ajtestbed Every year, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up the dollar value of all the stuff we outdoorsy folk buy. In 2020 it came to $689 billion, which is a lot of cash and, by extension, a lot of stuff. And if you think about it (or more to the point, even if you … Read more
Ranga Perera emigrated with his parents from Sri Lanka to the US. After his father died, Perera found healing in the metronomic action and deep thoughtfulness in fly fishing. In Montana and on the waters, he found his place.
My favorite sleeping pad is comfortable, warm, robust, well-made, and nearly impossible to fit back into its tiny little stuff sack when I’m packing up camp and heading for home. Come to think of it, same with my tent. Because I’ve experienced so much grief trying to cram stuff back into stuff sacks, I thought … Read more
“Mojave” is the Spanish translation/pronunciation of Hamakhaave, the Indigenous word for the area that makes up the Mojave Desert. Hamakhaave means “beside the water” though the desert is so dry, one wonders what water the term refers to. Either way, it’s a starkly beautiful place, and if you’re gonna trip out on some star-filled nights, … Read more
Off-width climbing is antithetical to not only the sexiness of climbing, but the sexiness of almost all adventure sports. It is less the balletic and gymnastic movements you imagine yourself doing between small hand- and footholds on an aesthetic rock face, and more like moving a couch up six tightly-arranged flights of stairs on a … Read more
The Pulaski is not an elegant object—half axe, half mattock—it chops and cleaves, it excavates and grubs. It is, above all, a workhorse, just like the man who created it. You may have never hefted one, but odds are you’ve ridden or hiked a trail that was shaped by a Pulaski or walked beneath trees … Read more
Did ya know — AJ has nearly 5,000 stories in our archive? We’re busily working on a redesign of our website to better feature stories from the past so that new readers — or veteran AJ lovers who missed ’em the first time around — can enjoy. Like this story from 2018 that stoked debate … Read more
We posted a story awhile back that was an intro to a linked article in the SF Chronicle. For some reason, I’m guessing some kind of location-specific access, I was able to read the story even though I do not now, nor have I ever, subscribed to the SF Chronicle, but many of you were … Read more
The electric Rivian R1T pickup truck has been one of the world’s most eagerly anticipated vehicles since it was revealed to the public at the L.A. Auto Show in late 2018. Promising eye-popping specs, a minimum range of 300 miles, and a spirit based on adventure, Rivian and its truck seemed to represent the equal … Read more
I didn’t emigrate from Britain to Canada because of moose. Not exactly. Imagine telling your family you’re abandoning them for another country because of a long-legged ungulate with a flap of skin hanging beneath the throat and a peculiar, stiff-legged gait. But I’m not sure Canada’s pull would have been so strong if I hadn’t … Read more