Hiking Clothes Tutorials
And Reviews.

Most hiking clothes companies like to claim they have the best hiking clothes available. By definition, we all know that isn't possible...

There's definitely some fantastic hiking clothing available, but you'll find more of it that's average, or in some cases plain bad. There are also companies that seem to cater to the cheap end of the market by selling inferior hiking equipment. But, as you probably already know, the really cheap stuff is actually the most expensive...

Unless you can tolerate poor quality, you're going to end up replacing the cheap stuff down the road anyway. When you do you've effectively bought the same piece of gear twice. So when you add it all up, cheap camping gear actually costs you more.

The information you'll find here will help you cut through the marketing hype and find some of the best gear available. The information in each tutorial will arm you with the knowledge you need to make an informed decision. In addition to this information you'll find reviews of equipment and recommendations for the best equipment I've found yet. This is the same gear I recommend to friends and family.

Of course companies and gear change. Some great products will fall, and some products that were originally poor quality will improve. If and when something changes enough to shift the balance, don't be surprised if the recommendations here change too.

Have a look at the tutorials and reviews below for help in finding the gear you're looking for.

Also, with all of the high performance hiking clothes available it's easy to overlook cotton. There are definitely better choices for active trail hiking clothes but if you're relaxing around the campfire, cotton is a nice choice.

I really encourage you to consider buying organic cotton because in my experience the organic cotton T-shirts by Patagonia wear like steel (I've had two of their T-shirts for at least 7 years now and they still look great) and don't wrinkle half as easily as average T-shirts. Once you try a few, I have a feeling you'll want more. I recently came across an article that talked about how much the traditional cotton (not organic) industry pollutes in Ode Magazine (November 2005, p. 42)...

"Twenty percent of the global use of insecticides is being used on cotton fields. For a regular T-shirt you'll need 250 grams of cotton and 125 grams of pesticides: an unprecedented ratio in modern agriculture."

In the long run, at least in my experience, you'll save money buying the organic cotton. Heck, some of the average T-shirts that I received a couple of years ago already have holes in them where the tags are sewn in, but the Patagonia's are just getting up to speed. Sure they cost more initially, but you're also doing yourself, future generations and the earth a favor.

Backcountry offers the biggest selection of organic cotton hiking clothes but REI offers a few also. I highly recommend either store. I also think we are going to start seeing more and more environmentally friendly hiking clothes being offered in the future from various manufacturers. Patagonia though is currently miles ahead of most companies when it comes to sustainability.

I sincerely hope this information on hiking clothes helps to make your next trip better.