Michael Lanza

Gear Review: Camelbak Highwire 20 Daypack

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Camelbak Highwire 20

Daypack
Camelbak Highwire 20
$110, 1 lb. 9 oz.
19L/1,129 c.i.
One unisex size
camelback.com

A daypack loaded for an all-day adventure can turn into a hot and clammy pig on your back, but not the Highwire. On hot hikes in the Boise Foothills, my back stayed relatively cool and dry because of the Highwire’s excellent ventilation: channels promoting air flow across your back, and back padding and shoulder straps made of wide-gauge mesh. A flexible, plastic framesheet provides enough support for carrying 12-15 pounds.

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Gear Review: Black Diamond Blaze Daypack

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Black Diamond Blaze

Daypack
Black Diamond Blaze
$90, 1 lb. 8 oz.
18L/1,098 c.i.
One unisex size
blackdiamondequipment.com

Sometimes a piece of gear just grows on you; that was the case with the Blaze for me. Its simple, streamlined design and low weight, rather than limiting its functionality, make it incredibly versatile. I’ve used it for everything from a 19-mile, one-day hike the length of the Carter Range in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, and on numerous shorter dayhikes, to employing it as my biking-around-town pack and as a carry-on when flying.

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Gear Review: Evolv Venga Kids Rock Climbing Shoes

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Evolv Venga kids rock climbing shoes

Kids Rock Climbing Shoes
Evolv Venga
$45, 11 oz. (pair of youth size 5)
Sizes: unisex kids 11 to youth 5
evolvsports.com

Kids are often happy to climb in their low-cut hiking shoes up to a certain age—then they want a pair of real rock shoes like mom and dad. When my 11-year-old son decided this summer he wanted to graduate to sticky climbing shoes, I got him the Venga.

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Gear Review: Native Eyewear Blanca Sunglasses

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Native Eyewear Blanca

Sports Sunglasses
Native Eyewear Blanca
$129 to $149
nativeyewear.com

Hiking, rock climbing, backpacking on blinding snow on a sunny day, road and mountain biking, trail running—I’ve turned to these wrap-around shades to protect my eyes for all of these activities. The standard N3 lenses rendered the glacier-fed, emerald-colored lakes and rivers and blue sky of Norway’s Jotunheimen National Park in vivid color.

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Gear Review: Vasque Velocity 2.0 Shoes

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Vasque Velocity 2.0

Lightweight Trail Shoes
Vasque Velocity 2.0
$120, 1 lb. 9 oz. (men’s 9)
Sizes: Men’s 7-12, 13, 14 and wide 8-12, 13, women’s 6-11
vasque.com

Hot feet are the fastest route to blisters. Keep your feet dry and cool and you’ve eliminated two of the three factors necessary for developing blisters (the third being friction, caused by imperfect fit). Several trail runs of four to nine miles each in the non-waterproof Velocity 2.0 convinced me they may be the most breathable low-cut trail-running shoes I’ve worn, thanks to very airy uppers that are virtually all mesh. I ran on some days so hot that my synthetic T-shirt would be soaked—but my feet and socks completely dry when I finished.

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