Cameron Deremer

First thing I noticed when I put this on was the size of the head hole. No kidding, I thought I had ripped the neck by the time I got my head through. Now, once it is on, the head whole keeps you snug and the feel of the wool is super soft and surprisingly warm. The arms are just the right length to hook your thumbs through or pull up and wear like normal. I didn't like the rigid feel of the seams on the forearms, at first. They run down my wrist and felt stiff and a little itchy but, after a few minutes, I completely forgot about the seams and just melted into this shirt, so very comfy and very well built. Just be careful getting into and out of it and enjoy while you wear.

This is a light weight pole with great Flick Lock action. This pole is adjustable on the walk and is collapsible enough to disappear into a side pocket when not in use. Despite the light weight, it felt solid enough to bare my weight when leaning up against.

My problem with this pole was the size of the basket. The basket is permanently attached and is pretty small. There were multiple times when the basket slipped between two rocks and was lodged in there as I walked past. I would also have liked to have the ability to put a bigger basket on for travel over snow. This is a minor complaint, but something to think about. If you know you are going to be traveling primarily on snow then I would find a pole with bigger baskets.

Overall though, I loved traveling with this pole.(Note: I hike with only one pole to cut weight even further)

I have had my Hubba Hubba for three years now and really like it. There can be a bit of condensation, but that is true of any tent worth its weight in weather protection. It is a solid tent that will stay strong in many harsh conditions.

More recently though, my Hubba Hubba has lost some baby fat. I have gone out with just the footprint, poles and fly. This drastically reduces weight and the tent is still bomber in all weather conditions. You might have to be a little more bug tolerant, but it is worth shaving the pounds. Give it a try, lose the mesh. Go lighter.

I just wasn't impressed with how long these lasted. I had holes in a pair after one week. Maybe I was too tough on them, lightweight hiking, but, hey, they are socks. My two other pairs of SmartWool have worn out faster than I would have liked also. SmartWool, please make your socks last longer and tell me when you do. Until then, I will be looking elsewhere.

Background: Two week lightweight (22 lbs w/consumables) backpacking trip in the Winds. The trail was very wet with a lot of snow still left at 11,000 feet.

These shoes will hold water. I was squishy and wet well after everyone else in my group was walking with dry feet again. This is not necessarily a bad thing, the water actually warmed up in side the shoe (put my foot into freezing cold lake water and my feet were warm in a few minutes again even though they were still wet) and the water actually kept my feet from getting dry blisters. I actually just got used to having wet feet, but this made for smelly feet as I never got them completely dry. Also, I felt like the tread was a little unimpressive. I slipped around in the mud a lot. They could use some bigger tread. Add to it that these really aren't very light. They are pretty heavy duty for having the recommended use of "ultralight hiking." Other people were much happier with lighter shoes. I would go with different shoes for a lightweight hiker.

Pretty happy with these guys on my feet. They are good for long days and they wick sweat away from hot feet. Best part is that they stay in place. I pulled them up to just below my knee and that's where they stayed through morning Pow, boots-off breaks in the lodge (mmmm, PB&Js w/beer) and afternoon hucks. Got these from SAC, warm dry feet are more than worth the moderate price.

Tip: They double as a pretty good motorcycle sock as well. The padding keeps riding boots from iritating my shins.

Took this jacket to keep warm in camp and supplement a light wieght sleeping system. When the weather started to turn chilly at night I threw this jacket on and watched the stars come out. Combined with MontBell's Down inner pants, WM Megalite bag and short Z-Lite pad I slept really warm the entire trip. I would trust that sleep system down to the lower 20's. This jacket suited my light weight backpacking trip perfectly, but I would avoid putting it through much hard abuse (ie., skiing, climbing, schwacking...)

Spent two weeks sleeping comfortably in 30 degree weather. I never once felt the chills and most nights never even had to zip up all the way. Granted, I am a very warm sleeper, but I would take this bag down to 20 degrees with very little problems. Western Mountaineering makes a no frills (and no chills) bag that will last a lifetime as long as you take care of it like it takes care of you. The price is steep, but it might be the last bag you ever buy (or, if you are like me, just the first in the entire WM lineup). Add to all that the fact that it is Made in America and you should feel very warm about your WM purchase.

Only been out once so far, but this helmet worked great. It is so light that I forgot that I had it on. My goggles fit over well and I never had to adjust them at all. The Goggle Gasket stops any unwanted cold from getting in and around my head and the vents work great for temp regulation. Overall, I am pretty impressed and can't wait to go do some more testing this week.