Set-up is pretty straightforward: two long bars create rigidity along the length of the cot, and then you assemble the cross bars by mounting poles in each foot and marrying them together (male to female) before attaching them to the cot by stepping on the back panel, bending the poles to create that flex, and then hooking the feet into the pre-cut spots. The whole thing takes about five minutes the first time—and about three minutes to take apart. And, because it’s built from a series of poles, it breaks down to a package that’s 16 inches long and six inches in diameter, which makes it easy to pack in your overstuffed car. It’s also suitable for rides into the backcountry on horseback and bike, and can work with just four of the six crossbars, cutting down on weight. With all the legs included, it weighs a fairly hefty three pounds, 12 ounces; you wouldn’t want to carry this on a multi-day backpacking trip (for that, check out the comparatively featherweight, two-pound, 12-ounce UltraLite model). We used this cot in a small backcountry two-person tent, and it stretched the limits of the tent’s floor space with another person in the tent, so check the dimensions of your tent and plan accordingly.  The all-mesh fabric also means you’ll want a traditional sleeping bag in the fall, winter, and spring. We also support pairing the cot with Therm-a-Rest’s NeoAir for plush, warm outdoor sleeping comfort.

The tent was erected quickly with one or two people helping.  The asymmetrical design offers two doors, one on either side of the tapered floor.  We slept side-to-side with our feet at the narrower end of the 41.2-square-foot floor.  It slept two kids, one adult, and a dog very comfortably.  A fourth adult could squeeze in if rain was a problem, and the 49-inch interior height offers a good amount of space inside. The vestibules accommodated our packs and boots, but they weren’t overly spacious.  We did manage to unknowingly put a small hole in the floor and the mesh walls leading me to think that the fabric is not very strong.

On a second trip to the Mount Jefferson Wilderness in Oregon, three boys slept in it on a two-night backpacking trip.  It was very light and easy to carry.  The boys set up the tent the wrong way the first time, but then they switched the poles around and put it together quickly.  However, we found asymmetrical rain fly to be counter-intuitive; getting it on right was a challenge. We didn’t notice any condensation after a night when temps dipped into the mid 40s, in part thanks to the Velcro lift in the rainfly that opened up a vent in the top of boost ventilation.
-Greg Bueker

The tent was used by two boys and was pitched quickly with no problems–which was a refresh accomplishment.  It has an intuitive single-walled tent design with a symmetrical floor plan.  With two identical poles and one short ventilation pole it was very quick to put up. It’s clearly one of the simplest tent designs I’ve used in recent years.The rectangular floor plan puts an all-mesh door at either side, and the rain fly gives you enough room in the vestibule to store a pack and a pair of boots outside of either doorway.  Inside, two kids slept comfortably, and the tent’s weight was easily split between the two.

Both the poles and the tent–made of TNF’s durable waterproof/breathable DryWall fabric–felt durable enough to handle harsh conditions, though that three-day outing didn’t afford any foul weather to put the tent to true test. We’ll see how well it ventilates in warmer conditions and colder conditions, such as 30 degrees with rain (editor’s note: no short supply of those conditions in the Pacific Northwest).  It’ll be good to see how well it breathes to reduce condensation and of course how well it kept the rain out.
-Greg Bueker

www.petzl.com, 6 ounces
“Throw away all your old flashlights and headlamps,” said our tester after taking the NAO on a three-week road trip. “The reactive-lighting NAO is the only headlamp you’ll need, or want to use.” We don’t take the word “revolutionary” lightly, but the new NAO headlamp is worth getting excited about. In contrast to other lamps, the 400-lumen NAO has a beam that automatically adjusts to focus on your target. If you’re pouring over topo maps, the light adjusts to a wide beam with low output. When you look out the tent fly to see if it’s a raccoon or bear rustling by the picnic table, the beam focuses, with greater light intensity for—drum roll please—a distance of 300 feet. Other advantages include fewer manual adjustments and a better burn time than any other headlamp we’ve tested. The NAO comes with a single rechargeable lithium battery that’s guaranteed for 300-plus charges—we didn’t do the math, but that’s a lot of alkaline batteries you won’ t need to buy. Each charge provides nearly five hours of use in high Reactive mode (the auto-adjust) or eight hours in low Reactive. You can set the lamp on a constant function, which disables the sensor, but cuts significantly into the battery life, as the Reactive power setting really does make power use more efficient. The rechargeable battery can be replaced with 2 AAA batteries, but our testers swear that the rechargeable battery ups the lamp’s performance. We were leery of the downloadable battery management program that allows you to adjust the light intensity, burn time, and beam distance on a computer, but are happy to report that even techno-troglodytes found it easy (and fun) to customize the lamp’s performance. The easiest option is using the custom profiles pre-programmed to enhance performance for specific activities like climbing, running, trail running, and hiking. Two features worth noting: a big off-on knob that’s easy to manipulate with gloves or in the dark and a water-resistant shell that never leaked, even during a monster Texas monsoon that one tester encountered while night hiking up a mesa near Lajitas.

www.mychacos.com
If you enjoy the outdoors you have probably heard of Chaco sandals and even if you don’t necessarily call yourself a “Chaconian” MyChacos is still for you. Chaco has launched a one-of-a-kind “Made In America” custom sandal program and it is amazing.  Visit into www.mychacos.com and you will find four styles to choose from, and then it is a blank canvas where you can select everything from the sole pattern to the webbing designs, and even stitching color. Your selections immediately change on the sandal on your screen. Warning, you will lose hours playing with this.  I created probably at least ten different designs and finally narrowed it down to three that I liked best, and still could not decide (the winner is pictured above, the runners-up down below). So I solicited the opinions of family and finally ended up selecting the more conservative design because I thought I would probably wear it with more things (yes I like to match)… I started out with the double strap with toe loop sandal then I went through every webbing option (the two straps can be different!).  After that I selected the color of the heel leash, riser, buckle, buckle strap, footbed…they warn you there is more than tens of millions possibilities. There are two Vibram designs for the sole, one for wet terrain, and the other for loose terrain. Since I usually wear my Chacos at the beach and in water, I went with the wet option. MyChacos are made in Rockford, Michigan, by the ReChaco team and waiting on my creation to arrive in the mail was exciting too. When they arrived they looked just like I had seen online, and it is thrilling to know that no one else will have these! Chacos are great for anything from walking to the store to climbing on rocks through the rushing water of Dunn River Falls in Jamaica and their design and durable materials mean they’ll last a long time, too–but then if you can’t decide, you can always get more than one pair.
-Jennifer Seabolt