Hey, I'm almost a Senior Citizen and most cold weather caps look "dorky" on me. Maybe I'm a dork and the caps call attention to the real me. LOL. Anyway, this is the ONE cold weather hat that actually looks good on my gray dome. To tell you the truth, I stitched the right side down to the top of the MH band, so it now looks a little like an Army Ranger beret. We're in NoFla, and it does get chilly here. When it does, I reach for this hat.

When it comes to sleeping, I chose comfort over minimalist weight; and I am glad I did with this ThermaRest Trail Comfort Pad. Sure, it weighs more than skimpier pads; but when you're trying to get to sleep with a twig or stone poking you in the butt, weight issues seem to take a back seat (no pun intended). This pad both cushions and insulates, especially if you inflate it until it's problematic to blow more air inside, then it's like an air mattress! When you are ready to de-camp, I find rolling it up once, then unrolling, then rolling it up a 2nd time really compresses the pad for attachment to your backpack. The stuffsack that is made for it is very helpful, since it has a daisy chain along the length of the sack, to enable attachment. If you're not a masochist; save weight in other categories, such as cookwear; and be kind to yourself with a pad like the Trail Comfort. A good night's sleep is worth the extra weight!

My wife and I are avid kayakers; we started thinking about camping to mitigate the cost of each trip to the river. She has lots of camping experience, I have none. After looking at probably 150 tents in all price ranges, I decided I wanted a tent with one entrance and vestibule, good interior height and some extra room inside, maybe for a chair or gear. I focused in on the Teton 4, and got a good price. The setup is a snap, took me about 5 minutes. Needed some help with the fly. It is snug, dry, well-ventilated; the construction is excellent. My ONLY complaint would be that the fly does not come all the way down to the ground, except at the corners; so in a windy rain storm, it is possible some water could find its way into the tent. But if I knew there was going to be a windy rainstorm, I wouldn't go camping! So, all in all, for the money I think it's a wonderful tent for lightweight camping!