Must-Have Gear for the Hiker in Your Life
I don’t know about you, but hiking is one of my absolute favorite activities! It’s cheap (usually FREE), beautiful, and you get a good workout in and enjoy yourself all-the-while.
Over the last few years I’ve really done my research (who am i kidding, BRYSON’s done our research; let’s not try to hide the fact that nothing thrills the man more than looking up cool outdoor gear) and discovered some brilliant pieces of gear that you’re sure to love.
Trust me, I have them all (Bryson’s a notoriously and self-proclaimed bad gift-giver, so he jumps at the opportunity to give awesome outdoor equipment whenever he can, and I benefit a lot of the time).
1. Hiking boots/trail running shoes
I’m not trying to get everyone to buy the same trail runner’s that I have; everyone’s feet are different, and everyone has a different preference for footwear. But I have the Saucony Peregrine 7’s and I just fawn over them.
The amount of grip on the soles is perfect for scaling any hill, and they are dual-purpose shoes for me because I do a lot of trail running in them as well. I also LOVE the fact that they’re low-tops (aka they don’t go over-top of my ankles). There’s nothing I hate more than having my ankle motion constrained when hiking, but I also have fairly strong and flexible ankles.
If you feel like you’re tempting fate by not having support around your ankles then definitely go with some high top hiking boots; nothing ruins a good hiking day like a sprained ankle and the thought of hobbling a few miles to get back out to the trailhead!
2. PrAna Halle pants (PSA: these are women’s pants; sorry, don’t know what the male equivalent is at this point).
I CANNOT say in words how much I adore these pants. Crazy words, I know. But if you had them, you’d totally understand where I’m coming from. I have them in black and they are the most comfortable things of life, and even better, they double as business-casual DRESS PANTS.
I wear them in the PT clinic and then come home and forget to change out of them. Quite the difference from the usual scramble out of jeans/dress pants and into leggings or sweats 2 seconds after stepping through the door.
Also, practicing physical therapy makes me put my body in a lot of interesting positions when I’m treating patients or showing a patient how to properly perform an exercise, and these pants stretch in all possible directions without any chance of falling down in the back or allowing the top of my underwear to show. AMAZING.
Plus, the bottoms roll up and fasten to make them into capris for if you’re out on the trail on a cold morning and then end up working up a sweat in the heat of the midday sun. I’m not lying to you when I say that nothing would make me happier than to have these in every.single.color. Just go buy them, you’ll thank me later.
3. Osprey Hydration pack
I’m not sure which version of the osprey pack I have, but i think it’s actually a child’s size. It holds 1.5 liters of water, while the normal osprey packs for women hold 2 liters, and men’s packs hold 3 liters. I purposely went with the kids pack because I was planning to use it for trail running as well as hiking.
If you’re just using it for hiking, I’d recommend a normal adult pack because it will have more room to store your food/layers for the day. Mine has just barely enough room in it for a full day of hiking, but not any room to spare or space for shedding layers (unless you cinch them in the outer bungees).
I love the ease of this pack (super easy to fill and store, and I never have to worry about leaks) and the fact that it’s lightweight and fits snugly to my body without bouncing around when I run. I also use it for mountain biking and adventure racing, and it would be the perfect companion to stay hydrated during a summer music festival. The nozzle sticks magnetically to one of the shoulder straps for easy access and little fumbling.
One thing to keep in mind that isn’t the best about this pack is that there is one small portion of hose that I can’t really figure out a simple way to clean. I know you can buy replacements, but that seems like more work than I feel like doing.
4. Outdoor Research Cathode Jacket
Let me tell you about this jacket. Bryson discovered it and bought one for himself and would not shut up about how amazing it was, and then proceeded to buy one for me. This jacket has a thin layer of PrimaLoft Gold (synthetic form of down, but I honestly had to look this up because I thought it WAS down; it’s crazy light and warm) throughout most of the jacket, but on the sides of the torso, there’s a breathable, stretchy material (originally meant to help with reaching in climbing). The jacket also has an insulated, adjustable hood.
The main purpose of the jacket overall is to be able to work out in the cold weather without getting overheated and having to shed or add layers with every slight temperature fluctuation. Now, if you’re like me and create a lot of heat whenever you’re moving your body, you’ll probably still get a little overheated, but I admit, I’m an outlier (I work up a LOT of heat).
But I love this jacket; it’s so comfortable, just warm enough, and versatile. The women’s version also has a really nice cut in a more feminine shape, with a slightly longer back that really is flattering. I have a size M (which fits me perfectly loosely) and I'm 5'5" and about 128 lbs.
5. Headlamp
Not necessarily anything groundbreaking with this one, but essential nonetheless. Perfect for getting to the top of that mountain in time for the sunrise just like this time in Colorado.
Sorry, I had to throw this in; the sunrise hike was one of the best parts of the trip. At the summit, the moon was setting on one side of us and on the other, the sun was rising (the bottom picture there tries to show this). It was breathtaking.
Headlamps are dual (or tri?) purpose because you also will use them while camping, and for running after dusk/before dawn. Some good brands for headlamps are Petzl and Black Diamond.
6. 2nd skin
This is the hiker’s best friend (I prefer the squares). Always keep some in your bag just in case you start to get a hot-spot in your boot. And once you put the 2nd skin or moleskin on, ahhhhh sweet relief. It's really like a gel that somehow mostly keeps its form while you wear it; quite incredible. There’s nothing better than happy feet; or more accurately, there’s nothing worse than unhappy feet, but let’s be optimists here.
7. Smartwool Socks
Speaking of keeping your feet happy: smartwool socks. These bad boys are simultaneously warm yet breathable, soft yet rugged, and cheap yet expensive (haha). That last one was kind of a joke, but in all seriousness, I think $13 (ish) is expensive for socks, but that’s a tiny price to pay for warm and comfortable feet.
Side note: I haven’t tested this, but it’s been said that you can wear these for up to a week without them getting nasty; I’ll just take their word for it.
What did you think of my gear roundup? Is there anything I missed? What equipment or gear do you swear by for your outdoor adventures? Let me know what you think if you end up trying any of these out!
Over the last few years I’ve really done my research (who am i kidding, BRYSON’s done our research; let’s not try to hide the fact that nothing thrills the man more than looking up cool outdoor gear) and discovered some brilliant pieces of gear that you’re sure to love.
Trust me, I have them all (Bryson’s a notoriously and self-proclaimed bad gift-giver, so he jumps at the opportunity to give awesome outdoor equipment whenever he can, and I benefit a lot of the time).
1. Hiking boots/trail running shoes
I’m not trying to get everyone to buy the same trail runner’s that I have; everyone’s feet are different, and everyone has a different preference for footwear. But I have the Saucony Peregrine 7’s and I just fawn over them.
The amount of grip on the soles is perfect for scaling any hill, and they are dual-purpose shoes for me because I do a lot of trail running in them as well. I also LOVE the fact that they’re low-tops (aka they don’t go over-top of my ankles). There’s nothing I hate more than having my ankle motion constrained when hiking, but I also have fairly strong and flexible ankles.
If you feel like you’re tempting fate by not having support around your ankles then definitely go with some high top hiking boots; nothing ruins a good hiking day like a sprained ankle and the thought of hobbling a few miles to get back out to the trailhead!
2. PrAna Halle pants (PSA: these are women’s pants; sorry, don’t know what the male equivalent is at this point).
I CANNOT say in words how much I adore these pants. Crazy words, I know. But if you had them, you’d totally understand where I’m coming from. I have them in black and they are the most comfortable things of life, and even better, they double as business-casual DRESS PANTS.
I wear them in the PT clinic and then come home and forget to change out of them. Quite the difference from the usual scramble out of jeans/dress pants and into leggings or sweats 2 seconds after stepping through the door.
Also, practicing physical therapy makes me put my body in a lot of interesting positions when I’m treating patients or showing a patient how to properly perform an exercise, and these pants stretch in all possible directions without any chance of falling down in the back or allowing the top of my underwear to show. AMAZING.
Plus, the bottoms roll up and fasten to make them into capris for if you’re out on the trail on a cold morning and then end up working up a sweat in the heat of the midday sun. I’m not lying to you when I say that nothing would make me happier than to have these in every.single.color. Just go buy them, you’ll thank me later.
3. Osprey Hydration pack
I’m not sure which version of the osprey pack I have, but i think it’s actually a child’s size. It holds 1.5 liters of water, while the normal osprey packs for women hold 2 liters, and men’s packs hold 3 liters. I purposely went with the kids pack because I was planning to use it for trail running as well as hiking.
If you’re just using it for hiking, I’d recommend a normal adult pack because it will have more room to store your food/layers for the day. Mine has just barely enough room in it for a full day of hiking, but not any room to spare or space for shedding layers (unless you cinch them in the outer bungees).
I love the ease of this pack (super easy to fill and store, and I never have to worry about leaks) and the fact that it’s lightweight and fits snugly to my body without bouncing around when I run. I also use it for mountain biking and adventure racing, and it would be the perfect companion to stay hydrated during a summer music festival. The nozzle sticks magnetically to one of the shoulder straps for easy access and little fumbling.
One thing to keep in mind that isn’t the best about this pack is that there is one small portion of hose that I can’t really figure out a simple way to clean. I know you can buy replacements, but that seems like more work than I feel like doing.
4. Outdoor Research Cathode Jacket
Let me tell you about this jacket. Bryson discovered it and bought one for himself and would not shut up about how amazing it was, and then proceeded to buy one for me. This jacket has a thin layer of PrimaLoft Gold (synthetic form of down, but I honestly had to look this up because I thought it WAS down; it’s crazy light and warm) throughout most of the jacket, but on the sides of the torso, there’s a breathable, stretchy material (originally meant to help with reaching in climbing). The jacket also has an insulated, adjustable hood.
The main purpose of the jacket overall is to be able to work out in the cold weather without getting overheated and having to shed or add layers with every slight temperature fluctuation. Now, if you’re like me and create a lot of heat whenever you’re moving your body, you’ll probably still get a little overheated, but I admit, I’m an outlier (I work up a LOT of heat).
But I love this jacket; it’s so comfortable, just warm enough, and versatile. The women’s version also has a really nice cut in a more feminine shape, with a slightly longer back that really is flattering. I have a size M (which fits me perfectly loosely) and I'm 5'5" and about 128 lbs.
5. Headlamp
Not necessarily anything groundbreaking with this one, but essential nonetheless. Perfect for getting to the top of that mountain in time for the sunrise just like this time in Colorado.
Headlamps are dual (or tri?) purpose because you also will use them while camping, and for running after dusk/before dawn. Some good brands for headlamps are Petzl and Black Diamond.
6. 2nd skin
This is the hiker’s best friend (I prefer the squares). Always keep some in your bag just in case you start to get a hot-spot in your boot. And once you put the 2nd skin or moleskin on, ahhhhh sweet relief. It's really like a gel that somehow mostly keeps its form while you wear it; quite incredible. There’s nothing better than happy feet; or more accurately, there’s nothing worse than unhappy feet, but let’s be optimists here.
7. Smartwool Socks
Speaking of keeping your feet happy: smartwool socks. These bad boys are simultaneously warm yet breathable, soft yet rugged, and cheap yet expensive (haha). That last one was kind of a joke, but in all seriousness, I think $13 (ish) is expensive for socks, but that’s a tiny price to pay for warm and comfortable feet.
Side note: I haven’t tested this, but it’s been said that you can wear these for up to a week without them getting nasty; I’ll just take their word for it.
What did you think of my gear roundup? Is there anything I missed? What equipment or gear do you swear by for your outdoor adventures? Let me know what you think if you end up trying any of these out!
The prana pants are life 🤩
ReplyDeleteYou couldn't be more right. I can't get over how much I love those pants, and could literally wear them every single day! Thanks for reading!
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