WalMart has a few new small spray products that have intrigued me since I first saw them a while back. While waiting in line for the inevitable five hour checkout, I picked up and looked at every POP (point of purchase) product that they had, and the little spray alcohol containers stood out as maybe actually useful. I picked up a pack to see how they did.
Amazon has the Leatherman h502 folding knife with sheath for $28.59, with a $5 rebate. Leatherman makes some awesome multi-tools, and their knives are no slouches. It is 420 HC steel, which is not exactly a super steel, but still has great performance at a low price.
The h502 has a can opener, carabiner/bottle opener, bit holder, and bit driver. I have a previous version of this tool, and have been pretty happy with it.
I usually avoid Target’s Dollar Spot like the plague, since it is mostly complete garbage that would not last past a single use. During the summer, however, they sometimes get some halfway decent stuff meant for the outdoors. This year they have mostly crap, yet again, but a couple of useful nuggets are there if you look hard enough. Avoid the compass/whistle/match case/flashlight/knife/first aid kit/trekking pole/radio combo, the camping first aid kit, and most of the other stuff they have. The splinter kit and emergency blanket are at least worth $1 each though.
I’ve added a lot of new items to TGR lately, so go take a peak at what’s new:
Petzl - Headlamps
Trango - Climbing Hardware
Sea to Summit - Stuff Sacks, Pack Covers
Mammut - Outerwear and Climbing Hardare
We are authorized dealers for all of the above brands, so our prices are set at MSRP. Use coupon code GP20 to get 20% off.
Leki, Evolv, and more Mammut are on the way!
Altrec has some pretty sweet deals on discontinued colors and styles.
Having an old color doesn’t make the jacket any less useful, so here are some of the better deals:
Women’s Marmot Rubicon Jacket - $90.97 down from $300 - lots of colors and sizes, Gore-Tex 2L
Bridgedale Heel Fit Men’s Socks - $6.97 down from $20 - Bridgedale makes some sweet socks, and these have merino!
TNF Kiso Jacquard Jacket Women’s - $99.97 down from $300 - sweet down parka
OR Women’s Notion Jacket - $48.97 down from $140 - insulated mid layer
Cloudveil Women’s Ice Flower Jacket - $60 down from $165 - nice insulated jacket
Cloudveil Women’s Ice Flower Hoodie - $80 down from $160 - hooded insulated jacket
Bridgedale Cross Country Ski Socks - $6.97 down from $19
Marmot Traverse Component Jacket - $104.97 down from $275
Cloudveil Women’s Headwall Pant - $119.97 down from $275
MH Women’s Downtown Jacket - 69.97 down from $150 - down jacket
OR Men’s Specter Jacket - $37.97 down from $100 - I have one of these, and it is NICE and super soft
OR Women’s Varia Jacket - $104.97 down from $270
Prana Men’s Nitro Pullover - $19.97 down from $50
Marmot Women’s Tamarack Jacket - $83.97 down from $200
Marmot Women’s Traverse Shell Jacket - $83.97 down from $200
Marmot Men’s Logan Jacket - $125.97 down from $300
Marmot Men’s Cloudlight Jacket - $125.97 down from $280
TNF Men’s Fathom Jacket - $153.97 down from $350
OK, that is enough linking for now. Poke around the outlet a bit and you might find some more good deals. These sales tend to sell out quickly, so grab what you want while you can.
From forum responses, I am guessing that tinder fungus is as hard to find for other people as it was for me. So, I made a video that might help. It details what to look for, and how to use it when you actually find it. Sorry for the rough voice, but I have not been feeling so great the past few days.
OK, so this is not exactly something that I will be taking on a backpacking trip, but it is my shelter in my backyard! I picked up a couple of chair hammocks for my girl’s birthday…two years ago. I finally hung them from a black walnut tree in our backyard about a week ago. I swear I had a really good reason for taking so long, I just can’t remember it at the moment.
These chairs are ridiculously comfortable. They can be found cheap, are easy to hang, and are supposed to handle nasty weather fairly well. I recommend grabbing a couple and throwing them over a tree branch if you are lucky enough to have trees. They just wouldn’t be the same hanging from the ceiling inside or off a deck.
I have been trying to get my grubby little hands on some large tritium vials for about a year now. For the uninitiated, tritium vials are glass tubes filled with tritium gas, a radioactive gas, that excites phosphorescent paint/powder in the tube for at least 10 years. They are like little glow sticks that never die. The amount of radioactivity is negligible, and is almost completely absorbed by the glass.
Cat (from the forums) suggested that I create a better way to share and organize our pictures for the members of GP. PHPBB (the forum software) is not really set up to do something like this, but Flickr is!
I just created a Flickr group called Going Prepared. I left it as invite only to keep the riffraff out, so PM or email me your email address if you want to be added to the group.
We have talked a little about favorite gear in the forums lately, but I want to narrow it down to see what people really like. If you had to pick just one piece of clothing/outerwear to go along with you on a trip, what would it be? Ignore climate, season, conditions, elevations, etc. Assuming you had a bunch of icky cotton, what is the one thing you would want to have that might make life a little more comfortable?
Mine is easy. I would take an Icebreaker Conquest Hoody. From the day I bought it to the day it stopped being cold enough to wear it, I wore the thing a good 1/2 of the days at least. It was probably closer to 2/3. I would have worn it more if I didn’t get shit about wearing it every day.
I have never liked another piece of clothing as much as that scrumptious merino wool hoody. It is extrememly comfortable. It fits well. The quality is superb (not unusual for Icebreaker). The hoody is tight, which is the way a hoody should be if you want it to actually keep you warm. The weave is tight, so it did a decent job of blocking wind. It is 100% merino wool, so the body temperature regulation is like no other fabric.
I balk at Icebreaker’s retail prices normally, and The Gear Revival has definitely not helped that viewpoint, but the Conquest Hoody is the one thing that I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone at full retail price without a second thought.
I bet everyone has something like that. What’s yours?
