GJ Week in Review: April Fools’, Antarctica Gear, Avalanche 1 Course

A recap of top stories for the week of April 1–7, 2018.

1) Best Concepts From Easter Jeep Safari? We Pick Two

Jeep unveiled this year’s crop of seven Easter Jeep Safari concept vehicles. We picked our favorite two for a deeper look.

2) Spoof: REI ZipAll Is ‘Last Piece of Gear You Ever Need’

Zip-off technology is the key to breathability, versatility, and, most importantly, style. Now, REI presents its latest garment, complete with more zippers than you could ever ask for.

3) Monday Bargains: 3 Steals to Start Your Week

Looking for great outdoor gear at an amazing price? Check out these discounts and sales from Patagonia, Black Diamond, and ENO.

4) New Kind of Breathable: Spire GTX ‘Side-Venting’ Sole

La Sportiva built the Spire as a light-duty hiking boot for day trips. The waterproof boot adds mesh and Gore-Tex Surround for breathability, a Vibram sole for traction, and “Nano Cells” for abrasion resistance.

5) Outdoor Canvas: ‘She Explores’ Makes Art From the Elements

Columbia outfitted She Explores with OutDry Extreme gear for their traverse of Washington’s Hoh Rainforest’s wet, mossy trails and pebble beaches. Watch this trio discover a world of marvels with all five senses.

6) April Foolery: 10 Outdoors Brands Giving Us the Giggles

Luxury monster trucks, bankrupt billionaires, a sleeping suit, and so much more: In case you missed any of the April Foolery, we’ve got you covered.

7) Dream Job: Spend Summer Outside, Clean America’s Waterways

Join a team that has already cleaned 1 million pounds of trash from America’s rivers, lakes, and oceans. This summer, United By Blue is looking for two new members.

8) Watch Skilled Slackliner Perform Between Two Moving Snowcats

Tauri Vahesaar sets up a slackline between two snowcats . When the machines start uphill, the slackliner demonstrates his mad skills.

9) Year of the SUV: Top Vehicles From 2019 NYIAS

The New York International Auto Show displayed a slew of new SUVs. These are some of the most exciting SUVs, on-road and off, for 2019.

10) Watch: Epic Greenland Fly Fishing With One Rad Mom

Currently showcased in the 2018 Fly Fishing Film Tour, “My Mom Vala” highlights angler Vala Arnadottir as she balances her time between being a fly fishing guide on an epic Greenland river and a mom to a young daughter.

11) Review: 2018 Salsa Cycles Redpoint Carbon GX Eagle

The Salsa Redpoint Carbon GX Eagle is a solid trail bike with better than average pedaling chops. It comes to life is on fast descents strewn with chunk. We put an early demo model of the 2018 Redpoint to the test.

12) What You Don’t Learn in a Level 1 Avalanche Course

A beginner’s avalanche course is critical for backcountry ski safety, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Here, AIARE instructor Jason Maurer detailed 12 critical skills you won’t learn in an introductory class.

13) Tips for Cold Weather Streamer Fishing

Spring fly fishing entails crazy temperature fluctuations, which means changing tactics quickly and often. But don’t worry – we’ve got some tips to turn cold weather streamer fishing into line-tightening strikes.

14) NY Auto Show: VW and GMC Steal Truck Headlines

In a sea of SUVs, impressive muscle and style set two pickups apart at the New York International Auto Show. The GMC Sierra 1500 AT4 combines luxury with off-road adventure, and VW’s Atlas Tanoak concept pickup hints at a whole new line of short-bed pickups.

15) Dream Team Gear: TNF Kit Designed for Antarctic Climbing

To get Conrad Anker to the top of Wolf’s Tooth in Antarctica, The North Face developed nine pieces of custom cold weather gear. Here’s the scoop on the brand’s various new adventure-tested technologies.

16) Tough Shoe for Tough Workouts: Altra HIIT XT Review

Altra, a Utah-based running shoe company, breaks into the fitness world with the HITT XT – a tough, stable, and comfortable cross-training shoe. We wore the Altra HIIT XT through four months of workouts (and counting) during our review.

17) TNF, Girl Scouts Encourage New Era of Female Adventurers

More visibility, representation, and celebration of women who dominate: That’s the goal of a new initiative from The North Face and Girl Scouts of the USA. “Move Mountains” highlights pioneering women and provides more opportunities to help women and girls thrive in the outdoors and in leadership positions.

18) Screaming Deals: Gear Savings of the Week

Our weekly column finds the best deals from across the web to save you money on outdoors gear. Check out the discount gear from Big Agnes, MSR, Smith, LEKI, Columbia Sportswear, and more.

19) 70-Year-Old Double-Amputee to Attempt Everest Climb

If successful, Xia Boyu will be the first ever double-amputee to reach Everest’s summit from the south side.

20) MSR WindBurner Review: Fuel-Sipping Stove

The WindBurner Combo is the latest stove system in the growing MSR lineup. Over the last few months, our editor used it to cook all his camp favorites – from sunrise pancakes to late night pasta. So, should you buy the MSR WindBurner? Check out the full review.

21) Free Gear Fridays: Cairn Obsidian Box Giveaway

Win a Cairn Obsidian Box in this week’s Free Gear Friday giveaway! Click to enter now.

22) Tiny Device Turns Your Phone Into A Satellite Messenger

Upstart brand Somewear aims to provide an off-grid, two-way satellite communications device for the ultralight backcountry adventurer.

23) Sleep Over Your Truck With Room to Stand in Back

Introduced in February, the Snap! Treehouse turns a pickup truck into a minimalistic camper, 7-foot ceiling included.

24) Emerging Gear: Outdoor Products This Week

From next-gen tech to ingenious innovation, our weekly peek at emerging products examines the sometimes cutting-edge, sometimes quirky world of gear design.

25) Endurance Racing as a New Mom: 10 Days Away

GODZone is a brutal race: 134 miles on a bike, 93 miles on foot, 114 miles paddling, and a half-mile cave trekking. The most intimidating part for pro athlete Chelsey Magness? Leaving her one-year-old son behind.

26) Free Gear Fridays: Kathmandu Backpack Giveaway

Win a Kathmandu Transfer Backpack in this week’s Free Gear Friday giveaway! Click to enter now.

27) Outdoor Hazards: Sunburn (In Your Mouth and Beyond)

The most painful sunburn our contributor has ever had was on the roof of his mouth. Sound crazy? Read on to learn how to avoid sunburn there and everywhere else on your body.

28) YouTuber Logan Paul Kicked Out of Yosemite National Park

Unable to find an unreserved campsite, Logan Paul took up five parking spaces with his large bus and trailer. Then park rangers confronted the YouTube sensation after noise complaints.

29) Watch: Motocross Pond Skim in Super Slow-Mo

A professional motocross rider rips across a pool, and the Slow Mo Guys get it all in glorious ultraslow motion. As a bonus, the biker also mounts the special slo-mo camera on his helmet for some POV footage.

30) MN Retailer Askov Finlayson Bets Big to ‘Keep the North Cold’

Beginning this year, Minneapolis brand Askov Finlayson will donate $1 million as it paves the way to fight against climate change and assert itself as a major outdoors outfitter.