Christopher F. Powell
Camping Gear Reviews
At the request of a few of my visitors, here are my opinions on some specific types of camping and backpacking gear. Of course I haven't tried every brand or style of any piece of equipment, this is just the stuff I use that I really like.
Tents
As one visitor with a good eye pointed out, my tent is a North Face Starlight Extreme. The tent is very solid and I've been really happy with it. I've had it in high winds, heavy rain, and have had 8 inches of snow piled on top with no problems. I really like it for those reasons. What I don't like is that it's SMALL! It would be perfect for one person, but is pretty tight for two. I've shared it with my girlfriend and that's fine, but it feels a little wierd with anyone else. I'm 6 feet one inch and just barely fit in it.
The tent is also very warm, which is great in winter but not so much in summer. Even in winter I've never closed the door, just used the netting.
The tent packs really small, a bit bigger than a two-liter bottle of coke.
My friend Matt has the North Face Big Frog 3-season 3-person. This tent is tight for 3 but roomy for two, with room to play cards or whatever. It seems slightly less stable in wind and snow, but is still perfectly waterproof and durable. It's also a little heavier and packs bigger. What he and I have ended up doing is using his tent on shorter trips in warmer weather when we have more space in our packs, and mine on colder and longer trips when weight and pack space is at a premium.
I think we would both recommend North Face tents. They're expensive, but neither of us has had a problem with them and they're really easy to set up. I guess I wish I would have bought the Starfire instead of the Starlight because it's a little bigger, but every time I see how small and light that thing packs, I really appreciate it.
Stoves
In my opinion, the best stove you can ever hope to have is a one-piece Coleman Dual Fuel stove. I know this is one that will attract a lot of hate mail, but I really love these things. They are heavier than a lot of the stuff on the market, and you'll need a diffuser plate to get a slow simmer, but all of their advantages make up for it.
- First, they are convenient. No searching for multiple pieces, assembling bottle, hose and stove, just open the valve and fire that baby up.
- Second, they're really hot. I've never boiled water quicker than on one of these things. Nothing sucks more than waiting for coffee!
- Kick it, drop it, pound tent stakes with it, these things are indestructible. You'll have it forever.
- Most models come with a magic fuel tank that never goes empty. These stoves are amazingly fuel efficient.
- Forty bucks.
Backpacks
I've got a Lowe Alpine Outback 70 and I'm very happy with it. Can't really comment on anything else.
Water Filter
I own a Sweetwater Guardian, and am satisfied with it. This pump is fast when it's clean, and will fill a quart very quickly. It also packs very small and light. A drawback is that it clogs quickly. It is easily cleaned, though, and then it's back up to speed. If you have one, don't spend $4 on Sweetwater's cleaning brush, use an old toothbrush or a test tube brush stolen from your chemistry lab. On average, I have to clean it about once a gallon, which isn't so bad. The cartridges are about $20, and it seems like each cartridge lasts long enough to filter for two people for a week in pretty silty water. Beyond that it just needs constant cleaning.
I've also used a First Need filter. That pump was slower and bulkier, but slogged through some pretty nasty ponds without clogging. There's no way to clean this filter, so a backup cartridge (rather bulky) might be a good precaution on longer trips. When the cartridge does get clogged (it lasts at least twice as long as the Sweetwater's), it gets really hard to pump. Backflushing helps, but only a little.
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