Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Essentials: 9 Gear Items Worth Carrying on Multi-Day Trips
A practical roundup of nine backpacking essentials covering navigation, camp comfort, cooking, water treatment, first aid, lighting, and power.
Independent reviews
Product Reviews and Buying Guides – 478 / 805
From everyday tech and home products to lifestyle and specialist gear, each review focuses on practical use, strengths, limitations, and who the product suits.
Backpacking Gear
Four Backpacking Gadgets Worth Adding to Your Pack
Four compact backpacking add-ons for camp cooking, navigation, lighting, and coffee, with the weight and trade-offs each one brings.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear 2026: Boots, Trail Runners, and Sleep Kit to Reconsider
A practical look at three pieces of backpacking gear, from a conventional hiking boot and a trail runner to an inflatable camp pillow, and how to judge each one against the trips you actually take.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Alternatives to REI: Five Categories Worth Comparing
REI stocks dependable gear, but its tents, stoves, quilts and packs cover only part of the market. These five categories reward a wider search before you buy.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Built to Last: A Long-Term Kit Worth Copying
A decade-tested backpacking loadout, from a heavy-hauling 75-litre pack to a semi-freestanding tent near 2 lb, with the trade-offs stated plainly.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Changes Worth Making: Four Upgrades That Improve the Trip
Four backpacking gear changes with clear use cases: two shelters built for very different environments, a wind-resistant stove for group cooking, and a lightweight sleeping pad with a long track record.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Check: Six Field-Tested Pieces Worth Packing
A real-world ultralight kit reviewed piece by piece, from a sub-2.5-pound two-person tent to an 88-cent spoon that refuses to break.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Checklist: 10 Essentials and 5 Practical Picks
A first-trip backpacking checklist in the right order, plus five food, navigation, and water picks that are easy to carry and hard to get wrong.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Favorites: 12 Pieces Worth Carrying
A field-tested backpacking kit that stays light on the move and comfortable at camp, from a 30-litre pack to a quilt built for subfreezing nights.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Features That Solve Real Problems: 11 Products Worth Considering
Six stubborn backpacking problems and the specific gear features that address them, from rain-safe tent pitches to wrist flashlights and pad valves you can adjust in the dark.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Worth Knowing: 15 Field Favorites for Camp and Trail
A practical roundup of the backpacking gear that keeps coming up, from sleeping pads and canister stoves to folding knives, satellite communicators, and a chest pack built for quick access.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Field Notes: Keepers, Flippers, and One Flop
A field-tested roundup of tents, a GPS watch, a backpack, freeze-dried meals, a water filter setup, a sleeping pad, and small essentials, sorted into keepers, flippers, and one flop.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear for Beginners: 5 Pieces Worth Getting First
Five beginner backpacking essentials, from an R-value 4.2 sleeping pad to an adjustable ultralight pack, with the trade-offs to weigh before you buy.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Guide: Nine Pieces Worth a Closer Look
A practical look at nine backpacking pieces, from lightweight framed packs and budget solo tents to premium down bags, winter pads, and alpaca insulation layers.
Backpacking Gear
Two Backpacking Gear Innovations Worth Knowing: REI Flash 55 and Peak Refuel
A 55-litre pack with water bottle pouches you can reach while wearing it, and a freeze-dried meal that rehydrates with two-thirds of a cup of water.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear: Keepers, Flippers, and One Clear Flop
A field-tested roundup of backpacking tents, a GPS watch, a 43-liter pack, trail meals, a water filter setup, a hiking shoe, and a high R-value sleeping pad, sorted into keepers, flippers, and one flop.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Loadout Roundup: 11 Picks From Two Very Different Packs
A fifteen-year pack, a clip-in hammock sleep system, a heat-exchanger pot, and two American-made knives: eleven backcountry pieces compared on durability, comfort, and real trail use.
Backpacking Gear
Two Backpacking Gear Loadouts Compared: Ultralight Choices for Trail and Camp
A side-by-side look at two backpacking gear systems, from navigation apps and frameless packs to ultralight shelters and sleep quilts.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Loadouts Compared: Lightweight Picks for Three-Season Trips
Two backpackers walk the same route with very different kits. Here are the packs, shelters, sleep systems, and navigation tools that earned a place in each loadout.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear for Off-Trail Routes: Eight Items That Held Up in the Canadian Rockies
A field-tested look at eight pieces of backpacking gear for remote, off-trail routes, with the strengths and trade-offs worth knowing before you buy.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Worth Packing: Eight Picks That Earn Their Place
Eight backpacking picks assessed on weight, price and real trail use, from trip planning software to a $20 pillow, a $9 pot lid and a weight-balancing pack.
Outdoor Gear
Backpacking Gear Preview 2026: 10 Pieces Worth Watching
A practical look at ten backpacking and camping items worth following, from a one-person ultralight shelter to bug repellents, a water purifier and two sleeping pads.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Preview: Four Field-Tested Pieces Worth Watching
A cold-weather look at four backpacking pieces: a stretch-top sleeping pad, a high-end down quilt, a semi-freestanding two-person tent, and a versatile 45-liter pack.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Red Flags: Five Popular Picks and Who They Might Not Suit
Five well-loved backpacking items, the specific drawbacks worth knowing before you buy, and the kind of hiker each one actually fits.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Retest 2026: Five Popular Items Back on Trail
Five widely owned backpacking items retested in wind and near-freezing temperatures, with clear notes on what held up, what did not, and who each one actually suits.
Backpacking Gear
Five Popular Backpacking Items Retested: What Held Up in Wind and Cold
A field retest of five popular backpacking items, covering an ultralight pack, a two-person tent, a canister stove system, a budget sleeping pad, and a lightweight pillow.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Roundup: 10 Pieces Worth Considering
A practical look at ten backpacking pieces spanning packs, shelters, sleep systems, cooking, and outerwear, with the strengths and trade-offs that matter before you buy.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Roundup 2026: Ten Pieces Worth Watching
Ten backpacking and camping items to know about, from an ultralight one-person shelter to battery-powered bug protection, gear care, and an unreleased sleeping pad.
Backpacking Gear
Backpacking Gear Roundup: 7 Field-Tested Items for Overnight Comfort
Seven backpacking essentials covering shelter, sleep, load carrying, safety, and water treatment, with the trade-offs worth knowing before you buy.
Backpacking Gear
Three Backpacking Pieces Tested in Cold, Rocky Terrain: Stakes, Sleeping Pad, and a Light Hoodie
A field-tested look at MSR Groundhog Stakes, the Sea to Summit Ether Light XT Extreme, and the Outdoor Vitals Ventus Hoodie in cold, rocky fall conditions.