Category — Gear

Capacity -5,000 to 5,400 cu/in

Weight – 4lbs 12oz to 5 lbs 3oz

Price -$289

The Osprey Aether 85 is pretty much the bee’s knees if you’re looking for 2-3 day backpacking trip, heading out for a day at the local crags, or hiking a 14er. It’s a a great pack and it has a lot to offer.

The pack ranges in size from 5,000 cu/in to 5,400 cu/in (varies with size) but the pack has all these different straps and pockets which can make your life much much easier while hiking or climbing.  The first thing that comes to my mind is the attachment system that enables free hands from trekking poles by making it simple to strap them to the pack.  It has two elastic loops, one is on the left side of your chest and the other is on the bottom left side of the pack. It also has double ice tool loops, a detachable top pocket, and something that every pack should have, an “AddOns Pack Attachment”. Simply put, the AddOns are accessories for the main pack!! The Osprey Aether offers different choices  and they are worth looking in to.  Check out this site.

Osprey AddOns

The pack has a very simple design but it offers a sleeping bag pocket, straps for a sleeping pad, outside mesh pockets, two water bottle holders,  the top pocket, and outside mesh pockets.  All these pockets make it pretty easy to stay organized. In addition, it also comes in three colors.

The main thing I used the pack for was hiking into different climbing areas. I could easily carry all of my climbing gear and everything else I needed for a day out on the rock. I had the pack full and it weighed about 40 lbs. Once I had it dialed in it felt like much less than 40.  Osprey has some basic instructions for getting the pack fitted and they make it pretty foolproof if you follow them.  Loosen all the straps…..put the pack on…….tighten the straps starting at waist level and then move up. The pack has many different straps and at first it was a little overwhelming until I did my homework and figured out what the hell they all do.  They reduce pack movement on the back and make it easy to cinch the pack down even when there is unused space. I have three Osprey packs and every one of them does an amazing  job at strapping comfortably, tightly, and efficiently onto my back.  The slightest movements of a large pack over a long period of time can make for a major irritation…..Osprey eliminates that from happening.

Osprey makes some stellar packs and the Aether 85 is no exception.

Climb On

Ryan

We recently received some great new gear here at UpaDowna, and I couldn’t have been happier with it. Please allow me to introduce to you, the
GSI Halulite Minimalist Cookset, and the GSI Collapsible Javadrip. You can make up your own fun name for the duo, but I’m dubbing them a match made in heaven.

GSI HALULITE MINIMALIST: MSRP $22.95, weight 6.3 ounces, dimensions 4.2″ x 4.6″, aluminum body

GSI COLLAPSIBLE JAVADRIP: MSRP $12.95, weight 4.8 ounces, travel dimensions 5.6″ x 5.5″ x 1.0″

The Halulite Minimalist is everything you could ask for in a compact light weight cook set. It’s an all in one package ready to go straight from the box to your pack. It has the usual suspects you want in a thermos/pot, you get your insulating sleeve, sipper lid, a new collapsible spoon, amazing halulite technology, and how cool is this, a pot gripper! [Read more →]

Everyone is making a big deal over those 5 toe things. If you like them that’s your thing, but I’m sticking to my guns with the comfort of my Sanuks! I’ve had a pair of the “Donny’s” (see the Sidewalk Surfer, Vagabond line) for well over a year now, and I can’t say enough great things about them.

They offer the comfort and convenience of slippers, combined with the durability of a good pair of shoes. You have the option of wearing them in two ways; smash down the backs with your heel and rock ‘em like slippers, or keep the backs up for stability while tackling the terrain.

Some of the many ways I’ve used them for comfort have been: long road trips, base camp, around the house, running to the mail box, or any other quick I need shoes situations.

You want some examples of thier durability: Horseshoe Canyon, Canyon Lands Utah, they were on my feet. Approach shoes for climbing at Red Rocks…check. They’ve even been to a few National parks with me, Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, and Mesa Verde. Next obstacle, do I dare say, our beloved Incline? I think so. I’m also a firm believer that their flat bottom design helps you walk in more natural motion, which also strengthens your feet.

Be careful what you call them, they’re not shoes, they’re sandals! Head to your nearest shop and pick up a pair. Not sure where that is check the Sanuk website for a listing of dealers near you, or buy them directly from their website.

Not just footwear to me, but a must have piece of gear in my arsenal!

Menikmati

You see it all the time: a hiker, jogger, cyclist, or whatever doing what they do, while a tired dog faithfully stride by stride stays at their side, tongue out panting away. Many people seem to be just fine dragging their pup along, but don’t stop enough to tend to it’s needs. This bums me out like no other. The poor dog can’t tell you its thirsty. Its hydration is your responsibility. If you can’t take the time to stop and give your beloved friend a drink, why bring ‘em? You take time to hit your water bottle, can’t you spare a few seconds? “My dog’s fine, I’ll give him a drink when we get to the top.” Bullshit, how do you know? Did he tell you? If you’re one of these people who make this sad, but common oversight, keep this in mind in the future. Your dog with all of it’s sniffing around and running back and forth has probably doubled, if not tripled, the distance you did. If you’re a bike rider that doesn’t stop for your dog as it follows along, you’re the worst! This is a common way to kill your dog. There are many reports of a loyal dog running itself to death trying to keep up with it’s loved one. Yeah, you love your pooch and would never do any of the mentioned things on purpose, but it happens. Ignorance is bliss, until your dog is dead!

I’m no expert on how much water your dog should have; I’ve heard different things on this. I drink when I’m thirsty, so I try to give my dog the same opportunities. One way I do this is with the Gulpy Water Dispenser . It fits in backpack side pockets, or you could hang it by its handy clip! It also fits in cup holders making long car rides so much easier. Not to mention there’s no messy water bowl splashing around due to it’s awesome flip top trough. The basic gist is you flip the bottle upside down to release water into the trough. Don’t worry about the water leaking if the bottle becomes inverted, they thought of that too. It’s a squeeze bottle, only allowing water out as you apply pressure. It doubles as a water bottle for you too! Since your dog only drinks from the trough, this makes for an easy option of twisting off the top and drinking from the bottle.

I would say out of all my gear this is a must, and the best bang for the buck! The bottle and trough are very durable, but on the downside I killed the pressure release. Not sure how it happened. I believe I left water in it and it froze, possibly cracking the piece inside the cap. For only $8 I’m not going to complain, but what I will do is take it back to REI and hit up their awesome 100% satisfaction return policy!

Have fun with your dog(s); they love being out with you. Just remember, it’s your responsibility to address their needs and keep them safe.

Menikmati

It’s Thursday, do you know what that means? If you answered “UpaDowna Incline Happy Hour”, you’re a winner! To claim your prize meet Yeti, Redfern, or Bunny at the top of the Incline this evening. Start time is 5 p.m.

Even if you’re new, don’t be intimidated! This is self-paced, you can stop whenever you want. I’ll even go step by step with you, if you need/want encouragement. Once all parties have completed the ascent, we enjoy a traditional celebratory toast together (so bring a beer).

Proper gear is a must! I suggest a poncho (or something water resistant), light jacket, light pack (so you’re hands free), water bottle (or combine the last two with a CamelBak), good shoes, and most importantly your own beer, or two if you want to pop one halfway with Yeti.

Join us at Kinfolks afterwards to discuss future plans, activities, upcoming events, and most importantly cold refreshing beers!

We have a whopping 4 pint glasses left ($8 ea.), but I don’t plan on having any as of tomorrow. No worries though, another shipment is on the way. Our inventory will soon also include official UpaDowna: beer koozies, breathable shirts, under layers, t-shirts, hoodies, beanies, hats, visors, and last but not least the stylish limited edition Arete/UpaDowna hybrid shirts, created by Arete Clothing. For all you non-locals, we are currently in the process of adding online purchases via our website! So you too can soon have all the apparel and accessories you need to totally kick ass!

For a sneak peek at the new shirt designs please visit Arete’s Facebook page or UpaDowna’s. Speaking of the UpaDowna Facebook group page, I would like to personally thank all of you for getting the word out. We are now 542 members strong, great job folks! Visit the page often for upcoming events, and announcements. It’s your group page, keep telling your friends, add pictures, videos, stories of your adventures, plan trips, etc. We want your input and involvement.

We are currently also in the works of adding more content to our YouTube channel. A place to see gear put to the test, our  adventures, and random fun.

Thanks for you support, we look forward to seeing you!

Menikmati

First of all, do you know what the item pictured below is? Well, I can tell you what it isn’t…. IT CERTAINLY ISN’T A DAMN AVALANCHE TRANSCEIVER. I caught this story from the Denver Post a few months ago. In short, SAR received a 911 signal from a PLB (personal locator beacon, the item pictured below) located on Berthoud Pass…. and another…. and another, for a total of 8 false alarms from the same area in a single month, and it just kept happening after that.
Eventually, they just began to ignore the signals (along with GPS coordinates, PLBs broadcast a registration number specific to each unit), until one day the signal stayed on and crews were able to follow it down to Boulder. As suspected, it turned out to be a backcountry douche armed with more equipment than knowledge. Check the follow-up from The Denver Post’s Scott Willoughby here. Paul Woodward from Alpine Rescue is laughing about it now, so I will too, but my laughter tends to sound cruel and spiteful sometimes so I’ll just jump straight to the lessons we should learn from this situation:

Research your purchases. PLBs can cost $400 or more, a dollar amount that constitutes a “major purchase” in my household. I cannot fathom spending this money without doing any research at all. This guy received this device as a gift. PLBs and avalanche beacons make great gifts, as long as you know which is needed. Actually, my dad bought me a avy beacon for my birthday a few years ago. He didn’t know which one to get me so he took me to the store and let me pick it out.

Read the instructions. Am I the only person that gets stoked on his new gear by reading about all the things it does? When I get a new instruction book that I can’t cover in one sitting, I put it in the bathroom magazine rack. It’ll get read.

LEARN TO USE YOUR LIFE-SAVING EQUIPMENT AND TEST IT OFTEN! I think this is the part that bothers me the most. Avalanche beacons don’t work alone, every member of a team should be equipped with one. I guess we can probably assume that he has been riding Berthoud Pass with a group (although nothing would surprise me after the startling lack of knowledge that has been displayed). So what’s up with this guy’s crew? Are they all wearing PLBs, thinking they are avy beacons? Do they have real avy beacons but just neglect to test them before entering the backcountry? Have they ever even practiced locating a buried beacon? This guy’s skiing/riding buddies should be more embarrassed and ashamed than he is because they are failing when it comes to watching out for their partners.