Stoves for Winter Camping

Members of WinterCampers.com have displayed variety of cooking options – using a fire for simple meals, white gas stoves, canister stoves and alcohol stoves.

Zenstoves.net has a great article entitled “How to Choose a Backpacking Stove”. The article addresses factors such as fuel types used, fuel availability, weight and fuel efficiency, speed of cooking, cooking needs, [...]

BackCountry.com’s Softshell Jacket Buyer’s Guide

Backcountry.com posted a soft shell jacket buyer’s guide that provides information on the different options a buyer should consider before purchasing a soft shell.  Soft shells are great for the edge seasons of winter camping.  They can be considered heavy when compared to a down or synthetic jacket if you are just seeking warmth.

Softshell Jacket [...]

Homemade Trekking Poles

I recently discovered a nice blog “Gear Talk with Jason Klass” who blogs a running commentary on backpacking gear and DIY gear projects.  His most recent post is a nice one describing how to make Carbon fiber trekking poles on the cheap -  the components included:

42″ Carbon golf club shafts. $5 each on eBay.
Cork grips. [...]

Gearing up for Winter

Craig Hill has a news article in the Tacoma, WA News Tribune today recommending 16 different pieces of gear for winter camping.

REI Mountain 2 tent
Voile Telepack Snow Shovel
SMC Sno-Tent Anchor
Marmot Never Summer
Pacific Outdoor Equipment Cruiser Lite
Therm-a-Rest Z-lite
Gregory Palisade 80
REI Duck’s Back pack cover
MSR Denali Classic Snowshoes
Leki Summit Antishock Trekking Poles
Black Diamond Spot headlamp
CamelBak StoAway
Outdoor Products [...]

Timex Expedition Watch Received

As one of the 15 Finalists in the Return to the Outdoors Contest we won outdoor gear featuring products from The North Face, Camelbak, Timex and Ahnu footwear.  Friday I received the Timex Expedition Adventure Tech Altimeter watch.

It is a heavy watch; in addition to date/time functions it has temperature, barometer and altimeter functions. I [...]

Primaloft Pants

Through Matt’s initiative Mark, Matt and I are having primaloft pants made.  I love primaloft fabric for warmth in winter camping.  PrimaLoft is as warm as down, compressible, breathable and offers superior water repellency.  I have a couple of primaloft jackets and have looked with envy at the BeyondClothing Primaloft pants.

Matt purchased the fabric and [...]

Backpack Reviews

Shopping for a new backpack?  Backpacker Magazine has a review of six large load hauler backpacks costing less than $150. BackPackingLight has a review of six light weight internal frame packs ranging from $13-250 in cost and four frameless packs in the $100-130 range.