NanoPro 3L soft shell. Haven’t had a chance to use it in wet weather yet.
Category: Camping
Patagonia Cragsmith 32L
Got this on clearance. Very light, thickly padded. It holds its form so it’s kind of like carrying a box on your back. I like though.
Gregory Zulu 40
Got this because of the four day Cuidad Perdido (Lost City) trek in Colombia. It will be hot and humid. I needed a pack that would keep the gear off my back. The mesh back does the job. I also needed a hip belt because of my shoulder surgery. This was on clearance, so it fit the bill.
It’s quite light by my standards and easily big enough for the trip.
Patagonia Nano-Air Insulated Jacket
So far this jacket is perfect for ~50F weather. It’s very light, mildly water resistant since it’s not down, and comfortable.
The only problem is the sleeves are too long. Considering getting it tailored.
Update: ended up returning it and getting a size smaller. Now it’s slightly too snug, but the sleeves are much better.
Mountain Hardwear Phantom Down Hooded Jacket
Super warm down jacket.
Update: This thing is crazy hot. I put it on to go for a walk in 50F weather and within five minutes I was sweating. There is absolutely no reason to wear this above 40F, maybe even 30F.
In retrospect, I would have been better off with the lighter version of this to wear over my Nano-Air, but oh well. Now I just have to swap them as I get warmer or colder.
Outdoor Research Bolin Jacket
Fabric:
- AscentShell™ 3L
- 100% nylon 20D ripstop with 100% polyester backer Upper: AscentShell™ 3L
- 100% nylon 70D plain weave with 100% polyester backer
So this jacket is sized rather strangely. It’s arm length is good, but it’s even tighter than the Nano-Air around the gut. It’s an XL, but every other XL I own is far larger. If this wasn’t 75% off, I would return it. I’ll just see if I can lose a few pounds to fit in it better.
Mountain Hardwear Absolute Zero mittens
Picked up some Mountain Hardwear Absolute Zero mittens.
Slept with these on my hands when I slept in the bed of the truck in Tahoe. Hands warmed up in about 3 minutes. Glad I had them, but haven’t had a chance to use them throughout the day.
Snowshoes
Possibly looking into snowshoes. Record stuff here.
Black Diamond Women’s Liquid Point GTX Shell
So my wife just bought this. It’s rained every day since. So far so good. I know a few days doesn’t make a solid review, but we’ll see after a few downpours.
Basic technical data:
- GORE-TEX Paclite 2.5L
- 75d plain-weave face
- DWR finish (125gsm, 100% polyester)
- Two-way armpit zip vents
- Weight : 350 g (12.3 oz)
It fits nicely over her Mountain Hardwear StretchDown DS jack.
Winter Sleeping Bag
By far the best budget buy I found for a down bag was the REI Co-op Magma 10. Haven’t used it yet, but will report back.
Report: sleeping bag was comfortable at 25 degrees. Plenty of space, weighs next to nothing, packs down very small too.
Update: Next trip at 25 degrees, I froze. Horrible. I returned the bag.
Project Hemingway 