The Official MyLifeOutdoors Guide for Treating Water in the Backcountry
Water filters: if you’re new to backpacking, or even going on longer day hikes, choosing the right one for you can seem daunting. There’s a lot of risks involved in making sure you have the right system to filter your water: if you don’t do it right, it’s easy to get sick, and no one wants to cut a trip short because of water-borne illness. Now, there are many different ways to treat water: from boiling it to filtering it,
The Key To Warm Winter Camping
Winter camping: it's intimidating for one very crucial reason: The fear of being cold. You can buy all the nicest gear and a sleeping bag with a negative-billion-degree temperature rating. But even then, in my experience, you're still missing something that can make a big difference in your winter camping comfort. I believe that this one simple trick is the key to safe, warm winter camping - and you probably already can do it with the gear you already have. Check
LUXURY or LIES? True Two-Person Backpacking Tents?
Look, I know a lot of you use two-person tents like they are one-person tents. But sometimes you want a legit two-person tent, even if it means carrying extra weight. So, I decided to check out three of the top two-person tents, all redesigned for 2022. They are
This Trend Could Revolutionize Sleeping Bags
What is the best sleeping bag to buy? Well, if you only plan to go mostly in summer, a 45-degree bag will be plenty. BUT if you want to extend your season into the spring and fall, it’s best to get a 20-degree bag. BUT what if someday you want to go in the winter, too? And you only have the budget for ONE BAG? Enter the 3-in-1 bag. The outdoor industry's one-stop solution to 4-season sleeping. This past spring, I posted a blog called, "One
9 Ways to Avoid One HUGE Camping Mistake
When the bottom falls out of your world and the world falls out of your bottom
The KEY to Great Sleep Outdoors
What is the worst part about backpacking? I think most people would say it’s the sleep. I don’t know what it is, but I can hike all day long, be utterly exhausted from a hike
High-Quality and AFFORDABLE Ultralight Loadout
One of the most common misconceptions about ultralight (UL) is that it’s expensive. But in reality, UL isn’t any more expensive than traditional backpacking gear, if you know where to look. To prove it, I set out to put together a UL loadout that is high-quality, from well recognized brands, but still comes in under $850. For everything. Watch this video as I take you through the whole experience, or keep scrolling to read. https://youtu.be/POfHzNiWczU Okay, I’ve been working on this list for a while. As
Only ONE Good Reason to Use This Hammock—Haven Lay Flat Hammock Tent Review
I really wanted to like this thing! Its one of the only true lay-flat hammocks in existence. A hammock that even side and stomach sleepers can use. But to be honest, it seems like more like a gimmick than anything else. A little while back I was sent this Haven tent to try out. And I was intrigued because I’ve never been a big fan of hammocks, mainly because I’m a side sleeper, and hammocks just aren't good for side sleepers. But Haven tents
PRICE vs. WEIGHT—You Can’t Have Both! ZPacks Plex Solo vs. SMD Lunar Solo
So you don’t have $600 to drop on the lightest tent in the world. Well, the Lunar Solo is a very similar tent that is half the price (but also twice the weight). But it's still really light at just 26 ounces. How else do these tents compare? Left: Zpacks Plex Solo, Right: SMD Lunar Solo Zpacks Plex Solo vs. the SMD Lunar Solo You may have seen my blog post or YouTube video from a few weeks back where I took my first look at
$12 Hack Beats Expensive Down Jacket—Nikwax Down Proof Test and Review
Why am soaking my down jacket in a near freezing stream AGAIN? Because this time I want to see if the jacket I spent $12 on can perform as well as a $270 jacket. You may remember my post from a few weeks ago where I took this expensive jacket with specialty treated down and soaked it in near-freezing water to see if it could still keep me warm. Well, I did it again, but this time instead of relying on expensive factory-treated