Gear: Guides and Reviews

Gear to be purchased for 2007:  I am looking into getting a canoe this year, so that is going to be the big purchase. Right now the front runner for our choice is an "Old Town -Discovery 169". Along with getting a canoe will also be the purchase of canoe related gear. As for my continued climbing ambitions, my wife and I have started climbing at a local rock gym, so we will be purchasing equipment for this new activity as well. With our move to Toronto we are looking forward to discovering the Ontario are as well as checking out outdoor activities in upstate New York. I have already purchase a number of books to read up on canoeing and camping in Ontario, now I just need to get the Canadian maps for my Garvin GPS.

Gear recently purchased or received as a gift:  So far the list includes a Pembroke climbing harness by Black Diamond, and espresso maker by GSI, an additional MSR SuperFly stove, an additional Black Diamond head lamp, dry bag for canoe, Therma Rest Z-fold mat, and some random camp site gear.

For Clothing I have had great success with the following products:

Jackets: Marmot Precip Jacket (very pack-able, great for layering), and Patagonia R4
Shirts: Pearl Izumi and North Face shirts
Pants: Pearl Izumi cross training pants and TNF Paramount zip-off pants
Base Layers: Patagonia mid and silk weight underwear (tops and bottoms)
Gloves: Black Diamond, Metolius, and Burton (my hands get cold while climbing so I carry a heavy pair of gloves up above 14,000 ft on climbs in all months of the year except maybe August)
Socks: Smart Wool socks (I always carry a second pair)
Footwear: Montrail Torre GTX II (used for trail running, climbing, and backpacking. So good I bought another pair after wearing out the first pair)
Other: Black Diamond Front Point Gaiters

For Gear I have used:

Backpacks: Camelbak, Dana Designs -"Salish", and Mountain Smith packs
Sleeping Bags: Marmot's "Sawtooth" and Kelty's "Light Year 3D"
Tent: Marmot's "Bastile" 3+ season tent
Sleeping Pads: Thermarest for backpacking and an Aero bed knock-off for car camping
Storage: Rubbermaid Actionpacker totes are great, they are tough and a great way to hold all the miscellaneous camping stuff, for food storage in the car a Coleman steel belted cooler
Head Lamp: Black Diamond's Gemini and Night Ray  head lamps (if you don't have a head lamp you are really missing out)
Cooking: MSR's "SuperFly Stove" (fast, easy, and trouble free); and MSR, Primus, and Evernew cookware
Climbing: Black Diamond Momentum and Pembroke harnesses, Black Diamond Figure 8 and ATC, Black Diamond locking and bent gate biners, and an Arc'teryx chalk bag
Other: Rudy Project sunglasses, SpyderCo Knives, and Garmin color GPS "etrex Vista C"
Transportation: 2000 Toyota 4Runner
Reviews & Resources
SummitPost Gear
Mtn. Bike Review
Gear Companies
Pearl Izumi
Patagonia
Ynot
Arkel
Rudy Project
MountainSmith
Smartwool
MSR
Specialized Bicycles
Burton
Teva
Duluth Trading Co
Merrell
GoPro
Deuter
Brooks
Online Stores
REI
Campmor
MEC (Canada)
Sierra Trading Post