My good friend Jim Milliken spent the summer hiking and rafting in the American West.  During that time he put his old gear, and new gear, through the ringer.  He’s a mountain goat if there ever was one and can withstand days of hiking switchbacks that would kill people a third of his age.  Being physically strong makes him also expect the most from his gear…as he should.  Below is a report from Jim on some of the items he carried and the pros and cons of each as well as issues he encountered and how he dealt with them.  He wants to be clear, however, that this is an equipment review and not an attempt to be negative toward any one gear manufacturer.  Jim wrote that “In some cases it has more to do with the application of the equipment and how to make it more effective than faulty equipment.”

Below is Jim’s gear review:
1.  Katadyn ‘Hiker’ water filter.  This pump was new on this trip and replaced the Katadyn bottle with the filter inside the bottle that I had used on previous backpack trips.  I felt that it was too slow sucking out the water from the bottle version…ok for day hikes but not when you are drinking lots of water day after day.  Anyway, it worked perfectly until the end of the fifth day.  I got to my campsite and all my water bottles (3) were empty.  I took the unit out of the top of my backpack and took the pouch to the creek with the empty bottles.  To my dismay I found that the inlet water barb to the pump had broken off into the plastic tube.  No visible damage to the case of the pump.  I tried to hold the fitting back to the pump case but it had been plastic welded in and was jagged around the edges and
would not seal.  Lucky for me I was close to the end of the hike and I met the first person I’d talked to in five days and he had a pump I could borrow.  The next day I took a chance on three refills I needed at creeks that looked like they were close to the source.

Oh yes, I suppose I could have stopped and started a fire to boil water each time I need a refill but that is not why I bought a pump.
The end to the story is I called Katadyn in MN and they are sending me a new body to the pump.  I said the problem seemed to be that the inlet barb was a hair too long and sat just slightly proud of the case.  She said that they had been making the case that way for about 30 years and this was not a problem she was familiar with…but would pass my comment along.  So much for suggestions that they ask for in their literature.  I said it couldn’t be repaired but maybe a screw in fitting would be better if they didn’t want to change the barb length…then I could carry a spare.  She said they plastic welded it and it couldn’t be replaced.

2.  Brunton Nova white gas stove.  I also bought this new last year and used it backpacking.  I’d not used it in almost a year and got it out to test it before leaving on this years hike.  Long story short the scatter shield that fits over the jet on top of the burner had come unclipped and I had it in the pouch and didn’t see it till it was too late.  Since I couldn’t get it to start I read about cleaning the parts and took it apart to clean everything.  The threads on the needle valve that is on the end of the off/on handle stripped out…they are very fine threads.  Ended up I buggered the stove to the point I had to search around for a replacement the day of the hike and ended up with a Sterno stove and the wrong size (2.6 oz cans) versus the 7.2 oz can that is supposed to go with the stove.  Adapting on the trip I put a rock in the bottom of the stove each time I used it to get the smaller cans up closer to my half liter water cup…and I had to use two cans at a time to get the heat.  Still didn’t boil water like it should but would simmer fairly easily.
On my return I called Brunton and they told me that that stove is no longer made but that they had a lot of parts for it.  If I would send it to them they would see if they could fix it for free.  Can’t beat that offer.
Hopefully by writing about my mistakes I’ll avoid breaking it next time I go to use it.

3.  Lighters.  I’d been using a Bic but found a lighter about the size of a Bic but with an extension tube that slid out about two inches.  Much better for lighting a stove and keeping your fingers away from the flames.  It worked fine the first night but the next night it was DOA.  Don’t know what happened except that the little sight glass showing the fuel has some star cracks in it.  Lucky for me I also brought along the reliable old Bic as I needed it for the next four nights.  Now I’ll just get another Bic to carry in case the first one fails or runs out of fuel.

4.  Garmin Colorado 300 GPS.  I also bought this last summer and used it extensively.  My main complaint is that it eats batteries.  I took along a set of batteries for each day as that is about how long they last…regardless of which type you use.  I tried cutting the backlight down to zero but nothing I did seemed to extend the battery life.  And I took along a manual compass just in case my electronic one in the GPS ran out of juice.

5.  Keen river sandals.  Bought these new just before the hike.  Used them for hot springs soaks and several creek crossings…and even hiked a mile between crossings with them on.  Awesome grip on slippery river rocks and comfortable to walk in.  They have elastic in the webbing and an adjustment string slide so you can set the fit to your foot.  A bit pricey at 89 bucks but they give great grip in swift water.

6.  Osprey Aether 70 backpack.  This was the first time I’d used this backpack.  It has a waist band that is heat molded to your body shape.  It is supposed to make it more comfortable to carry the weight on your hips…it works and works well.  The shoulder straps are also easily adjustable so you can change the balance of the load between the shoulders and your waist…this in conjunction with the adjustable cross tie between the shoulder straps in front made for maximum comfort.  My middle back is my main stress area and when it would start to hurt I’d just adjust the straps until I felt the stress release…very effective.  Another feature I found I loved was the sleeping bag access compartment.  It made packing a long easier…just unzip the bottom of the backpack and slip the sleeping in and zip it back up….makes it easier to pack up most of your stuff without having to get out of the tent in the mornings.
It also has a very well designed top pouch which is large enough to hold all of your small items so only the big things have to go inside the main backpack.  This is a convenience when on the trail as almost anything you might need short of setting up camp is in this pouch.  All in all a very well designed and comfortable backpack.

7.  Kelty sleeping bag.  When I bought this bag I was trying to find a balance between bulk/weight and warmth.  So I figured a 20 degree sleeping bag should be just fine.  I’ve used it on two backpacks at between 9-11,000 feet in the summer and do not believe that it was ever 20 degrees at night.  However I’ve needed long underwear plus on both hikes to stay comfortable.  From now on I take fleece bottoms and long underwear tops plus wear my hiking socks as a minimum.  This trip I was so cold I wore my hiking clothes plus pulled long underwear over them and wore my Mountain Hardwear fleece and still had to wrap my thighs with my long underwear tops to keep warm.  Don’t know where the 20 degree rating comes from but I’m not impressed….but the sleeping bag is well made and super comfortable.

8.  Kelty Teton 2 tent.  I really like this tent…easy to set up, good zipper system, nice fly, strong suspension poles.  My suggestions for improvement come from my experience on this last hike.  I set up in a meadow and the wind came up and stayed up all night long.  The fly tensioners at the corners of the tent are straps that you just pull to the desired tension and they are supposed to hold.  I got up once as I couldn’t sleep from the slapping noise of the fly against the tent and retensioned the straps.  Came right loose again.  The next night I tried tying a knot in the loose end of the strap to keep it from going slack in wind.  Need a better designed or stronger gripping tensioner on the fly corners.  Another issue with those tension straps is that they have a very small sewn tab on the end to grab onto.  It takes two hands to push enough strap through so you can get your fingers onto that little tab so you can pull the strap tight.  One other item is the Velcro tabs on the fly that go around the poles on the four corners.  You can’t open them with one hand either as there are no tabs on them to grip to open them…pain in the butt.  All in all, however, it is an awesome tent…just not quite as user friendly as it could be.

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