The Mutant 28, by Osprey, packs the essentials for a minimalist looking to get into alpine, ice or vertically mixed endeavors. Thoughtfulness, through design and testing, have put purposeful features to work, creating a pack that can do big things in a little package. Retail: $130.00 Reviewed by Al Smith III, co-founder of The Climbing…
For us posting this video, is a case of “I don’t always (fill in the blank) but when I do…” We pride ourselves on original content, we are the Outkast of the climbing world (if you don’t know about the musical act Outkast, check em out. Basically they ensured their legacy in the hip-hop game…
It’s amazing that climbing El Capitan in Yosemite is no big deal for a lot of people: routes that originally took parties days, even months to climb, can be done in just a few hours by elite climbers. For yours truly and my partner Dave Ahrens climbing El Capitan was a big deal, a life…
For once, I’m actually psyched to “leave it on,” as their ad campaign suggests. For climbers and skiers, the best characteristic of a jacket is not noticing it while it’s on, so you can focus on the task at hand. Then afterwards you realize, oh yeah, I was warm the whole time, but I’m not…
Westcomb’s Tango Hoody is a formidable layer for a variety of conditions, with a lot to love in a simple, straightforward package. Having received this jacket in the late fall, a bit past prime time alpine climbing season, I chose to test this jacket in a similar environ – the backcountry and nordic trails in…
I have been alone on the road bouncing from park to park for 2 months. My car is a wreck. I rarely don’t smell like feet. But I climb every single day. And it is freak’n awesome! Traveling solo has presented the unique challenge of needing to find new partners at each destination I ramble…
These days, more often than not, someone in a climbing crew of craggers has a speaker. If you want the biggest and the baddest – you should probably check out the Big Turtle Shell (BTS) Wireless Speaker from Outdoor Tech. Retail: $229.95 Last spring we reviewed the original Turtle Shell, which is about a fourth…
“This stillness to which all returns, this is reality, and soul and sanity have no more meaning here than a gust of snow…[mountains] serve as a mirror to one’s own true being, utterly still, utterly clear, a void, an Emptiness without life or sound that carries in Itself all life, all sound. Yet as long…