Articles (2020)

Rainwear is one of the most popular subjects among lightweight backpackers. That’s easy to understand, because we are dependent on our rainwear to keep us dry and warm when the weather turns wet. Plus, rainwear has multiple uses; it also serves as windwear and as an outer shell layer in camp. We are always looking for the most performance and dependability for the least amount of weight.

I am writing this rainwear update as part of Backpacking Light’s summer 2008 Outdoor Retailer coverage. My purposes are to summarize Backpacking Light’s current favorite lightweight rainwear in several categories and to highlight emerging new technologies and product introductions we found at the summer 2008 Outdoor Retailer trade show. This update is not meant to be comprehensive, like our Rainwear State of the Market Reports, the last of which was our 2005 Lightweight Rainwear Review Summary and Gear Guide Overview by Don Wilson. Rather, it will concentrate only on rainwear that we consider to be the lightweight standouts for backpacking. In doing so, I will incorporate some favorites and tips from the Backpacking Light staff on rainwear selection and use.

The categories I will be covering are eVENT, Gore-Tex, polyurethane laminates, Propore, Tyvek, and silnylon. Each (except silnylon) is a different waterproof/breathable technology. For a thorough description of these technologies, I recommend reading Waterproof Breathable Fabric Technologies: A Comprehensive Primer and State of the Market Technology Review by Alan Dixon and The Science of Breathability and Its Impact on Raingear Selection and Use by Ryan Jordan and Stuart Bilby. These articles by our Backpacking Light founding gurus provide a solid foundation for understanding waterproof-breathable technologies and garment physics as a basis for selecting rainwear.

Our arbitrary weight limit is eight ounces for a waterproof/breathable rain jacket with a hood. That reduces the field a lot, which is our purpose in this article. In order to include eVENT and Gore-Tex Pro Shell jackets in our selections, we had to raise the limit a bit. All weights are for a size medium, unless stated otherwise.

Some Realities

Although all of the rainwear discussed in this article is “waterproof-breathable,” there are definite limits to their breathability. Here are a few rainwear facts to keep in mind:

• While many WP/B garments will be comfortable at lower activity levels and cool/overcast/breezy conditions, all of them will be a sauna inside if you wear them while hiking uphill carrying a pack in warmer temperatures.
• PTFE laminates (like eVENT and Gore-Tex) breathe better than most other technologies, which means garments have a wider comfort range before they get steamy inside.
• Ventilation is more important than fabric breathability. Opening pit zips, core vents, and a full front zipper make a huge difference in maintaining comfort.
• Carrying a backpack interferes with fabric breathability and garment ventilation a lot.
• We perspire a lot more from our torso area than from our legs. Therefore, we can be comfortable with less breathable (and cheaper) rain pants.
• PTFE laminates (Gore-Tex and eVENT) require maintenance (cleaning and restoration of the surface DWR) to keep them waterproof.
• When only showers are expected, a highly water-resistant windshirt is much more breathable than any WP/B rainwear that has a membrane.

The bottom line is that “highly breathable” rainwear is not a silver bullet. Any highly breathable jacket with minimal ventilation options will easily be overwhelmed by perspiration at higher exertion levels. Ventilation is critical to making a jacket comfortable, especially when hiking uphill carrying a backpack. Carrying a backpack on top of a rain jacket interferes with breathability and ventilation because it covers your backside, the hipbelt seals the bottom, and the sternum strap reduces the effectiveness of opening the front zipper (I usually don’t use the sternum strap when I’m wearing a rain jacket so I can get more ventilation when I need it). The situation is exacerbated by the fact that rainwear manufacturers rely on fabric breathability too much and remove ventilation options like pit zips and core vents to save weight and money. Ideally, what we really need is rainwear made of highly breathable fabric, plus several effective ventilation options that work with a backpack, with minimal weight.

eVENT

eVENT fabric (an ePTFE laminate) is the gold standard for breathability and (along with Gore-Tex rainwear) is the most expensive. Unfortunately, not much has changed in this category. Most eVENT fabric in current jackets is a three-layer construction with a nylon face around 30 denier, resulting in a heavier, stiffer garment. Consequently, the weight of the lightest eVENT jackets is still in the ten- to thirteen-ounce range.

This begs the question: Why has the weight of eVENT jackets stalled? We have Gore-Tex PacLite jackets in the six- to eight-ounce range (see below), so why not an eVENT jacket in the same range? Many of the PacLite jackets (see below) have a 15 denier face fabric and an essential feature set and come in under eight ounces, so why is eVENT lagging behind? In Europe, Crux and CAMP are now using a two-layer eVENT sleeping bag shell that is very soft and light – it has to be for a sleeping bag shell. So, we know they can do it, but why don’t we have lighter eVENT constructions for rainwear? Is the demand not there?

To find answers to these questions, I visited the eVENT booth at Outdoor Retailer and got the following response from eVENT representative Anna McCormack (paraphrased): “Manufacturers are already using face fabrics down to 20 denier (in Japan), and eVENT’s new factory in Shanghai is open to laminating the ePTFE membrane to nearly any fabric, so lighter eVENT fabrics are readily available and can go lighter. The need is for manufacturers to take the initiative to construct a lighter eVENT jacket; it’s in their ball park. They need to select lighter fabric constructions, garment designs, and features to pare the weight down. A sub-eight-ounce eVENT jacket is easily attainable, if manufacturers want to do it.”

So apparel manufacturers, we’re issuing the sub-eight-ounce eVENT jacket challenge: give us a really light eVENT jacket with an essential feature set, and we will pounce on it! We want to see some movement in the development of lighter eVENT fabrics and garments.

Speaking of improved eVENT technology, the word on the street is that the new lamination factory General Electric built for eVENT fabric production frees eVENT from a third party producer (and its preference to use in-house face fabrics) and opens the door to the use of a wide array of face fabrics with eVENT. So, look for a greater variety of fabric constructions in the future. Also, eVENT has an improved process to apply their proprietary oligophobic coating on the ePTFE membrane that will result in increased breathability of garments produced after summer 2009. We don’t have any information on the actual percentage increase at this time.

The current lightest and still our favorite is the Integral Designs eVENT Rain Jacket (8.9 ounces, US$240). Mike Martin notes: “My favorite for bushwhacking, skiing, and guaranteed sloppy conditions; 10.2 ounces in XL.” It’s my favorite too, because of its light weight and simplicity. The non-adjustable unbrimmed hood has an elastic hem that fits just fine. Hikers who don’t like the shorter body length can opt for the Integral Designs eVENT Thru Hiker Jacket (11.9 ounces, US$260) which is three inches longer.

A close contender that we found at summer OR is the CAMP A-Event Anorak (9.6 ounces), which is now available throughout Europe, but won’t be available in the U.S. until 2010, when CAMP plans to introduce more of their products. The anorak has an angled zipper to the left side of the hood to prevent chin chafing, a kangaroo front pocket, a sleeve pocket, and drawcord adjustors on the hood, cuffs, and hem. A full-zip jacket and pant will also be available.

A new addition to the Rab line of eVENT clothing is the Momentum Jacket (12 ounces, US$285), made of soft three-layer eVENT and featuring two zippered chest pockets and a wire brimmed helmet-compatible hood. The popular Drillium (13 ounces, US$275) will be updated for spring 2009 with a softer/lighter eVENT fabric, some changes to the roll-away hood, and the addition of an internal pocket, all of which increase the weight by one ounce. They also added a women’s version of the Drillium jacket and unisex Drillium pants (10 ounces, US$175).

Doug Johnson’s favorite jacket is the Montane Quick Fire (11 ounces, about US$348) which has a stow-away hood and seems to be very similar to the Rab Drillium. Some really good news is that Montane gear is coming to the U.S. in spring 2009 through an exclusive dealership with Backcountry.com. Montane has a wide range of really light apparel of interest for lightweight backpacking, so we welcome their arrival with open arms.

Another significant event (so to speak) is that eVENT is coming to an REI store near you.

REI and eVENT have announced a new partnership to launch a technical, high-end, REI-branded outerwear collection made with eVENT fabrics. The first products to be introduced in fall 2008 are the Shuksan and Kulshan jacket and pants. The feature-rich jacket in men’s large isn’t the lightest (17.8 ounces), but it is full featured and really nice. The companion pant weighs a whopping 22.7 ounces and (in my opinion) is only really useful as a ski pant. Planned MSRPs are US$289 for the jacket and US$229 for the pant.

The Montane Atomic DT Jacket (8 oz, US$179) is made of a fabric called Entrant DT, which, according to Toray America, is a hydrophobic microporous membrane with a 15 denier nylon face fabric. The Atomic DT is one of Chris Townsend’s favorites. Chris notes: “I like the Atomic DT because it is a lightweight rain jacket suitable for severe conditions, as it has a big hood with a wired brim that gives full protection, and it has a double flap over the front zip. Ventilation is good too, as the cuffs are wide for good airflow in the sleeves and the big chest pockets are mesh-lined and so act as vents when open”. According to Alan Dixon’s article on waterproof-breathable fabric technologies (referenced above), test data show that Entrant is more breathable than Gore-Tex, but not quite as breathable as eVENT. Its flat line of breathability versus relative humidity is similar to that of eVENT. Entrant fabrics are more common in Europe (especially the UK) but nearly unknown in the U.S. It has the potential to bring eVENT-like performance into lighter, less expensive garments – if it can penetrate the U.S. market dominated by Gore-Tex.

A maverick in this category is Montbell’s Breeze Dry-Tec technology. Montbell headquarters won’t let out what it is exactly, but it is claimed to be air permeable, so we suspect it is one of the Entrant technologies. Users have consistently praised its breathability. Montbell’s lightest jacket with this technology is the new for spring 2009 Outpace Parka (9.4 ounces, US$249), which sports a basic feature set and core-vent hand pockets for extra ventilation.

Gore-Tex

Gore-Tex (an ePTFE-PU laminate) is the self-appointed Holy Grail of WP/B rainwear; their marketing machine has convinced many people that Gore-Tex is the “best” technology available with their “Guaranteed to keep you dry” tagline. Granted, it’s waterproof and durable, but it’s not as breathable as eVENT. The cost is about the same as eVENT rainwear.

As you probably know, standard Gore-Tex and Gore-Tex XCR have been replaced by Gore-Tex Pro Shell and Performance Shell, and Gore-Tex PacLite continues as the lightweight, more packable version. Pro Shell is more durable and breathable than PacLite, but most Pro Shell jackets are on the heavy side. However, the Montbell Thunderhead is an exception (12.1 ounces, US$298). It reduces weight and cost by incorporating panels of PacLite on the shoulders, has an essential feature set, and performs well because its large pit zips provide good supplemental ventilation. The Arc’Teryx Alpha LT (11 ounces, US$499) is entirely made of Pro Shell and aces the Montbell Thunderhead on weight, but it is very expensive.

The really lightweight Gore-Tex jackets use PacLite for the entire garment. The lightest is Haglofs OZ Pullover (6.2 ounces) which uses a 15 denier nylon face fabric. Unfortunately, Haglofs does not have any U.S. dealers, but it is available in several European countries. In the U.S., the Outdoor Research Zealot (7.2 ounces, US$199) is the lightest PacLite Jacket, which also has a 15 denier face fabric and a full front zipper. Sorry, no pit zips on either jacket. Alan Dixon comments: “My favorite for cooler trips (e.g., the wet fjord-land coast of New Zealand’s South Island) in minimalist style is the Zealot.”

Polyurethane Laminates

Nearly every manufacturer has its own proprietary polyurethane laminate based waterproof/breathable rainwear. These constructions (a hydrophilic monolithic polyurethane laminate or coating on a face fabric) are less expensive to produce, garments are softer and more stuffable than ePTFE laminates, and they don’t require any particular maintenance. Another advantage of PU laminates (and PTFE laminates) is durability; even the thinnest constructions are adequately durable for backpacking.

Manufacturers are pushing the limits of lightness with very thin face fabrics and PU coatings, which also increases their breathability to some extent. Even so, the breathability of polyurethane laminates is limited by the technology itself – water must pass through the polyurethane layer by solid state diffusion, then evaporate from the outside surface, which is a slow process. The key to comfort with these jackets (or any rain jacket) is ventilation. However, many manufacturers cut ventilation features (like pit zips) to save weight, which is a clear tradeoff. The very lightest jacket may not be the most comfortable. The challenge is to retain ventilation options AND reduce weight, so theoretically there is a happy medium.

Unfortunately, we have lost some of the lighter rainwear in this category; the Patagonia Specter Pullover (6.5 ounces, US$225) is discontinued, the Montane 180 Pullover (7.1 ounces size L, US$167) is gone, and the current Sierra Designs Isotope (5.4 ounces in size L, US$90) will get a makeover and gain some weight in spring 2009 (more on that below). Things are constantly changing, and good gear comes and goes. Ryan Jordan’s comment: “My favorite is the Patagonia Specter. Old habits die young. I’m on my last one!”

The title of the lightest truly waterproof nylon-faced rain jacket goes to The North Face Triumph Anorak (5.4 ounces, US$179). Its thin, 15 denier HyVent DT fabric has an excellent DWR, holds up to prolonged rain, and is adequately durable. To achieve that weight, it’s mostly Spartan, but it does have a drawcord adjustable hood and hem and has one small chest pocket. The North Face Diad Jacket (7.8 ounces, US$199) is made of the same 15 denier HyVent DT fabric and kicks it up a notch. To achieve these low weights while retaining features, North Face has made an extraordinary effort to reduce weight by using thinner elastic drawcords, fewer adjustors, fewer seams, and narrow seam tape. Don Wilson really likes the Diad “because it has a great feature set for such a light jacket – full zip, eight-inch pit zips, chest pocket, two hand pockets, good cuffs, and nice hood with a lot of flexibility.” Alan Dixon adds: “I prefer the Diad for warmer trips where I want the pockets, ventilation, and features. The Diad is a more flexible jacket adaptable to many conditions and needs, with a ton of features for the weight. It has a full zip (I’m not a big fan of pullover rain jackets like the Specter, although they are certainly appealing to some.”

The Sierra Designs Isotope (5.4 ounces size L, US$90) ties The North Face Triumph on weight and exceeds it on features, but trails it on performance. The current Isotope will handle light showers okay, but wets through in prolonged rain. The Isotope Pant is different, as it’s made of a slightly heavier fabric than the jacket and its 5.6-ounce weight includes a zippered fly (men’s model), elastic waist drawcord, zippered rear pocket, and fourteen-inch ankle zips with Velcro closures. They have more features for the weight and cost US$70 (the same as the GoLite Reed pant), so the current Isotope Pant is a good value.

Sierra Design’s Isotope Jacket will receive a makeover for spring 2009. The new jacket will incorporate an improved Nanolite fabric with better breathability and Sierra Design’s Condor construction, a new pattern that increases freedom of movement. The downside is the weight will increase to eight ounces. Bummer on the weight increase, but the bright side may be better storm worthiness. We tried on the new Isotope at Outdoor Retailer, and found the men’s version to have a trimmer fit and the women’s model to have a looser fit. Overall, both jackets fit better than the previous version. The internal drop pockets are gone.

The Mountain Hardwear Quark jacket (available now, 9.2 ounces in size L, US$200) is above our weight limit, but it has a significant redeeming factor – pit zips. This is the lightest rain jacket we know of that has full-length pit zips, fourteen inches long with double sliders (the pit zips on the North Face Diad are only eight inches long). Its 1.7 oz/yd² Incite fabric, consisting of a Conduit membrane laminated to a printed brushed tricot, is a step forward in lightweight fabric technology. It’s like a really light mosquito netting with a thin waterproof-breathable membrane attached to it. The resulting fabric is very light and breathable, and Mountain Hardwear’s Z-Weld stitchless construction reduces garment weight. My only complaint is the heavier elastic cord used in the hood and hem drawcords; simply going to thinner elastic cords with fewer/lighter adjustors would get this jacket down near our eight ounce limit, which would be an excellent balance of light weight, breathability, ventilation options, and features. With a little weight reduction, it could easily challenge The North Face Diad jacket and the new Marmot Mica Jacket (see below).

In contrast, the spring 2009 Marmot Mica (men’s) and Crystalline (women’s) Jacket (6.5 ounces, US$130) seem to get it right, both in weight and price. They use Marmot’s new MemBrain Strata, in which the half-layer (the .5 protective layer) is printed on the inside of the membrane. The fabric is less expensive to produce, yet it provides the same performance of a conventional 2.5 layer PU laminate. It’s claimed to be less clammy inside and weighs significantly less. The Mica/Crystalline has a basic feature set consisting of two hidden hand pockets and full front water-resistant zip, plus adjustable hood, cuffs, and hem.

The best buys in this category are the GoLite Virga Jacket (8 ounces, US$80) and companion Reed Pant (6 ounces, US$70), and the upcoming Marmot Mica Jacket. The Virga jacket fits well and has a pair of hand pockets. The Reed rain pant is a good choice to go with most any type of rain jacket. As mentioned above, a less breathable rain pant is sufficient because our legs perspire less, and the Reed is as light as they come. Their ankle zips allow them to be pulled on over hiking boots, as long as your feet are not larger than a size twelve. Carol Crooker’s favorite rainwear is “A GoLite Virga prototype – before they added pockets – that’s six ounces. The GoLite Virga kept me warm and dry enough recently on the CDT in Colorado. I hiked in a light rain with the hood over my head and the jacket draped over my shoulders. Tying the sleeves in front of me kept the jacket in place even in breezy conditions and kept my shoulders dry.”

Overall, we’re seeing a trend in this category away from minimum weight/Spartan rain jackets and toward jackets in the eight-ounce range with an essential feature set. The original Spartan GoLite Virga jacket we saw at summer 2006 weighed just six ounces, but hand pockets were added in the production version to bring the weight up to eight ounces. The original full-featured Sierra Designs Isotope jacket weighed just 4.4 ounces, but it wasn’t storm worthy enough; the current version weighs 5.4 ounces, and it still isn’t storm worthy enough, and the new spring 2009 upgrade will weigh eight ounces. The North Face Diad, our favorite lightweight full-featured jacket in this category, weighs (you guessed it) eight ounces. Eight ounces seems to be the magic number for an adequately durable, storm worthy, ventilated, nicely featured polyurethane laminate rain jacket. If you cut features, including ventilation options, we have The North Face Triumph Anorak (5.4 ounces) as our lightweight favorite.

Propore

Rainwear made of 3M Propore (a microporous polypropylene membrane laminated to a nonwoven polypropylene face fabric) is light, inexpensive, baggy, and fragile. Propore is more breathable than Gore-Tex, but not as breathable as eVENT.

The lightest are the RainShield O2 jacket (5.5 ounces, US$30) and the DriDucks jacket (5.2 ounces in large, about US$15). Both garments can be found at substantial discounts online. Frogg Toggs (a three-layer construction of the same components) tends to be heavier and more expensive. An advantage of the RainShield and DriDucks rainwear is they have a slick surface finish that acts like a DWR to shed water, while Frogg Toggs have a fuzzy surface that retains water.

A distinct disadvantage of Propore is its lack of durability. Janet Reichl finds a new tear in her RainShield jacket after nearly every use. Fortunately it patches easily with duct tape or any type of cloth tape, and with reasonable care a RainShield jacket can last for years. Besides, a rain jacket with lots of patches is really cool! Our experience with Propore pants is they don’t last very long. The knees and seat blow out fairly quickly from kneeling down and from sitting on rough logs and rocks. I recommend using a lightweight nylon rain pant instead, such as the GoLite Reed or Sierra Designs Isotope pant.

Tyvek

The use of Tyvek clothing for rainwear was first brought to my attention by reader John McKay. The specific Tyvek (a spunbonded olefin) I am referring to is type 1443R “soft structure” Tyvek that is used for disposable clothing. This type of Tyvek is soft, waterproof, very durable, highly breathable, and cheap. According to industry information, this type of Tyvek is “six times more breathable than microporous film garment materials.” That may be a bit of an overstatement, but Tyvek clothing can be called a “poor man’s eVENT.” A hooded full zip Tyvek “jacket” (see below) can weigh as little as three ounces and cost US$5; pants weigh 2.2 ounces and cost about US$2.25. An entire rainsuit can weigh a little over five ounces and cost only a few dollars. I have seam sealed Tyvek clothing (with silicone) and used it for windwear and rainwear with good results.

However, there are some drawbacks. While Tyvek pants can be used without modification, the only way to get a hooded full zip Tyvek jacket is to cut the top off of hooded coveralls. All you have to do is cut the coveralls below the zipper; you don’t need to hem the cut edge because Tyvek doesn’t unravel. Since the zipper doesn’t separate at the bottom, you need to don your new full zip hooded jacket as a pullover. The legs can be converted to rain chaps. A Tyvek shirt and lab coat (which is longer) are available, but they have a snap closure and no hood. They could be used as is for windwear but some modifications would be needed to convert them to decent rainwear. Also, Tyvek clothing needs to be seam sealed to make it waterproof, and the zippers are not the water-resistant type.

It’s hard to find a source of Tyvek clothing that sells it by the piece; most dealers sell it by the case. A good source is MPE Safety Apparel (www.disposable-garments.com), who sell recycled Tyvek clothing by the piece at discount prices.

With some flexibility and creativity, Tyvek clothing can easily be put to use for ultralight backpacking, especially by readers who love a challenge and an opportunity to save some money. I am looking forward to seeing some interesting forum exchanges when readers take this idea and run with it.

Silnylon

Silnylon (silicone impregnated rip-stop nylon) can be effectively used for lightweight rainwear, if the “garment” provides lots of ventilation. Silnylon weighs 1.3 oz/yd² and is totally waterproof and non-breathable. Thus, any rainwear made of silnylon (or spinnaker cloth) has to be well ventilated.

Our favorite rainwear in this category is diverse. I really like the [http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/six_moon_designs_gatewood_cape_review.html Six Moon Designs Gatewood Cape] (11 ounces, US$135) because it serves as both shelter and rainwear and does it better than a poncho-tarp. It provides an excellent floorless solo shelter when bugs are not a problem, and it doubles as a poncho and pack cover. The AntiGravityGear Poncho Villa (5.5 ounces, US$79) doubles as a vestibule for their Tarptent shelter and a poncho. The poncho will cover a smaller backpack and is best worn with rain pants. Another innovative silnylon rainwear is the Packa (11 ounces, US$110), but it’s a bit too heavy by our standards. Senior Editor Roger Caffin has created his own design that weighs just 6.7 ounces, and Backpacking Light will be publishing a MYOG article on it soon.

Our final selection in this category is the Etowah Outfitters/ULA Equipment Rain Wrap (2.9-3.2 ounces, US$25), which is basically a rain skirt. It goes on and off very quickly, extends down below the knees, and is easy to walk in. (Ok, let’s not get carried away with jokes about what the thru-hiker is wearing under his Rain Wrap!) It suffices very well for lightweight leg rainwear while hiking on trails in warmer weather.

Ken Knight comments: “I still use an old Montane jacket or even older Stephenson poncho. I suspect that I’m going to give the AGG Poncho Villa a good look along with their shelter. I actually don’t mind a slightly heavier rain jacket, especially if it’s longer in the body and can do double duty as a windshirt without causing me to overheat. This is not something that is easy to achieve, but I don’t like having to carry a windshirt and a raincoat if I can avoid it, more because it’s an extra item to worry about than the weight, which is pretty small.”

Rainwear Comparison

To summarize my discussion of the various rainwear alternatives, I constructed the following table to compare the pros and cons of each rainwear type.

New Rainwear Technologies

New technologies to provide us with lightweight breathable rainwear are emerging, albeit slowly. One of the most exciting is Pertex Shield, a new family of durable waterproof-breathable fabrics from Mitsui (who purchased the Pertex technology from Perseverance Mills in 2006). It is based on a polyurethane membrane technology from Mitsui laminated to Pertex face fabrics. The constructions are Shield 02 (2-layer), Shield DS (2.5 layer), and Shield 03 (3-layer), all waterproof-breathable fabrics with excellent breathability and costs lower than either eVENT or Gore-Tex Pro Shell. The two- and three-layer fabrics will provide about 20,000 g/m²/day breathability levels (according to the JIS 1099 B1 standard). That’s pretty respectable compared to eVENT (~27,000 g/m²/day), Gore-Tex XCR (~21,000 g/m²/day), Entrant (about 21,000 g/m²/day), and most polyurethane coatings (5,000 to 15,000 g/m²/day). The lightest versions of Shield will weigh about 2.0 oz/yd² (two-layer) and 3.0 oz/yd² (three-layer). Pertex Shield won’t be the lightest, most breathable, or cheapest of the waterproof breathable fabrics, but it could be the right balance of breathability, light weight, and price to win a solid position in the market. The same case can be made for the Toray Entrant waterproof-breathable technology.

A new technology called “Ion Mask,” developed by a British company called P2i Ltd, could revolutionize waterproof-breathable clothing and the apparel and footwear industries. The company’s treatment applies a nanotechnology surface treatment to the entire surface of a product which is only nanometers thick. The layer is molecularly bound to the surface of the material and cannot be removed by solvents, chemicals, or “common environmental conditions,” making it incredibly durable. The company claims that treated materials (e.g., a garment) display ultra low surface energy values down to one third of that of PTFE (Teflon), making it ultra-slippery and very water repellent, ideal for the outside of a waterproof jacket.

The beauty of Ion Mask is that it applies a “permanent” waterproofing without altering other qualities of the garment, so for example, breathability remains the same. Entire garments, including the zippers, become highly water-repellent. This breakthrough technology, if it really works and is adopted by the outdoor industry, opens the door to potentially limitless applications. Rainwear seems like an ideal application. A three-ounce hooded windshirt can potentially be treated with Ion Mask to transform it into an effective ultralight rain jacket. The same could be true for gloves, hats, and other apparel.

Current DWR treatments are fairly short-lived: they wear off or wash off in a short while, and the garment “wets out,” meaning the surface fabric becomes saturated, and water weeps through to the inside. A permanent waterproofing treatment that does not affect breathability would be a major breakthrough, making chemical DWR treatments an antiquated technology.

I inquired around at OR for any applications of Ion Mask, and found it already in use to waterproof footwear. Hi-Tech demonstrated the Ion Mask technology at winter 2007 Outdoor Retailer, and will be introducing light hikers with the technology in spring 2009. For more information on the Ion Mask process and its application to footwear, see my article entitled: 2008 Lightweight Footwear Roundup (to be published soon).

Finally, another waterproofing technology that caught our eye is the Dry Freak Dry Prodigy treatment demonstrated at Outdoor Demo. This fluoro-polymer coating creates a surface that is extremely hydrophobic, causing water to bead up and roll off, as shown in the photo. The result is a “waterproof shirt.” Dry Freak claims that the treatment doesn’t modify from outside conditions like a DWR treatment does, and it only loses 10% of its repellency after seventy washings. A “waterproof shirt” is something to ponder; it seems like it would be useful rainwear for light showers in warm weather. The treatment also resists soiling, so the garment stays cleaner. The shirt shown in the photo below weighs about six ounces and costs US$46.

The Envelope Just Got Bigger

As a lightweight, technically minded backpacker, if you were looking to rate the overall performance of a sleeping pad, you might define a “performance envelope” consisting of parameters like warmth, weight, comfort, and packed size. A traditional backpacker might also include durability and ease-of-use, but I’d argue these are less important to lightweight hikers. Tradeoffs among these parameters are unavoidable in any pad technology. For example, closed-cell foam pads are generally lighter, but less comfortable and bulkier than self-inflators.

The new Therm-a-Rest NeoAir pad expands the envelope by offering a 2.5 inch thickness for comfort, an extremely compact stored size, and a claimed R-value of R-2.5 for warmth. The NeoAir achieves the comfort and compact size by virtue of its non-self-inflating construction. This itself is not new in pad designs, as companies such as Big Agnes, Exped, and Pacific Outdoor Equipment have had this type of pad for some time. By eliminating or reducing the thickness of the internal insulation, a non-self-inflator can be blown up to a plush, comfortable thickness, and still be deflated to a compact size for packing. The drawback of this kind of construction is that it is difficult to achieve much thermal insulation. If the pad is constructed with large, empty air chambers like the Big Agnes Clearview Pad, convective air currents in the pad will decrease its insulation dramatically. One way around this is to add some down or synthetic high-loft insulation to the inside of the pad chambers, as is done in the Exped Downmats, Pacific Outdoor Equipment Ether Thermo pads, and Big Agnes Insulated Air Core series. By impeding convective currents, this construction adds substantial warmth. But, it adds weight and increases packed bulk. Plus, if down is used, a pump must be used for inflation to avoid trapping moisture from your breath inside the pad.

The NeoAir promises to deliver the light weight, simplicity, and compactibility of an insulation-less non-self-inflator like the Clearview Air, with the warmth of an insulated pad. It achieves this with a five-layer honeycomb construction that disrupts convective currents and reflects radiant heat.

Producing this honeycomb structure, dubbed “Core Matrix,” required new manufacturing technology. A proprietary machine made in Tacoma, Washington welds the five fabric layers simultaneously. The process is time consuming, requiring up to ten minutes for the machine to complete the discrete welds. Current prototype pads are being made with a prototype welder, but the company has a larger capacity machine in development. Somewhat surprisingly in this day of Asian-produced goods, the production pads will be made in Seattle.

The technology has taken over five years of development. They were initially looking to build a lightweight pad using conventional high loft insulation. This evolved into attempts to achieve semi-self inflation by orienting the matrix vertically. Eventually a horizontal matrix was decided upon to reduce the number of welds needed and improve warmth by reducing the vertical size of the “chimneys” inside each cell.

Materials consist of a 30 denier high tenacity ripstop nylon shell, nylon non-woven inner layers, and a central aluminized, urethane-coated, reflective layer. The layer sandwich is claimed to offer an R-value of R-2.5 at 1.85 inches of inflation. (As with all inflatable pads, the R-value depends on the inflation thickness – more air equals more insulation.)

The technology and design of the pad appear impressive, but as with any potentially revolutionary product, we’ll have to wait and see if production versions live up to the initial promise. A full review of the NeoAir is in the works at BackpackingLight.com. The pad will be available April 2009 in four sizes.

Features of the Small Version:

• Dimensions: 20 x 47 in (51 x 119 cm)
• Claimed Weight: 9 oz (260 g)
• MSRP: US$119.95

What About Conventional Therm-a-Rests?

If the price or new technology of the NeoAir frightens you off, Cascade Designs has completely revamped the rest of the Therm-a-Rest pad line. The existing Prolite 4 series of pads has been updated to increase warmth by a claimed 20% with no additional weight penalty by utilizing a “cross die-cut” foam configuration. Most self-inflating pads punch vertical holes through the foam to reduce weight and stuff size. These holes can create miniature chimneys for convective air currents.

The slanted die-cut foam technology in the new “Prolite Plus” pad is claimed to act as a barrier, slowing down the convective transfer of heat within the cell to the sleeping surface. The claimed weight remains unchanged at one and a half pounds for a regular seventy-two-inch mattress. Prolite Plus pads will be available in three unisex sizes with a claimed R-value of R-3.8, as well as one women’s version rated at R-4.5. MSRP’s range from US$79.95 to US$199.95 for the various sizes. Lengths range from forty-seven to seventy-seven inches. Available March 2009. If the field performance matches the claimed R-values, these pads should all be amply warm as sole pads for winter use.

For thee-season use, Therm-a-Rest has streamlined the shape of their existing Prolite 3 pads and renamed them, simply, “Prolite.” The new pads are tapered slightly more aggressively and feature rounder tops and bottoms. These changes reduce the amount of material used for a given sized pad and result in weight reduction – always a plus for lightweight hikers. The new Prolite pads will be offered in three unisex sizes, plus a women’s size. The smallest and lightest pad in this series is the torso-sized extra-small version, measuring twenty by thirty-six inches, and claiming an eight ounce weight. This makes it one of the lightest self-inflating pads commercially available. MSRP’s range from US$59.95 to US$119.95, depending on size. Available January 2009.

No Oyl Shortage Here

Pacific Outdoor Equipment is going green(er?) this year with the introduction of their Peak Oyl family of pads. The new pads incorporate foam made from palm oil and shells made from recycled PET fabric. The new foam is a polyurethane blend made from 40% palm oil rather than petroleum-based oil. The shell is at least partially made from recycled beverage containers. The first pads in this series are the Peak Oyl Lite and Peak Oyl Aero Mountain, replacing their current AO Lite and AO Aero Mountain pads. Their strategy is to introduce the Peak Oyl materials into these higher end products this year and have it trickle into the rest of their product line in the future. According to company vice president Greg Garrigues, migrating to the new, allegedly more eco-friendly materials required no compromise in weight or performance. The Peak Oyl Lite will be available in five standard and women’s sizes ranging from forty-eight to seventy-eight inches long and thirteen to twenty-one ounces (claimed). MSRP’s from US$70 to US$95. The Peak Oyl Aero Mountain will come in similar sizes with claimed weights from 18 to 29.5 ounces. MSRPs from US$114 to US$139.

Want To Design Your Own Sleeping Pad?

Pacific Outdoor Equipment is starting a new program next year called Über Concepts. They plan to release up to ten design iterations of a new pad throughout the year based on customer feedback. The idea is to produce small batches of pads each month and repeatedly revise the design with a very fast development cycle. Customers will make suggestions for improvements with each version, and the product will evolve throughout the year. Want a four-ounce twenty-four by twelve inch “shoulder blade” pad or extra cushioning for the small of your back? Join the program and become a pad designer.

The World’s Lightest Commercially Available Canister Stove

New from Snow Peak is their GigaPower LiteMax Stove, which is claimed to be the lightest commercially available canister stove in the world with a weight of 1.9 ounces (55 grams). (One should note that savvy BackpackingLight.com readers have been driving product liability lawyers into a frenzy by fabricating their own and/or modifying commercial designs to make lighter stoves for some time.)

The LiteMax is an evolution of the older and heavier GigaPower Micro Max stove that weighs 3.3 ounces (94 grams) in the titanium version and boasts an integrated piezo igniter. Snow Peak has been working for more than a year with Kovea, the LiteMax manufacturer, to reduce the weight. Last summer we reported on the version we dubbed the Micro Giga that eliminated the igniter and substituted some lighter materials to bring the weight down to 2.15 ounces (60 grams). Snow Peak never brought that particular version to market, but instead concentrated on further refining the design to reduce the weight.

The LiteMax eliminates virtually all brass and stainless steel parts from prior versions, and makes extensive use of titanium for the burner and pot support and uses aluminum for the valve and mixing tube. The use of aluminum in the lower portions of the stove presented some engineering challenges, as its high thermal conductivity heated the valve seat excessively.

The solution was to incorporate an insulating gasket at the bottom of the burner to keep the aluminum parts cooler. Holes have even been drilled in the pot supports to further reduce weight. This last iteration of refinements has yielded a stove weighing only 1.9 ounces (55 grams) (which I have personally verified on our official scale), yet that still able to produce a claimed maximum output power of 11,200 BTU per hour. MSRP US$55.00. Available since spring 2008.

Brunton Joins the Remote Canister Stove Club

We’ve long been supporters of remote canister stoves for cold weather operation. In order for a canister stove to perform well in sub-freezing conditions, two features are needed:

1) The ability to deliver liquid fuel from the canister to reduce canister cooling and preferential vaporization of propane in the fuel mix – both achieved by turning the canister upside-down on a stove with a remotely-located fuel canister connected to the stove through a flexible hose.

2) A preheat tube near the burner that will vaporize the fuel with heat from the burner prior to mixing with air. The new Vesta Stove from Brunton offers both of these features and joins similar stoves from its competitors with an attractive, compact, sturdy, and fairly lightweight offering. We have not tested the Vesta for inverted canister operation, but its inclusion of the two features above suggests that it may be suited for that application.

Disclaimer: Inverting the canister on any stove should only be attempted by knowledgeable users on stoves with features enabling such use, and, even then, at their own risk. Improperly inverting a canister can lead to intense fire and/or explosion.

Features:

• Also available in a white gas version called the Bantam
• Claimed Weight: 8.5 oz (241 g)
• 11,500 BTU per hour
• MSRP: US$59.99
• Available February 2009

Primus Expands the Eta Line of Integrated Stoves

While liquid-feed fuel capability is a minimum requirement for a winter stove – if enough snow is to be melted – fuel use can be dramatically reduced through the use of stove systems with efficient windscreens and pots with integrated heat exchangers. For short trips with one or two persons, the added weight of these components usually will not offset the weight of the fuel saved. But for longer trips…in colder weather…in a large group, the fuel savings will eventually pay for the added system weight.

We used the Primus EtaPower EF Stove last February for ten days in sub-freezing conditions on an igloo expedition in Yellowstone National Park. With its heat exchanger pot and windscreen, the stove was impressive for efficiently melting snow for our large group. So little heat energy (and therefore fuel) was wasted while melting snow that it was even difficult warm your hands over the stove! Yet, all of us on the trip thought that it was overbuilt for lightweight backpacking – the heavy-gauge materials and frypan lid added unnecessary weight to the system. Primus addressed the need for a lighter system in January with the introduction of their EtaExpress Stove. But unfortunately, the EtaExpress lacked the capability of a liquid fuel feed and so was not really suitable for sub-freezing use.

The new Primus EtaPackLite combines the highly efficient pot with integrated heat exchanger from the larger EtaPower stove with a lighter liquid-feed burner, lid, and windscreen to bring the weight down to claimed 21 ounces (595 grams) (22.6 ounces / 641 grams measured on our official scale). The complete system consists of the stove base with burner and piezo igniter, adjustable wind screen, graduated serving bowl, and a 1.2 liter non-stick pot with polycarbonate lid that doubles as a colander. Had this been available last February, this would have been the snowmelting stove system of choice for our trip – though we might have left the serving bowl behind to shave another two ounces or so. MSRP US$115. Available spring 2009.

Jetboil Answers Back with the Helios

Aiming to extend the cold weather performance of their integrated stove systems, Jetboil has added the Helios to their line. The Helios is a remote canister version of their earlier PCS and GCS stoves. Featuring a tripod-like stand for an upside-down canister, the Helios is one of the few stoves on the market actually designed and marketed for inverted canister operation, rather than simply operated that way by expert users. The windscreen is also unique, as it is made of a transparent plastic material that allows a good view of the stove while it is in operation. The windscreen snaps to the stove base to hold it in place. Like the Primus EtaPower stove we used in Yellowstone, the Helios is clearly too heavy for lightweight backpacking – except possibly for extended Winter trips with a large group. Still, we’re enthusiastic about the growth of the inverted-canister category of stoves.

Features:

• 2L Pot with Integrated Heat Exchanger and Neoprene Cozy
• 10,000 BTU/hr Claimed Heat Power Output
• Claimed Weight: 28 oz (793 g)
• Measured Weight: 29 oz (824 g)
• MSRP: US$149.95
• Available Since March 2008

Trail Designs/AntiGravityGear Caldera Keg Cooking System

Integrated cooking systems are not limited to canister stoves. We hooked up with George Andrews of AntiGravityGear (AGG) and got our hot little hands on the new 6.3-ounce (179-gram) Caldera Keg Cooking System. The basic cooking system mates a twenty-four-ounce Foster’s beer can cook pot with a specific Caldera Cone, and includes a lid, caddy (mug and bowl), 12-10 alcohol burner, fuel bottle, and cozy for the bowl and costs US$59.00. The expanded kit adds an AGG cozy that encloses the caddy and a silnylon stuff sack for the entire system and costs about US$20.00 more.

This is the most complete alcohol cooking system we have ever seen, and the integration of the components is absolutely amazing. The Trail Designs (TD) Caldera Keg system and the AGG accessory pot cozy and stuff sack are two products that can be purchased separately or together. The TD Caldera Keg system, which slides inside a lightweight threaded 3.75 x 7.5-inch (9.5 x 19-cm) plastic tube, is a complete 6.3-ounce (179-gram) cooking system by itself. The addition of AntiGravityGear’s 1.5-ounce (43 gram) pot cozy and stuff sack are very useful embellishments.

The introduction of the Caldera Cone by Trail Designs has provided us with an efficient, reliable, and predictable alcohol cooking system akin to a canister stove system. Now, with the introduction of the Caldera Keg, we have the lightest complete cooking system to be found anywhere. We can’t wait to get out and use it.

Farewell to an Old Friend

Finally, fans of Coleman Powermax stoves such as the Xponent Xtreme that has long been a staff favorite for winter use, will be sad to learn that Coleman has discontinued production of their Powermax product line. According to Jim Reid, Senior Manager at Coleman, they intend to support current Powermax stove owners with their unfortunately heavy fuel adapter that allows stoves such as the Xtreme to operate with conventional Lindal valve canisters. They also say that they will continue to produce Powermax fuel cartridges for as long as “there is a market for it.” Coleman Xtreme stoves are still available in their distribution channels, but once stock is gone, it’s gone. Advice to the wise: if you want a Powermax stove, buy one quickly, and if you own a Powermax stove, stock up on fuel.

UK-based Terra Nova makes some of the lightest tents in the world, and, up until now, customers from the U.S. had to buy from overseas. In April of this year, the company announced that their products will now be available through several U.S. dealers. Say goodbye to the high shipping costs and long waiting times – the ship has landed.

One of Terra Nova’s new products at the show is the Moonlight Bag Cover. It features a two-ply waterproof-breathable fabric and has a drawstring closure. The specified weight is 7.3 oz (206 g) with a retail price of US$130. It will be available in February 2009.

In addition to tents and bivies, Terra Nova manufactures sleeping bags, headwear, gloves, socks, and other accessories. They will also be releasing a new range of lightweight packs for 2009.

Backpacking Light welcomes them to the North American market and wishes them continued success.

The premise, jointly announced earlier this week by Olympus and Panasonic, combines several elements in a way heretofore unknown to digital cameras: a very compact body, a sensor lifted directly from dSLRs, interchangeable lenses, autofocus, and real-time LCD/EVF viewing.

The Four-Thirds consortium evidently looked at their dSLR standard and asked, "What could we do if we dropped the SLR mirror box, pentaprism viewfinder, and 100% telecentric lens requirement, but kept the chip and the lens communications?"

What they could do is thin the camera body by about half and reduce lens-to-chip distance, lens mount diameter, and lens sizes, coining a new system name: Micro Four-Thirds.

To place this proposal into context, the smallest Four-Thirds cameras are the smallest and lightest dSLRs ever made: the Olympus E-400, 410, and 420. Yet the Micro Four-Thirds bodies can be less than half the dSLR thickness and likely as not, half the weight. It’s not unreasonable to anticipate perhaps six- to eight-ounce bodies and even two- or three-ounce lenses. Equally important, certain body-lens combinations will be pocketable or could at least slip into a small belt case, always at hand. What the photographer-backpacker can expect is dSLR results from a toy-sized camera.

Eliminating the SLR mirror ensures Micro Four-Thirds cameras will be quieter and simpler, and suffer less shutter vibration. Eliminating the optical viewfinder (OVF) means photographers will be relegated to an electronic view finder (EVF) or rear LCD screen, which to date haven’t been as easy to use. (Note: zooming rangefinder OVFs exist, but accurate ones are complex and expensive.)

Via an adapter, existing Four-Thirds lenses will work on Micro Four-Thirds bodies, retaining most functions. However, most of the current lenses will dwarf the new cameras.

Changing Chips Alter Design Requirements

Of great importance, if not well understood, is the relaxation of Four-Thirds’ rigid telecentric lens standard. CCD imaging chips used in early digicams need light to hit the chip surface at a perpendicular angle, as their photosites sit in depressions that off-angle light can’t reach evenly. This creates havoc that the original Four-Thirds standard addressed by demanding system lenses be perpendicular (telecentric). However, newer NMOS chips new used by Olympus and Panasonic don’t suffer fatally from angled light, and advanced in-camera processing can address intensity differences that still occur across the frame.

This allows the Micro Four-Thirds rear lens element to sit closer to the chip which, in turn, allows lenses to be smaller. Thus unleashed, camera and lens designers can now employ classic wide angle lens designs unusable in SLRs, create zooms with rear elements that protrude into the camera body, and shrink many lens parts.

Unanswered Questions

Other than the system details unveiled this week, we know nothing about actual Micro Four-Thirds cameras-what they look like, how they’ll be equipped, what lenses and accessories will be available, when they’ll be available, what they’ll cost, or how much they’ll weigh. We do know they’re likely to rely on contrast-detection autofocus rather than phase-detection (as used in dSLRs). Will EVFs be built in or only be a slip-on accessory? We don’t know. The new system will allow video-impossible with current dSLRs-and autofocus will likely be contained inside the lens, not the body. We don’t know whether image stability is possible and if so, if it will be in-body or lens-based. We also don’t know whether Leica and Sigma, current Four-Thirds makers, will issue Micro cameras and lenses. One guarantee: due to "not invented here" syndrome, despite being an open standard, Micro Four-Thirds won’t be adopted by big players Canon and Nikon.

Is It Really New?

Only two currently available digital cameras warrant comparison to the Micro Four-Thirds concept: the Leica M8 and the Sigma DP1. The Leica, a classic mechanical rangefinder converted to digital by replacing film with an APS-C chip, uses Leica M-mount lenses dating back to the 1950s and will drain your wallet of about ten thousand dollars once fitted with a couple of lenses. The M8 is significantly larger and heavier than a Micro Four-Thirds camera is likely to be, it also lacks autofocus or, for that matter, any automation other than exposure metering. Far closer in concept, the DP1 is the first compact digicam fitted with an APS-C chip (a rare Foveon chip at that). It has a fixed, prime (non-zoom) lens, and a viewfinder is an optional accessory. It’s quite small and light, at about nine ounces, and Ryan Jordan has been putting one through its paces this summer with considerable success. A reasonably complete DP1 kit costs about a thousand dollars. To get an idea of how a Micro Four-Thirds camera might look, take a gander at the DP1 and imagine being able to swap the lens with another anytime you want.

Background

Four-Thirds is an open set of standards that revolve around the Four-Thirds imaging chip that’s roughly one-quarter the area of the standard 35mm film frame (18 x 13.5 mm vs. 36 x 24 mm). The vast majority of dSLRs use reduced format chips, and most of those are so-called APS-C chips. Compared to APS-C, Four-Thirds is less wide, slightly less tall, and a bit squarer. In practice, APS-C and Four-Thirds are essentially the same; image differences between cameras using the two arise from chip design and image processing differences, not chip size. By comparison, no compact digicam imaging chip is remotely close in size to Four-Thirds (for example, the 1/2.7" chip used in many compact digicams is 5.3 x 4 mm). So-called full-frame dSLRs do differ considerably, but are not relevant here.

National Geographic Maps web-based TOPO! Explorer (NG TEX) aims to be the iTunes of electronic mapping. Like iTunes, the application is free, and, like songs, a 1:24K USGS Topographic Quad, including satellite imagery, is only $1 (vs. $8 -$10 for a paper Quad without satellite imagery). If you own a Magellan Triton GPS it’s fairly simple to download that map to your GPS. In the field, the maps look just as good on the Triton GPS as they do on your computer. Like iTunes, the NG TEX application works and looks the same on Mac and PC.

NG TEX departs significantly from the old, PC based, TOPO! application (TOPO! Classic). TEX is based on a Mac version of NG software and looks modern, even sexy, compared to its predecessor. Gone are kludgey non-standard items like the "Traveling Tool" (replaced with the more conventional grabber hand) and the "Import Wizard." TEX is targeted at entry level uses-making basic function easy to find and use.

NG TEX launched early this summer with a small set of essential functions. NG intends to aggressively add functions, eventually including most of the features of TOPO! Classic, as well as adding many new functions. Updates and new functions were posting on an almost weekly basis after the program’s launch. For Summer Outdoor Retailer, NG is releasing new search functionality for TEX.

Many new GPS units, and now it appears mapping software programs, focus on a multi-media experience more oriented to the general public. For NG TEX, this includes the ability to load pictures and audio along with your maps and routes. You can create virtual tours of your trips that you can share with friends or with a larger community of outdoor enthusiasts in forums.

NG intends to have a large community of outdoor enthusiasts sharing information on trails and trips on in their TEX web forums. You don’t need to own the topographic quads, just the free NG TEX application, to see routes or tours uploaded by others. This should create a resource full of up-to-date information for outdoor enthusiasts. Not only will TEX have the most current USGS topographic maps (NG has a partnership with USGS), but, via the forums and other NG TEX users, one will be able to get the most up-to-date information on parks, trails, roads, access points, and other information for an upcoming trip. NG hopes that this will create an environment that encourages people to get excited about the outdoors, ultimately getting more people off of their couches and onto trails.

The Magellan Triton 2000 is a good fit with the multimedia direction. With its built-in camera and audio recorder, you can append photographs and audio to waypoints or locations along your route. The whole shebang can be uploaded after the trip to NG TEX and used to create a tour trip report.

The Triton, unlike some newer "general purpose" GPS units, still has a strong suite of navigational functions, and you don’t have to wade through a thicket of non-navigational functions to use them. The high resolution display has a number of screens, thoughtfully laid out with navigational information, but the best part of the Triton is their onscreen maps. They are exact reproductions of USGS Quads. Thus, if you are reading a route description that tells you a canyon exit is just below "T 4,996" on the map, you can actually see the "T 4,996" text on your Triton. If you use maps on other GPS units, such features are often missing and often the information can even be quite out-of-date.

I recently downloaded all of the maps for the Olympic Peninsula to my Triton 400 pre-trip (that’s a lot of Quads!). At the last minute, I ended up going someplace that I didn’t anticipate. Thus, I had no paper maps better than 1:100K for the area. I used the Triton to supplement my lower resolution map with 1:24K detail as needed, such as for finding my way up Mt. Olympus. The unit and its internal maps were golden.

The Triton also has quite good GPS reception. I was able to get a GPS fix even in heavily treed valleys of the Olympic rain forest.

A few things to know about TEX maps:

• A TEX Super Quad contains three layers 1) the actual 1:24K USGS Topographic map, 2) corresponding satellite imagery, and 3) a hybrid layer that overlays some topographic information over the satellite image
• If you purchased map CDs/DVDs with other NG TOPO! products, you won’t have to pay again. You can register your old maps with TEX. However since you only purchased topographic maps, you will not have access to the satellite and hybrid layers. For that, you’ll have to fork over a buck and download the rest of your Super Quad layers.
• While $1 may seem inexpensive for a map, the state of California has around 2,800 Quads. At some point, buying a $100 NG State Series map DVD is much less expensive (but you won’t have the satellite and hybrid layers).
• For many areas of the U.S., there is higher-resolution satellite imagery publicly available from other sources, e.g. Google Earth. You won’t be able to upload these to your GPS until Google decides to buy a GPS or comparable electronic mapping device company and integrate the two.

Garmin Oregon Series

Garmin announced its new Oregon series of GPS devices in July, and we were able to check them out at the Outdoor Retailer show. The Oregon series combines a touchscreen interface (like those on Garmin’s recent automotive units with the large display) and features of the Colorado series reviewed by BackpackingLight.com earlier this year:

On the surface, the Oregon appears to be a positive enhancement of the Colorado series: it is physically smaller than the Colorado (lacking the antenna protrusion), half an ounce lighter, and claims an additional hour of battery life. By using tapping and dragging, the touchscreen interface provides more direct and often faster entry than the Rock ‘n Roller wheel on the Colorado – and we believe it will be easier to use in a soft waterproof cover. In addition, the Oregon comes with more memory and includes a new "HotFix" feature claimed to improve position calculation times.

Other key features of the Colorado are retained in the Oregon, including customizable profiles, wireless transfers with other Garmin units and Ant-compatible devices (e.g. cadence sensors and heart rate monitors), a good-looking shaded-relief basemap, and (of less interest for backpacking use) extensive geocaching support.

The Oregon comes in a range of versions mirroring those in the Colorado series: the 400t includes preloaded shaded topographic maps, just like the Colorado 400t (no indication whether the PC version of Topo 2008 is included, but it was not included with the Colorado). The 400i and 400c include inland and saltwater maps, respectively, and the 300 includes a shaded worldwide basemap. New with the Oregon line is a 200 model, which just includes a standard basemap. All units are expandable through internal memory and SD cards.

We’ve not yet had the chance to test the Oregon and can’t yet say whether its initial software is stable and has feature parity with the Colorado. The Colorado’s software went through rapid – and needed – evolution in both bug fixes and feature additions, so we are curious to see how the Oregon compares.

The Orgeon 400t is listed as available "3rd Quarter, 2008" and retails for US$639.99 – same as the Colorado 400t. The other units range from US$479.99 for the 200 to US$639.99.

Claimed Specifications:

• Dimensions, WxHxD: .3 x 4.5 x 1.4 in (5.8 x 11.4 x 3.5 cm)
• Display size, WxH: 1.53 x 2.55 in (3.8 x 6.3 cm); 3 in (7.6 cm) diagonal
• Display resolution, WxH: 240 x 400 pixels
• Weight: 6.8 oz (192.7 g) with batteries
• Battery: 2 AA batteries (not included); NiMH or lithium recommended
• Battery life: 16 hours

DeLorme Earthmate PN-40

DeLorme has announced a new GPS unit, the PN-40, that enhances its earlier PN-20 model with a thirty-two-channel high sensitivity GPS receiver, faster dual-core processor, a greatly increased total of one gigabyte of memory, a more detailed basemap, additional road data, and a barometric altimeter and three-axis compass.

The unit ships with DeLorme Topo USA 7.0 mapping software (PC only) that enables import of supplemental data, including four types of aerial imagery, USGS 1:24K quads, and NOAA nautical charts – this is a significantly wider range of mapping data than is available on the Garmin units. Maps can be stored on internal memory and on SD cards.

The PN-40 uses a conventional button and rocker pad array below the display for input. The display appears somewhat washed out compared to the Oregon and is physically quite a bit smaller, though color depth and detail are good. Redraw times, cursor movement, and overall responsiveness are greatly improved over the PN-20.

The PN-40 is scheduled to ship in September, 2008. Retail price was not available at press time.

Claimed Specifications:

• Dimensions, WxHxD: 2.43 x 5.25 x 1.5 in (6.2 x 13.3 x 3.8 cm)
• Weight: 5.12 oz (145.1 g) without batteries
• Display Size: 2.2 in (5.6 cm) diagonal
• Display resolution: 176 x 220 pixels
• Battery: 2 AA batteries (not included)

One of the really cool components of the Outdoor Retailer Show is Outdoor Demo Days, which this year was two days at a mountain lake near Salt Lake City, where we had a chance to try out (demo) all kinds of watercraft. There were lots of hard and soft shell kayaks, inflatable boats, canoes, pedal boats, pack boats, paddle boards – you name it. We tested some Kevlar canoes from Confluence and Bell that weighed just forty-seven pounds for an eighteen-foot boat – I guess we can always dream!

At winter Outdoor Demo, we get to test gear for snow sports at a nearby ski area – skis (downhill, cross-country, and everything in between), snowboards, snowshoes, and some insulated footwear, etc.

In addition to giving us (the media and retailers) the opportunity for some hands-on testing, there are quite a few other booths at Demo Days showcasing accessories for water sports in summer and snow sports in winter, and then there’s a bunch of vendors who simply want to get more visibility for their latest products. Manufacturers normally feature new or updated gear to attract attention and hopefully get more people to visit their booth at the Outdoor Retailer Show.

Speaking of the OR Show, this summer there are about 4,000 vendors displaying their products to nearly 40,000 attendees. That’s huge, and obviously it’s hard to see everything. The Show is a lot like a competition among birds of paradise: flashy. Exhibitors do some amazing things to attract attention to their booths, like signs and banners high in the air and every other attention-getting device you can think of. Overall, it’s the show of shows for kindred souls who derive pure joy from perusing what’s new in the outdoor industry. Check out the accompanying photos for more details.

Introduction

Last weekend my wife and I were on our way back from spending a night at beautiful Lake Blanche in Utah’s Wasatch Mountains. As we bounced down the trail, we passed a large scout group on their way up to the same lake. I noticed one of the kids was wearing a GoLite pack, and feeling a sense of kinship, I pointed to my hat and pack and gave an enthusiastic, "GoLite! Right on!" It was obvious that I was much more excited about this moment than he was. As we passed the leader bringing up the rear, I couldn’t help but notice his orange external frame pack with an enormous sleeping bag lashed to the back. Something about this scene jarred my memory. It was then that I recalled my earliest memory of backpacking.

I must have been nine or ten-years-old when my Dad decided to take my brother and me on the most thrilling adventure our little minds could imagine. We loaded our orange external frame packs with all the gear we could carry and set off for the mountains. Army surplus cookware, a heavy tent, and cloth sleeping bags made for quite the load on our backs. With nightfall approaching and our destination still distant, we set up our tent right on the trail. The night was spent huddled together as thunder cracked all around us. I don’t think we ever made it to the summit, but we didn’t need to. That trip was the high point of my young life.

Let’s fast forward to the present. Look how far things have come! Fabrics, insulation, metals and plastics have all seen major advances in technology. We are seeing more and more mainstream companies offer products that fall in the lightweight category. Has the mass market finally moved from "traditional" to "lightweight" status, and could this trend continue into the ultralight realm? Will I ever walk into my local gear shop and browse the shelves for sub-10 oz backpacks? Will I ever get to pull a quilt off the wall and lay under a tarp before I buy it? How much lighter can a piece of gear go and still remain feasible for the mass market? To answer these questions, I spoke with representatives from Golite, Osprey, and Prolite Gear.

The Manufacturer Viewpoint

What are a manufacturer’s primary considerations when designing a piece of gear? For Golite, the first priority is function. Demetri "Coup" Coupounas, founder and President of Golite, says, "I think generally people assume that our number one criterion is weight. But the first syllable in Golite is ‘go’ for a reason. The stuff has to do something." Gareth Martins, Director of Marketing for Osprey, echoes this same philosophy. "Our primary consideration is suspension and fit. Without this, you’re not going to have a good experience."

The second priority for Golite is durability. "If the product isn’t reasonably durable, it won’t perform its function over a long enough period. It needs to give the customer enough confidence over the course of any given trip." Gareth brings up the same concern. "There is a durability issue," he says. "That’s why we have generally avoided using superlight sil fabrics, because the weight difference is really negligible compared to the durability."

Making the jump from major manufacturer to cottage manufacturer does not necessarily mean a sacrifice in durability. Several cottage companies offer gear that most lightweight and ultralight backpackers would consider fairly robust. At the same time, these companies are able to offer ultralight shelters and packs using silnylon and Cuben fiber. Unfortunately, major manufacturers must be consistent across their entire line. "We want to help millions of people all over the globe lighten up as much as possible and enjoy the outdoors," says Coup. "We can’t do that in a way where we say, ‘We can warranty this ninety percent of our line, but not this ten percent of our line.’ That doesn’t work."

The Retail Store Viewpoint

"I think one of the things that’s happening is a real graying of these well-defined categories of traditional backpacker and lightweight backpacker," says Craig Delger, founder of Prolite Gear. "We work with a lot of baby boomers that are buying a Golite pack. They’re buying a Big Agnes SL2 and a sleeping bag from Montbell. I wouldn’t consider these people hardcore backpackers, but yet they’re buying things that fall squarely in the category of lightweight backpacking equipment."

Craig recognizes that there will always be the "early adopters", those people on the cutting edge of product innovation. He feels that they will always be considered a market niche. When asked whether or not mainstream stores will ever provide this cutting edge gear, he says, "These stores are constantly moving in the direction of lighter weight and more innovative stuff, but that’s been going on for thirty years. I don’t think we’re going to see any major changes in the dynamics of this whole market. I think there’s always going to be that group that wants the stuff that isn’t considered mainstream."

What Does the Future Hold?

"I think the day will come when it is very difficult to find traditional overbuilt gear," says Coup. "The main paradigm for a long time in American consumer culture has been more, more, more, bigger, bigger, bigger. America is realizing that smaller is better, that lighter is better, that sleeker is better."

Craig noted that there seems to be a trend taking place. "It’s similar to what’s happening with the eco-friendly movement – they call it green-washing. We’ve seen a lot of different online sites pop up and try to ‘light-wash’ themselves, and we’ve seen a lot of existing players try and introduce a lightweight or an ultralight category. But it’s really just window treatment." Coup mentions this same thing. "There is an awful lot of posturing and phoniness in this industry when it comes to lightweight gear," he says. "But I don’t view that as bad, I view it as a baby step in the right direction. When I see a traditional company making a bunch of overbuilt gear and calling it lightweight, I rejoice, because it’s only a matter of time before they either transform the products they are making or go out of business."

When asked whether or not he feels that the lightweight market is expanding, Coup says, "You see a lot more lightweight functional gear than you used to see in this market. We’re growing; the cottage industry is growing. Some companies are, with some real integrity, expanding their lightweight offerings."

One question to consider is who is driving this market, the manufacturers or the consumers? "I think it’s a little bit of both," says Craig. "Markets move due to what consumers are wanting, but they also move based on what manufacturers are able to provide." Are manufacturers reluctant to move into the lightweight realm, or are consumers sending the wrong message? "I used to think very negatively about the companies that were making traditional overbuilt gear for forcing this upon the public," says Coup. "A decade into this, I’ve realized that it’s a symbiotic problem. Often when customers go to evaluate products, a company may well have produced a very thoughtful, lighter, clean version of a product, but our consumer culture says that heavier and more expensive is better, and the customer evaluation reflects this."

Although durability is high on the list of priorities for manufacturers, technological advances are constantly allowing companies to produce lighter products without compromising durability. "Look at silnylon," says Craig. "That used to be a real niche product. Now we see silnylon being used in quite a few different products. Same with dyneema. These things that are cutting edge one year are part of mainstream products three or four years down the road."

Conclusion

Let’s go back to the original question: Will the mass market ever embrace the lightweight philosophy? I think it is on its way. The industry has made leaps and bounds in providing lightweight gear for the average consumer. Advances in technology are creating stronger and more durable materials for the same weight. Although not all companies are offering truly lightweight gear, most seem to be recognizing that there is potential for tapping into the lightweight market. While these trends seem to be steps in the right direction, five minutes in any "big-box" outdoor store will show that there is plenty of room for improvement.

Continuing to educate consumers about the benefits of lightweight backpacking will help this segment of the market expand, which will in turn entice major manufacturers to produce even lighter gear. Maybe one day when my son is old enough to go on his first scout trip, I can tell him about the gear I first used. Hopefully he’ll look at me in amazement and appreciate how far things have come.

Zeppelins and Tipis

Every July the international outdoor trade gathers in the little town of Friedrichshafen (pop. 58,000) in southern Germany on the shores of beautiful Lake Constance. Across the lake lies the edge of the Swiss Alps, shadowy rocky peaks rising steeply through the summer haze. The Messe exhibition halls are on the edge of the town close to the Zeppelin museum, Friedrichshafen being the place where these airships were first built. It’s not unusual to look up to see a Zeppelin floating above the museum.

Friedrichshafen is set in lovely rolling countryside with many woods, a far cry from downtown Salt Lake City and the Outdoor Retailer show. For the last two years, I’ve camped at Friedrichshafen in a tipi village provided by Merrell Footwear. The tipis are pitched in a meadow in quiet woods just ten minutes walk from the exhibition halls. It’s ironic that at the big U.S. outdoor trade show, I stay in a city in a hotel, but that at the big European one, I camp in a Native American tipi.

Jam Sessions

A great feature of the tipi village is the relaxed communal nature of the place. After the high pressure of the show (and it IS high pressure, covering as many companies as possible out of the 800+ there during non-stop nine-hour days), it’s wonderful to unwind and chat casually to other campers round a campfire. Sometimes guitars are produced and impromptu music sessions occur. There’s a bar and a music player too, and even a small dance floor.

I spent one enjoyable evening talking to colleagues from other magazines, and our conversation went from sober analysis of the show to raucous and outrageous comments on what the outdoor industry should be doing, accompanied by thunderous heavy metal music, favorites of some of the other writers (I requested Neil Young, but I don’t think anybody heard). Another good evening was spent chatting to the people from Alpkit.com, who are always knowledgeable and interesting.

Getting There

I traveled to the Friedrichshafen OutDoor show on behalf of the UK hiking and backpacking magazine TGO, based, like myself, in Scotland. Friedrichshafen isn’t the easiest place to reach from my home in the Highlands. In fact, the whole journey took nineteen hours, of which the major part was spent traveling south on the sleeper train to the only airport in Britain with flights to Friedrichshafen: Stansted in Southern England.

Once at the airport, familiar faces appeared, and the flight was packed with British writers, retailers, and outdoor company people heading for the show. In a sense the work starts then, picking up the vibes, rumors, stories, "must see" suggestions, and more.

Once inside the exhibition, the differences between the OutDoor and Outdoor Retailer shows diminish. Aircraft hangar-style exhibition halls – all hot bright lights and metal – are much the same anywhere, and the glossy displays on the booths don’t vary much either. Many outdoor companies, including all the big names, are at both shows. The biggest companies have European staff who run the show at OutDoor and American staff who handle Outdoor Retailer.

However for many companies the same people work both shows, and the people I talked to on the GoLite, Integral Designs, Outdoor Research, Pacific Outdoor Equipment and High Gear booths will be there at Outdoor Retailer. OutDoor does provide the opportunity to talk to technical people and designers from European companies who don’t go to Outdoor Retailer, and I had interesting conversations with people from several companies, Primus in particular (though Primus will be in Salt Lake, there’s a good chance that the Swedish techies I spoke to will not be joining them).

Being the earlier show, OutDoor has the advantage that new product launches occur there first. Only those companies with no European presence save their product introductions for Outdoor Retailer. This year, the gap between the shows is two and a half weeks, enough time for a reasonable turnaround for companies. Next year it’s just two days, which was a big talking point this year with most people agreeing it was ridiculous, and that the organizers of the two shows should talk to each other to prevent this happening again. I’d hate not to have a break between shows.

¿Habla inglés?

There is one noticeable difference between OutDoor and Outdoor Retailer and that is language. English is standard at Outdoor Retailer. No language is standard at OutDoor. Walking through a hall you can hear bewildering snatches of a mass of languages – German, French, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, Japanese, Chinese, Korean (not that I can recognize all these) and more – while booths have brochures and signs in a selection of languages. Luckily for typical Brits like me, whose language skills don’t run to more than bad schoolboy French and a few words of Norwegian, English is largely understood.

This sense of internationalism, with a big Asian presence, adds an air of excitement to OutDoor that Outdoor Retailer perhaps lacks. But then for me, coming from wet and windy Scotland, hot and dusty Salt Lake City seems quite exotic by itself.

State of the Market

In my experience the atmosphere of the shows has more to do with the state of the outdoor market at the time rather than whether they are in Europe or America. Some shows have a buzz and positive feel; others are flat with a feeling of marking time. This year, OutDoor felt surprisingly buoyant given the economic climate, though it may be that this hasn’t been felt as severely in most of Europe as it has in the States and, certainly, Britain. Some people I spoke to felt that more people would now go hiking and camping as these were less expensive than other holiday activities, and so the outdoor trade would, perversely, benefit from an economic downturn. I’ll be interested to hear what the mood is at Outdoor Retailer.

Gear Coverage

Now to the gear itself. I won’t jump the gun and preview the stuff that’ll appear at Outdoor Retailer. However there are some companies who won’t be crossing the Atlantic, mostly because they’ve never tried selling in North America, often because they are small.

One of the main ones of interest to lightweight backpackers is Lightwave, a British company who make top quality lightweight tents and packs. At OutDoor, Lightwave launched a new pack, the Wildtrek, available in a 55 liter size for women and a 60 liter size for men at weights of 1.45 and 1.5 kg (everything at OutDoor is metric, as it is in most of the world outside the USA and Britain – which is itself confused and does a bit of both).

Lightweight rather than ultralight, the Wildtrek packs look excellent for moderate to heavy loads. The pack design is a fairly clean alpine climbing one, though there are big mesh side pockets and a lid with a roomy pocket. The seams are welded and taped, so it’s almost waterproof (the seams connecting the back system to the packbag aren’t sealed, so a little leakage is possible, though I’ve not had any with a smaller Lightwave pack I’ve been testing).

The Wildtrek has a frame, a moulded back panel, and a wide hipbelt. Lightwave says it should support twelve- to fifteen-kilogram loads. I reckon it’ll handle more, as I’ve been carrying that weight in the smaller Fastpack 50, which has a slimmer hipbelt. Overall, I think this is an exciting pack.

Another company who won’t be at Outdoor Retailer is Yeti from Germany, who I’ve never seen outside the OutDoor show, and whose products don’t appear in stores outside Germany, Sweden, and Denmark. Yeti makes nice looking clothing and wonderful looking down sleeping bags, some at very low weights such as the 440 gram V.I.B. 150 and the 630 gram V.I.B 250.

Also makers of excellent down bags (I’ve used them on many long distance walks), but not going to Outdoor Retailer, is another British company, Mountain Equipment. M.E., as it’s known, also makes tents and clothing, and it was the latter in which they showed new products at OutDoor. Of most interest was a rain jacket weighing 295 grams in size large called the Particle. It’s made from M.E.’s own 2.5 layer Drilite Ultra fabric and has a full mountain hood that looks good for the worst storms and two big mid-torso pockets.

Finally I’ll just mention that, for the first time, lightweight tent maker Terra Nova will be at Outdoor Retailer.

I myself won’t be at Outdoor Retailer this year, so like everyone else I’ll be eagerly watching for the BPL reports to see what new gear has emerged that didn’t appear at OutDoor or that I missed if it did. Then comes the even more interesting task of testing and evaluating it.

Once again, I find myself in a frenzy of preparation for the upcoming Outdoor Retailer trade show in Salt Lake City. I’m in the midst of a daily stream of emails and phone calls with vendors and fellow Backpacking Light staff as we schedule appointments, sift through hundreds of press releases proclaiming the (supposed) greatest new outdoor gadgets, and organize our show coverage. This show will be my fifth for Backpacking Light, which I suppose makes me a veteran. Still, rather than becoming jaded, I look forward in anticipation as each show gives me an unprecedented opportunity to see the latest new gear, but more importantly, also gives me a chance to renew relationships with vendors and staff.

“I love you, man.”

It may not be evident to our readers, but our staff is far flung and relies on electronic communication for much of our contact and planning. Strange though it may seem, over the years I’ve developed close friendships with people like our Senior Technology Editor, Roger Caffin, whom I’ve never actually met in person, and our co-founder Alan Dixon, whom I’ve only ever met during these shows. Our biannual convergence on Salt Lake City for Outdoor Retailer is one of the few times I can enjoy the company of fellow staff members – even if it’s at a time of sleep deprivation and caffeine-fueled late night editing.

The Crew

This show, I’m very pleased to welcome longtime BackpackingLight.com member and University of Utah student Ryan Gardner to our crew. With a notepad, camera, and shiny new media badge in hand, Ryan will be joining Will Rietveld, Janet Reichl, and myself as the on-site editorial team. The four of us will be doing the groundwork at the Salt Palace, while being supported off-site by much of the remaining Backpacking Light staff – Chris Townsend, Steve Nelson, and Alan Dixon are all writing articles remotely; Ken Knight, Don Wilson, Cat Jasins, and Rick Dreher have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that our article production runs smoothly; Jared Schlender, our resident “home page artist” has created another wonderful banner for the event; while Addie Morstad and Gisela Krack are the lone guardians holding down the fort every day back at Backpacking Light headquarters in Bozeman.

I owe this off-site group a very special thank you as they have signed up to experience the thrill of the long hours, technical snafus, and time pressure of Outdoor Retailer without the drudgery of actually having to see cool new gear, visit with staff members, or meet industry players. To this group (and anyone I’ve inadvertently missed), thank you all – the show would be impossible to produce without your support.

In addition to our editorial team above, Ryan and Stephanie Jordan, Sam Haraldson, and Nicole Chilton will be joining us in Salt Lake City. Our magazine is, after all, an outdoor-related business. Ryan will be focusing on new product development and business partnerships; Stephanie will be sourcing materials for our in-house brands; Sam will be buying merchandise for our gear shop; and Nicole will be working on ad sales and wholesale distribution of Backpacking Light books and magazines.

Gear Coverage

Much of our planned content this time is in the form of Product Roundups – shelters, stoves, raingear, etc. We thought this format would provide better information to our readers by showcasing similarly grouped products together to make it easier to compare new offerings. Of course, there are also several promising products that deserve attention by themselves or don’t fit into a particular category, so be ready for some surprises.

This year we are covering new sleeping pads that dramatically improve warmth per weight and comfort per weight ratios with new pad technology. We’re also expecting to see the world’s lightest canister stove (purported to be fifty-three grams) as well as a reduced-weight version of one of the “integrated stove systems” introduced last year. Highlights of our Shelter Roundup will include a sub-two-pound double-walled tent and an eighteen-ounce Tyvek tarp tent. On the apparel side, we’re planning rainwear and footwear comparisons, as well as writing about new garments from Western Mountaineering, Integral Designs, Rab, and others.

Friedrichshafen

Finally, the European OutDoor trade show was held in Friedrichshafen, Germany in July. This show precedes Outdoor Retailer and, as such, is the venue for many new international product introductions. Chris Townsend attended OutDoor this year and has shared his impressions of that European experience in contrast with the distinctly North American Outdoor Retailer. He’ll also give readers a glimpse of some of the gear that we’ve been missing here in the States.

Thanks for joining us again. I don’t want to give away all the secrets we have planned for the show, but this brief introduction will hopefully whet your appetite for more from Outdoor Retailer. Please check back throughout the next week, as we’ll be publishing new content daily as the show unfolds.