Gear Reviews

The North Face Safien GTX hiking shoes.

Gear Review: The North Face Safien GTX Hiking Shoes

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Hiking Shoes
The North Face Safien GTX
$140, 1 lb. 10 oz. (US men’s 9)
Sizes: men’s 7-14, women’s 5-11
Moosejaw.com

Few outings test the comfort and support of hiking shoes like a rim-to-rim dayhike across the Grand Canyon. So to take the full measure of the purported extra cushioning in The North Face Safien GTX shoes, I hiked them across the Big Ditch and back again over two days—a total of 42 miles and about 22,000 vertical feet of serious pounding on consecutive days—and finished feeling no small measure of relief that these shoes really are as cushy as TNF claims. They also have other strengths as well as some minor weaknesses.

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The Black Diamond Magnum 20 in the Grand Canyon.

Gear Review: Black Diamond Magnum 20 Daypack

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Daypack
Black Diamond Magnum 20
$90, 20L/1,220 c.i., 1 lb. 5 oz.
One unisex size
Moosejaw.com

Strip away all that’s not absolutely necessary in gear and the result often is something you use over and over again. From a 23.5-mile, rim-to-rim dayhike across the Grand Canyon and a 13-hour, mostly off-trail dayhike of around 20 miles in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains, to shorter dayhikes in Zion National Park, as well as a seven-mile trail run-hike outside Ketchum, Idaho, and rock climbing at Idaho’s City of Rocks (carrying just water on the run and climbs), I kept slipping BD’s Magnum 20 onto my back—just for its simplicity and, of course, because it weighs barely more than half as much as a liter of water.

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Outdoor Research Refuge Hooded Jacket.

Review: Outdoor Research Refuge Hooded Jacket

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Breathable Insulated Jacket Outdoor Research Refuge Hooded Jacket $220, 1 lb. 2 oz. (men’s medium) Sizes: men’s S-XL, women’s XS-XL backcountry.com Puffy jackets stuffed with breathable synthetic insulation comprise one of the unsung-hero categories of outdoor gear: If you’re seeking nothing more than maximum warmth per ounce in a puffy jacket, sure, high-quality down is still the way to go. …

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The Nemo Kyan 20 synthetic sleeping bag.

Review: Nemo Kyan 20/Azura 20 Sleeping Bag

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Three-Season Sleeping BagNemo Kyan 20/Azura 20 $220, 2 lbs. 3 oz. (men’s regular) Sizes: men’s and women’s regular and long Moosejaw.com From sleeping under the stars in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains in August to a six-day backpacking trip on the Continental Divide Trail in Glacier National Park in September, I slept like a baby in Nemo’s Kyan 20. But even more …

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The North Face Chimera 18 daypack in the Grand Canyon.

Review: The North Face Chimera 18 Daypack

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Daypack
The North Face Chimera 18
$99, 18L/1,098 c.i., 1 lb. 1 oz.
One size each in men’s and women’s models
moosejaw.com

For many dayhikes, the best daypack is one that’s light, carries only what you need without superfluous capacity, and remains mostly unnoticeable on your back. I carried The North Face’s new and interesting Chimera 18 on several hikes, including a 21-mile, 10,500-vertical-foot, rim-to-rim dayhike across the Grand Canyon, and came away very impressed by its comfort with more weight than expected for a 17-ounce pack, plus its stability and surprising versatility for a range of hikers.

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