Gear Picks is a curated selection of products we’ve tested and heartily recommend. We stand by this gear—and the brands that sell it—and many of our editors and writers use this stuff weekly. Whenever possible, we provide a link to a past review so you can make sure it’s something that suits your lifestyle—ideally at a steeply discounted price. Happy shopping—and gear-picking.
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Salomon got innovative with storage in this vest, giving you the standard front water-bottle pockets and multiple stash pockets for smaller items but also a kangaroo pocket that stretches around the sides. Everything is designed to be accessible without breaking your stride.
The Daylite doesn’t come with a bladder, but there’s storage aplenty: 20 liters in the main compartment plus an exterior pocket. The sleeve in the main compartment can house a reservoir you buy separately, or it’ll accommodate a tablet or small laptop if you’re just using it for commuting. If you’re extra thirsty, two side bottle pockets boost the Daylites water-carrying capacity.
These were our favorite hiking boots of 2017. “We adore this everyhiker’s companion because it does damn near everything well,” wrote our testers. “In short, La Sportiva packaged all the best features into a workhorse shoe that’s exactly what most of us want.”
This quiet, four-speed tool helps ease sore muscles. “It doesn’t come with a lot of frills—there is no carrying case and no extra attachments—but it is a solid piece of machinery that can give you a relatively deep massage,” wrote our tester. “For the majority of people, the Impact is likely as much of a gun as they’ll ever need.”
The Stretch Zion Straight is one of our favorite pairs of do-it-all men’s pants. We think it’s worth snagging during our 12 Days of Deals.
Outside tester and mountain guide Andrew Skurka summed up the Lone Peak best in his roundup of backpacking shoes: “[It’s] a favorite of thru-hikers, who appreciate its extra-wide toe box and generously cushioned 25-millimeter stack height when putting in long days on well-maintained trails.”
“The Talon 22 is a highly functional daypack that can carry your gear across multiple disciplines,” wrote our tester. “It’s loaded with thoughtful features, like trekking-pole attachments, a helmet-carry system, and an ice-tool loop.” Snag it during our 12 Days of Deals.
One of our favorite adventure travel shoes, the Patch is “as close to a fashionable hiking boot as I think you can get,” wrote our tester. Get 25 percent off the Patch and Halden with code OutsideHoliday25 as part of our 12 Days of Deals.
The sleek Sherpa 100PD is one of our favorite tech gifts. “The sandwich-size, 1.4-pound Sherpa 100PD is a worthy companion for professional vanlifers and world travelers alike,” wrote our testers Janna Irons and Joe Jackson. It’s a reliable power source for DSLR cameras and laptops, and its wireless charging capability is a huge plus.
These placed first in our test of noise-canceling headphones under $150. “Low-frequency sounds, like road noise and car engines are the things you want to drown out. After listening to all three pairs back-to-back in my truck with the engine running, the Ankers were the clear winner,” wrote tester Bryan Rogala.
The Adventure Pack is a solid all-around gear hauler. “I can fit everything I need for a week in this pack,”wrote our reviews editor. While it’s fantastic for packing gear on extended trips, it has features that make it suitable for everyday use, like a variety of compartments, a laptop sleeve, and a burly exterior.