Montane is a relatively young British company that makes me proud to live here. Founded just 18 years ago it has enjoyed a rapid rise to success by producing well-built outdoor clothing that works. It has a great reputation here and the success story is spreading far and wide.  

I met Chris at the Pacific Crest Trail Kick-off Party at Lake Morena in 2010 before my thru-hike. I had begged him unsuccessfully for a free pack for my adventure. He didn’t need the exposure; during my hike north it’s fair to say that most hikers were already sporting his creations. He’s an amenable chap, […]

I’ve spent the past couple of weeks watching with interest the weather over in the States, or rather the repercussions of the severe winter they have experienced. The net consequence is that the snow pack is much higher than normal.

   

This review has been a long time coming, two years in fact. I first got hold of my Hexamid Solo in March of 2012, picking it up at a friends in Florida just before my Appalachian trail thru-hike. Joe Valesko, the main man over at ZPacks had given me a nice little discount in return […]

A tale of a silver spoon found on the Pacific Crest Trail and how it is teaching me to reduce my pack weight.

It wasn’t that long ago that I posted a review on the ZPacks Arc Blast (HERE) and proposed that any pack need not weigh more than 500 gr / 17.6 ounces. The OHM 2 comes in at 822 gr / 29 ounces (Torso M / Hipbelt M) and it’s such a great pack that I […]

Thru-hikers get asked a lot why they do what they do and sometimes we tire of the same question. Some cannot provide an answer; others will spoil you with many. The obvious reason is just the pure act of hiking itself, or perhaps the thrill of spending 6 months in the wild is another.