If you’ve ever watched even a single episode of Vikings on History Channel, you’ll know that the craft of knifemaking in Norway is an art form that is deeply rooted in their history and culture. Granted, the real Vikings tended to prefer the axes and longswords in battle. But when they weren’t raiding they were farming land and raising animals as part of their agrarian society. This is where knives really came into play.

What I Liked

Materials and Quality Craftsmanship

The Helle Mandra—like all Helle knives—are hand made in Holmedal, Norway, one at a time. I love this because it means my knife wasn’t mass produced in a factory. As a result of this meticulous, slow-batch handmade manufacturing, no two knives are exactly the same. From handle to blade, what I ultimately hold in my hand is a heritage-style knife that is the result of a long tradition.

Helle starts the process with a high-alloy steel that is surrounded by two layers of 18/8 stainless steel, making it triple laminated. The blade extends the full length of the knife from tip to grip. The handle portion of the blade consists of two slabs of curly grained birch. The tang can be seen along the edge of the entire handle of the knife. This is called “full tang construction”. The benefit of full-tang construction means you can apply greater force onto the blade without the risk of it snapping shut at the bolster or snapping it off completely, possible with a finger in an unfortunate location.

Weight

If you think all this sheer strength of blade and handle equates to a heavy knife you’d be wrong. The Helle Mandra tips my scale at a mere 70 grams, excluding the leather carrying sheath. Add the sheath and even then, the weight climbs to a scant 110 grams. My Victorinox Trekker knife weighs in at 129 grams.

Not that I’m comparing the two knives side by side because that’s impossible. I only point this out because I’ve been carrying a 129-gram knife for more than a decade. For the ultra-lighters out there, all grams count. Still, the weight of the Mandra feels hefty enough to inspire confidence when the moment calls.

Minimalistic Traditional Design

The Helle Mandra is a traditional design. It comes with a leather carrying sheath and thong. The sheath is also made painstakingly by hand, one at a time, in the Holmedahl factory. You can wear it around your neck or you can wear it looped through your belt.

Since I don’t wear a belt, and I didn’t like the feeling of a knife dangling from my neck neck, I looped it through the waistbelt of my backpack and centered in the middle. If you do this, you’ll just need to figure out for yourself where the placement needs to be so that it doesn’t interfere with your normal walking gate. In my case I had it pointing down the middle. It looks a lot more awkward than it is. I’ve also carried it laced through the sternum strap with good results.

Performance

I ran it through the usual paces that I would put a knife through. I carved a sharp point into a stick to see how precise and smooth it cut (it was very precise and smooth), sliced a sheet of birch bark in half that had been naturally shed from a tree to start a fire with wet wood, cut a climbing rope with an impossible knot tied by someone else’s negligence, freed a snagged fishing line, shaved off intricately thin slices of cheese and sausage for crackers on a trail lunch. As much as I wanted to dress a lake trout to see how easily the Helle Mandra made it, it just didn’t happen. When it comes to fishing, I’m on a multi-decades losing streak.

I even fashioned it into a spear by securing the knife to a stick with its leather thong. I didn’t kill anything with the spear, I was simply evaluating its potential for long-range weaponry as a means of fishing without a pole. Something one would see in an episode of Survivorman, for example.

The effect turned out to be more Hollywood than realism. The blade doesn’t have a barb and the blade secured with the leather thong isn’t stable enough to securely hold a fish to the bottom of the lake or river bed until you can grab it. Seriously, don’t try this at home and expect to harpoon a Walleye or a wild ungulate. While the blade is sufficient as a spear, the three-inch handle is too short to really gain purchase.  

That brings me to…

What could be Better

Short Handle

At three inches in length, the handle is short. Even for my small girly hands. For whittling a sharp point onto a stick—for roasting hot dogs or fashioning a tent stake to replace one that got bent (it performed great at this unfortunate task, too)—or cutting rope, fishing line and food, I didn’t need to really grip it that hard to gain a solid purchase. It both met and exceeded expectations in this department.

But when I had to put some weight and effort into a downward cut, the back neck of the blade protruded into the soft fleshy palm of my hand. I get that the Helle Mandra is intended to be a minimalist EDC knife, one made in collaboration with a professional survivalist, but it can still be minimalist with an extra two inches added to the handle.

Final Thoughts

A good knife is an indispensable piece of kit for nearly any situation and Helle crafted a solid knife in the Helle Mandra. The blade is strong, it’s capable of performing most of the knife-type situations you would encounter on the trail, at the campsite, in the boat, etc. Its blade is small, sharp and mighty.

For me, it’s the combination of the heritage style and high-quality materials and craftsmanship that makes me love this knife. In an era where so much gear is mass produced to meet the demands of stockholders and evolving trends, it’s a pleasure and honor to own a piece of gear that keeps it simple, traditional and made one at a time.

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Humane Innards

The Outdoor Research Helium Down Hoody’s 800-fill down comes as a result of a partnership between Outdoor Research and  a supplier who sources its down globally from farmers who have pledged allegiance to the Responsible Down Standard (RDS).

Before I dive into the review, I think it’s worth mentioning how the down in jackets and other down-insulated products comes to be, the varying types of down and its origins. It isn’t always a process that is as warm and cozy as your down jacket or sleeping bag.

Lucky Geese vs Unlucky Geese

In a perfect world, the down in your jacket, sleeping bag, gloves and comforter come as the byproduct of the food industry. Geese and ducks are raised on farms with good food, fresh air, clean water and warm beds. When big enough, they’re slaughtered for their meat and the sleeve of a down jacket is filled. These are the lucky birds.

Unlucky geese are forcibly live-plucked several times a year for their entire lives to increase their meat production and their down is collected post-humously. The really unlucky geese are the ones who get live-lucked up to six times per year while being force-fed and then slaughtered for their bloated livers.

Responsibly-sourced Solution

These grisly practices have prompted the outdoor industry to search for a more ethical solution to obtaining down. Which ALLIED Feather & Down, a supplier who sources its down globally from geese farmers who only raise birds for meat and sells to companies, has done. ALLIED Feather & Down has responded to this scourge of animal abuse in two significant ways:

1. Created the Responsible Down Standard (RDS) which certifies and oversees a global network of goose and duck farmers that adhere to the standards and supply their partners with responsibly-sourced and processed down.
2. Created Track My Down, a program that enables ALLIED partner products like the Outdoor Research Helium down hoody to include a TrackMyDown.com hangtag with a lot number that traces the origin of the down (Europe or Asia), content (goose vs duck), fill power, care tips and information on the differences between European and Asian down.

TrackmyDown.com Hangtag

Think of the TMD hangtag as the 23andMe of your down jacket or sleeping bag.

My Outdoor Research Helium down hoody’s down comes from the perfect world side—as told by its TrackmyDown.com hangtag of 1508L19F2577 where I learned its full story and then some:

• The down in my Helium came from Europe. European birds live longer, grow larger and produce a higher quality down. Their Asian counterparts aren’t as lucky due to the need to feed the denser Asian population. Plus, birds in cold climates naturally grow warmer down.
• The down in my jacket is 100% grey goose! Goose down is better than duck down.
• Its verified fill-power is 810 fill power, which traps more air for its weight than 800 fill power. Bonus warmth. Woot!
• The specific break-down of the 810 fill contents is 91.3% down cluster, 4.3% down fiber, 1.8% feather fiber and 2.1% waterfowl, 0% broken feathers and quill, 0.4% landfowl and 0.1% residue.
• The differences between European and Asian down, old geese and young ducks. For example, a mature goose that lived on a farm Northern Norway will have a denser down than the youthful duck in Southern China—but a mature duck from Southern China will have a higher-quality down than a youthful goose on a farm in Northern Norway.

Warmth

Outdoor Research states that the Helium Down hoody offers 800 fill power; however, per its Track my Down hangtag, my jacket is actually insulated with 810 fill power.

So far this fall and winter, Minnesota has had an odd variety of normal seasonal temperatures (high 30’s) and abnormal (high teen’s, snow and gale-force winds to seventy-five degrees and sunny). On the high teens days, it has translated to a very warm jacket that performs well running around town on errands, walking outside and even a late fall hiking trip on the Superior Hiking Trail.

The hood is phenomenal and, when its bungee cords are tightened, stays on even in gusty 30-mph winds. It’s also helmet compatible for you ice climbers and mountaineers.

Fit

The Outdoor Research Helium Down Hoody performs as expected in this category. It’s designed to be worn as a stand-alone down jacket or as an insulating midlayer under a rainjacket or softshell.

Since fit is oftentimes aligned with size, I feel it is sized correctly. I’m a size small in general so that’s the size I went with. It was the right call. What impressed me the most in the fit was the length of the arms. They’re plenty long enough to cover my wrists when I’m stretching or reaching.

Packability

There is no reason to ever leave the Helium down hoody behind. If you don’t plan to wear it out the door, it packs down into a hand pocket so that you can stash it in any pack or bag. I’m dating myself by saying this but I consider the Helium down hoody to be in the “down sweater” category—but on caffeine. Unlike other 800-fill down sweaters I’ve had that easily stuff into their own pockets, the Helium takes a little more effort. This came as no surprise. The Helium has more down, it has a hood and its exterior fabric has more oomph to it (more on that in “Durability”).

Anyway, to make what could be an unnecessarily long story short, I did get the Helium packed into its own pocket—but was afraid to zip it all the way in case it ripped from its own girth. And as you can see from the photos above, despite having more insulation, a more durable exoskelten and a hood, it’s still just as packable in size as the unhooded, 800-fill Patagonia down sweater.

 Weather & Abrasion Resistance

The Outdoor Research Helium down hoody blew me away here. Like really blew me away. It actually has waterproofing in the shoulders and hood, thanks to the Pertex® Quantum Diamond Fuse technology. It is the same technology found in Outdoor Research’s Helium Rain products. To be clear, the Helium is not a rain jacket. But if you’re outside hiking, climbing, snowshoeing, winter camping, etc, and it starts to snow, the waterproof Pertex® Quantum Diamond Fuse technology will ensure snowflakes that melt on you hood and shoulders will not seep into the lining.

This also translates to increased durability and abrasion-resistance. Pertex Quantum is essentially very tightly woven yarns with diamond-shaped fibers that resist snags, block wind and have beading properties to repel rain and melting snow.

Final Thoughts

Warm with responsibly sourced down from Europe, versatile, packable, durable, weather- and water-resistant, the Outdoor Research Helium down hoody blew me away.

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It’s goes without saying that with more traffic into the backcountry due to the pandemic, it’s more important than ever to filter your water.

Capacity

The MSR Guardian Gravity holds 10 liters of water. This is a significant size for one person but close to perfect for groups of two or more. When I used this, it was on on a two-day backpacking trip on the Sioux-Hustler Trail in the the Boundary Waters of Northern Minnesota. I didn’t find the size or capacity to be overkill for just me. It’s always good to have more than water than you need versus not enough.

Weight

When packed, the MSR Guardian Gravity is a little bigger than the standard 750 ml wine bottle and weighs in at 1lb, 2 ounces. Obviously, this is bigger (and heavier) than my Katadyn Hiker Pro which weighs in at a scant 15 ounces.

To be clear, the Katadyn Hiker Pro and the MSR Guardian Gravity isn’t an apple-to-apple comparison. The Katadyn Hiker Pro is a standard pump-action, labor-intensive water filter. The MSR Guardian Gravity is a self-flowing goliath that frees water of the invisible fluvial zoo of Cryptosporidium, Giardia, E-Coli and Salmonella hands-free.

I didn’t notice the extra weight, especially considering the benefits. Ultra-lighters, however, may feel their knees buckling and spinal discs bulging under the ample weight.

Ease of Use

The MSR Guardian Gravity is a lazy hiker’s dream come true (e.g. me). Gravity, as the name implies, is the key component. This means you will need a tree or some apparatus sturdy enough to hold the filled bag at least six feet above the ground for optimal flow rate. If your backpacking plans include the vast desert or open plains where there are no trees, or you’re spending the majority of your time above treeline, this may not the best filtration system.

Filling the bladder was easy – I just scooped up all the lake water it would hold and rolled the top to closure. Hoisting the full ten liters of water six feet above my head to secure to a tree—not so easy. Impossible, actually.

Filling

After dumping half the water back into the lake, it was manageable. I repeated this process a couple of times as needed at camp. It was all good. Once I secured the bladder to the hang strap tied from a tree, the purge and purification process began without any hitches. Note: The ideal water-to-weight ratio for me to lift is six liters. That’s plenty for me to drink.

Purifying

The MSR Guardian Gravity has two hoses – one short, which is the “purge” hose, and one long, which is the “input” hose. This is the hose that empties into your pot, water bottle or hydration bladder. There is no way to confuse these hoses, by the way. The purge hose is short, black and has a visible “do not drink!” tag.

The very first step to purify your water is to “purge and purify”. To do this, ensure both the purse and input hose clamps are clamped. Unclamp the purge hose first. This flushes the purifier of gunk. MSR recommends you purge about a half-liter of water. I did about a full liter just because. You’ll want to do this every time you fill the bag with new water.

After the ceremonial purge, lock the purge hose clamp and open the inlet hose (the long clear one), and let gravity do the rest. 

Top Tip

Find the right branch first, detach the hang strap and secure it around the said branch. Then fill the bag, carry it to the branch, hoist and secure to the clip. My first time around I was trying to do this all at the same time. A bit of a stupid, bumbling, inefficient way to do it.

Flow Rate

Flow rate is all dependent on how high you can hang the bag. A point of contention here is the length of the inlet hose. I think it could be considerably shorter. If I was seven feet tall and had the strength to lift 100lbs over my head to a tree with a branch seven to eight feet off the ground, I could get the flow rate gushing. But I’m 5’ 6” tall and cannot lift 100lbs over my head so all I got was a consistent, easy trickle. This wasn’t a deal breaker for me but I think MSR should provide the option of shorter hose lengths to accommodate the height and strength of the non-Viking warrior body types.

When timing the flow rate, it was all over the board due to the availability of tree heights and accessibility. On one time trial, I hung the bag the on a tree branch that allowed the bag to hang about four feet off the ground, but with lots of slack in the inlet hose. It filled a 32-ounce Cambelbak Chute in 3:45. Another time trial involved a tree with a branch that I could easily reach, with the bonus of being situated at the precipice of a downward slope. I hung the bag on the low branch and twisted it around to the slope where it hung at least seven or eight feet above the ground. There was no slack in the inlet hose this time. It took 2:12 to fill the Camelbak Chute.   

Water Taste

The water tasted like clean, purified, delicious, refreshing lake water. I tasted no hint of plastic.

Cleaning

The beauty of the MSR Guardian Gravity is that it is self-cleaning. Every time you do the purge and purify process with the purge hose, it’s a cleaning process.

Final Thoughts and a Parting Shot

Is the MSR Guardian Gravity worth the $250 price tag? In my opinion it is. From this day forward, the only reason I would use a hand-pump is if my hike took me to a treeless place. It’s faster and less labor-intensive than my Katadyn Hiker Pro. It’s incredibly well made and reliable. The hose assembly never leaked. The bag is light but incredibly strong with a reinforced bottom to protect it from twigs or rocks should you have to set it down. The filter is designed to last for about 3,000 liters and has a cartridge indicator that tells you when it’s time to change.

The MSR Guardian Gravity is also the only purifier that meets military-grade NSF protocol P248 testing standards. P248 is the most rigorous certification for proving a treatment device removes claimed contamination from challenging wilderness water sources. My only grievance is the long input hose—it could be shorter. Again, hardly a deal breaker.

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Versatile, Multipurpose Use

The Chrome Cobra 3.0 Hoodie arrived in late January. In Minnesota, January means snowshoeing, fatbiking, bike commuting, Nordic skiing, travel and staying warm when binging on Netflix.

Its construction and style make it stand out as both a mid-layer and an outer-layer, but doesn’t look like it fits specifically in any real sport or activity category. This is a good thing because its non-binary style and purpose increases its versatility—a must, in my opinion, if one is going to spend $180 on a garment.

Bulk-free Warmth & Performance

As I said above, the Chrome Cobra 3.0 Hoodie works equally well as a mid-layer and an outer-layer. With light-weight merino wool baselayer, I wore it as a midlayer with a Northface Apex softshell jacket or down vest while snowshoeing. The temperatures on these tests runs ranged from 10 to 20 degrees and I was plenty comfortable. Mostly, though, I wore it as an outer layer fatbiking, commuter biking and Nordic skiing with only a Kora Shola yak wool baselayer Merino wool baselayer.

As with anything, you have to temper your baselayers to the temperatures. For example, I was sweating like cold beer glass on a hot day the day I Nordic skied in 20 degrees with a heavyweight baselayer. When fatbiking on a -5-degree day with just a heavyweight baselayer, I was freezing (and with freezing comes whining, moaning, cryonics, etc). You get the picture. Use your best judgement.

Features

The Chrome Cobra 3.0 is a blend of Merino wool and recycled polyester to combine breathability, warmth and durability. While 100% Merino wool is my fave, I honestly didn’t feel any difference with the polyester blended in. A couple other interesting features that the Cobra 3.0 offers are:

Two-way Zipper

For fatbiking and commuter cycling, this is a must for me because I’m generally wearing bulkier bottoms. Opening the zipper four or five inches below makes for a more comfortable ride when in the aggressive cycling position in the saddle. The zipper pull here is nicely glove-friendly, too.

Thumbholes

Of all the garments I own that have thumb loops, the Chrome Cobra 3.0 is the only one in which I don’t feel any biting at the base of my thumb. This is because the arms are delightfully long. Noice.

Rear Pocket with a Full Pass-through

Great for carrying tools, ID, money, and what have you but they need to be re-thought. The zipper pulls are microscopic and most definitely NOT glove-friendly. The Cobra 3.0 is an evergreen staple in the Chrome line, going back a decade with incremental updates made each year. So I’m kind of scratching head wondering why nobody thought to add glove-friendly zipper pulls to the pockets on a Merino wool hoodie intended to be worn in cold weather. (Note: the front zipper pull is glove-friendly, just not the pocket zipper pulls.)

Style

Beautifully longer in the back as a cycling jacket should be, I love how it has an element of being form-fitting but still has just enough room to accommodate any size baselayer. I also love how high the front zipper comes up, how it doesn’t sit at my throat and the delightful snuggle-effect it gives when fully zipped. My only criticism on the style is the color. It’s only available in black. This is not to say I want an option that includes pink (hell no!) but maybe a nice dark red.

Final Thoughts

If I was anal enough to do a rating scale on a scale of 10, I would give the Chrome Merino Cobra 3.0 Hoodie a solid 9 (I had to subtract a point for the microscopic zipper pulls). It is a highly-functional, highly-versatile, warm, breathable, well-designed and durable cold-weather Merino-blend hoodie for absolutely every type of cold-weather activity on your agenda. It’s even a fantastic piece for the shoulder seasons and for Spring and Fall hiking and camping. Even you yoga-goers will love it.

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Women-specific Design

So much of the outdoor industry’s spin on women-specific gear feels like a pervasive marketing gimmick to “reach women” and “engage them in the outdoors”. Apparently, swirls, pastel colors and cute graphics are thought to be the clincher that seals the deal. Wrong!

When it comes to backpacks (and bike saddles), there is some validity. Compared to men, women tend have narrower shoulders, shorter torso lengths, and different hips (for some archaic, barbaric, biological practice called “child bearing”). It makes sense that backpack design is sensitive to that. But are narrow shoulders, shorter torsos and hip size limited to only a woman’s body type? No. There are lots of scrawny dudes and broad-built women out there. That being said, the Osprey Tempest 40 looks unisex in its design (until you put it on) and is mercifully devoid of swirls, pastel colors and floral graphics.

40 Liters Holds more than you Think

Until recently, I’ve been using the Osprey Tempest 40 as a long dayhike pack and summit pack. Let me tell you that it works amazingly well for that. However, it’s like owning a Porsche 911 and never exceeding 55 mph. It can do so much more! Like when I took it on a two-day solo hike on the Superior Hiking Trail for a 19-mile hike between Lutsen and Grand Marais.

Could I really carry enough gear in the 40 liters that make up the Osprey Tempest 40?

Weight

Fully empty, the Osprey Tempest 40 weighs 2.4 lbs. When it’s all packed for a two-day solo hike, with the basic necessities, it weighs in at…

Top-loading design

Front-loading vs top-loading will almost always be a subject for debate, even among the best of friends. There’s merit to each depending on the objective of the mission. But top-loading design, at least for me, means lighter weight and fewer failure points. We’re not talking five pounds of weight, more like mere ounces. But when you’re on an all-day hike or a multi-day thru hike, and you’re carrying a sleeping bag, tent, food, water, camp stove, etc, the extra ounces add up.

Zippers can also break. Should that happen when you’re days from civilization, whaddya do when all your gear tumbles out? Or the zipper jams to the point where you need the jaws of life and you don’t have a pair? For the record, the pro-front-loaders dis the pro-top-loaders because front-loaders are easy to organize and access that dry pair of socks smushed at the bottom of the pack without unpacking the entire pack to find. But us top-loaders mitigate this by packing with intent: Dry socks are packed at the very top.

Outstanding Organization

Floating Removable Top Lid

Like its bigger multi-day, top-loading sisters, the Osprey Aura AG 65 and Osprey Xena 85 (of which I have older versions), the Osprey Tempest has a floating removable top lid with exterior and interior zippered pockets. This where I stashed the items that I would need quick access to, like first aid kit, dry socks, phone, trail snacks, sunblock, rain jacket, rain pants, bug spray, etc.

Stretch Side Pockets

Another hold-over from the big sisters Aura and Xena are two stretch side pockets. I rely on these for holding a trail map, smartphone and, like any reasonable human hiker, a flask of brandy.

For a pack’s side pockets to be of value to a hiker relies on their position and depth. If they’re positioned in a way that you can’t easily access them while wearing your pack, or they’re so shallow that your contents fall out, they’re of limited use on a hike.

The Osprey Tempest kills it with the depth of the pockets. They’re deep, cavernous and my map and smartphone have no way of escaping unaided. I liked this. However, the angle of those deep pockets is straight up/down making it harder to access my map and phone while wearing the pack. I can do it, I just don’t always get it on the first try and it’s never pretty.

Main Compartment

The Tempest has a 40L main compartment. For an overnight hike on the Superior Hiking Trail, it held food for four meals, pillow, sleeping pad, change of skivvies, long-sleeve pullover, sleeping shirt/shorts, small ditty bag, fire-making supplies, camp stove, bowl, fork, spoon, trashbag, water purifier, biodegradable soap, camp towel, bear line, headlamp, book in addition to a handful of other trail necessities.

A convenient zipper located at the bottom of the pack allows you to gain access to items stashed in the pack first. In my case, it was the bear line and my sleeping bag. Osprey calls this zipper access the “sleeping bag compartment” but it isn’t an isolated compartment. Personally, I’d be happy to see this zipper go because it just adds extra weight.

Hip Belt Pockets

The Osprey Tempest 40 has two zippered mesh pockets on the hip belt. What I carry in these are items like lip balm, Swiss Army Knife and, like any conscientious person these days, a face mask. I encountered a few other hikers on the Superior Hiking Trail and that always invites opportunity for light conversation: Where did you start? Where are you hiking to? Are you from the Cities? Wow, love those colorful hiking socks! Because I’m not 100% certain I’m COVID19-free, I wear a mask to protect others.

Shoulder Straps

This is one of the spots where a women’s-specific design is appreciated. The Tempest 40’s straps are made with a soft foam that is not too thick, not to thin and are curved to create a nice and comfortable fit for a woman’s shoulder and chest. They’re also perforated to allow for ventilation.

Backpanel

The Airscape backpanel is unique in that it is comprised of a lightweight mesh attached to a backpanel of raised foam ridges in the design of an “accordion”. The shape of the ridges, coupled with the mesh, ensure good airflow between the pack and your back.

Hip Belt

The hipbelt is made with a soft foam that conforms to hipbones and allows for a comfortable load transfer. After four months of hiking with this pack carry varying weights, the hike that I noticed the comfort the most was on my two-day solo trek on the Superior Hiking Trail when the Tempest was loaded with 22.8lbs of gear and a full bladder of water. As with any pack it takes some finagling and tweaking of the shoulder straps and load balancer straps to find the sweet spot of comfort. Once I found it, the pack’s load was always well-dispersed and comfortable to carry for 8-10 mile days.

Size is Accurate

I have a 17.25 inch torso so I went with the S/M size per the Tempest’s official sizing for S/M (17”-20″). It was the right size. That means I have plenty of room to grow! If you ever wonder how to measure your torso length, check out this neat little vid from Backpacker mag.

What Could be Improved

As with most Osprey products, there isn’t much to improve upon. But I did find two things!

Kill the “Sleeping Bag Compartment”

It’s not a separate compartment so why add the extra weight and potential failure point of a zipper?

Add an Integrated Raincover

C’mon, Osprey. You’re really going to make me carry an extra rain cover??

Conclusion/Final Thoughts

To summarize the Osprey Tempest 40 in one word is easy: Amazing! It’s small enough to be a solid day pack for short or day-long hikes but it’s big enough for a two-day, self-supported solo hike, carrying everything you need, including tent, sleeping bag, camp pad, water and food. It’s a pack for a slow, meandering hike. It’s a pack for fast-hiking.

All the features are thoughtful, purposeful. There is nothing on the pack that is superfluous. In addition to the biggies that I listed earlier in this review, it also has stow-on-the-go trekking pole attachment system, a total of eight pockets situated in the most useful places, ice attachment loops (if you’re into that), emergency whistle on the sternum strap and the most wonderful feature of all? Osprey’s Lifetime Warranty.  

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For me it was the late 80’s in a European’esq coffee house in Flagstaff, AZ where I was going to college. That’s when and where I made my pledge. While today you can pick up a bag of small-batch, sustainably grown and roasted whole bean or fresh-ground in any grocery store, in the dark years of the late 80’s, the choice was Folgers or Maxwell House. It would be years before pretentious coffee habits could be had by a visit to the local grocery store.

Today, thanks to the Miir Pourigami, pretentious coffee habits can be had on the trail, at camp or while traveling!

Setting up the Miir Pourigami

The Miir Pourigami is a compact pour-over system comprised of three powder-coated stainless steel panels. All panels have an interlocking edge and groove that allows them to connect to each other, Origami style, to form a little three-sided boat that sits atop a coffee cup. I used a Miir 12-ounce Camp Cup.

And that’s it. The first few times through it was a little fiddly with more misses than hits but now it’s second nature.

Making the Coffee

Like setting up the Miir Pourigami, the first few times were hit and miss, mostly misses. I either made the coffee too strong, too weak, or the grounds splattered and caked to the sides of the filter, making for uneven saturation and an inconsistent brew. One ill-fated trial resulted in only the dripping of boiling brown water into the cup. My pour technique clearly needed work so I turned to Sam Spillman for guidance.

I finally came up with a decent brew that was a blend of pour speed, swirl technique, amount of water, amount of grounds and the size of grounds.

Because I was using a 12-ounce mug, I finally settled on four rounded tablespoons of medium-ground Caribou Coffee Mahogany dark roast. The dark roast is simply personal preference. I like the intensity of it. I poured a bit of water into the filter to make it conform better to the Pourigami and then dumped it out. Next, I added just enough boiling water to bloom the grounds. When the grounds were bloomed, I slowly added more boiling water, evenly and gently, and swirling it from the center out and back to center. Then I added the remaining water, achieving brewvana.

The Result

I don’t usually make pour-over coffee. French press is more my style. But now I get it. Pour over has its place! The blend of the Miir Pourigami and medium-ground Caribou Coffee Mahogany dark roast created a rich, robust, full-flavored coffee.  

Clean-up

Clean-up is easy, depending on where you are. If you’re making pour-over coffee at home or in the office, you just toss the used filter into the trash. The Pourigami itself just needs a quick rinse with water.

If you’re making pour-over coffee while camping or backpacking, there’s a few more steps to dispose of the grounds and filter properly. If you live and breathe Leave No Trace, you will need to pack it all out – soiled wet filter and grounds – in your pack. If you have a little wiggle room in your Leave No Trace ethos (e.g. me), dig a hole to bury the grounds and then seal the soiled filter into a Ziplock bag and pack out. Rinse the Pourigami, dry it, pack it into its case and hit the trail.

Weight & Size

The Miir Pourigami on its own is 5.1 ounces (the website says 4 ounces, but it’s 5.1). When packed into its storage case, which is a little smaller than a smartphone, the total weight comes to 5.3 ounces. When I brought this backpacking, I was also carrying the Miir 12-ounce Camp Cup which, at 9 ounces, isn’t featherlight. All told, the Pourigami, storage case, and Camp Cup tilt the scales at 14.3 ounces – on top of all the other gear I carried, like tent, sleeping bag, camp pad, food, etc.

If you’re an ultralight backpacker, 14.3 ounces worth of coffee-making gear is enough to make your lumbar discs bulge and burst. No judgement!

Final Thoughts and a Parting Shot

I think the Miir Pourigami is a brilliant set up. It’s compact, it’s simple, it brews a great cup of coffee no matter where you are. You can use it with any camp mug or cup, too. Filters are required but you can purchase them anywhere and you can stash the filters in the storage case.

But it isn’t perfect for every mission due to its weight. I really loved the flavor of the coffee the Pourigami delivered in the morning. Pairing it with the Miir Camp Cup made it all that more enjoyable because its double-wall construction and sippy cup lid kept the coffee hotter longer. Still, for home or office use, or for travel that does not include having to carry it on your back in a backpack, it’s brilliant.

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The Boot

The Garmont Toubkal GTX is a higher boot, which hits a little above the ankle. It features an asymmetrical cuff, tongue and differential ankle pads for stability and comfort, a roomy toe box, precision lacing, double damper technology for shock absorption, a heel lock to avoid friction, a Gore-Tex waterproof upper, and a piece of rubber around most of the foot to protect the toes if encountering rocks. The tread is nice and chunky, and the soles are wide to help with traction on tough, rocky terrain.

Pros

Stability

To give these boots a true test, I decided to wear them on a hike that would test their stability and grip – 1100 ft straight down and ,1100 ft straight up with plenty of rocks and roots to traverse along the way. Although I wear tennis shoes a lot, the one downside to that is that I have weak ankles. Having damaged my ligaments as a child, and having many subsequent sprains throughout my life, my shaky ankles don´t always do well with descents and rocks. I was very pleased with the Garmont Toubkal GTX’s ankle support that the differential pads and overall design provide. Even when going down rocky descents, I didn’t feel my ankles would roll like they often do. Theses boots live up to their stability promise.

Fit

I have a very odd-shaped foot, a skinny heel and a much wider ball of my foot. The large toe box was sufficiently ample, and I had no pressure on my toe area, as I so often do. These boots run true to size (I usually wear a size 9) but I decided to go up a half-size to account for swelling. I had absolutely no fit issues. You can trust that your size will fit you with these boots.

Durability

I enjoyed the toe protection offered by the rubber wrap around the shoe. It was perfect to avoid stubbing a toe on rocks and roots. It very much reminds me of a rock-climbing shoe. If you do tough climbs with lots of rocks and debris, the Garmont Toubkal GTX boot as the protection you need.

Tread

The Garmont Toubkal GTX had great grip. Even going down a steep descent, I wasn’t sliding, and my feet stood firm. These boots would be great for rough terrain and even loose surfaces.

What Could Be Better

Temperature

I took these boots out on a hot summer day. While they do have breathability, for me, they were much warmer than tennis shoes. I think this “con” is a matter of preference. Perhaps this wouldn’t be something that bothers someone else. However, I am looking forward to getting these out on hikes in cooler months.

Waterproofing

Don’t get me wrong, waterproofability on a rainy day and in shallow water is a fantastic feature. However, on some hikes I have completed, I am in well-above ankle-deep water. Those adventures always make me question using waterproof boots. As soon as you get in deeper water, your boots will flood, and the water is trapped. I love tennis shoes since they dry quickly and the water has a way to escape. In these boots, I would worry about getting trench foot if wearing them too long when wet. However, if you are a hiker that doesn’t march through water frequently, (like those of us in the ‘Land of 10,000 Lakes’), this may not be a concern for you.

Overall Impression

In general, I was thoroughly impressed by the stability, comfort, and resilience of these boots. I love how wide the toe box is, as well as the toe protection when I run into rocks and tree roots. I didn’t think I would imagine hiking in the Garmont Toubkal GTX again after reviewing them, but it looks like I am going to have to line up some fall hikes to continue breaking these in, and I am looking forward to it.

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Break-in Period

Some boots require a break-in period, some are ready to hike right outside the box. Boots that generally require a break-in period are the burly leather models in which the leather needs time to soften and conform to your feet.

My first pair of LOWA’s was the Mauria GTX back in 2014. The Mauria’s are in the class of the burly leather model hiking boot. They had been on back order and had arrived two days before I left for a hiking trip in Austria. Breaking in new boots before an epic hike is a risk but the Mauria’s ended up being that rare burly hiker that didn’t need breaking in.

And neither did the LOWA Explorer GTX mid. They were comfortably hike-able right out of box. No break-in period required.

Pro tip: I really urge you try boots on first though.

Fit

The Explorer GTX’s lacing system is a combination of webbing and metal hooks. Presumably LOWA used this combination of webbing and hooks to decrease weight. However, the metal hooks used are definitely not as brawny as the hooks on the Mauria’s, but they got the job done and delivered an outstanding fit.

Pro tip: Try your boots on at the end of the day when your feet are naturally swollen. Be sure to take your own hiking socks along.

Sizing

When it comes to hiking boots, always start with a half- or a full-size up. This is because you’ll want to accommodate thicker hiking socks and the normal foot swelling one gets from being on their feet for a few hours. The danger, though, is sizing up to big. If you go to big, your foot will swim around inside the boot causing blisters.  

When I receive a pair of boots to review, the fit is a bit of a lottery because the firsts time I’m trying them on is after UPS or FedEx drop them off at my door. I wear a size 7.5 in shoes. When it comes to hiking boots or shoes, I go a half-size up. I went with the size eight in the Explorers and the fit is certainly what I’ve come to expect from LOWA.  

Waterproof-ness

“GTX” is code for “Gortex”. The LOWA Explorer GTX, therefore, have a Goretex liner that make them waterproof. Hiking the Superior Hiking Trail in early June, or any of the hikes I’ve done before and after, had their share of puddles, small creek crossing, left-over snowmelt and slogs in the rain. The Goretex must work because I never had to swap wet socks for dry.  

Pro tip: Allow me to clarify what waterproof means in a hiking boot. Can you walk into a knee-deep lake or river and emerge on the other side with dry feet? No. But if you’re hiking in pouring, sheeting, pelting rain or wading through puddles, or rock-hopping a shallow creek crossing and you lose your balance and you submerge your foot up to the laces, your feet should stay dry.

Support and Stability

An easy way to judge a hiking boot’s stability is to squeeze the sides of the heel counter. If it resists compression, or feels like you’re squeezing a block of cement, you have a highly-stable boot that is built to sustain long hikes on varying terrain while carrying a heavy backpack (like the Mauria GTX). If it compresses slightly you have a boot with less stability.

This is neither bad nor good. Not all hiking boots are intended to carry heavy packs for multiple days on rough trail with sharp ascents and descents. That being said, the Explorer’s split leather and fabric upper (more leather than fabric though) didn’t fully resist the compression test but it fought back gallantly. It took all the strength in my fingers just to barely move the needle.

A boot’s surface area also plays into stability. The more surface area in contact with the ground the more support the shoe offers the foot. When I compare the surface area of the LOWA Explorer GTX with that of the Mauria GTX, which is a highly-stable boot, the difference is negligible.

That sums up my experience of the Explorer GTX’s. Like the Mauria’s, they have a nice stiff, responsive platform for ascents while carrying a pack weighing around 36lbs.

Traction

No boot is immune to loose, gravelly scree or soaked rocks and wood but LOWA outfitted the Explorers with a Vibram Rock Trac with MegaGrip Rubber Compound outsole and DynaPU+ midsole to ensure optimal traction on varying trail conditions. Another contributor to traction is the lug pattern. A wider tread is better for shedding mud and debris and that ultimately is what improves your traction.

This combination certainly worked well on keeping me upright and sure-footed on the Superior Hiking Trail. It isn’t a trail with epic ascents and descents like you’d find on the Pacific Crest Trail or climbing a 14,000-foot or higher peak, but it traverses plenty a high ridgeline with rocks, roots and logs. When it rains, and these rocks, roots and logs become wet, and carrying a heavy pack, all I can say is pity the fool with a lesser boot and mediocre traction.

I rank the LOWA Explorer GTX’s, and its aggressive lugs, very high in the traction category.

Comfort and Performance

My barometer for testing a boot’s comfort may be fairly simplistic but it works:

• Do I need to stop every few miles and adjust the laces or just give my feet a rest? No.
• Do I have hotspots and/blisters? No.
• Do my somewhat-high arches feel like they’ve flattened? No.
• Do my heels throb and are sore to the touch? No.
• Is kicking them off my feet when I get to camp Priority #1? No.

The LOWA Explorer GTX mid is an insanely comfortable boot for thru-hiking, thanks to its shock-absorbing midsole slab of cushioning in the heel. Unlike the stiffer sole of its big sister the Mauria GTX, the Explorer’s sole offers an enhanced flexibility that conforms better to a natural walking gait. A nice-sized toebox allowed my toes to splay when they needed.

Pro tip: Wear a quality merino wool hiking sock and tie your laces properly.  

Quality and Durability

Outstanding. They’re LOWA and they’re made in Germany (not China). Hiking is a traditional pastime in Germany, thus Germans have high standards for hiking boots. LOWA represents that national pride in the art of bootmaking. Outsourcing their product to Asia for manufacturing doesn’t allow the level of quality control they require. The result of this nit-picki’ness and quality-control freak’ness is a hiking boot with outstanding quality and durability.

I can speak to durability anecdotally. I received my first pair of LOWA’s in 2014. They’ve summitted seven fourteener’s in Colorado, hiked hundreds of miles on trails in the United States, Norway, Iceland, Scotland, Canada and the Faro Islands. Last year, I took them to Greenland. They are still rocking it with no end in sight. The leather hasn’t cracked or deteriorated. The seams are still tight and the outsoles are still attached. The only things I’ve replaced is the stock footbed (replaced with a SuperFeet footbed a few years ago) and the laces, which I replaced last year before the Greenland trip.

The downside, certainly, is that all this quality and durability come at a price. Some budget-minded hikers will find the $240 price tag of the LOWA Explorer GTX to painful. But in hiking boots, as with most things, you get what you pay for. Six years from now, when you’re still hiking in the Explorers (or just about any LOWA boot), you’ll be glad you increased your boot budget.  

Final Thoughts

Because quality hiking boots aren’t cheap, I often get asked if there’s such a thing as a one-boot-that-does-it-all by folks who don’t want to invest in a heavier, stable boot for thru-hiking with a loaded pack and a lightweight shoe ideal for fast hikes in state parks with a daypack.

It’s possible that ideal one-boot-to-do-it-all is LOWA Explorer GTX Mid.

Nicely done, LOWA.

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Comfort

When mentioning comfort, the Freel shorts are really no joke. It can be difficult to find a good fitting bike short for women as some brands just change the colors of the guy shorts they have, make them in smaller sizes and don’t really change anything about the style or fit of the short to hug the woman’s body just right. It does help that Wild Rye was started by adventurous women who understand the needs of like-minded women and making great quality products to encourage us to get outside.

Fit, Style, Llamas!

The moment I saw my llama covered Freel bike shorts, I knew it was a match made in heaven. But when I felt the material and put them on, I couldn’t wait to get out on my bike and show them off. The shorts fit like a glove. There was no pinching, restraint, or discomfort whatsoever during biking, hiking and just walking around.

Pockets and Durability

The shorts have a nice storage pocket that will hold a cell phone, energy bars, or other essentials you’d want to have fast and easy access to. The positioning of the pocket is perfect, so it doesn’t impede on your riding while sitting on your seat. You can feel the durability of the shorts, and the four-way stretch nylon fabric makes movement seamless and easy. They withstood hiking through rocks, shrubbery and trees, and with the abrasion resistant nylon, there was absolutely no worry about tearing the fabric.

Features

In addition to the features mentioned above, the Freel shorts are also water repellant, have UPF 50, they are breathable, have front pockets, a gusseted crotch, and are 88% nylon, 12% spandex. The shorts are true to size.

Final Thoughts

There’s no question that Wild Rye did beyond excellent with their Freel mountain bike shorts. I’d recommend these shorts to all female mountain biking crushers out there. While they may seem a bit pricey, ladies, if you want durable, quality, and comfortable mountain biking shorts, put the Freel shorts on your list. They are well worth it. Retail price, $119.

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What I Liked

REACTIVE All Around 2-3 Photochromic Lenses

The Julbo Spark’s 2-3 lenses refers to category of sun protection strength. Essentially, the Julbo Spark offers two categories of sun protection in one lens—Category 2 and Category 3. Category 2 is typically the orange, blue, rose and red lenses, which are idea for shade or partially sunny conditions. Category 3 is an almost all brown or grey/smoke lens is for strong sunlight and most common category. When both the categories work together, they let in between 9% to 20% of visible light. Note: No matter the category, tint or color, UV protection is consistent because it’s applied to all lenses.

When I’m indoors, or outside when it’s cloudy, the Julbo Spark’s lenses transition to Category 2 (automagically!) and appear as normal tinted eye glasses. When I emerge outside into sun, the lenses rapidly transform into full-on, sun-protection sunglasses.

I found this adaptability to be ideal for non-high impact activities like canoeing, sea kayaking, camping and hiking when the sun goes behind a cloud, it’s overcast or hiking trails that took me through shaded forest and exposed ridges without removing them or pushing them up onto my head. Julbo’s website states that these lenses allow you to “read any type of screen”. They are correct, as I had no issues with clarity when reading from my Kindle Paper White, trail map or smartphone screen.

Non-sliding, Outstanding and Comfortable fit

You know when you were a pimply, pubescent adolescent with oily skin? Well, I still have that despite several decades beyond those pimply, pubescent, adolescent years. My principal conundrum with sunglasses is that the second my nose gets oily or sweaty, they slide down my nose. This means I’m constantly repositioning them and having to take my hand off a kayak or canoe paddle, hiking pole, what have you. Except that I haven’t done that yet with the Julbo Sparks for three reasons.

First, the nose grip technology. I have no idea what it is made from because all I could find on Julbo’s website was that the Spark’s nose grip was a “Flexible, shock-absorbing grip insert on the bridge.” Still, whatever the secret ingredient, it grips to an oily, sweaty nose like superglue (but comes off considerably easier).

Second, the weight. The Julbo Spark weighs in at feathery-light 26 grams so there is hardly any gravity working against them or your nose. Third, the ear piece. They’re not adjustable but they’re ergonomically spot-on and comfortably secure around my ears. When wearing a hat or visor whose brims sit on top of ear pieces, I never felt any discomfort or pain in my temple area.  

What Could be Better

The case. The Julbo Spark comes in a soft zippered case with a microfiber bag that doubles as their cleaning cloth. The cleaning-cloth bag is great, and wipes them clean without scratching the lenses. But the soft case doesn’t offer much protection against impact, such as accidentally sitting on them or stuffing something heavy on top of them in a backpack.  

Final Thoughts

For low-impact activity like hiking, paddling, camping or even wearing about town, the Julbo Spark is an impressive pair of sunglasses. I don’t recommend them for cycling or running because they aren’t designed for it. Aside from being attractive, they are lightweight and comfortable. But the big stand-out for me, and for the variety of activities for which I’ve been using them, is the REACTIVE Photochromic lenses and their outstanding clarity and adaptability to changing light conditions when outside.

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