Category: Packrafting
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Distance learning
There has been a lot of discussion lately concerning the new, or newly rediscovered, hikers and bikers and outdoorspeople the pandemic has brought out of rooms amongst the trees. It is logical, and I see it as an extension of the last decades trend of increased outdoor participation in profile, if not as a percentage…
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Packrafting the Crown of the Continent, revised
When it comes to packrafting the next three months have excellent potential. A pretty good winter in the Glacier and the Bob has turned into a darn good spring, with plenty of water yet to be released. Not necessarily exceptional, but if May doesn’t prove too warm, good flows could persist into August. It seems…
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Islands of moisture revisited
“…under duress the most important characteristic of your clothing system is not the ability to keep external moisture off you, but the ability to allow internal moisture to escape efficiently without chilling you excessively.” –Me In the ~five years since I wrote the above post, and since Sitka popularized the concept of the rewarming drill. …
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Evolution of the Tamarisk: features
Or; as few things as possible. Backpack features don’t make up the majority of a packs weight, but they do make up the overwhelming majority of the weight which is easily negotiable. There is only so much weight to be shed with material (before you sacrifice durability), only so much with suspension or frame elements…
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The Bob bag
Lets get this out of the way: I won’t make you one of these. Working with these fabrics and with stretchy Climashield is not something I find fun. This design is straightforward and quick to make, so create your own ugly. Ever since my first Wilderness Classic nearly a decade ago I’ve been turning this…
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Do it now
In the past week I’ve seen a noteworthy uptick in orders for Packrafting the Crown of the Continent, which is cool, because it would seem to mean that folks are planning for a future which allows for bigger dreams. Escapism, and as I mentioned the other day, familiarity are powerful attractants in the face of…
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The Open 2020
I updated the information for the 2020 Bob Open just now. Removing the mass start option seemed to be the most responsible solution for the uncertainty surrounding the virus. This means that I encourage everyone for whom the circumstances in two months time make it safe to do the walk, be it the circumstances of…
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Evolution of the Tamarisk; side pockets
Side pockets which are easily accessible on the go and large enough to carry a significant percentage of the days gear (water, food, rain gear, maps, etc) are the defining element of a modern backpacking pack. Belt and shoulder strap pockets can play supporting roles here, but my last three years of testing has heavily…
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Evolution of the Tamarisk; load carriage
I am delighted to report that the Tamarisk is finished. If by finished I mean that the prototype I completed a month ago and have been testing exhaustively since requires almost no changes. The patterns can now be set in stone, and the road towards production begin. This may not be a short road: I’m…
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A decade in the outdoors
7 things that happened in the past decade; equipment, trends, and the ways the two intersect to create human experience. The Alpacka booty The technological advancement of the decade is, for outdoor adventure, without question the packraft. 10 years ago the state of the art was the above. Today, boat shapes make that level of…
Bedrock & Paradox 
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