Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews, Ski & Snowboard

Mountaineering / Ski Harness Review Part 2: Camp Alp Mountain

This is the second installment of a multi-part series covering light mountaineering and ski harnesses. The first review covered the Mammut Zephyr Altitude, this one will look at the Camp Alp Mountain and will be followed by the Petzl Altitude. I’ll continue the series if there’s a good response and I’m able to get some more test samples. Camp Alp Mountain The Alp Mountain harness from Camp is lightweight … Continue reading Mountaineering / Ski Harness Review Part 2: Camp Alp Mountain

Monte JohnstonAugust 21, 2017September 3, 2018

Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews, Ski & Snowboard

Mountaineering / Ski Harness Review Part 1: Mammut Zephyr Altitude

This is the first part of a series on light mountaineering and ski harnesses. The plan is to cover the Mammut Zephyr Altitude in this review followed by the Camp Alp Mountain and the Petzl Altitude. I’ll continue the series if there’s a good response and I’m able to get some more test samples. I hope to get out a new review every 4-5 days and will add a link to … Continue reading Mountaineering / Ski Harness Review Part 1: Mammut Zephyr Altitude

Monte JohnstonAugust 16, 2017September 3, 2018

Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews

Review: Gregory Baltoro 95 Pro Backpack

Yes the Baltoro Pro is a massive 95L backpack, a serious gear hauler! But if you’re going to buckle down and suffer packing all that crap around you might as well take a comfortable pack! In truth it wasn’t that many years ago that I got rid of all my larger packs and vowed that if I couldn’t do the trip with a 55L bag I wasn’t … Continue reading Review: Gregory Baltoro 95 Pro Backpack

Monte JohnstonAugust 15, 2017November 18, 2017

Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews, Rock & Ice

Beal Opera 8.5mm Single Rope Review

The Beal Opera 8.5 is not only the lightest and thinnest single rope on the market, with the inclusion of Beal’s UNICORE technology, it’s also a very safe rope. While it didn’t hit the market in North America with much fanfare this rope, and the Unicore tech in general, is a game changer! One of the biggest dangers in climbing is damaging or cutting a rope: sharp … Continue reading Beal Opera 8.5mm Single Rope Review

Monte JohnstonAugust 9, 2017April 30, 2020

Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews, Ski & Snowboard

Petzl RIDE Axe Review

I’ve been really impressed with all the amazing new (or redesigned) products coming from Petzl lately and the new Ride axe is no exception. While it was designed as a compact and lightweight ski mountaineering axe the Ride is also a very functional summer mountaineering tool. It works great on mountaineering and alpine objectives where portability and weight are critical regardless of the season. Features: Length: 45cm Weight: 280g … Continue reading Petzl RIDE Axe Review

Monte JohnstonAugust 8, 2017January 3, 2019

Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews

Review: La Sportiva Trango Cube GTX

La Sportiva’s Trango lineup has undergone a progressive renewal over the past few years and at the time of this post includes the Trango Cube GTX, Ice Cube GTX (light ice climbing boot), Trek (hiking boot) and the new Tower GTX (basically an updated Evo). This lineup of boots is really focused on lightweight performance. Now the Trango Cube GTX fits squarely in the middle between the winter focused Ice Cube and … Continue reading Review: La Sportiva Trango Cube GTX

Monte JohnstonJuly 26, 2017October 11, 2019

Alpine & Mountaineering, Other, Reviews

Review: Black Diamond Carbon Z Trekking Poles

Black Diamond really set the bar for lightweight and packable trekking poles when they came out with the Ultra Distance Carbon Z. Now while those original poles are no longer available the new Distance Carbon Z poles have improved upon the design of their predecessor resulting in a very functional, ergonomic and packable trekking pole. Ideal for trips where the poles have to be stashed … Continue reading Review: Black Diamond Carbon Z Trekking Poles

Monte JohnstonJuly 24, 2017November 12, 2017

Alpine & Mountaineering, Food & Nutrition, Reviews, Travel & Lifestyle

Review: Alpine Start Instant Coffee

Move over Starbucks, there’s a new kid on the block when it comes to instant coffee: Alpine Start. Since the Starbucks Via came on the market it’s become a staple of fast-and-light adventures everywhere. And like cigarettes in a jail house, these little packets of caffeine are the currency of the backcountry. However, much of the popularity of the Via stemmed from the fact that … Continue reading Review: Alpine Start Instant Coffee

Monte JohnstonJune 8, 2017September 16, 2020

Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews, Rock & Ice

Review: Arc’teryx Acrux SL Approach Shoe

Easily the most surprising shoe I’ve reviewed, the Arc’teryx Acrux SL is an incredibly versatile technical approach shoe. While light enough to live up to the SL (super light) name it’s still burly enough to be a great shoe for longer approaches and scrambles. With sticky rubber, a great tread pattern and a comfortable fit it‘s become my go-to when I want a light shoe … Continue reading Review: Arc’teryx Acrux SL Approach Shoe

Monte JohnstonMay 30, 2017June 13, 2018

Alpine & Mountaineering, Reviews, Rock & Ice

Review: DMM Dragon Cams

It seems like all the various climbing hardware companies decided that this was the year to come out with new or updated cams: BD has the Camalot Ultralights, Metolius the Ultralight Mastercams (actually these came out in late 2015), WildCountry the new Friends, etc. And while most of these companies have chosen to focus on making their cams lighter, DMM decided to buck this trend and focus … Continue reading Review: DMM Dragon Cams