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The  Perimeter 50 rucksack is a mid-weight pack with a ton of features including fine adjustments to back length, shoulder width, and hip sizing.  Granite Gear says, “Body Diversity, every person has a unique build, shape, and size. Your pack should fit accordingly.” Weighing in at 1500 grams may sound heavy compared to a lot of modern packs of a similar capacity. This …

Of all the usual gear chatter amongst the outdoor community, underwear is probably the least discussed, yet a crucial piece of kit to choose correctly.  Saxx has produced a range of high-wicking underwear with us receiving the  Volt. A highly breathable mid-length boxer, which Saxx say are, ‘Designed for the go-getters, workout or play sports in complete comfort with our …

The L.I.M Series is based on the insight that, with less weight to carry, you’ll move easier and experience more on your adventures. Simply put: Less.Is.More (L.I.M). We invented the L.I.M Series to push the limits of functional, technical, and lightweight trekking gear. If you trust what you wear, there’s no need to carry more than necessary. To pull off that equation, the equipment must deliver …

MVTR stands for moisture vapor transmission rate. It measures the rate at which moisture permeates through a fabric measured in grams/meter /day. As it turns out though, this is a very hard measurement to make and therefore figures should be used as a rough guide only.

The FreeLite series gets a makeover and is now lighter than its predecessors. Poles weigh 226g Flysheets weigh 416g Inner tent weighs 338g Total weight 980g The tent I was given to test has a dark flysheet but this didn’t seem gloomy in any way. We camped in high summer and the weather was good so the tent hasn’t had a long term test nor tested in stormy conditions. …

The  Black Diamond Distance tent is a good example of the kind of tent I look out for – it’s spacious for one person (although Black Diamond says it’s a two-person), has a good head height and is very lightweight. It achieves its lightweight tag by being single skin and utilising your trekking poles as its support structure. Also, there’s no porch for storing gear – so using the …

I’ve used both the  20Litre and the 28Litre versions of Montane’s Trailblazer LT ultralight rucksacks and I am very impressed, considering their overall weight they pack an amazing amount of features and functionality and are remarkably comfortable thanks to the vest-pack type harness and generous hip fins. One of the key features is the bladder pocket which sits betwe …

The ROC GTX Jacket from  Haglof’s is perfectly suited to Hikers and Backpackers a-like due to the simple design that will stand the test of time with a rucksack on your back. First of all, this is not a shell that you will pop in your rucksack for the off chance of rain, but a jacket for trips/days out where rain will definitely be a factor. The 3-layer Gore-Tex will take all th …

We were watching LEKI's guide to why you should use trekking poles, it was so good we added a link to it here. Then we realised there was more than one - so here are both of them, they're really good.

“The more constraints one imposes, the more one frees oneself” - Igor Stravinsky.The Genesis of an IdeaIn the first three months of 2021, leisure travel was disallowed to contain the coronavirus. Again, I was exiled from my beloved Lakeland fells. True, I was much luckier than most - the Bowland hills are on my doorstep - but I dreamed of the day I would be able to run the Cumbrian ridges ag …

Alpha is one of a range of insulation from Polartec, we explain what it does and include our opinion of it.

What affects the warmth?Down Quality Generally the more down in a jacket (fill weight), the warmer it is going to be but this assumes the down is the same quality. However, down quality can vary significantly and is measured by its fill power. A higher fill power down will keep you warmer than a lower fill power. To make matters worse there are two widely recognised methods of measuring Fill Power …