Mammut Wall Rider Helmet ($100)

For head protection to do its job well, it has to fit perfectly. °Õ³ó±ðÌý has multiple adjustable straps. Bonus points for the ultralow weight and big vents to keep your noggin cool.

Black Diamond’s Alpine Light Soft­shell Pants ($99)

The built-in belt on  lets you quickly take the waist in or out a few inches—handy for bathroom breaks. Shout out to the designer who shaped and placed the zippered pocket, which is ideal for sunglasses or a topo map. 

Cotopaxi Teca Full-Zip Windbreaker ($80)

The won’t blend in with the landscape, and that’s just fine with us. The 4.5 ounces of repurposed 20-denier nylon is enough to fend off light showers, while elastic at the hem, cuffs, and hood shuts out drafts. 

Eddie Bauer Resolution Quantum SS Shirt ($60)

If James Bond were blitzing a fourteener, he’d wear the . Moisture-­activated polymers expand and contract with sweat levels, letting cool air in and vapor out. Smartly cut vents kept us chilled in direct sunlight beyond the trees, but beware awkward tan lines.

Adidas’s Outdoor Terrex Scope GTX Hikers ($160)

Lacing up  is like putting on soccer cleats: this Gore-Tex newcomer is a bit more aggressive than most day hikers. But give it time and it will win you over with a combo of just-right cushioning and Stealth rubber outsoles (the same used on Five Ten climbing shoes) that enable mountain-goat scrambling on loose rock.

Platypus Duolock 2L Bottle ($12)

A rugged, easy-fill, compressible plastic hydration pouch like the  is one of those thing you don’t think you need until you have it. With its two-liter capacity, locking valve, and carabiner clip, it’s equally at home stuffed deep inside your pack or clipped to a harness loop.

Thule Stir 35 Liter Pack ($140)

We loaded up the  with everything we needed for a one-day ascent, then cinched the top drawcord, and… wait, there’s still room in there! Thule combined a removable waistband (and sternum strap) with a side-access zipper, rain cover, internal bladder pocket, and enough nooks and crannies for a day or two on your feet.

Leki Micro Vario Carbon DSS Poles ($220)

Leki’s slickly designed unfold and lock into place in seconds. Thin wrist straps decrease heft while trekking, and the foam grips don’t slip when your palms get sweaty. Nice: a featherweight stuff sack keeps these shiny carbon beauties from getting tangled in your pack.

Camp USA Jasper CR4 Harness ($68)

°Õ³ó±ðÌý is engineered with six millimeters of foam in the waist and four in the adjustable leg loops, for comfort without too much weight. The beefy nylon outer layer offers confidence when scraping along a via ferrata.

The post Our 9 Favorite Pieces of Peak-Bagging Gear appeared first on ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Online.

If you get hungry on the slopes, don’t make a detour to the ski lodge halfway through your day—stash some of these calorie-dense snacks in your pockets instead.

Vermont Smoke and Cure RealSticks 

Not only do ($1.75 each) taste better than Slim Jims, they’re also made from much better ingredients, including all-natural meat (no mechanically separated B.S.) and real spices like tamarind and molasses powder. Available in turkey, beef, and beef and pork. 

Clif Mojo 

The 70 percent organic, gluten-free, granola-bar-like ($1.50 each) doesn’t pack quite as big a punch as Clif’s original bar (the Mojo is under 200 calories), but it tastes better and isn’t as affected by temperature. We especially like the new dark chocolate almond sea salt and wild blueberry almond flavors.  

Met-Rx Prime

The ($3 each) is the official bar of the Tough Mudder races, and we can see why. It’s packed with 400 milligrams of omega-3’s and 20 grams of dairy protein. And while there are 11 grams of sugar, we liked the chewy, foamy texture, though you still need to wash one down with lots of water. Most surprising: no artificial flavors, and the dairy is growth-hormone-free. 

Oberto Jerky 

Don’t dismiss it just because it’s available at nearly every gas station in the land. There’s a reason jerky perseveres: it’s packed with salt and protein and almost disappears in your jacket pocket. And kudos to Oberto, which a few years ago stopped using artificial ingredients like corn syrup and hydrolyzed vegetable protein in all its (from $6.50).

Honey Stinger Organic Honey Waffle

We reach for these ($1.50 each) all the time, but especially in the morning (pro tip: place one over your coffee cup to heat up while you jam your feet into your ski boots). The strawberry and gingersnap flavors were tester faves. Just be careful where you put ’em: they’re a bit fragile and tend to crumble, especially when they get cold. honeystinger.com

Setton Farms Pistachio Chewy Bites

Our new favorite pistachio delivery system. These agave-sweetened, 105-calorie nut and cranberry ($6 for six) are the perfect size when you need a quick hit. They were too sweet for some testers, but others loved ’em. They do OK when the mercury falls but start to get a bit sticky when it rises. 

The post Winter Fuel Essentials appeared first on ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Online.

We’ve all heard the saying “give a lion a pair of jeans to chew on and they’ll sell at auction for thousands of dollars.”

A group of volunteers has collaborated with the in Hitachi, Japan, to auction off “the only jeans on earth designed by dangerous animals” to promote the zoo and conservation. So far, the fundraiser seems to be working. As of Friday, 15 bids had been placed for a pair of men’s size 32 jeans.

Making the jeans is a simple process. A video on the group’s site shows volunteers wrapping car tires in sheets of blue denim, setting them inside enclosures, and letting the animals at them for a few hours. Later, the group takes the pieces of “distressed” fabric and sews them into jeans.

Thus far, lions, tigers, and even bears at the zoo have helped create the one-of-a-kind designs.

“We were looking for ways to promote the zoo and wildlife conservation without spending too much,”  member Takuya Miyamoto said . “We also wanted to attract a new, younger generation to take an interest in zoos. That’s how we came up with the idea of zoo jeans.”

The post Cat Got Your Jeans? appeared first on ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Online.