Gear

Gear is so much fun. There is so much great gear out there to keep you warm, cool, dry, free of bugs, safe, happy, informed, etc.

I plan to review my experiences with a wide variety of items.

Clothes
Hats
In the cool/cold weather, I wear mostly Irish or Scottish wool flat caps. The Irish caps are a little more elegant. The Scottish caps keep me bloody warm in all but the most fierce weather. I prefer Hanna Hats from Donegal Ireland, and while a genuine Harris Tweed cap can be purchased from a wide variety of sources, I find looking at the mother-ship website is quite nice for ideas.

In warmer weather, I have a couple of well worn Tilley hats. They did away with my favorite model- the T4- but the T5 cotton duck cloth hat is a decent model. My original Tilley T4, purchased more than 15 years ago, ripped through from my negligence and constant wear. I did not rinse it well enough or often enough and the sweat and dirt simply weakened the fabric to the point of failure. Live and learn. I’m being more careful with my new Tilley.

Merino Wool
I am currently completely smitten with merino wool. I have several t-shirts and other base layer items that I wear everyday. I have totally abandoned my cotton t’s in favor of merino.

Footwear
Boots
I’ve worn a lot of different boots. From leather hikers with Vibram soles to lightweight hikers from Hi-Tec, Keen, Merrell, Asolo, and more. After many years of hoping to find a boot that hit the sweet spot for me – width, comfort, durability, support, and traction – I have found my Grail Boot. RedBack Boots are nearly perfect for my foot. I do need to supplement them with a good insole, but that always seems to be the case, so I do not ding them for this. In particular, the Redback Bonsall in an Aussie 10.5. For my foot, this boot offers total comfort, grip, and support. As of this writing (November 2020) I am on my third pair of these boots. I’ve worn them from minus 10 degrees to 95 degrees; I walk through – not around – puddles. I wear them in town on paved paths and in the mountains on dirt and bare rock. The soles have great grip and last me about 1,700-1,800 miles before I feel like I need to replace them. The Redback Bonsall has no laces. I was concerned about the boot being too tight over my instep or too loose to be good on the trail. I have not yet found a situation where these boots do not work well. Walking up steeper trails can have then effect of pulling my sock down a bit on my right foot- I have determined that my right foot is slightly smaller than the left. I would not recommend these for long-distance hiking, but for casual – 3-5 mile – trail walks, these are my go to boot.

If there is one drawback to these boots, it is this; the deep lugs trap small rocks. Up until recently, I was a “wear your shoes in the house” sort of guy. Now, I have to take my shoes off at the door. Our bamboo floor would be chewed up worse that it already is if I walked in with rocks in my tread every day. Anything traps rocks will also hold mud – and wow do these hold mud. Again- shoes off at the door and it really doesn’t matter. So to use the standard vernacular – would I recommend these to a friend? enthusiastic yes. 5 our of 5 for my foot. FWIW, my wife who is an elementary school teacher and has plantar fasciitis, found that these boots with a Birkenstock insert allow her to stand and walk all day without pain.

Apps
Merlin Bird ID
I use this app almost every time a step into the wild. Sparrows are a pain and having the ability to quickly see a variety of images can help me make a positive ID on the trail. Merlin Bird ID is great for birders or people who are simply interested in finding out “what is that bird” as they walk about. answering three quick questions gets you into a series of photos that will help you ID most birds. The photo ID feature is terrific. I walk with my camera pretty much all the time- being able to snap a couple of, as I call them, diagnostic pictures, is really nice. You can make a preliminary ID, then get to a resting point and load the images into your phone and run one through the photo ID feature in Merlin- nearly instant gratification or chagrin.

eBird
I really like eBird now that I have been using it for a while. It has been upgraded a few times in the last few years and I think they (Cornell Labs) are getting there. If I could convince them to add a local chat feature, it would be nearly perfect. eBird now keeps my life list, and since it is a “sister product” to Merlin, I can go straight from a photo- or questions based ID into a eBird report. According to the eBird website, more than 100 million bird sightings are contributed each year. I sometimes use eBird to see what species are moving in what areas before I make a drive to a more remote spot.

OnXHunt
Coming soon

Photography
Coming soon

Optics
Coming soon

Wearables
Coming soon

Vehicle
A 2012 Toyota Sienna MiniVan AWD is my current mode of transportation. Mostly, but not quite entirely stock.

“There is no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothes.”
Alfred wainwright

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