ultralight backpacking gear reviews

The Tecnica Plasma S hiking shoes.

Gear Review: Tecnica Plasma S Hiking Shoes

by

Hiking Shoes
Tecnica Plasma S
$150, 1 lb. 14 oz. (US men’s 9)
Sizes: men’s 7-14.5, women’s 5.5-10.5
rei.com

The notion of a hiking shoe that can be heat-molded to your feet like the liners of ski boots seemed too good to pass up. So I took the Tecnica Plasma S shoes on what struck me as two perfect tests: dayhiking 12,662-foot Borah Peak, highest in Idaho, which entails an almost relentlessly steep, 5,200 vertical feet of ascent and descent in seven miles round-trip, mostly on trail, but also includes a few hundred feet of third-class scrambling; plus backpacking the Teton Crest Trail. The Plasma S delivered on the promise of a customized fit—but it’s important to understand the limits of this technology. Read on.

Read on

The Slingfin Portal 2 ultralight backpacking tent in the Grand Canyon.

Review: SlingFin Portal 2 Backpacking Tent

by

Ultralight Backpacking Tent
SlingFin Portal 2
$485, 2 lbs. 14 oz.
slingfin.com

Everyone wants a super lightweight tent—which makes sense: Give that your tent is one of the heaviest pieces of gear you carry, it offers great potential for weight savings. But not everyone wants the drawbacks of an ultralight tent, which can include tight living quarters and, in particular, so-so stability in strong wind. Enter the SlingFin Portal 2, one of the sturdiest sub-three-pound tents out there, as I discovered on a six-day, 74-mile backpacking trip in the Grand Canyon and stormy nights camping at Idaho’s City of Rocks National Reserve.

Read on

Oboz Sawtooth II Low Waterproof hiking shoes.

Gear Review: Oboz Sawtooth II Low Waterproof Hiking Shoes

by

Hiking Shoes
Oboz Sawtooth II Low Waterproof
$140, 2 lbs. 4 oz. (men’s size 9)
Sizes: men’s 8-14, women’s 6-11
backcountry.com

All through the second day of a five-day trek in northern Spain’s Picos de Europa Mountains, we hiked through steady rain and, higher up, wet snow that accumulated several inches deep on the ground. It felt more like Scotland’s Northern Highlands than mountains in the north of Spain. Throughout that day and the entire trip, these shoes mostly delivered the kind of support and performance I expect from much pricier boots—but did have a couple of minor shortcomings. 

Read on

Therm-a-Rest Hyperion 32F/0C sleeping bag.

Review: Therm-a-Rest Hyperion 32F Sleeping Bag

by

Ultralight Sleeping Bag
Therm-a-Rest Hyperion 32F/0C
$490, 1 lb. 1 oz. (regular)
Sizes: small, regular, long
rei.com

Why spend more money on a sleeping bag? Logical question, of course. But for any backpacker eager to shave a pound or more and significant gear volume from his or her backpack, an ultralight down bag offers one of the best ways of realizing that objective—as well as delivering maximum warmth per ounce. And one of the lightest and most compact bags in this category, Therm-a-Rest’s Hyperion 32F/0C, measured up in every way on a six-day backpacking trip in the Grand Canyon in May; a six-day float trip down Idaho’s Middle Fork of the Salmon River in July; a three-day hike on the Teton Crest Trail in August; a five-day, late-summer hike in the Wind River Range; trekking hut-to-hut on New Zealand’s Routeburn and Milford tracks in late spring; and on chilly, rainy spring nights that pushed the bag’s limits camping in May in Idaho’s City of Rocks National Reserve.

Read on

Gossamer Gear LT5 trekking poles.

Review: Gossamer Gear LT5 Trekking Poles

by

Ultralight Trekking Poles Gossamer Gear LT5 Trekking Poles $195, 10 oz./283.5g (per pair, without baskets) One size, adjustable 105-130cm/41 to 53 ins. gossamergear.com You could see the defining characteristic of these ultralight poles even wearing a blindfold: Just pick them up and hold them in your hand. The LT5 adjustable poles feel like feathers. In fact, the pair weighs about …

Read on