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My Quest for the Perfect Elk Hunting Pack. The McHale Critical Mass INEX
Review of the McHale Critical Mass Backpack McHale Website I’ve pretty much abandoned large backpacks for backpacking and climbing. With modern, ultralight gear, I very seldom carry more than 30 pounds, and usually my pack weight is much less, generally less than 20 pounds fully loaded. However, backpack hunting is one endeavor when I still […]
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Review of the Leica Geovid 10 x 42 HD-B EDITION 2200 Binoculars
These binoculars are marketed as the Leica Geovid 10 x 42 HD-B EDITION 2200 model. Leica’s “Geovid” range of binoculars all feature integrated laser rangefinding. The “10×42” indicates that they are 10 power magnification, with a 42mm objective lens. The “B” in “HD-B” means that they have on board ballistics software. (I assume that the HD […]
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Two New Knives: Rod Garcia Skookum Bush Tool and Chris Reeve One Piece Tanto 1
Since I wrote my last knife review, I’ve picked up a couple of new knives. Both are fixed blade knives, but they are somewhat different in their design. Chris Reeve Once Piece Range, Tanto 1 The Chris Reeve one piece range has been around since the 1980’s, but this style of knife was discontinued in 2009. […]
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Backcountry Boiler
The Backcountry Boiler is an updated version of a very old design, often referred to as a Storm Kettle, Chimney Kettle, Shepherd’s Kettle, or a Kelly Kettle. A chimney kettle consists of two parts, a bowl where you build a small fire, and an upper portion that is a chimney surrounded by a hollow vessel where […]
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Climbing Knives
It’s good to have a knife with you when you’re climbing. I use a knife for making V-Threads, cutting away old rap tat, cutting slings, and various other tasks. I keep a knife in the pocket of my Tufa chalk bag, so I’ve always got a knife with me if I’m carrying my chalk […]
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The Greatest Chalk Bag Ever Made (Tufa Climbing Houdini Chalk Bag)
Chalk bags are a pretty generic piece of climbing gear. It’s hard to get excited about a chalk bag. They are really just a bag that holds chalk. Arcteryx came up with a fancy twisting mechanism for keeping the chalk from spilling with their “Aperture” chalk bag, but other than that innovation, chalk bags haven’t […]
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The North Face Ice Project Pack
Some folk built like this, some folk built like that But the way I’m built, Don’t you call me fat Because I’m built for comfort, I ain’t built for speed But I got everything, oh, that a good girl need Howlin Wolf: Built for Comfort The North Ice Project is definitely a pack that is […]
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Winter Climbing Gear Update: Petzl and Salewa Ice Screws
Ice Screws: Salewa Quick Screw and Petzl Laser Speed Light The winter of 2014-15 was something of a disappointment for those of us living in the Mountain West. Temperatures were warm. Precipitation was scarce, and often fell in the form of rain instead of snow. Here in Utah, the ice climbing season was short and […]
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Petzl Laser Speed Light Ice Screws: First Impressions
I recently bought some of the new Petzl Laser Speed Light ice screws. The Speed Light screw is one of two screws on the market that is constructed with aluminum. (The other aluminum screw is the E-Climb Klau screw which I reviewed previously HERE.) I have not yet had a chance to thoroughly test the […]
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Micro 4/3 Update: Olympus OM-D E-M1 ; Olympus 12mm-40mm f/2.8 Zoom Lens ; Olympus 75mm f/1.8 Prime Lens
Review of the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Camera; Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 Zoom Lens; and the Olympus 75mm f/1.8 Prime Lens I have been a proponent of Olympus Micro 4/3 camera systems for a long time. The flexibility of having an interchangeable lens camera that is a fraction of the size of a traditional DSLR is great […]