Climbing

From local crag climbing to trad epics, bouldering gym to mixed ice, we cover the gear, people, and places that define the ulitimate adventure sport.

Redux: Mount Everest Trek

Prayer flags, yaks, mountain climbers, and insanely tall peaks. It’s the start of the spring 2011 climbing season in the Himalayas. Gear Junkie offers a…

Written by Stephen Regenold

Test: 3 oz. Jacket

It weighs about 3 ounces and packs in a tiny stuff sack smaller than a fist. But the Cirrus Pull-On from Rab can add enough…

Written by Stephen Regenold

Test: Adidas ‘Do-All’ Shades

They cost $325. They come with a detachable nose cover and a siliconized “head strap.” Meet the strange and amazingly versatile Terrex Pro sunglasses from…

Written by T.C. Worley

‘Save the Poles’ Gear

Eric Larsen’s year-long expedition reached the world’s three “poles” — the North and South Poles and the top of Mount Everest. This column dissects some…

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Adidas Enters U.S. Outdoor Market

Athletics behemoth adidas AG is entering the U.S. outdoor marketplace with footwear, apparel, outerwear, and optics. Gear Junkie gets a Q&A with an adidas managing…

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‘Birdseed’ Energy Bar

A compressed block of nuts and seeds — flax, pumpkin, sesame, sunflower — make Raw Crunch bars appear to be made for the birds. Gear…

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Bite-Size Energy ‘Solids’

Sidewalk chalk or energy food? Gear Junkie tests “the strangest energy food he has yet to try,” Hammer Nutrition’s chalky, hard Perpetuem Solids.

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The Gear Junkie Show: Iceland!

In collaboration with Trails.com, Gear Junkie founder Stephen Regenold hosts a new video series. Episode No. 2 was shot last summer on a volcano in…

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Trip Report: ‘Tunnel Vision’ Climb

Gear Junkie recounts a recent rock climb in Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, where peaks rise thousands of feet off the sand, and petroglyphs…

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Interview: Alpine Speed Freak

Switzerland’s Ueli Steck, a record-setting solo climber, is one of the speediest alpine technicians on the planet. Gear Junkie caught up with Steck for a…

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‘Best in Show’ awards (part II)

Part II of Gear Junkie’s “Best in Show” series highlights top products from the Outdoor Retailer trade show and includes touchscreen gloves, an alpine “smock”…

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‘Best in Show’ awards (part I)

The twice-annual Outdoor Retailer trade show, held in Salt Lake City, is an exhibition of the best outdoors equipment in the world. Gear Junkie offers…

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OR Trade Show: 2011 Teaser

The Gear Junkie crew is off to Utah this week and the twice-annual Outdoor Retailer trade show. Here’s a quick visual tour of a few…

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Six Outdoor Essentials

Equipment can break. Your body can wear down. These six items have helped Gear Junkie endure and work through bad breaks, gear malfunctions and pain.

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Trip Report: Hornby Island, B.C.

Hornby Island, a dot of land in British Columbia’s inside passage, was the venue this fall for a solo trail run adventure. Gear Junkie recounts…

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Ridge Rest ‘Solar’ Camp Pad

Bombproof and inexpensive — and with a new heat-reflecting aluminized surface! — Cascade Designs’ Ridge Rest Solar camp pad offers a smart sleep option any…

Written by T.C. Worley

‘Top 10’ Gear of 2010

Drum roll. . . GearJunkie’s annual ‘Top 10’ Gear picks award the best of the best outdoors equipment after a year of use and abuse…

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Hardshell Jacket ‘Rebirth’ in 2011?

Will 2011 mark the rebirth of the waterproof-breathable jacket? A slew of recent news from Polartec, Mountain Hardwear, Columbia, and Gore points to substantial upgrades…

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Long-Distance Radios

Not your grandfather’s walkie-talkies. Motorola cites 35 miles as the maximum communication range for its new handheld Talkabout radios.

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Indoor ‘Ice’ Climbing

The IceHoldz line of permeable plastic holds are made to take repeated ice ax placements to allow for training indoors. Numb fingers and falling ice…

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Review: ULTRA Headlamp

Overkill for the average hiker, but an essential tool in certain high-stakes nighttime scenarios, Petzl’s ULTRA headlamp is in the running as the brightest on…

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‘Boy Who Conquered Everest’

Highly controversial or highly awesome? You can decide. Jordan Romero, the 13-year-old who climbed Mount Everest, co-wrote a kids book on his experience.

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First Ascent ‘Tech Hoodies’

Eddie Bauer First Ascent bridges the elusive hoodie/mid-layer gap with a pair of tech tops. T.C. Worley gives the concept a multi-month test.

Written by T.C. Worley

Via Ferrata Climbing Gear

A bonafide sport in the Alps, but almost unknown in America, Gear Junkie tests equipment for the climbing discipline of via ferrata.

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