The Stanley Adventure Cook Set is another one of Stanley’s reliable, sturdy, heavy duty, life time warranty boasting products. What is it? It’s a cook pot with vented lid that hides two nesting, insulated mugs for those cold mornings and nights outdoors. It’s a great product that is versatile enough to be used hiking, camping or on a canoe or kayaking trip.
I asked Stanley if I could try out this set and I’m glad I did, It’s a great versatile piece of kit that although not ultra light weight is sturdy and durable without being too heavy.
The Adventure Cook Set pot weighs in at just under 7 oz with the lid on and boils 24 ounces (0.7 liters) of water. Just enough for two full cups of coffee or other favourite hot beverage (or 3 if you want to save a bit more for yourself!). It’s made out of stainless steel as well making it great for long term durability… and those that are rough with their outdoor equipment.
The lid is a great fit and the steam vent holes are small enough to strain most pasta as well. Once, when I had left only a bit of water in the pot and the flames on the stove went too high the handle got soft and started to melt. I saved it, but make sure you have enough water on to boil and you keep the flames to a reasonable level.
There’s a handle on the top that folds out and locks into place for easy pouring. Just be careful as it can heat up. I haven’t had a problem when holding the end of it, but too close to the pot and it gets toasty. When you’re done, the handle folds back on top and holds the whole package together when you’re on the trail.
The mugs themselves weigh in at 3 oz each. That puts the whole set to just under 12 oz, but the cups do a great job of keeping food or drink warm. I’ve used them on several occasions and even in a cold breeze they allow you to enjoy the drink and the morning, instead of having to bolt it down before it turns tepid.
I really like the dimensions of the pot. It’s not overly wide like many pots and therefore is really easy to stuff in a pack. It’s 6″ tall and 4″ in diameter. With both cups in side I can even fit my 9 gram alcohol inside, with heat shield and ground insulator. With only 1 cup I can even fit fuel enough for a couple hot meals.
Overall I’m very happy with the Cook Set. The design is excellent, the dimensions are perfect and the stainless steel means it will last. The insulated mugs are great for keeping food and drinks hot and make it a great reason to take it on my outdoor adventures.
Back in April of this year Discovery Trekking sent me one of their lightweight “ultralite” towels to try out. After a few months of use and sharing around with friends I figured it was time to sit down and give my thoughts on this packable, quick drying, lightweight towel that shows you don’t need to sacrifice size or weight to have a towel on the trail.
Who is Discovery Trekking?
Discovery Trekking is a Canadian company that produces North American sourced and made products. Their focus is wicking – Wicking wear, wicking bedding and acessories like wicking towels. The biggest draw for me as a backpacker is their towels.
Discovery Trekking Towels
Discovery Trekking has a line of “ultralite” towels meant to be portable and quick drying. They come in a variety of sizes from 19” x 19” (and 1.3 oz) to a comfortable full sized towel that is a whopping 34” x 58”.
The Polyester used in these synthetic towels drys out very quickly. After soaking the towel and wringing out the water I let it hand on a dry summer morning with very little breeze. In dried out in just an hour. Being made of Polyester It also means they don’t don’t absorb water quite as quickly as a standard cotton towel when using it do dry yourself off. It does a fine job as a towel, and it’s comfortable too. Just remember, you’re backpacking or camping, not staying at the Ritz. You want something light and packable that dries out quickly.
Discovery sent me the Large 34×50 towel and I was surprised at how small it compresses down to (a 7” x 3.25” roll). The same towel weighs in at only 9.85 oz.
a 34″ x 58″ towel packed down to 7″ x 3.25″
I’ve been using it on and off for several months and lending it to other people to try out to get their opinions. By far, the biggest thing that takes getting used to is the fact that it’s synthetic. Advice from girls is to “pat” yourself dry, it just does a better job when used like that.
My sister-in-law loved the fact that it was so large. They took a trip out to the salt flats of Uyuni in Bolivia where there were hot springs… but nowhere to change. The 34” x 58” towel was great to provide some discression and even protection from the colds winds.
For the guys, and the less bashful you could get by with a lot smaller towel, like their 24”x24” square or even their 19”x19” super ultralight version and save even more space and weight.
Models:
Ultralite 34″ x 28″: $19.95 USD
Ultralite Mini 19″ x 19″: $14.95 USD
Ultralite 24″ x 24″ : $11.00 USD
Ultralite Large 34″ x 58″: $29.95 USD
Conclusions
The biggest draws for these towels for me is that they’re lightweight and packable. For those times when you’re not staying at the hilton and don’t want to stuff a typical cotton towel into your bag or backpack these things are great. They dry you off and are comfortable as well. You will need to get used to the fact that it isn’t cotton, but youĺl love the weight and packability.
While I would go for something much smaller for myself, my wife says this size is perfect for her.
Do you pack a towel on the trail? Are you a hiker that fancies a quick dip on the trail? Leave your response down below and tell us about your adventures, how you get dry or how you deal with stink on the trail.
Lighten your load and save on batteries with a lightweight, low powered headlamp.
Let me First just say this. I have a love / hate relationship with headlamps. They have their place in certain situations (midnight bathroom runs on the trail, Search and Rescue, early morning summit attempts), but most of the time we can minimalize their need and save a lot of weight and batteries by using some simple tricks.
Last summer I bought a Cyclops Atom low powered LED headlamp that I now use for most of my trips. I originally bought it for my kids, but now I’ll have to buy them their own!
The Cyclops is a low powered headlamp that runs on just 2 CR2016 3 volt batteries. It has a simple hinge that allows you to adjust it up and down and you just twist it to turn it on and off or to replace the batteries. The light plastic plate that it is mounted on has a fairly durable foam backing that is comfortable on the head (although I usually mount mine on my hat). The head strap only goes around the sides, but the headlamp is so light that it stays on without any problems at all. The strap itself is perfect and a decent quality elasticized fabric. All in it weighs only 0.9 oz (27 grams). To give a comparison, my Princeton Tec that I use for summit attempts and mountaineering weighs in at 3.40 oz. More important than weight though is its packability. I can keep it in the hip pocket of my backpack and still have lots of space for snacks, etc.
My Cyclops batteries (CR2016) weigh in at 4 grams a pair and because they’re so tiny they can be stowed anywhere. I’ve used them on 3 – 3 day hiking trips and the b atteries still work fine. I carry a spair set of batteries, but haven’t needed to change them yet. The one downside of the cyclops is that the LED beam isn’t super bright, but that hasn’t been a problem for me as I’ll explain below:
Battery and weight saving tips
When I hike I usually am not hiking at night. I set up camp in the afternoon or evening and then go to bed. The only time I need to stay up late is if I’m out chatting with friends. Usually though, we’re all tired and just want to get to bed early and get up with the sun. In summer time the need for a headlamp is lessened by the fact that it’s usually bright until 9 or 10 pm and sunny as of 4:30 or 5 am.
I was able to climb all the way up to the High Camp of Huayna Potosi
without using my headlamp with the light of the moon.
Another factor is night vision. I don’t mean IR or anything like that I mean the ability for one’s eyes to adapt to the light levels. Light over-exposes the rods and the end result is that you can’t see at night. If you let them adapt over 15 to 20 minutes you’ll find your vision is incredibly good at night. On a clear night, I’ve hiked by the light of the moon and been able to see everything, including the trail well enough to not need a headlamp. Of course, I always keep it on my head in case of emergencies, but most of the time it’s not even needed.
If you do wake up in the night to answer the call of nature, your eyes are already adapted to the night and chances are you don’t need a headlamp. Keep one with you in case something goes bump in the night, but don’t rely on it. If you do need a light, it doesn’t have to be very strong. Something low powered will keep you from loosing your night vision (red lenses are even better for that) and provide for the lighting that may not be there on a cloudy night.
On a recent night time summit attempt I used the Cyclops as a secondary light strapped onto my tripod for lighting my face for videos. At 27 grams there was no real inconvenience with space or weight!
Whatever your headlamp, you can lighten your battery load by saving your headlamp for when it’s absolutely necessary. Get more miles under your belt during the day and in the morning and set up camp early enough to not need a light. Consider saving space and weight by choosing a lower powered option for a headlamp, avoiding the need for it by setting up camp before dark and try to keepit powered off for more time by letting your eyes adjust to the natural light.
Do you have any examples of this or examples of when you needed a high powered light? Leave a comment below and let us know!
About 4 or 5 months ago I had a box arrive from Columbia: A pair of their brand new Powerdrain shoes. I puzzled over what to do with them and at first look wasn’t sure they were a fit for me, but try them out I did and I found that in a very short time they became my go-to shoe for, well, pretty much everything.
The Powerdrains are somewhat of a minimalist shoe and the biggest goal they seem to have in mind is a water shoe, but in my experience they are much, much more.
Traction
If you’re new to Columbia or haven’t seen them in a while, you’ll be pleased to know that they’ve grouped their new products into different categories within their “OMNI” line. It makes it really easy to identify the key feature of the item. For example, these shoes are part of their OMNI-GRIP line. They use a high traction rubber that sticks really well to all sorts of surfaces, especially when wet, I can testify to that after taking them twice down one of Bolivia’s Incan trails where the 500+ year old stone trail is wet, steep and in many places polished to a slippery shine.
Although not an aggressive tread, they handle smooth, wet and slippery surfaces incredibly well.
The sole is divided into 4 parts, to make it more flexible and allow your foot to curve around uneven surfaces. It works really well, but may take a bit of getting used to if you’re accustomed to hiking boots. I prefer to hike in trail runners where the load suits it and really appreciate the flexibility. It reminds me of my summers as a child where I would go whole days through trails and streams barefoot, but with the added protection of rubber and foam soles. You do have to be careful of sharp rocks as the gaps between the rubber can poke at you, but it hasn’t caused any issues for me in the couple hundred kilometres I’ve taken these on roads and trails… mostly on trails.
Hiking down an Incan path on La Isla del Sol the Powerdrains gave
excellent traction, even when weighed down by two kids.
When hiking down the Incan Trail (called the Choro Trail), I took my powerdrains, but planned to use another pair of trail runners and save the powerdrains for river crossings and slippery sections. The trail runners (ASICS) left my feet so sore and were so uncomfortable (even with my feet taped) that I switched to the powerdrains on the first day. I’ve never worn the other brand’s trail runners again. When I did the Choro Trail the second time I only took the Columbia Powerdrains and didn’t have a single problem descending the 11000 feet on the 40 mile trail.
Drainage
Because you can’t keep any shoe waterproof, Columbia designed the Powerdrain to allow water in, but get rid of it as soon and as fast as possible. It has a really cool system to allow it to do so, utilizing the uppers, the inner sole and the outer sole.
The upper has a mesh exterior and foam interior which is dotted with holes. These allow the shoes to breathe well and water to enter and exit easily.
The sole itself has 9 holes in it that allow water to flow through from the inside of the shoe and drain out. I’ve found this to be great as the water often gets trapped in my other shoes and keeps them soggy and uncomfortable. It’s pretty fancy and works well because of the design of the inner sole of the shoe.
The screen of my Powerdrains after 3 days on the Choro Trail in Bolivia.
The inner sole is perforated allowing any water that doesn’t exit through the sides to drain into the bottom and out through the holes. If you lift up the inner sole, you can see a fine mesh attached to the sole that allows water to flow through it, but prevents any small debris from getting stuck in the drainage ports of the outer sole.
Comfort and Lacing
One of the things that made me worried about taking the Powerdrains on hard hikes was the lacing system. It uses one of those elastic pull systems, but the quality is all there. Despite my fears, it never slipped (unlike my shoes, even when using a double bow!). It always stays snug on my foot, but the elastic allows the lacing to stretch just enough when moving to keep your shoe from getting uncomfortable.
Their light weight and flexibility make them a very comfortable shoe.
Toe Cap
A huge benefit to this shoe is its toe cap. It’s a strong synthetic that keeps your toes from getting dinged up on rocks, but it does have a downside (on the 2012 model) that Columbia says they’re fixing for next year (2013). The toe cap is starting to separate on both of my shoes after a couple hundred kilometers of very hard use. Also, where the outer mesh of the shoe’s upper connects to the corner of the toe cap it has worn through from abrasion. Now, this is after a lot of hard use, and it’s really only an aesthetic problem at this point. It hasn’t compromised the structure or quality of the shoe.
That is the only real downside I have to the shoe, and that’s not much. I look forward to seeing how Columbia has planned to fix it for next year.
Overall thoughts The Powerdrain is an excellent shoe that serves for almost every walking or hiking situation. To call it a water shoe is to insult its capabilities. They can handle rough terrain, steep uphill and downhill and are excellent on slippery terrain. The drainage system is well thought out and very effective. Oh, don’t expect the withe and yellow to stay white for very long!
I’m seriously considering taking a 2013 pair like these on the John Muir Trail next summer.
If you’re looking for a lightweight minimalist shoes for hiking and trails, especially where you expect it to be wet and slippery, check these out, you won’t be disappointed.
As of this morning, we have reached 1527 subscribers and over 400000 views on our youtube channel. We’re using the opportunity to giveaway an awesome hydration system, filter and pack by Geigerrig. It’s the Rig 500 including an inline filter, and it’s an awesome pack for your daily pursuits.
We posted a review and did a video about the bigger brother the Rig 700 on the Hydration summit where we looked at the benefits of a pressurized system that doesn’t require sucking to get hydrated and we can’t recommend the system enough. As for the backpack, it’s a comfortable and durable setup that you won’t be afraid to chuck around or be rough with.
A special thanks to Geigerrig for giving us a RIG 500 and filter to give away to one of our reader or followers.
Check out the video review below and the giveaway announcement above for more information on this great system that has won numerous awards. Read on for how to enter.
Here’s how to enter:
I want to know what your backpacking system is. By that, I mean your backpack, sleep system (sleeping bag, quilt, sleeping pad if you use one) and shelter. I’ll give you 1 entry for a comment and 5 for a video response.
The contest is open to anyone in North America. Anyone outside NA can enter, but will have to pay for shipping. Any customs fees will also have to be covered to the winner.
One more time:
Leave a comment below telling me what your backpacking system is (see above for more details)
or subscribe to our youtube channel and leave a comment on the youtube video (link here)
or subscribe to our youtube channel and post a video response to the video (link again) showing the kit.
We’ll be running this one for 3 weeks (until the 14th of September) to give time for people to put together a video response. We’ll also be sharing the video responses on Facebook as we get the chance.
IMPORTANT UPDATE: While this DIY does make some neat, but potentially dangerous NEAR Infrared vision goggles, it will not help you see at night. Check out my follow up article: Do DIY IR goggles work?
Editors note: Today’s DIY comes via Craig Pearson of www.nightvision4less.com. He contacted us about a diy IR night vision goggle project that we just had to share. I bought the items needed on Amazon and can’t wait to try it out myself! We’ll definitely be revisting this DIY in the future!
DISCLAIMER: This project deals with potentially harmful vision enhancement equipment and should be constructed and used at your own risk. Thoroughly test to make sure that you have adequate low-light or no light conditions when testing your equipment. Your eye safety comes first!
How to make your own Night Vision Rig by Craig Pearson Background
As with many DIY projects, building your own night vision device can be as simple or in depth as you want it to be, depending on how much you’re willing to pay. In this article I’ll outline what the basic fundamentals and requirements for night vision are, and ways you can scavenge or create the different components.
There are several different ways that night vision can work. Infrared, Light Intensification (often used in conjunction with Infrared) and Thermal Imaging. The easiest for DIY purposes is Infrared, so let’s explain a bit more about that.
Infrared light, is light on the low end of the spectrum just below the range visible to the human eye. With the right equipment you can view this light, (which is what we are going to make). This type of technology, when used with an Infrared light source will allow you to see but remain undetected.Now that we’ve covered a very basic overview of how night visions technology works, let’s talk about how you can put together your own Infrared viewing device. Without special technology, the best we can create at home is NIR (Near Infrared), which is what many night vision systems use.
Summary:
The basic components for an NIR night vision setup include:
A way to see infrared light
A way to illuminate unsing infrared light
For this DIY we’re going to make our own IR goggles and use an IR light source to illuminate the night.
Materials needed:
goggles, welding glasses, or glasses – to mount the IR filters onto… and your IR illuminator if you want to.
IR filters – these will be placed in or on the goggles to allow you to see the IR light.
Craig Recommends Gel filters that are used in studio lighting.
You’ll need enough material to cut out 8 red lenses and 4 blue ones.
IR light source or Light Illuminator – For extremely low-light or no visible light conditions when extra illumination is necessary. (i.e. at night)
How to make the IR goggles
WARNING! DO NOT look at the sun with or without these glasses on. This can potentially make you go blind!
Remove all existing filters from the goggles.
Using the original lenses as a model, cut out 8 red lenses and 4 blue lenses from the gel filter sheet.
Insert 4 red and 2 blue lenses into or in front of EACH eye piece of the goggles (depending on if they fit or not).
That’s it! All you need to do now is go outside at night and test your new night vision setup! Either attach the light to your head or glasses or simply hold it like a flashlight and voila, you can see at night!
Good luck, and happy night adventures! As this is only Near Infrared, it won’t be nearly as bright as a proper setup, but you will get to experiment with the infrared spectrum.
-Craig Pearson
Craig Pearson is an avid hunter, outdoorsman, and adventurist. His main passions are hog hunting in Texas and writing about his many adventures. He currently blogs for nightvision4less.com, a supplier of high quality night vision equipment.
In my early days of backpacking, I was looking for a backpack that had large capacity and was inexpensive as most of my stuff was bulky and at that point I wasn’t sure if backpacking was going to be a long term sport for me. After looking at the array of backpacks, I ended up settling on the external frame JanSport Carson 80, much due to the fact that it was cheap and it was fairly close to the only pack I had ever used up to that point (a borrowed JanSport external frame).
Four years on and I still use this pack, and I’ve come to appreciate and use a good number of its features. The Pack weighs in at 4 lbs, 13 oz the pack is fairly lightweight given its price (less than $100) and its 80 liter capacity. As an external frame pack, it has an aluminium tube frame that provides the structure needed to carry the weight. Straps, belts, and the pack itself all attach to the frame. The pack has 2 large side pockets, a smaller back pocket and a good size top pocket in the lid. One of the features I’ve come to enjoy is the options for loading the main compartment. You can either load from the top or unzipping a front panel that also gives you access to the sleeping bag compartment (a fabric barrier between the top part of the back and the bottom) I find myself using both in packing but also on the trail when I realize the item that I want NOW is much lower in the pack than I had hoped. I can get into the guts of the main compartment without having too much impact on the rest of my stuff.
There were a couple items that I found frustrating about the pack. The lack of instructions* on how to adjust this pack (or any external frame pack) meant that each trip I’d be trying to figure out new ‘tweaks’ on how to make the pack sit better. It took 1.5 years to get it ‘almost right’ and now I think I’ve finally got it. The sleeping bag compartment is also one of those items that sometimes seem to just ‘get in the way’ rather than perform some useful function.
*Checking the website, it appears they’ve been working on this since I looked years ago, with instructional videos to show how to fit and pack a pack, although it isn’t specific for the Carson 80 or external frame packs.
Check out the video below and leave some comments!
The Bottom Line:
Pros:
–Relatively cheap
–Relatively lightweight (just a little heavier than a similarly priced 55 Liter internal frame pack)
–Easy to strap things to the outside
–Large capacity
Cons:
–Utter lack of instructions on how to adjust the pack
–The bottom bar sits a bit too low
–The sleeping bag divider can get in the way
Overall: It’s a good beginning pack that can let you learn what you like or don’t like about packs (or backpacking, if such a thing can happen). Its lack of instructions can be a bit unnerving and maybe downright annoying, but its features make up for its frustrations. Its large capacity makes it easy to make use of the camping equipment you already have at home before purchasing more backpacking specific gear. If you take your family out, you know you have the space and the the ability to carry what might be a phenomenal load.
It’s early morning, you may or may not have slept well and it’s cold… ever so cold. Scratch that. It’s late morning, you slept really well and you’re late to get back in the canoe to continue the trip. wait, wait… Even better, you’re planning to stop for lunch and it’s pouring rain; Your matches are wet and the anticipation of hot soup is killing you. Yah, that’s more like it. You’re hungry, you don’t want to light a fire or fetch water for your stove, but you want something hot, NOW! What do you do?
If you’re interested in a bit of creature comfort, you should probably think about packing a thermos on your next outdoor adventure. Those wonders of vacuum sealing and insulation that have been around for a LONG time and were in Grandad’s lunch kit are often ignored when making up your gear list, but there’s a reason Grandad packed it.
This could be your ticket to an easy morning at camp and relaxation when the rest of the crew are fiddling with stoves and have gone off to fetch a pail of water.
Sunrise on the Choro Trail. I took a Stanley vacuum food container on the trip to make morning meals easier.
As part of a car camping or canoe trip, day hike, car trip or even just to store a hot lunch, the old classic thermos can do a lot to make your day that much more comfortable. You can do all your water boiling at one time and still enjoy more than 1 hot meal per day.
A few months back I was sent a 20 oz Vacuum Food Jar by Stanley I’ve been experimenting with it since then and thinking of different ways to put something like this to use. It’s certainly not Ultralight gear material at 18 oz weight, but as a luxury addition to your canoe or car camping kit it’s a great little piece of gear that holds a wealth of convenience.
My Stanley vacuum food jar ready for the hot water.
Here’s a few tips or uses for your thermos. While making dinner, boil a couple extra cups and pour them into your thermos for the next morning. You won’t have to worry about getting water or fiddling with your stove or camp fire in the morning. You can even pack up camp the night before and be ready to go early for that extra 15 minutes of fishing! If the night gets really cold, you’re set for a cup of hot chocolate to warm you up for those extra couple hours until morning!
For all those DIY cookers and bulk buyers, you can save on waste and disposable junk by using your thermos to rehydrate your meals. Even better, you save on fuel as you just have to boil your water, pour your meal into the thermos, seal it and let it finish cooking there!
Here are some of the features of my Stanley Vacuum Food Jar:
Keeps hot/cold 12 hours.
Wide-mouth opening.
Protective double-wall construction.
Stainless steel.
Rustproof finish.
BPA free
Lifetime warranty.
In my experience, the 12 hour rating would be for a full container and probably at about sea level. When I tried it at altitude using 1/4 capacity (10000 feet where water boils at a lower temperature) it had cooled down significantly when I opened it after 12/13 hours. An 8 hour storage time would be a safe bet for keeping your food hot. At 9-10 hours it will be warm, not boiling hot.
The capacity is a big plus on this one. 20 oz is a great size for 2 hungry outdoors adventurers. The wide mouth top is one of my favorite features. I’ve been turned off thermoses in the past by how hard they are to clean out, but Stanley has certainly applied their years of experience to this one.
The Stainless steel also means that there’s no bad taste in the food, no matter how many hours it sits for.
To top it all off, in the lid there’s a nice foldable spoon. Although it looks a bit short for the depth of the jar, the wide mouth means that you’re not likely to get goop on your hand when you’re digging out the last of your oatmeal or stew.
If you haven’t thought about taking a thermos on the trail or in your canoe, you should definitely look into the options out there and think about the convenience factor of not having to pull your stove out all the time when you need a bit of hot water.
Do you have a Stanley or thermos story or maybe another tip for those who are new to thermoses? We’d love for you to leave a comment below!
The Outdoor Adventure was recently given the opportunity to let one of our younger adventurers put the Strider No-Pedal Balance Bike to the test! As this is a long-term testing process, we’ll be sharing the testing progress in segments for your viewing pleasure. So sit back and enjoy the ride, or go out and let your little adventurer take a Strider for a whirl!
I first heard about the Strider bike from a friend and her active 2-year old. He cruised around on his Strider with such confidence I knew I had to research them more! Once I watched some videos online, and browsed their website on www.StriderLife.com I knew I wanted to let Ayalah try one out. Strider graciously sent The Outdoor Adventure a beautiful green Strider and at 22-Months Ayalah was more than ready to try it out! They have plenty of information and a variety of colors to choose from on their website www.StriderBikes.com (video below)
I found the set-up to be very user friendly, and the instruction manual to be clear and concise with its wording. Of course, I still overlooked the bold lettering at the top of the page about taking the plastic wheel nut covers off after set up. I realized they weren’t just sweet pegs about halfway through the first ride, and removed them at that point without any harm done. Ayalah enjoys taking the Strider on our daily neighborhood walks, clutching the steering post close to her chest the whole way. We encourage her to scoot back on to the seat, but will let her decide when she feels comfortable enough to make this adjustment on her own. In the meantime we cheer on her every stride!
When Ayalah isn’t out on her Strider, she enjoys watching YouTube videos of other children on theirs. In fact, if we dare bring out a smartphone near her at any given time she will demand in true toddler fashion to watch videos of “bikes!” We are pleased that she too will be adding a few more videos to the mix!
Do you have a Strider for your little one? We would love to hear your thoughts and any tips you have to encourage her confidence to take it to the next level!
A Big Thanks to Strider for this awesome opportunity. You’ll be hearing more from us again soon!
This may seem like a strange review to post in early July, but for those peak baggers in the northwest, there’s still snow up there in them hills. I remember trying to climb Mt. Defiance in Washington last year and coming across waist deep snow in places. People were turning around and heading back down the Ira Spring trail because there wasn’t a lot of traction. Those that did go on slipped, slid and risked hurting themselves to beat the snow field. All those except for the smart ones that brought their trail crampons.
There are several different companies that make stretch crampons or non technical crampons designed for trail use. I’ve seen at least two and managed to get my hands on a pair of Trail Crampons by Hillsound for my trip to Bolivia.
Trekking around at over 15000 feet means the likelihood of hitting snow patches while on the trail is very high. I wanted something to bridge the gap between technical approaches and something I could whip out, attach to my hiking shoes/boots and traverse that field. The Hillsound Trail Crampons don’t disappoint.
Who is Hillsound?
Hillsound is a Canadian company setup in my backyard of Vancouver, BC. They produce several different Crampon products as well as some quality gaiters that I will be reviewing in another video (you can see them in use in the video review).
What is a stretch crampon?
Stretch crampons are a non technical traction enhancer that you can slip on over your shoes or boots. They’re used by hikers who expect to find areas of snow and or ice on the trails that could pose a danger to or prevent entirely hiking in altitude, or even early/late season hiking. They’re meant to be easy to put on and take off, but still provide enough traction.
What does the Hillsound Trail Crampon Offer?
The Hillsound Trail Crampons have 2 parts, a flexible elastomer top and a heavy duty stainless steel and high carbon steel bottom half.
The stretch harness is made of an elastic polymer that they call Elastomer. It’s flexible and stretchable and stays that way down to 60 below zero. To add extra stability, not that I feel it was need when I’ve used them, but regardless, there’s a strap that goes across the top of your foot to add that extra bit of security.
The spikes (points) are made of nice, hard, high carbon steel that gets a good bite into snow and ice. They’re a nice 3/4 inch long or 1.5 cm too. On the bottom there’s a hinged plate that flexes with your foot to make sure you keep traction when you’re lifting your foot. One thing you need to do is dry them and oil them when necessary, or they can rust. I haven’t had any problem so far, But I can see it being seasonal maintenance, like most gear.
You may have seen other brands with a type of spring covering a lightweight elastic. This is a heavier duty, more secure “elastomer” and it has real spikes. It makes them slightly heavier at 0.7 kg or just over 1 lb, but the pay off is in durability, stability and traction.
In the video review embedded above, you can see how easy they are to put on and take off, even with awkward gloves on.
Conclusions so far
After blundering around in snow, it’s really nice to have a portable and easy to use crampon to slip on on the trail and give me that aggressive traction necessary for hiking on snow and ice. They’re easy to use and I will take them on future hikes for fall and spring to give me that extra bit of traction.
At $60 online, If you’re looking for something to extend your hiking season in cold and snow areas, The Hillsound crew is really working hard and producing some really nice, quality gear. If you haven’t checked them out, stop by Hillsound.com and see what they have to offer.
I’ve only used them on well packed snow and ice and there weren’t any problems. Some have reported balling (snow packing up under the middle of your crampons), so something to keep in mind. I’ll be reporting back on long term results later.
DisclosureAs said previously, Hillsound provided me the crampons at my request. All opinions are my own and what I would tell any friend.
Recently I’ve been whittling away at pack weight to bring down my solo hiking pack size and weight to a more manageable load.
My overloaded pack for our first father – daughter backpacking trip. We brought too much, but at least she was comfortable!
I’ve been away on a couple weekend hiking trips (2 nights, 3 days) and I’ve gone light, but not too light. They were both first time trips and I didn’t want to go overly light, but at the same time I took an extra couple things to try out along the way. So, I wanted to share my recent gear list to make myself sit down and plan for future cuts.
For reference, I used this for my recent trip down the Choro Trail that starts peaks at 16000 feet and drops to 4400 feet and a tropical area. I expected to share my shelter with another guy.
This type of exercise is really good as it shows where you can improve. I recommend this for everyone. All you need is your gear and a simple kitchen scale.
The Basics – 6 lb 10 oz
A previous iteration of some of my gear
Backpack
Platypus Origin 35 liter backpack – 1 lb 14 oz
Sleep System
Vaude Icepeak 150 down bag – 1 lb 7 oz
Doite close cell foam pad – 7 oz
Shelter system (2 to 3 people)
Golite Cave 2 Tarp – 1 lb 3.5 oz
Golite Nest Mesh Tent – 1 lb 10.5 oz
The Extras
Stuff sacks – 2 oz
Sea to Summit Ultra Sil Nano 13 L WP – 1.25 oz
Outdoor Products 5L DWR – .75 oz
Cooking – 11.4 oz
1 can energy drink stove – 0.5 oz
Stanley SS pot – 7.7 oz
Stanley Insulated cup – 3 oz
Lighter – 0.2 oz
Clothing * Thermals worn on 1st day – 3 lbs 15.4 oz
Polarmax PMX hoody – 14.2 oz
Polarmax Compression tights – 6 oz
Golite Beartooth down jacket – 16 oz
South American knock-off Rain Jacket – 18 oz
Lorpen Merino wool socks – 2 oz
Wool sleep socks – 3.4 oz
Fleece gloves – 4 oz
Hydration – 6.75 oz
Geigerrig 2l – 5.5 oz
Geigerrig 50 gal filter – 1.25 oz
Gagets and Kit – 1 LB 5 oz
Compass – 1.8 oz
Cyclops LED headlamp – 1 oz
SOG Aegis Knife – 3.2 oz
SPOT Messenger – 5 oz
Survival kit – 4.5 oz
First Aid – 4 oz
Sea to Summit Wilderness Wash – 1.3 oz
Photo Videography – 1lb 7 oz
UL Tripod – 13.2 oz
Panasonic Lumix – 6 oz
Batteries and cards – 4 oz
All in we’re talking 14 lbs 9.6 oz before food, water and fuel. Depending on climate things could be lighter, but in a varying climate I like to keep my bases covered. I plan to invest in a more comfortable sleeping pad that is also lightweight (just hit 30 and I can feel the discomfort of closed cell foam). I’m also planning on making a bivvy when I get back from South America to save the weight of my mesh tent.
Ok, so we’re checking in with yet another Sea to Summit Product. For those who are unaware, just go to your local outdoors store and ask for the Sea to Summit Section. at least that’s how it’s laid out in my local store.
Sea to Summit produces great quality, ultralight gear for hikers. Anything from biodegradable soap that you need only a tiny capfull of for a shower or wash dishes, to shelters, bug tents and more. The real kit that impresses me is the wide array of waterproof bags and compression sacks. I was given a few of their light weight storage and stuff sacks by the company, including the Ultrasil View Drysack and Ultrasil Nano and as well the Ultra Mesh stuff sack which I’ll be looking at today.
Made of: Lightweight no see-um mesh, ultralight silnylon and a lightweight draw string.
Sizes and weights. There are a wide variety of stuff sack sizes to suit your mesh preferences:
2.5 liter (0.2 oz)
4 liter (0.3 oz)
6.5 liter (0.4 oz)
9 liter (0.5 oz)
15 liter (0.6 oz)
30 liter (0.7 oz)
As you can guess, the weighty part is the string and silnylon top and bottom. The rest is practically weightless.
Uses:
I have the 9 liter mesh sack and it’s just the right size for lightweight backpacking. I can’t confirm the capacity. I filled it with 9 liters of water and there was lots of space left. In fact I gave up trying to fill it up… bad joke. sorry.
I’ve been using them on a few of my trip happily and the mesh sack was the one that had me scratching my head at first as to what I could best use it for. This is what I came up with:
Non compression items. As a ditty bag for just keeping stuff organized this is great. A way to keep all of 1 type of thing together, like packaged food or snack bars, toiletries, cook set, etc.
Old clothes. I like to keep cleans and dirties in separate bags, but the dirties could use a bit of airing out. If you want to give that Merino wool a bit more time to breathe, why not hook it on the back of your backpack and take advantage of that summer breeze?
Bear sacks. For areas where hanging food and smellies is permitted, this is a great little bag as it’s light weight and comes in a wide variety of sizes.
Fish net? Ultralight is the king of multi use items. Why not make yourself a tenkara net on the trail and get the most out of 0.5 oz?
Bug net? Oh, and while the mest is tight enough, you’d need at least a 15 liter bag to fit your (my) head in it.
Do you use mesh stuff sacks? What have you found them most useful for? Oh, and take a look at this video for a brief look at this cool tool!
The Outdoor Adventure Giving you tips, tricks & recommendations to help make adventuring in the Outdoors fun, safe & exciting for you and your kids.
