Our friends over at REI are having their biggest sale of the year in honor of their 82nd birthday! We wanted to write a little blog post detailing some of our long time and new favorites that will be on sale May 15th - May 25th. If you’re anything like us, you’re using this downtime to plan out your adventures as things start to open back up! Now is the perfect time to round out your gear collection so you can go further and stay out longer this summer! 

Though this blog post was written in partnership with REI, the gear and the opinions on said gear are entirely our own. Links included in this post are affiliate links.

OuterWear

If there’s one category of clothing that we carry a lot of its outerwear. Outerwear is great because it can be layered to match the conditions you find yourself in. Here are our favorites and why!

Patagonia Nano Puff Jackets for Men & Women

The Nano Puff jackets are great for a lot of reasons. I love that they stuff into themselves making them easy to store. These jackets are made using 55% post-consumer recycled fibers, which has an incredible warmth-to-weight ratio. Even when wet, the Nano Puffs maintain 98% thermal efficiency! We LOVE a piece of gear that still takes care of you when the weather goes sour!

Patagonia Houdini Jacket

We never hike without our Houdinis! They’re the perfect (packable) windbreaker to take along for any adventure. We like to have them with us just in case it cools off or gets windy on trail. We’ve had ours for years. We keep them stashed inside the passenger door of our truck at all times so they can be grabbed at a moment’s notice! The DWR finish is also a nice touch in case of a drizzle! 

Patagonia Better Sweater Quarter-Zip Fleece

(Provided by REI)

 I’ve always struggled to find clothing that is both technical and “good looking”. There’s only a little room for clothes in our camper, so we’re always excited to find clothing that is versatile enough to look nice around town and be technical enough to summit a mountain (not that there’s anything wrong with looking like you just rolled out of the woods 100% of the time. I’m pretty sure that’s an aesthetic that Owen has down pat, but I digress). I love the better sweater because it’s warm and technical, but also looks nice with a pair of jeans if I’m tryin’ to class it up a bit! 

Arc'teryx Atom Lt Insulated Hoodie

In this entire list of gear, this is the piece that we’ve had the longest. I (MAK) have been wearing Atom hoodies for nearly 10 years, and Owen got his Atom not long after I fell in love with mine. Are you sensing a theme yet? When we find gear we love, we tend to stick with it for a VERY long time! The Atom is incredibly warm even though it packs down fairly small. It’s also packed with features such as the hood synch that helps you secure your hood over a climbing helmet. This has always been our go-to jacket and probably always will be for cold temps. 

Fitness Wear

As mentioned above, nearly all of our clothes double as workout or fitness clothing. We put our clothes to the test on a daily basis and they have to live up to the rigors of infrequent washings, numerous wears, and all of our recreational activities. Here are a few pieces, some new, some old that we’re excited about.

prAna Caslelo Shorts & Becksa Bralette

(Provided by REI)

 This year I’ve ramped up how often I run and do yoga at camp. When we came into quarantine we started spending even more time exercising which made me realized that I only had two exercise tanks and a single pair of shorts. I picked up these two prAna pieces and they’re exactly what I needed! Even though the shorts don’t have a liner, I’ve found that I love to run and do yoga in them. Once we get back on the road I think that these shorts will quickly become my favorite to hike in. They’re really lightweight and fast-drying when you break a sweat. The Becksa Bralette has also been perfect for just about any exercise I’ve tried in it! It’s soft, flattering, and surprisingly supportive! I love prAna in general because they do such a great job of making all of their clothes sustainably.

 For the menfolk out there, we recommend you try their climbing shorts. Great for the gym, yoga, hiking, and just about anything you can toss at them! 

La Sportiva Bushido II Trail-Running Shoes

For those who have been following us for a while, these shoes will look familiar to you! La Sportiva makes THE BEST trail running and hiking shoes anywhere (in our opinion)! We’ve been wearing and loving the Bushido’s for a very long time. We prefer to hike in trail runners because they’re lightweight and dry quickly if you happen to come to a river crossing. We both wore Bushidos when we hiked the John Muir Trail last year and they will always be our choice for running or hiking! 

Columbia Silver Ridge Lite Hybrid Shirt

Owen and I both wore a Columbia shirt on the John Muir Trail last year and continue to grab for them anytime we hit a trail on a sunny day. These shirts are lightweight, fast-drying, and give you great sun protection especially on a backpacking trip when you’re in the sun all day! 

 Patagonia Capilene Tees

 We discovered the Capilene fabric last year as we were preparing for the John Muir Trail. We each took a Capilene tee with us to alternate with the Columbia shirts that are mentioned above. Patagonia’s Capilene fabric was a game-changer for us. The fabric is treated so the garment has permanent odor control to help neutralize smells (which is important on the trail, but also for travel in general). It wears like cotton but never smelled or bagged out even after two weeks of rinsing in a creek and wearing it day in and day out for 2 weeks. We’ve since expanded our Capilene collection to tees, tanks, and long sleeves. On laundry day I always have to negotiate with Owen so he’ll take his off long enough for me to wash it!

Casual Wear

Patagonia Fleetwith Romper

Provided by REI

As mentioned in the little write up for the Better Sweater, I’ve been wanting to add a few pieces to my tiny wardrobe that are a bit more casual. This romper is insanely comfortable, wicking, stretchy, has pockets, and is everything you want in a romper! I was really attracted to this romper because it looks nice and can be worn out to dinner or on a long plane ride. I looked at a few on REI’s website but this one had such outstanding reviews that I knew the search was over! It’s also made of 91% recycled fibers, and I’m really into anything made sustainably! 

GeaR

Garmin inReach Mini & Explorer+ 2-Way Satellite Communicator

The Garmin inReach products are crucial for any adventure that requires you to leave access to cell service! An inReach can give you important weather updates, maps, and provide communication in case of an emergency. We carry the Mini because it’s lighter and still has the functionality we want. For sending out messages it’s easiest to pair with your phone to type (which could negate the weight advantage since you have to carry your phone, but most people hike with their phone anyways). This is an essential part of our gear because it’s an all in one insurance policy for outdoor trail driving or hiking! 

Black Diamond Alpine Carbon Z Trekking Poles

This is another piece of equipment that we fell in love with on the John Muir Trail. We never carried trekking poles before our first through hike, but as we started training we were advised to give them a try. Now I’m sad that I hiked for so many years without them! Trekking poles are effective at taking a load off your back on steep uphills, and they give you stability when attempting a water crossing or scrambling over rocks. We love this set in particular because the cork handles always ensure a good grip. They also pack down small enough to stash under the seat in our truck making them easy to access the second a trail presents itself. 

JetBoil

If we had to have just one cooking system for any type of camping or backpacking, a Jetboil would be it! The Jetboil packs down small, it’s lightweight, and boils water very quickly. This is our go-to cooking system for when it’s just the two of us camping!

Patagonia Blackhole Duffles

We don’t have the opportunity to sing our praises for these Blackhole duffles often enough. We carry two of them with us in our home on wheels incase we decide to do some travel away from the vehicle. We love these duffles because they pack into themselves which makes them easy to stash away when they’re not in use. When we’re using them, they’re comfortable to carry and can stand up to repeated abuse from international air travel! We carry one 55L and one 40L. The 40L we use as a carry-on. 

The North Face Zephyrus Pack

Provided by REI

For a while, I’ve been carrying a 14L hydration pack any time we do a day hike. It’s been perfectly comfortable and functional, but I’ve always been frustrated by how little the backpack could hold once I filled my hydration pack. I recently upgraded to this 26L Zephyrus Pack from the North Face, and I’m very excited to get this pack onto the trail. I’ve worn it around the backyard and it’s very comfortable. I think it’ll be the perfect upgrade in size for my daily hiking pack!

In addition to saving up to 30% on these things (and many others) that are on sale at REI, REI Members also save 20% on one full-price item and an extra 20% on one REI Outlet item. Use coupon code ANNV20. Valid in REI stores; REI.com and REI Outlet!

Thank you all so much for swinging by the blog to give this post a read! I’d love to hear what adventures you all have on the horizon that you’re prepping for!

Be well!

MAK