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This was not my first use of these boots, I’d been using them for about a year prior to this trip, I’d bought them as a winter boot for days out in the Lake District where I didn’t see the need for big traditional winter boots. They will take a lightweight micro crampon for traversing ice, they are waterproof and warm enough with mid-weight socks for everything I’d be doing during a Lak …

I was using a Platypus 2.0L Hoser as my daily hydration system so I decided to leave the clean side bladder at home and use the hoser in its place, this brought the weight of the system down to 221g, which is reasonable for piece of mind and ease of use. There are certainly pump action filters that are lighter than this but they take quite a bit of effort to get the same filtered res …

The Big Agnes Platinum series tent use the lightest of materials to get down to astonishingly low weights at 1113grams for a three person, two skin, two door, spacious shelter. My main reason for taking this tent on the Tour of the Matterhorn was to assess its robustness, not so much a long-term durability test but an out-of-the-box assessment of whether the tent was up to the rigours …

With two glacier crossings on the Tour of the Matterhorn crampons came highly recommended, but they would only be used for a few hours on two of the days and both glaciers were at relatively shallow gradients, there was very little steep terrain to cover. Bearing all this in mind we decided on the Petzl Irvis Hybrid crampons which at 536grams for the pair weren’t too onerous beari …

I was lucky enough to get a chance to review a pre-production pair of the new Gram-counter Gear Ultra-Carbon Trekking poles, amazingly light at just 125grams per pole, actually the lightest true trekking pole we have available, and of all the products I tested on the Tour of the Matterhorn these were the most remarkable. Note the pre-production poles I had are identical to the actual …

A baselayer is a baselayer isn’t it? Not so, I Love my Montane Allez Pull-on and did so the first time I put it on. What I like about it is Polartec fleecy grid fabric on the inside face is just so soft and comfy while still being highly breathable. I wore mine on a warm and sunny late September day hiking above Zermatt in Switzerland, it was 20 degrees but I didn’t overheat and felt …

Gossamer Gear’s Mariposa 60 is an amazing rucksack, there are three elements to it that make it so good; 1.It has a feature set designed by backpackers that actually work 2.It has a very comfortable harness system 3.It is extremely lightweight despite 1 and 2 above. Feature Set On a recent trip to Switzerland backpacking the Tour of the Matterhorn we took the Mariposa for a tes …

Worn as a daytime synthetic layer on a backpacking trip in late September to Switzerland, the micro puff seems to be one of the lightest insulated jackets around. I carry a down jacket against the evening chill but a light synthetic for daytime, and as I’m normally on the move I don’t need too much to keep me warm. The Micro Puff is ideal for the job and I was really impressed by how …

Sea to Summit have thought about the design of the Alto tents very carefully trying not to recreate what’s already available and fans of the brand will not be disappointed with this tent. We took the Plus version out for a three-day backpacking trip at the beginning of April when the weather was very cold but quite clear. The cold conditions (sub zeroC) required largish sleeping bags an …

When Nigor folded as a company the product designs were taken up by Bach, already a well-known rucksack brand. Bach has taken the designs and added these largely unchanged shelters to its offering. A key USP for Nigor was the use of ‘Nylon 6.6’ as opposed to standard Nylon 6 used by most manufacturers and Bach has continued with this type of nylon. It is significantly better than the …

As a well-seasoned bike-packer, I have mastered the art of strapping cargo onto my bike and into various packs, panniers and pouches for multi-day travels. So, when I got the opportunity to test the Nemo Dragonfly Bikepack 2P, a 2-person, bike-packing specific tent, I jumped at the chance to see for myself if this could be a game-changer or just a gimmick to jump on the bandwagon fol …

Useful for keeping both sun and rain out of your eyes, a cap is a summer essential. This one has UPF 50+ protection and is breathable and moisture-wicking to reduce sweat-induced discomfort; water- resistant and quick-drying for wearing in the wet. It also has a foldable brim so it packs easily away in your pocketVERDICTBreathable, packable, quick-drying, and designed for outdoor living. …