Leave No Trace: Managing Human Waste in the Outdoors

Jul 27, 2021

This is a story about poop. It’s about the principles of Leave No Trace camping not changing exactly, but evolving in the way we need to apply them. Because we are loving our wild places to death by treating them like giant toilets. The focus here will be on ‘frontcountry’ areas which I will define as relatively remote yet road-accessible areas with little or no services, typically managed by the National Forest Service (NFS) or Bureau of Land Management (BLM). These playgrounds are among the crowning jewels of the mountain west and some of the finest rewards for anyone seeking the freedom of the Great American Road Trip. There’s little more satisfying to a vagabond van-lifer than seeing a brown wooden sign that reads “Entering [insert name] National Forest”, knowing…

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The Ultimate Guide to MSR Tents

Jul 13, 2021

Whether you’re climbing the biggest peaks on earth or throwing down for the weekend with the family, MSR has the perfect tent for you. Each one is built on a foundation of lasting performance and targeted design, delivering just what you need for any adventure. However, with so many specialized tents to choose from, finding the right one might seem daunting. In reality, finding the right tent is pretty straightforward when you have the right information and a basic understanding of what makes each tent tick. With that in mind, we present to you the Ultimate Tent Guide as beacon to light your way through it all. Below you’ll find all of our tent offerings laid out by category. This is your first step in locating the right tent for…

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Bolting Climbs: The Ethics of First Ascents

Jul 6, 2021

Evaluating the ethics behind first ascents begged the question of whether or not we’re creating safer climbs by “conquering routes”. Were we providing positive accessibility by bolting walls? Or just flaunting our abilities?

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Paring it Down to the Essentials: A Guide’s Gear for a Three-Day Mountaineering Trip

Jun 29, 2021

As a guide with the American Alpine Institute on Mt. Baker, I often end up working with clients who try to bring all the appropriate gear but end up bringing just a tad more than necessary. In this post, I will talk about the gear I bring with me on a 3-Day Baker Skills and Climb trip and how I pared it down to its current amount. I hope this will help you on your fast-and-light adventures! 58 Mountaineering Essentials To start out, here’s a standard list of what I bring on a Baker 3-Day… Climbing gear: Crampons Harness Ice axe 1 ice screw 4 locking carabiners 6 non-locking carabiners 20-foot cordelette 2 double-length slings 2 pickets 1 rope Waist and foot prusiks Helmet Clothes: 1 pair soft shell pants…

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