Our Camping Gear

A. Kelty Coyote Backpack B. Katadyn Hiker PRO Water Microfilter C. 010-00622-45 Colorado ™ 400 Portable Gps System (colorado ™ 400t Wi D. Gerber 22-01629 LMF II Black Infantry Knife- 4.8 inch blade E. Coleman Taos Extreme-Weather Mummy Bag F. Princeton Tec Fuel Headlamp G. Big Agnes Insulated Air Core Sleeping Pad H. Brunton Striker Fire Starter I. Jetboil Backcountry Gourmet Cooking Set J. Eureka Adventure Apex 2FG 7-Foot by 5-Foot 2-Person Tent *

*We are in no way experts or the pinnacle of camping wisdom. This is equipment we’ve been recommended by more experienced backpackers and have owned/used for the past year with excellent results. There is always better equipment and like so many things money can always buy you bigger and better things if you can spend it. For us, these were great buys at a price we could afford.

Neil’s Notes

• A: The Kelty is a good weekend pack. Anything over 3-4 nights and I think you may run out of room depending on how light or heavy you pack. Its a very rugged pack that takes abuse well!
• B: Used this filter for the first time this weekend and it was easy and straight forward to use and we filled 2 liters in just a couple minutes. Water tasted great!
• C: This GPS was just fun to use and allows you to do all sorts of things like tracking your mileage and route and you can export it to google maps! Check out our post: Trip Part Two, to see the google maps export.
• D: This knife is great value. Very sturdy and has a good weight to it that allows the knife to do most of the work for you when chopping, whittling, or sawing. I have a feeling this thing is going to last years and years and years.
• E: This is a very affordable bag that keeps you quite warm. We have used this thing into the 30’s and still were very toasty, even almost sweaty. The only downside is that this pack does not pack down really small. I would say it packs down to about the size of two 2 liters. But at the price you cannot beat it.
• F: Gotta have a head lamp. Keeping your hands free is a godsend during late nights in the tent or around the campsite. This performed great, but I think any headlamp would do okay here.
• G: Hands down the best thing in my pack. These take only minutes to blow up, but you will NEVER have to feel the ground again. 2.5 inches of air between you and the ground keeps you not only comfy, but also WARM. On a 6 night stay in Colorado we only had to re-inflate these one time, they hold air like a champ.
• H: The classic fire starter worked great, nuff said.
• I: Jetboils are awesome. So much utility in a little package it is insane. We have cooked many things in these guys and they are perfect for soups, coffee, and anything else hand held. With the pan you can make eggs or anything else. Only downside is the pan is non stick, but not the greatest non-stick surface.
• J: Great tent. Light, strong, simple to put up and take down, survives wind and rain very well and it actually FITS in its bag with ease. When was the last time you did not struggle for hours trying to pack and unpack a tent? Get this.