![Mike Lewis wearing the Stetinds with crampons on Flattop Mountain, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. [Photo] Mike Lewis collection](https://i0.wp.com/alpinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/boreal-stetind-1-1.jpg?resize=930%2C620&ssl=1)
Mike Lewis used the Boreal Stetind boots for six weeks of guiding on snowy mountains in the Pacific Northwest and reports that the boots have some significant shortcomings in technical terrain. In this review he explains in detail why he awarded them two stars out of five.
Back when I learned how to trad climb seven years ago, I got used to using straight-tapered nuts. Despite the ease of cleaning them, this design, which was popular in the 1970s and ’80s, fell out of vogue. This is because curved nuts are just more versatile and fit in irregular placements, but they do have a tendency to get stuck.
I bought the C.A.M.P. Scorpio V-Threader as a replacement for my C.A.M.P. Joker, a near-perfect v-threader that I dropped in the Alaska Range. Though both tools are light, simple and thread Abalakovs effectively, two differences make the Scorpio frustrating and ineffective at half its purpose.
Does size matter? This question, historically the domain of trashy women’s magazines, is now relevant to the ever-evolving climbing gear industry–in particular, rapidly shrinking carabiners. The Metolius FS Mini wiregate now stands as the smallest full-strength carabiner on the market, but how small is too small?
For its price tag, the Togir Light has a great set of features. But a few drawbacks are hard to ignore.
Nearly as light as aluminum crampons yet much more technical, the Nanotechs will sit lightly on the pack for the approach and still perform decently on a section of steep ice or mixed.
The Corsa is ideal for low-angle glacier travel, moderate ski mountaineering and adventure racing but, if there’s a chance you might find yourself in more serious terrain, you’ll wish you packed something more hefty.
Frequently I am accused of being a pack snob. It started way back in college when I had a part-time job sewing backpacks for a small outdoor company in Bellingham, WA. The owner and I would stay late tweaking, modifying and otherwise trying to improve the current line of packs as well as our personal climbing packs. Whether building custom packs, bringing old, well loved packs back to life, or modifying brand new packs, it was rare that I saw a pack that didn’t need some improvement.
I’d had my eye on a new mid-sized daypack for some time, so when I saw the Talon 33 first advertised, I took note. “The Talon 33 is the most versatile pack in its series, meeting the needs of everyone from the expert light and fast backpacker to hardcore do-it-in-a-day alpinists,” read the description on the website. The weight–one pound, 12 ounces–made it an instant contender for alpine climbs, and despite being so light, it sported numerous bells and whistles: hipbelt pockets, ax attachments, helmet pocket in back, sunglasses pocket in the top lid, hydration slot, haul loop, topo pocket inside the top lid, exotic buckles adorning most edges, and some loopy harness system that takes a university degree more advanced than mine to operate. And the design–all swoopy and sleek, with futuristic graphics showcased in colors such as Spicy Chili, Moonlight Blue, and Acid Green–was sexier than anything else on the market. Acid Green! My wife has an Osprey Switch 26 ski pack, and last winter she extolled the intelligence of its design: the top lid holds a ski helmet, an outer pocket houses shovel and skins, there’s place for probe pole and hydration bladder alike. Given her praise of the Switch, and the light weight, features and pure sex appeal of the Talon, I thought I had found my pack.
I’ll admit it: I’ve got a small head. As a result, I’ve spent the past few years bouncing between glasses that slide down the bridge of my nose, frames that feel like a loose, dead handshake, and cheapos bought shamefully from the children’s aisle. So, when Julbo asked me to pick one pair of mountaineering glasses to test, I chose the Neve, a pair of glasses designed with Alti-Spectron X6 lenses for small heads, and, yes, women.
