I feel very fortunate that I grew up in a place with such easy access to the backcountry. Living in Truckee, CA, it’s absurdly easy for us to get on a trail and get away from town in under an hour. I recognize that this isn’t the case for many, many people out there living …
In this article, I’m going to be introducing the idea of Custom Chacos and explaining how to create custom sandals. I’ll also take through the story of how I created my own custom Chacos for a full summer of guiding on Lake Tahoe! About Custom Chacos Chaco allows you to customize your very own pair …
So you want to get into sleeping elevated, do you? From experience, it takes some time and requires a degree of trial and error to dial in your hammock camping gear list and perfect your setup. Getting a good hang (as die-hard hammockers call it) takes some experimenting and can require different considerations depending on …
I’ve gone through a number of sleeping pads over the years. While I’ve previously found some comfort in inflatable sleeping pads, I’ve also had some that just didn’t hold air. All of a sudden I’d wake up in the middle of the night with a rock jabbing me in the back. So, I’ve pretty much …
Hammock camping is my preferred method of sleeping for any trips under a week in length. And I find myself leaning towards a hammock set-up that can function for even longer trips (like the JMT or PCT!). But for many hikers and backpackers, sleeping all night in a hammock either sounds uncomfortable or impractical. Today, …
I’m fortunate to have grown up in a place where most summer nights are clear and dry. Because of that, I’ve gotten to spend a considerable amount of time sleeping out under the stars. Over the years, I’ve really come to appreciate the benefits of carrying a hammock for backcountry sleeping, as opposed to lugging …
For experienced backpackers, the process of putting on a pack is probably second nature. But for all of you just getting into backpacking, it’s important to know that there is actually a preferable technique for putting your backpack on and adjusting it for comfort. In this article, I’ll cover some easy tips on how to …
My active lifestyle has led to many broken phones over the last five or six years. Because of this experience, I went a long time opting for the cheapest (and by proxy the most easily replaceable) phone available whenever I needed a new one. I failed to realize, however, that I could choose a nice …
As a former Wilderness First Aid instructor and certified waterfront lifeguard, I’ve heard this familiar saying often: “It’s not a matter of if [an emergency occurs], but just a matter of when.” To some, that might represent a brand of negative thinking that invites unexpected circumstances to sidetrack our hiking adventures. To others, it’s merely …
As I was loading my old green REI backpack down for our trip to the tropics back in the fall, I started taking stock of the broken zippers, busted clips, and frayed seams dotting the pack’s landscape. I realized that I have had that pack for 10 years and, while I still trust it as …