Just because the temps drop doesn’t mean you have to stop mountain biking. Before the snow flies weekly in western mountain towns, these crisp cold days can lead to incredible riding conditions—morning frost and just enough sun often give way to silky smooth hero dirt. Still, it can be hard to motivate for a frigid fall bike ride, especially since temperature regulation on a mountain bike is highly elusive. Here are a few of our favorite gear picks for extending your mountain-bike season way past the summer.

At a Glance

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Wild Rye Gnarnia Glove

Warm digits are crucial when riding in low temps. I’ve found the fleece-lined Wild Rye Gnarnia gloves to be just the edge I need for riding in the mid-30s and 40s. In the fall and winter, a glove swap is crucial, so I often wear a standard glove for a long climb, then keep these gloves in my pack (stashed in a sealed plastic bag if it’s raining) for a cozy respite before a chilly descent. They’re not fully waterproof, but the nylon shell does wonders for shedding dirt and mud while you plow through puddles.

Curious Creatures Sun Dog Pant

Pants season is my favorite part of mountain-bike season. The Sun Dog pants are lightweight enough to be reasonable for summertime bike park laps, but I’ve found them to be a fantastic layer for fall rides since they’re plenty warm for brisk days. The stretchy polyester construction is breathable yet durable—I found it to be abrasion-resistant while picnicking in the forest—without feeling stiff.

A few other features I love are the dual-zippered pockets for a phone and snacks. I also appreciate the stretchy drawcord waistband that doesn’t require a zip or button, allowing a hip pack to sit comfortably around my waist. Plus, the colors are wickedly cute, making it a versatile pair of pants I also take hiking and climbing.

Skida Pursuit Hat

Those massive vents in mountain-bike helmets come in handy for hot summer days, but come December, they feel like they funnel ice-cold air straight into my brain. Thankfully, Skida launched its Pursuit series this fall, which includes this sleek and synthetic beanie, ideal for layering under a bike helmet. This hat is thin enough not to feel bulky under a helmet, and it’s easy to tuck into a pocket while I’m pedaling up. If you want even less coverage, the lightweight ($24) is the perfect swath of soft, breathable poly-spandex for high-output rides on frosty days.

NorrÞna FjÞrÄ Equaliser Lightweight Long Sleeve

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Even when it’s hovering close to freezing, the minute I start pedaling, my internal furnace goes nuts. So I like to opt for a lightweight long-sleeve jersey, like the NorrĂžna FjĂžrĂ„ Equaliser, which breathes well while climbing and can be paired with a warmer jacket for long descents. When it’s closer to 40 degrees, I find this top perfect for rides on rolling hills where I don’t want to stop and adjust my layers every ten minutes. The polyester fabric is airy and quick-drying, with a slim fit that I appreciate when I wear it under a vest or backpack. Plus, the back of the jersey is a touch longer than the front, so it provides plenty of coverage while you’re pedaling.

Branwyn Swag 24 Jogger

Nothing motivates me more while riding in the cold than the promise of a hot shower and a cozy pair of sweats. Branwyn’s merino joggers are the ultimate post-ride bottoms (there’s also a matching ), a seriously luxurious reward for toughing it out in the frosty air. These subtly slim joggers are the perfect swap for my chamois on the drive back home—soft, stretchy, and stink-resistant, thanks to their 85 percent merino wool construction.

7Mesh Chilco Anorak

Temperature regulation while pedaling a mountain bike is no easy feat. I find myself seeking out water-resistant but not waterproof layers that provide some protection from the elements while also dumping heat. The Chilco Anorak is an ideal put-on-and-leave-on layer for brisk fall rides thanks to its breathable polyester with a wind-blocking yet air-permeable design (hence the grid pattern). The synthetic outer shell is wind- and weather-resistant, with a cozy grid fleece lining that’s soft enough to wear over a T-shirt. There’s a large zippered hand pouch you can stash snacks in if you want to go pack-free for a short jaunt, and the hood can fit over a helmet or cinch down over your head for off-the-bike adventures.

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Martha Y DĂ­az fell in love with backpacking in her twenties during an overnight trip with some girlfriends to . It was hard—especially the wet Pacific Northwest weather, which soaked her clothes—but camping in the wilderness wasn’t as intimidating as she’d feared. DĂ­az and her friends immediately started planning their next adventure.Ìę

“I couldn’t wait to go again, but the one thing that stuck with me was the food,” she says. “That was hard for us. Backpacking can be ‘Type 2’ fun, and to then have food that we didn’t otherwise eat at home was this double whammy of discomfort.” There’s a deep-rooted sense of belonging that comes from the food you’ve grown up eating, and none of the backpacking offerings on the shelf—chili mac to stroganoff—reflected her heritage.Ìę

She saw an opportunity to create something that would not only nourish her community in the wilderness, but help them feel more welcome there in the first place. In September of 2022, DĂ­az launched —“food for the journey” in Nahuatl—bringing the familiar flavors of chilaquiles, sopa de lentejas, and Caldo Tlalpeño to the trail.Ìę

A background in science and a love for food gave Díaz the tools she needed to create not only delicious meals, but ones that could be dehydrated, packaged, and easily rehydrated while retaining the proper flavor and texture. “It was very much a community effort,” she shares, adding that her friends and family tirelessly helped her taste-test and create her brand. Business resources and seed money from REI’s inaugural program helped lift Itacate off the ground.

DĂ­az owes her love of food and the outdoors to her family, who moved from central Mexico to the Bay Area when she was ten. Campsite Lentejas were inspired by her mom’s sopa de lentejas, a hearty tomato and lentil stew that she says her brother and her would joke that they almost ate too much of as kids. Sunset Caldo is a vegan version of traditional Caldo Tlalpeño, which originates in southern Mexico City. The flavorful chipotle-based broth is filled with garbanzo beans, rice, chayote squash, and lime.Ìę

On that first backpacking trip, DĂ­az and her friends craved chilaquiles, a popular Mexican dish of tortilla chips, eggs, cheese, and salsa that’s traditionally served for breakfast. DĂ­az refers to it as the “ultimate comfort food.” Charge-Up Chilaquiles are made with from-scratch salsa verde, blended with fresh tomatillos.Ìę

With her backpacking meals, she hopes to invoke a sense of comfort and belonging, inviting people from all backgrounds to feel welcome in the outdoors. But the food is just one part of the plan for Díaz, who wants to use Itacate as an example to show other people of color what the path to entrepreneurship in the outdoor space can look like. “In this industry,” she says, “only one percent of founders are people of color.” Juntos Outdoors is Itacate’s giveback program, funding nonprofits that share Díaz’s dedication to showing the world that the outdoors are for everyone. Juntos’ first partner? , an organization that facilitates leadership and wilderness experiences for youth to build confidence in the outdoors.

“The point is to show other people that yes, you belong here,” she says. “When I started imagining what Itacate could be, I wanted to think about what was going to inspire me when things got hard. And being able to make an impact on diversifying the outdoors is a huge driver for this.”

While a dehydrated meal may feel like a small piece in the complex task of creating a more inclusive outdoors, the power of food is hard to ignore. Díaz says the biggest response she gets from Latin hikers is: “Wow, finally someone did this.”

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This article was originally published on Backpacker.Ìę

Every year the bar gets just a little higher for backpacking snacks and meals. This season’s batch brought nostalgic treats, natural, high-energy gummies, and international culinary inspirations. While we’re still wading our way through a shelf-stable cornucopia of samples for the 2024 summer gear guide, these snacks and dinners have already made lasting impressions on the backcountry kitchen test team.

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Trying aÌęÌęis daunting. My stomach, in particular, can’t handle most things that the freeze-drier sends its way, so I tend to gravitate towards meals with recognizable ingredients I can pronounce. Itacate checked that box, and as a lover of Mexican cuisine, I enthusiastically dug in to a hearty dinner of Sunset Caldo during a chilly fall hike in Washington’s Central Cascades. Caldo Tlalpeño is a traditional spicy central Mexican soup, and while it’s typically made with chicken, Itacate’s vegan version offers plenty of protein (16 grams per serving) for a soul-warming, veggie-packed soup complete with rice, garbanzo beans, squash, and lime. It’s got a rich, moderately-spicy chipotle base—a little kick to warm you up when the chill sets in, but nothing crazy. The single-serving pouch delivers 490 calories, which was perfect for a light dinner, but did leave a few extra hungry hikers in search of second supper.

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Skratch Labs’ Crispy Rice Cakes are basically adult Rice Krispie Treats; sweet, chewy and easy to digest after long hours on the trail. I had on a handful of these backpacking snacks on an overnight trip on Washington’s Mount Baker earlier this summer, and loved the texture of the crispy rice blend (brown rice, red rice, wild rice, and quinoa). The 180-calorie bars are subtly sweet (Salted Maple + Mallow is my favorite), hold up well while in the pocket or brain of a pack, and feel like a unique departure from the unimaginative cement-like blocks of carb and protein that many granola bars are boiled down to.

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There’s something so simple and refreshing about taking a slurp of UnTapped’s maple syrup-based trail snacks in the middle of a big hike. A major bonus? No added colors, stabilizers, or stimulants. The gels are made of maple syrup (the real Vermont stuff), lemon juice, lime juice, and sea salt—a tasty little zap of electrolytes that keeps my legs moving. I loved UnTapped’s citrus gel on hot days when I was particularly sodium-depleted (like a long traverse in the Dolomites in July), but gravitate more towards the maple- and coffee-infused packs for chillier weather. One packet is just 100 calories, perfect for a little burst of energy when you’re either not hungry enough for a major snack or working hard enough to have trouble digesting real food. The only downside: the sticky maple wrapper can wreak havoc in your bag; stick it in a zip-top sack to avoid a mess.

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Honey Stinger’s new Oat + Honey Bars are kind of like a guilt-free candy bar, featuring an oat and quinoa crisp outer and a creamy peanut, oat, and honey center. (The caramel coating in between layers is slightly less guilt-free.) Crunchy, salty, creamy, and filling; what’s not to like? When I’m up early, I’ve found it can be a nice pre-hike snack if I’m not in the mood for breakfast. They’re a little slower to digest than Honey Stinger’s chews and waffles (designed to be eaten during high intensity exercise), which makes them nice for slower-paced days on the trail ,or even dessert after that dehydrated dinner settles. It’s something I actually lookÌęforward to eating as a backpacking snack, which is surely the baseline for a good trail snack. They’re 190 calories each, and available in original, chocolate, or a mixed pack.

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