s Lightweight: But still very warm. This lightness, plus a gridlike structure, belies the “fleece” lineage of this shirt, and there’s enough Lycra in the mix for good [...]

Post image for The North Face Goes Retro With Mountain Heritage Line

The North Face Goes Retro With Mountain Heritage Line

by michael frank on December 13, 2012 · 0 comments

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Born in Berkeley in 1968, The North Face at first was a single store selling other brands — no official in-house label existed. Eventually that would change, and by the 1980s The North Face was less of an independent retailer and instead a label of its own, a legendary one at that, becoming an outfitter [...]

Post image for Fresh Goods: Polartec Alpha Synthetic Insulation

Fresh Goods: Polartec Alpha Synthetic Insulation

by michael frank on November 14, 2012 · 4 comments

4 responses

Polartec has been on a tear, first with NeoShell, the highly breathable and waterproof fabric, and now with Alpha insulation, which it says is ultralight, compressible, and will breathe better than any synthetic insulation ever. Actually, Alpha sounds a lot like down. Even like new breeds of water-resistent down, except that Polartec is touting Alpha [...]

Post image for Poll: To What Decade and Sport Would You Return?

Poll: To What Decade and Sport Would You Return?

by steve casimiro on November 12, 2012 · 71 comments

71 responses

Nostalgia is by its very nature narrow of scope and simple of view, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t onto something. Sports go through eras of often explosive change in technology, culture, technique, style, fashion, and thought — a zeitgeist coalesces and a moment is defined, sometimes around a particular piece of gear, sometimes around [...]

Post image for Gear Review: Jetboil Coffee Press

Gear Review: Jetboil Coffee Press

by michael frank on September 26, 2012 · 2 comments

2 responses

When the power went out the other morning I rummaged around with a headlamp to unearth the Jetboil coffee press from my gear bin. I’d acquired it before a recent camping trip and was shocked to find it outperformed my home Bodum. So there I was, at home, but making like a hiker, boiling water [...]

Post image for Dirtbag Gourmet: In Praise of Mac n’ Cheese

Dirtbag Gourmet: In Praise of Mac n’ Cheese

by brendan leonard semi rad on September 12, 2012 · 3 comments

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Sometimes I like to fantasize that I have some sort of backcountry suaveness and culinary instinct, and that I will someday take a special lady somewhere beautiful and make a nice dinner for her and it will be really romantic. But the reality is that this is pretty much the best (only?) trick in my [...]

Post image for Links We Like, August 23, 2012

Links We Like, August 23, 2012

by the editors on August 23, 2012 · 0 comments

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TO RUN FASTER, HIT THE BEACH Running on the beach, you probably already know, is a lot harder than running on a trail or pavement. The mechanics of why that is are now understood and explained by a recent study, which suggests that running on sand is on average 1.6 times harder. The reason is [...]

Post image for Gear Review: Rapha Touring Shorts

Gear Review: Rapha Touring Shorts

by michael frank on August 16, 2012 · 3 comments

3 responses

Rapha’s Chris DiStefano insisted that I know one thing when he sent me their Touring Shorts to test: “These are not ‘mountain bike’ shorts. We will not make products for mountain biking. Ever.” DiStefano wasn’t being an adamant stick in the mud (or, as it were, in the asphalt), he was stating a fact. Rapha’s [...]

Post image for New Rule May Open More National Park Routes to Mountain Bikes

New Rule May Open More National Park Routes to Mountain Bikes

by michael frank on July 6, 2012 · 5 comments

5 responses

One month from today, the National Park Service will give its park superintendents the right to open their dirt roads to cyclists. By most measures it would seem a small step, but in the conservative, not particularly bike-friendly national park system this might be the most pro-cycling move it’s ever made. It might be huge. [...]

Post image for Gear Review: Triple Aught Design Valkyrie Hoodie LT

Gear Review: Triple Aught Design Valkyrie Hoodie LT

by kathryn sall on June 25, 2012 · 4 comments

4 responses

The Valkyrie Hoodie LT goes against the norm for women’s fleeces — it’s flattering rather than boxy. Imagine that. And someone at Triple Aught Design clearly knows that hoods need to work with, rather than against, long hair and pony tails. The cut is flattering, with a tapered waist that doesn’t sacrifice any range of [...]