A Sleeping Pad R-Value measures a sleeping pad’s ability to prevent heat loss (to the ground) when you lie on it at night. Pads with higher R-values do this more effectively than pads with lower R-values. R-value isn’t a measure of warmth per se, but of a pad’s ability to …
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Zpacks Duplex Tent Review
The Zpacks Duplex Tent is a single-wall 2 person tent made with Dyneema Composite Fabrics (formerly called cuben fiber) that weighs 19.4 oz. It has two doors, two vestibules, and requires two trekking poles to erect. Despite its high-tech construction, the Duplex is a remarkably simple tent to set up …
Read More »How to Size a Backpack: Daypack and Backpack Volume Guide
Recommended Backpack Volumes How much volume should you get in a daypack, weekend backpack, multi-day backpack, or expedition backpack? Here are some volume guidelines and advice so you can start shopping for backpacks in the appropriate size range. Daypacks Most daypacks range from 20 liters to 35 liters on the high-end. …
Read More »Great Hikes: A Presidential Traverse
One of the great hikes in the White Mountains of New Hampshire is called a Presidential Traverse. It’s so-called because hikers climb all of the mountains in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains in one continuous hike that’s nearly 23 miles long with close to 9,000 feet of elevation …
Read More »Permethrin Soak Method Guide
Permethrin is an insect repellant and insecticide that bonds to fabric and can be used on your clothes, tent, or hammock to prevent Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, or the Zika Virus by killing ticks, mosquitos, and insects that land on your stuff. The liquid Permethrin application techniques discussed below …
Read More »Tarptent Aeon Li Dyneema Tent Review
The Tarptent Aeon Li is a one-person Dyneema trekking pole tent that weighs 15.8 oz. It’s basically a half-pyramid shape, modified so that it has more usable headroom and interior space than regular pyramid tents and tarps. It has a built-in bathtub floor sewn to the sidewalls with mesh for …
Read More »Sea-to-Summit Ether Light XT Insulated Sleeping Pad Review
The Sea-to-Summit Etherlight XT Insulated Sleeping Pad is a lightweight, inflatable sleeping pad that is 4″ thick and features air-sprung cells for maximum comfort, making it far more comfortable than Thermarest’s NeoAir sleeping pads and much quieter. Weighing 15 oz, it has the same durable three-way inflation valve and is …
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