Outdoor Research has been killing it lately in the outdoor lifestyle department. From the Umbra Hoody to the Bryn Dress, all the pieces look good going out and going outside. The Outdoor Research Petra Pants are no exception.
I love birthdays. I love my birthday. I love other people’s birthdays. I love celebrating birthdays. I love birthday surprises. And most of all, I love birthday surprises that involve making awesome memories. My boyfriend officially crossed the threshold into his late twenties earlier this month. He’d never actually been backpacking before, so what better place to take him than Lake Aloha in Desolation Wilderness?
I feel like a reoccurring theme in my life is bad weather on climbing weekends. Josh and I drove up to Castle Crags for a weekend to hop on the Cosmic Wall for some nice, runout easy trad, but once again, Mother Nature threw a wrench in our plans.
For the past few years I’ve been relying on my Tarptent Scarp 2 or my Teton Sports Mountain Ultra 1 for any of my tenting adventures. They’re both great, but the Tarptent is designed to be an ultralight, small thing and the Mountain Ultra only sleeps one. I wanted something that was big enough for two with more room for luxuries. When Mountain Hardwear gave us the chance to pick out our ambassador kits for the winter season, I jumped at the chance at working with the Optic Vue 2.5.
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Pillows… are they something you really need in the backcountry? I’ve found myself debating this question of the last few years. Yeah, I could stuff some clothes into a stuff sack and call it a night. But after a few lumpy, sleepless nights, I decided that a few extra ounces of weight wouldn’t hurt for ultimate comfort while backpacking. The Feathered Friends Geoduck pillow did the trick.