July Employee Gear Closet
Add to Del.icio.usBackcountry Bob’s gear Picks
by Backcountry Bob
What's your job title here at Backcountry?
Hardgoods Buyer, Gear Guru
What sports are you into this season?
Gone anywhere cool lately?
Wrangell St. Elias Range in Alaska
Strawberry Reservoir
Alright enough screwing around, let’s have your top gear picks for this season.
JetBoil stove w/ Coffee press - The absolute best gourmet backcountry coffee, ready in less than 3 minutes.
Brunton Crux- A Lightweight compact canister stove that actually fits in the depression on the canisters underside.
Marmot Helium EQ- Worth every penny if you live or camp in the Mountains. 900 fill, lightweight and compressible, with a waterproof breathable shell.
Thermarest ProLite 3 & 4- Lightweight, compactable, and comfortable in all seasons.
Lorpen Trekking Schoeller Antibacterial Socks- Amazing!
Snow Peak Titanium Multi Compact Cookset- Lightwieght, versatile, and affordable titanium.
Black Diamond Light House/ Bibler Awahnee- Great designs for two climates in two price ranges.
Osprey Aether 75 backpack, or for weekends, the Atmos 50
And finally, the question we’ve all been waiting for: What's the most fun you've ever had in a sleeping bag?
Well I’m not sure it was fun but it was funny – sort of. I was crashing in the Tsaina Lodge parking lot outside of Valdez, AK in early April sleeping in my car. It was maybe 10 below zero one night, so when I climbed into the car to get into my –40 degree Dark Star sleeping bag, I decided to start the car and fire up the heat to get the car warm. I blasted the heat full-on, then proceeded to pass out only to wake up an hour later. It was about 200 degrees in the damn car and I was totally zipped into my expedition bag which was now soaking wet with my sweat. I opened all the doors trying to escape the heat, almost asphyxiating myself in this brutal oven of a car… Close call – I lost about 5 pounds and it took a whole day to re-hydrate.