The Gossamer Gear Mariposa Backpack is a thru-hiker favorite from Gossamer Gear, an ultralight backpacking company out of Austin, Texas. It's been recently revamped - just in time for this year's thru-hiking season - and now features a new frame system that allows the pack's hipbelt to pivot with
Three-Season Backpacking Gear List for 2024
Three-season backpacking (i.e., backpacking outside of winter months) typically lends itself to summer and/or fair weather backpacking despite including both spring and fall. That said, here's everything you'll need - and everything I bring - for three-season success in the backcountry. I've
The Best Gifts for Thru-Hikers This Year
It isn't easy to find gifts for ultralight backpackers since the entire point of many ultralight backpackers is to have as few things as possible. That said, some items can please almost everyone. These items are justifiably awesome, but sometimes it isn't easy to justify the price. That's what
Tarptent Dipole 1 DW Tent Review
The Tarptent Dipole 1 DW Tent is a lightweight, double-walled, two-person, non-freestanding shelter that can be set up with trekking poles and two stays included with the tent. There are two interior options, a mesh and a solid interior, with the solid costing $30 more and weighing 0.4 oz / 11 g
Zpacks Duplex Zip Tent Review
The Zpacks Duplex Zip Tent is an ultralight two-person, non-freestanding shelter designed for thru-hiking and ultralight backpacking. It's Zpacks's flagship shelter and has become remarkably popular with thru-hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail. It's been the most
SlingFin Portal 1 Tent Review
The SlingFin Portal 1 is a lightweight one-person, freestanding shelter designed for backpacking, thru-hiking, bikepacking, or anyone who wants a freestanding single-person shelter with built-in stability and functionality. It's the successor to SlingFin's flagship freestanding backpacking tent,
Three-Season Backpacking Gear List for 2023
Three-season backpacking (aka backpacking outside of the winter months) more typically lends itself to summer and/or fair weather backpacking despite including both spring and fall. That said, here's everything you'll need - and everything I bring - for three-season success in the
Hayduke Trail Gear List: Everything You Need to Hike Across Utah
The Hayduke Trail may cover mostly Utah desert, but it requires more nuanced gear choices than one would expect from a "desert trail". I've spent a lot of time going over my gear selection (and potential gear backups) for the Hayduke, and after taking into consideration my timing (spring), the