Gear Reviews, Great Himalaya Trail

Arc’teryx Alpha SL Hybrid women’s jacket

Arc’teryx is well known to make top-notch shell jackets. Their Alpha product line focuses on alpinism and climbing and stands for “lightweight, minimalist climbing and alpinism products that protect from alpine environments.” Weight was a main concern while researching our gear list for the Great Himalaya Trail: we needed to have gear warm enough to… Continue reading Arc’teryx Alpha SL Hybrid women’s jacket

Gear Reviews, Great Himalaya Trail

Helsport X-Trem Kvitbreen Lady Review

The coldest hours of our days in the Himalayas were the nights. It could be nice and warm during the day – even up to the point where we could walk in t-shirt, but temperatures consistently fell below freezing during the night. This regularly included double-digit negatives: it was not uncommon experiencing -15ºC after dark,… Continue reading Helsport X-Trem Kvitbreen Lady Review

Gear Reviews, Great Himalaya Trail

Norrøna Bitihorn Zip-off pants

Breathable, lightweight and durable pants are a must-have for any long hike in the backcountry. I’ve used the Bitihorn pants on two separate long-distance hikes: the Bitihorn lightweight pants in New Zealand (the zip-off model did not exist yet at this time) and since I was happy with them I wanted to use one again… Continue reading Norrøna Bitihorn Zip-off pants

Gear Reviews, Trails

Aarn Guiding Light Bodypack

Our story with Aarn starts on Te Araroa in New Zealand. When we first started encountering these packs we frowned at them with great skepticism, wondering how awkward it must be walking with those pockets on the front of your body. We didn’t really understand the point of it, and we decided we did not… Continue reading Aarn Guiding Light Bodypack

Norway

The Road through Norway, part II: Lofoten

Our arrival on the Lofoten Islands was not as glamorous as the one in Lyngen had been: instead of brilliant sunshine we were met with threatening dark skies. Long had we believed that we would make it all the way down to Oslo without a single drop of rain, and long had we not checked… Continue reading The Road through Norway, part II: Lofoten

Gear Reviews

Helsport Reinsfjell Superlight 2

Reinsfjell is a tent model just on the edge between a three- and four-season one.  After finishing Te Araroa with the Helsport Storsylen tent we wanted something lighter, especially since we were going to Australia next, without compromising too much on durability and comfort. We wanted exactly the same for our trip across the Nepal Himalaya… Continue reading Helsport Reinsfjell Superlight 2