GearWeAre - Outdoor Gear Reviews

What converted me to Nordic Walking is that it improved my walking – I get out and about on two feet a lot – having a dog tends to do that. I’ve always been a fast walker but it transpires that I’ve not been very efficient and my posture tends to make people wince. Adding these poles has straightened my back, and my stride and gait have improved no end and going up hills is now child’s play!

The Float-Life technology these Livia sandals are made with means that the soles are super light, shape to your foot, and allow a lot of movement but without feeling every little bump you walk over (jagged terrain and long walks welcome). It makes them feel very sturdy and keeps the foot in place. It’s the ‘high energy return cushioning’ that does it.

BOGS Footwear known for innovative technology in waterproof boots has this month donated 750 pairs of wellington boots to the Charity Shoe Aid. Last year Shoe Aid took delivery of 200 old, mismatched BOGS samples and paired them up for distribution to people in need. Now they have 750 more pairs to distribute to people…

The Berghaus Explorer Active GTXs are no exception to my happy feet criteria. They’re comfortable, with an Ortholite foam insole adding to that comfort. They’re also grippy, allowing me to stomp along with minimal concern for what surface is underfoot.

To pop the term ‘ultimate’ in your product’s name is pretty ballsy – some might say its outright cocky. However after meeting Leila – designer of this little frock at The Outdoor show t’other month – we can vouch that none of the above apply. She’s just quietly confident that this is a good, and more importantly…

Once you’ve ooh-ed at how nice it feels on, you simply forget that you are wearing it – it is THAT comfortable. Over the past couple of months, this dress has been shoved into backpacks, trudged around Europe’s largest outdoor trade show, up a few of Shropshire’s hills, indulged in some tree pruning and to Tesco’s.

The aluminium-bodied Divide+ is a simple affair with one crucial difference which torch-users all over the world have universally been failing to cry out for since the dawn of time: if you twist the head it disconnects the contacts from the batteries to supposedly save juice.

The Kinesis has been a firm favourite for everything from hiking to hanging out. It’s rarely too warm or too cool to be worn comfortably, and looks as good on men and women, at the shops or on the hill.

The material isn’t as light as a lot of wicking-style tops are, so it holds up better when confronted with brambles and similar. It will snag eventually of course, it’s not utterly immune, but not quite as easily as a lot of its contemporaries. The finished fabric is soft and comfortable too, so you aren’t sacrificing comfort for durability.

In terms of cooking, the griddle is ace. It’s flat on one side and ribbed on the other, and quite easy to clean (although you need a big kitchen sink!). The heat is pretty even, with sausages at the edge browning slightly slower than the middle, but with minimal shifting needed to keep things even.

I really rate these socks. They keep my feet comfortable, dry, safe, protected and rub-spot-free no matter what activity I undertake in them. And I have to say they are my preferred choice every time I look for a pair of socks to wear.

Primaloft are well know for their range of down insulation, simply known as black, silver and gold. To these they recently added Silver Eco, which uses 70% recycled content, made from waste plastic bottles and so on.

Attention to detail could be a watchword for the design team at Outwell. Not content with the way that air-mattress valves work, they’ve designed a better one! What you see above is a clever little 3-way valve system, with the middle position (as shown) being “inflate”. When pushed to “Closed”, no air can flow in…

What happens when you leave a welly-boot and a deck-shoe alone in a darkened cupboard with some Barry White playing? This new range from Kamik, the Canadian brand which is best known for it’s century of winter boot knowledge. We think these could make ideal back-door shoes for running out in the rain, dog-walking or…

Stop the press! Therm-a-rest (who you’ll know for their mattresses) are brancing out in to family tents with a range of 4 to be released next year.

We had a look around the Teva stand at the Outdoor Trade Show recently – a sea of sandals in many colours and styles – so we asked the obvious question; “What’s the difference between your cheapest and most-expensive sandal?”

Apparently, the word Jatra is Nepalese for Festival. And you can see why they chose that word to describe these jazzy trousers!