climbing gear reviews

The Rocky Talkie Mountain Radio.

Review: Rocky Talkie Mountain Radio

Two-Way Radio
Rocky Talkie Mountain Radio
$110 each/$220 per pair
6.1 oz./172.9g (one radio only), 7.9 oz./224g (including carabiners and leash)
rockytalkie.com

Over more than 30 years of climbing and skiing in the backcountry, I’ve had a few close calls, some directly due to the inability of my partner and I to hear or see one another. One of my most trusted partners—a longtime friend who once saved me from a potentially long lead-climbing fall by leaping down a steep hill at the route’s base to reel in many feet of rope—also once took me off belay before I reached the top of a pitch and anchored myself; fortunately, I didn’t fall. After relying on the sketchy low tech of shouting and rope signals for much too long, I’ve found a vastly more reliable, light, and inexpensive solution: the Rocky Talkie Mountain Radio.

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Backpackers camped in the backcountry of Wyoming's Wind River Range.

The 10 Best Backpacking Tents of 2024

By Michael Lanza

A good backpacking tent not only makes your trips more comfortable by keeping you warm and dry in foul weather—it’s critical safety gear and one of the heaviest and most expensive items you’ll carry. Those facts alone are motivation enough to find the right tent for your style of backpacking. But how do you choose from the many models out there, which come in a huge range of designs, weights, and prices? Whether you’re shopping for your first backpacking shelter or looking to replace an old one, this review will help make that choice easy for you.

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The Black Diamond Distance 1500.

Review: Black Diamond Distance 1500 Headlamp

Rechargeable Ultra-Bright Headlamp
Black Diamond Distance 1500
$200, 7.5 oz./213g
blackdiamondequipment.com

Comparing any hiking-oriented headlamps I’ve used to the Black Diamond Distance 1500 headlamp feels rather like comparing a Honda Civic to a Bradley armored fighting vehicle. At 7.5 ounces/213 grams, and putting out a supernova-like 1500 lumens at max power, the Distance 1500 is at least twice the price of all of today’s best headlamps for the backcountry and more than doubles most of them in weight and power. Over six months of testing this beast hiking, climbing, mountain and road biking, and backcountry skiing, I’ve concluded that, while it’s certainly overkill for many activities, it’s invaluable for both route finding and high-speed sports after dark.

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The Mystery Ranch Tower 47 climbing pack.

Review: Mystery Ranch Tower 47 Crag Pack

Rock Climbing Crag Pack
Mystery Ranch Tower 47
$325, 47L/2,870 c.i., 4 lbs., 7 oz./2 kg
backcountry.com

When it comes time to huck a heavy rack of gear to the crag, most climbers I know conscript a hiking or backpacking pack to the task. Invariably, their gear ends up in a massive, twisted pile of cooked spaghetti in that pack’s main compartment, and these climbers must then dump everything out to find what they need and repack each time they move to another route. With the Tower 47, Mystery Ranch solved this problem by designing a pack for cragging from the ground-up. With a high capacity, the comfort for carrying your most heinous load, a mission-specific design, and durable construction, Mystery Ranch has created a pack that I have no complaints about after two years of frequent use.

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The BioLite Headlamp 800 Pro.

Review: BioLite Headlamp 800 Pro

Rechargeable Ultralight Headlamp
BioLite Headlamp 800 Pro
$100, 5.3 oz./150g
bioliteenergy.com

From an 18-mile, 13-hour, four-summit, partly off-trail hike in Utah’s Wasatch Range in early October to many evenings biking city streets after dark, I’ve found that BioLite’s rechargeable Headlamp 800 Pro stands out for a rare combination of ultra-bright power, wide range of modes, modest weight for a backcountry headlamp that packs this much power and versatility.

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