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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Gear Review: Salomon Synapse Mid Shoes

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Salomon Synapse Mid

Lightweight Trail Shoes
Salomon Synapse Mid
$140, 1 lb. 11 oz. (men’s 9)
Sizes: Men’s 7.5-12, women’s 6.5-10
salomon.com

I wanted a pair of lightweight mid-cut boots for a grueling, very rugged, 19-mile dayhike the length of the Carter Range in New Hampshire’s White Mountains—tagging a half dozen summits and climbing and descending some 7,000 feet, a traverse with some absurdly steep sections that is arguably harder than a one-day, 20-mile “death march” of the full Presidential Range. So I looked for mid-cut instead of low-cut shoes to protect my ankles on those notoriously rocky trails. I needed a shoe with enough cushion and support underfoot for a hike that guaranteed a lot of pounding. I prefer non-waterproof footwear for hot dayhikes where breathability is paramount. And I wanted all of that in a boot that’s light and allows me to move fast. The Synapse Mid delivered on all counts.

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