Arc’teryx Alpha LT Jacket Review
“With my Mack and my Merry’s I’m ready to hike!” A silly phrase I coined 2 ½ years ago as I went on some of my first real hikes wearing what was, at the time, my hiking uniform; a North Face DWR Rain mack and a pair of Merrell Siren Song Mid Sport hikers (my “Merry’s”). You can see me sporting these very items in the picture above. The items have changed but the phrase still applies. I now own an Arc’teryx Alpha LT Goretex jacket (and a pair of La Sportiva Evo Nepal Mountaineering boots, but we will save those for another post) which has come to be one of my favorite pieces of gear. Weighing in under 12 ounces, it’s so lightweight that I pack it on every trip, summer or winter. Here are some of the features that I have come to appreciate since owning this jacket and using it in the mountains: - Provides full on weather protection. It keeps out moisture whether it’s rain or snow and works double duty as a windproof barrier for those, more often than not, windy summit days. I have used this jacket in conditions ranging from full on winter snow storm, summit camping, lashing rains of the NWP and dry blustery days. It’s the most essential piece of my layering system. -What’s with the location of the pockets? That’s what I first thought when I put it on, fresh off the hanger, in the warmth and comfort of my living room. But, get out on a glacier or on rock, put on a harness, backpack and all the other gak that goes along with this type of awesomeness, and you soon realize that the strategically placed reach-across pockets are the best thing that just happened to you. The easy access pockets make for great storage of your mobile phone, extra slings or any other items you need to keep handy but out of the way. - Helmet Compatible Hood. I can’t speak for everyone but unless you are feeling some serious frigid temperatures, I personally don’t like to wear a toque under my helmet as I tend to overheat pretty quickly and it’s a real hassle to have to take off your helmet and toque whenever you get too warm. Which is why I love this hood. It fits right over my climbing helmet with room to spare and cinches in at just the right spots for a nice snug fit (which by the way is great for when you’re not wearing your helmet as these adjustable cinch points on the hood keep it from blowing off...
MSR Reactor Stove Review
I bought my first backpacking stove around June 2010. That may seem fairly recent but if you backpack frequently through all 4 seasons you learn what works and what doesn’t fast. Every trip is like an extensive field test with peer reviews from the other members in the group. Not only is your equipment being analysed but you are also analysing and reviewing everyone elses equipment. It was in this manner that I came to know about the MSR Reactor Stove. My first stove was the ubiquitous MSR Whisperlite I was recommended to purchase it by an MEC employee here in Vancouver, and I feel it was the best option for someone just starting out with camping and backpacking. It’s not light by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s rugged, durable and it gets the job done through all 4 seasons in any weather conditions. It impressed me enough that I ended up getting my first tent and snowshoes from MSR also. Anyway, getting back to the MSR Reactor Stove. I’d been using my Whisperlite for about a year and a half and was satisfied with it. When hiking with others I’d ask them primarily about the “boil time” on their stoves. It tends to hover between 3 and 5 minutes for the most part for all current stoves. The Whisperlite boils 1 Litre of water in 3.9 minutes so certainly not the best, but what difference does waiting an extra minute make right? That’s when I noticed a friend I backpacked with using the MSR Reactor. We’d get to camp, set up our tents, then start making dinner. I’d sit down and start setting up my white gas fueled Whisperlite. I’d just have it starting to boil the water and look over at my friend and not only was he finished boiling his water, he would also almost be finished eating the meal he’d just rehydrated with the boiled water. I never watched him, as I was too involved with my own setup, so how he managed to finish so fast was confusing. The Reactor only boils around 55 seconds faster than the Whisperlite and in independent test videos I’ve seen this to be true also. So how was he finishing at least 10 minutes or more faster than me? On our next outing, I made the point to watch him as I was also setting up my own stove and pot. Within seconds I understood the difference. He had his stove assembled, lit and boiling water before I’d even taken my stove components out. The Whisperlite requires a fair bit of setting up to get it going....
We are human beings, not human doings..so just be
The first time I heard this phrase was in one of the first Yoga classes that I’ve attended. At the time, when I heard it I giggled to myself thinking it sounded a little silly and maybe a little airy fairy. I’m sure at the time the Yoga teacher was just saying this to get everyone to relax, “be” in the moment and just breathe. But when I really think about what this combination of words is trying to say, it really hits home for me. I tend to be the type of person who takes things to heart, internalizes my feelings and then ends up feeling a lot of stress. But what am I doing? Why am I allowing myself to do this? I am the only one who can control what is happening in my mind and how I choose to accept external influence or opinions. Come on…… take a deep breath and just….. be. Just allow life to roll over you and through you, feel it, taste it; the good and the bad. Allow life to be the adventure it should be and allow it to shape you. Don’t fight so hard against its current, it’s going to ebb and flow and the more relaxed and more willing you are to face it straight on, the easier it will be to flow with it, rather than try to break through each wave as it comes at you. I guess that’s the funny thing about life. It’s so much bigger than ourselves that it feels like it should be something that needs to be in our control, like we should always have a tight grasp on what is about to happen next, to avoid feeling fear, disappointment, betrayal, all the truly uncomfortable human emotions. But if we didn’t feel the fear would we still feel exhilaration? If we didn’t know betrayal would we truly understand trust? We don’t need to seek out these uncomfortable emotions, but I don’t think we should run away at the first sight of them. Allow yourself to rise up to meet them. See how you transform in response to them; allow yourself to feel them so that they can refine you and let you know what is truly worth holding onto and what is worth discarding. Like any truly great adventure, life has transformative powers if we give ourselves over to it....
