I really like the visual design of this backpack, the model we had was Mono Mist, an attractive soft blue with light brown leather details which complement each other nicely, the inside pockets are also the same colour making it easier to find items in the depth of the bag. The shoulder straps meet across the back of the neck that at first I thought might rub but it is actually very comfortable and with the sternum strap it distributes weight making even heavy loads easy to carry.

The Neutrino Endurance Jacket is a technical down jacket for modern mountaineering and light-weight ascents, designed for UK and alpine winter conditions which has been recently revised for autumn/winter 2015. RAB use high quality 800FP European Goose Down combined with Hydrophobic Down technology that greatly reduces water absorption and maintains loft so the Down doesn’t clump into horrible lumps like normal goose down when it gets wet, it also dries out really quickly.

This is a rigorously tested bag, that has been used at least 3 times a week during the 6 months we have had it, it has travelled around London, been hiking in North Wales and Norway and recently went skiing in France. Apart from being a little dirty it still looks as good a new, there is no wear on the bottom from being dumped on the ground due to the tough nylon material, the stitching is still perfect and the padding in the back and straps remains full and supportive.

More and more of our creature comforts depend on being charged (sometimes on a daily basis) and as a result a wide range of outdoor chargers have hit the market using various techniques and giving you high hopes for your next camping/hiking trip. We have previously tested out the BIOLITE and have been somewhat spoilt with that as it worked very well, other products we have tested have fallen between working ok to not working at all.

EXO² is a UK based design and manufacturer of heat therapy & heated clothing products, they use an ingeniously designed material called FabRoc which took 30 years to develop and is a lightweight polymer that produces FIR (Far Infrared Rays) heat energy when a low voltage is passed through it. its flexible which means you can produce a light weight item of clothing where the only wire is the one the battery pack connects too.

We have friends, who shall remain nameless, that invite us over for a BBQ every summer, and every year without fail we all end up starving, we now prepare by having something to eat before we even leave ours. The issue is that they wait for everyone to arrive, make everyone drinks, sit down, have a catch up and then say, “should we start the BBQ?” Why isn’t it already lit? It then takes ages for the coals to light, burn down and then for the food to cook and EVERY year they will say, “we really should have started it sooner” but they never learn.

Bluelounge strive to create problem solving products by introducing innovative ideas to simplify and improve everyday life, one of their more recent designs is the Bluelounge Backpack. I was immediately impressed that the backpack was made from 100% PET recycled materials and solid aluminium, your basically walking around with a load of old plastic bottles on your back.

When you think about hammocks the first image that comes to mind might be a large net hammock hanging between palm trees on a sun kissed beach but lately it has become a growing trend to exchange the traditional tent for a sleep hammock. Norwegians have a wonderful relationship with their countryside and camping is very popular out there so when we received the Norwegian designed Amok Draumr 3.0 hammock I already had high hopes and I wasn’t disappointed.

This British company started out creating body warmers in the 70s but truly made a name for itself when they started making lightweight and low pack size sleeping bags, still made in a Yorkshire mill today Snugpak prides itself on creating high quality sleeping bags for all kinds of conditions. The Softie Elite 4 is a 3-4 season sleeping bag meaning you can use it throughout the year into early winter (something a bit warmer might be necessary for mid-winter conditions), suitable for up to -15°c.

Sleeping bags are where it all began for Rab and to this day they are still the core of the brand, hand filled in Derbyshire they take pride in using high quality European goose down. The Andes 800 uses 800g of goose down and is suitable for 8000m altitude or on exposed belays, in temperatures as low as -22°C.  Rab have also just been RDS certified for sourcing all of their goose down ethically from Europe, this is a seal of approval and a massive plus to them as being transparent with their down production.