The Sawyer Squeeze is a 3 oz / 85 g hollow-fiber membrane water filter that removes bacteria and protozoa from water. It's become the default water treatment system for hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail and is definitely worth being considered for your backpacking
Halfway Anywhere on Patreon
Hello, friends! Over the past couple of years, Halfway Anywhere has become a full-time endeavor. After having a number of you reach out to me wondering how you can best support the site, I've finally gotten around to creating a Patreon. If you're unfamiliar with the Patreon platform, it's a way
Small Business Sales Week (for backpackers)!
As we eagerly wait for our outdoor recreation spaces to open back up so that we can enjoy them under the social-distancing, mask-wearing, hand-washing, no-face-touching new normal, so too do our favorite small businesses serving the outdoor community. There's no way to overstate the impact COVID-19
Why You (Probably) Don’t Need an Umbrella on the PCT
Should you bring an umbrella on your Pacific Crest Trail thru-hike? A question many of you have probably asked yourselves (and that others of you have been asking me). The gear you bring on a thru-hike is something hikers love to research, stress over, and talk about, so it's worth examining whether
Why Water Caches Are Bad for Thru-hikers
Water caches are locations where water is stored or left out where there would otherwise be none. They have become increasingly common on long-distance trails such as the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail, which may sound like a good thing - water caches mean hikers aren't forced
Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite Review (WingLock Valve)
The Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite from Cascade Designs is a three-season 12 oz / 350 g inflatable sleeping pad with a 4.2 R-value (the measure of resistance to heat flow through a given thickness of material). It's essentially become the default ultralight, three-season inflatable sleeping pad (it's
Hyperlite Mountain Gear Dirigo 2 Review
The Hyperlite Mountain Gear Dirigo 2 is a lightweight (28 oz / 794 g) two-person shelter designed to be used with two trekking poles and eight stakes. It's a fully seam-sealed, single-wall tent made with Dyneema Composite Fabric that pitches as a single unit (there is no separate fly). Don't use
Guide to Hiking the Lowest to Highest Route
The Lowest to Highest Route is a 135 mi / 217 km hike beginning at Badwater Basin in California's Death Valley National Park and ending at the summit of Mount Whitney - the highest point in the Continental United States (but technically you'll end back down at the trailhead since you'll need to get
The Pacific Crest Trail Survey: Seven Years of Data in Review
I've been saying I'll do it for years, and now that we are all locked up thanks to COVID-19, I've finally gotten around to it - a comparison of (what is now) seven years worth of Pacific Crest Trail hiker data. If you're new to the Pacific Crest Trail Hiker Survey, it's something I began in 2013