Category: Climbing
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The penultimate pack
Just like with beer or coffee, every one is the penultimate. I wanted to do a couple things with this one. First, experiment with 5.3 oz/yard hybrid cuben fiber. Second, fix the mistakes/things I didn’t like about this pack. To whit; a too-short torso length (you’d think I would know better), less than ideal shoulder…
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RIT die for synthetic garments
I have issues with hats. This is mostly a performance thing. While the scientific robustness of the old claim that you loose an outsize amount of heat through your head is coming into question, the fact that temperature regulation via hats is fast and easy remains unassailable. As readers will know, I have a brain…
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The Black Diamond Alpine Start Hoody
Surely, the windshirt quest will never stop. Finding an ideal active layer for days which are neither warm nor arctic, neither calm nor storming fiercely, involves delicate balancing of contradictory attributes. The shirt must be significantly wind resistant, but quite breathable. It must be light, but tough, especially given that a windshirt will be used…
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Anorak conversions for blown main zippers
It is to be expected that a heavily used jacket with a #3 main zip, like the 2.1 year old Rab Xenon pictured here, will have zipper failure within the useful life of the garment. While manufacturers continue to use these zips on weekly-use pieces, for reasons of weight, cost, and pliability, repairs will be…
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Review the review: OGL on Headlamps
I may have given them some shit recently, but a few weeks ago Outdoor Gear Lab atoned for any past sins and then some, with an outstanding headlamp review. I can’t think of anything they left unexamined. Breadth (37 lamps) and depth (beam patterns, real world run times) are present. Basic theory (why have a…
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Seek Outside Big Sibling stove review
I am not going to discuss the theory and applicability of a backpackable wood stove here. For that, go elsewhere. If you are interested in the lightest and most compact such stove currently available, read on. The Big Sibling is the lightest wood stove on the market because it dispenses with a lot of what…
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2013 in review: 14 landscapes
The year in chronological review; one photo for each month, with two for June and October as I just couldn’t pick. Which is a fitting, as the sheer volume of excellence in 2013 is overwhelming when looked back over. As far as trips go, I’m struggling with plans for 2014. Options are not in short…
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2013 Trip Report Contest
2013 is over, but I thought it was a pretty good year. I’ve yet to muster much enthusiasm for my personal retread of the year, but I do want to highlight the remarkable year had by the community who reads this. The rules are simple. Nominate a trip report by posting the link in the…
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Rab Zephyr review
Casey Greene photo. I’ve owned a lot of windshirts in the last few years. Out of all that, the bottom line is this: if I could only have one windproof to go along with a WPB shell and a variety of insulating layers, I’d pick the Rab Zephyr and be totally content 95% of the…
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That’s not a review
The internet makes experts of all, that much is certain. What is less so is how to know which items are worth the time they take to read. Just going for a walk has become “gear testing.” This should be condemned for two reasons. First, it’s bullshit. Second, it supports the talking before doing acquisitionalism…
Bedrock & Paradox 
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