As The North Face has looked back over the years, they understand that while it is important to grow and offer less technical products for the general consumer, it is also important to continue with innovation and making products for the original customer. With a heritage of making products for mountaineering and hardcore expeditions, The [...]
When buying a headlamp, many people think all they need/want is a light that turns on and off with maybe a few light settings. As technology is changing our lives with facebook, iPods, smartphones, etc; it’s also changing how we play outdoors. I’ve been testing out the Black Diamond Spot Headlamp and while it might [...]
For the Outdoors person that loves to get outside in pretty much any temperature, but isn’t quite ready and can’t afford a more expensive down sleeping bag, we want to offer you some options. Now we often review higher end down sleeping bags on Active Gear Review, but to be fair to all people, we [...]
With warmer temperatures upon us and insects and gnats starting to come out of hibernation, having a bug repellent is something that most of us like to keep on hand. BugBand is a new product line that comes in the form of a towelette, wristband, and a spray. What sets BugBand apart from other insect repellents [...]
One of the most versatile temperature rating in a sleeping bag is 15 degrees Fahrenheit in my mind. 15 degree sleeping bags are 3-season bags as winter temperatures often can dip below the 15 degree threshold and at that point, you usually want a 0-degree sleeping bag. Typically while backpacking and car camping I like to [...]
I have always wanted an ultralight and portable backpacking stove that doesn’t sacrifice on cooking performance and the snow peak Gigapower Auto Stove might be the answer. The Gigapower is a canister-fuel powered camp stove that packs down to about as small as you could possibly get away with while still offering strong heating ability. [...]
Named after a mountain range in Switzerland, the Lowa Albula GTX WS is designed to take you where you want to go, whether near or far. The Albula GTX WS is women’s specific backpacking/trekking boot, hence the WS acronym. Lowa is known for making high quality mountaineering to hiking boots, therefore their standards or definitions [...]
Last year, I had coat envy of one of our male testers: he got to try out Patagonia’s Nano Puff Pullover and raved about it. This year, I received the Patagonia Nano Puff Hoody jacket to review. I am glad I was patient enough and waited my turn because the full zip design and added [...]
Spork? For some of you, this word may be a tad foreign. However, Light My Fire is attempting to make the word and their product, sporks, a household, or shall I say campground favorite. Light My Fire hired Scandinavian designer Joachim Nordwal to aid in product development. The end result, an extremely handy combination of [...]
Being a female and short in height, it can be hard to find a pack that fits and fits comfortably. I already accepted that I fit in kid’s sized hats, but I wasn’t ready to give in and use a kid size backpack. My body was getting used to knots and pain in the shoulder [...]
The Kelty Coromell 0 is the best bang for your buck when it comes to a zero degree down sleeping bag. The MSRP is just over $200, however, you can find it online for a tad less, which makes it a great deal. Aside from being an economical choice, the Kelty Coromell 0 is also [...]
I have no bias against fishing, I’ve just never done much of it. But fishing was the focus of a recent family trip to the Abacos in the Bahamas, bone fishing at that! From what I’ve been told and experienced, bone fishing is more like hunting—you see a tell-tale swirl on the surface of the [...]
Do you like to venture out into the great outdoors in winter but hate to be cold when sleeping? Being cold while sleeping equates to absolute misery and thoughts of nothing other than a warm bed and a hot cup of tea. Thankfully, Mountain Hardwear offers up a solution to this quandary, the Phantom 0 [...]
April showers might bring you May flowers, and the Marmot Super Mica Jacket offers you protection from April showers so that you hike on to enjoy May flowers. This super light waterproof rain jacket is the perfect piece of gear for those of you that like to go ultra light, but don’t want to sacrifice [...]
This spring I had the opportunity to test 2 jackets that utilized the latest and greatest fabric technology, GORE-TEX® Paclite®. So what is GORE-TEX® Paclite®? Well, simply put it is a fully waterproof and breathable 3-layer fabric that weighs 15% less than other 3 layer constructions. Products featuring Paclite® are designed to endure extreme wet [...]
Lightload towels are one of the best products we have come across this season. They are perfect for hiking, cycling, traveling, camping, and any other activity you can think of. We tested the hand towel sizes which fits in the palm of your hand while in the package which makes it perfect when space is [...]
A light weight camp stove is a must for any traveler that wants to go fast and pack as little as possible. However, it has to work or the consequence can be serious. M.S.R. has been making stoves and other cookware for 40 years and they know that keeping things simple is the best way [...]
One of the most versatile degree bags for the majority of campers is typically between 15-20 degrees. With so many sleeping bags on the market with this degree rating, it can often be hard to find the bag that is right for you. At an MSRP of $370, the GoLite Adrenaline 3 Season Mummy sleeping [...]
Tis the season for camping! The Sierra Designs Zolo 3 tent is a great option for those of you that are looking for a 3-person tent for car camping and backpacking. The tent’s travel weight is 6 lbs 5 oz, which puts it in the middle of the road for weight as far as high [...]
Columbia’s Ziggin Rollup Capri follows the trend of versatile clothing: athletic pieces with high tech fabric that can be used for a variety of activities, yet they do not look out of place in the casual setting as well. In these economic times, it is important to have multifunctional pieces. We have been wearing the [...]
The first time our tester wore the Salomon RX Moc was actually out on a trail run. Early one morning, two of our testers got together for a trail run and our female tester unfortunately wore the Salomon RX Moc in the car (because they were so comfortable and easy to slip on) and forgot [...]
Hiking boots usually fall into two categories – can do… and can’t do. The latter category tends to disappoint about two hours into your day. Those comfy “get around town looking fashionable” boots are shredded, your toes hurt, and forget about carrying ANYTHING, much less a pack. La Sportiva takes the former category one step [...]
Patagonia’s Bly Mid Gore-Tex hiking boot is comfortable on your first hike and requires little to no break in time. If you have ever worn the Bly Low, the Mid will be an easy transition and instant favorite. We tested the Bly on Front Range Colorado hikes and even strapped on a pair of snowshoes [...]
