I’ve always been a bit of a minimalist. I rarely buy new equipment if I am able make do with what I have for ethical as well as economic reasons. But, the more I travel, the more important my travel gear becomes to me.

Over the past few years I’ve been lucky enough to have started receiving gear for review from companies — often things that I could never afford. I’ve also become much more calculated in my purchases and have gradually refined my travel kit, swapping out second-rate pieces of gear for top-notch ones. It’s had an enormous effect on the quality of my travels.

Packing is not easy for me. I carry a portable office wherever I go because I spend a lot of my time on the road working. I also often need to carry clothing that’s appropriate for a wide variety of circumstances, from navigating the humid busy alleyways of Bangkok, to speaking in front of travel industry at trade shows, so searching for elephants in Borneo, to snowboarding in the Canadian Rockies. That’s a tall order to fit in one suitcase.

The gear I take with me has made my travels easier, more comfortable, and enabled me to maintain a standard of living that would have been impossible without it. So, in honor of the gear that has made my life easier this year (and the geniuses who designed it), here are my favorite pieces of travel gear from 2014.

Bags

Eagle Creek Morphus and Gear Trunk*

I have two Eagle Creek bags; a Gear Trunk and a Morphus. I first saw these beauties at Outdoor Retailer and thought the design was amazing. I rarely request review products; I only do so when I think the product is sensational. I was super stoked when the folks at Eagle Creek agreed to ship me a set to review.

I normally only travel with one of these bags depending on my trip. The Morphus is a carry-on sized bag that makes excellent use of space. It also has an organizing compartment with a laptop sleeve and pockets for other business stuff. I always take it if I can fit everything I need in it. The Gear Trunk is much bigger, and I will carry that on longer trips and when I need a lot of extra gear — such as dress pants & shoes for conferences.

Anyone can make a big sturdy bag, but what really makes these two stand out is their portability. The Morphus has built-in duffle and backpack straps, which makes it super easy to carry in a variety of situations. It also zips out into two separate bags — one roller and one dufflebag/backpack — in case you need an extra bag on the road.

Wheels are usually the achilles heel of rolling luggage, but both of the bags have insanely strong wheels. I’ve drug both of these fully loaded over cobblestone streets in Mexico and through the back alleys of Bangkok with no problems. They’ve taken all the abuse I was able to put them through, and believe me, I didn’t hold back.

What I really love about the Morphus is that the handle is long enough that I can stack my extra-heavy camera bag (see below) on top of it, essentially doubling the size and weight of the load. The handle is super sturdy and holds the extra weight well. Over the past year it’s developed a bit of a rattle, but that shouldn’t be surprising since I nearly always have a 30kg bag stacked against it while I’m rolling it over curbs and even use it to lift the double-bag combo up stairs and over large curbs.

These are two tough bags and, when I’ve finally done them in, I will definitely consider getting another set.

LowPro Flipside Sport 20L AW Backpack*

I’ve done a lot of outdoors photography in various conditions. I’m personally not a big fan of backpacks for photography. They’re cumbersome and you normally have to take them off and set them on the ground to get to your gear, which is a problem if you are snowboarding, in a soaking wet jungle, or in the middle of a riot trying to change lenses while the police line advances toward you (that really happened, true story).

Because of that, I usually prefer to carry a sling bag. But, when when I’m trying to keep my baggage to a minimum and need a carry-on bag that will fit all of my camera gear, a sling isn’t an option. So, I carry my LowePro Flipside Sport 20L AW.

This is the best compromise between a sling and full-sized backpack that I’ve found — especially for outdoors photography — because you can secure the waistband around your waist, remove the straps from your shoulders, and then rotate the bag around in front of you, and the waist straps will hang the bag (which opens from the back) from your hips like a table on which you can change your lenses and fiddle with your gear. It’s not as easy or fast as a sling, but you can carry way more gear in it and it’s very safe for changing lenses in messy conditions, like snow or wet foliage.

STM Trust Shoulder Bag*

As with the other bags I’ve mentioned, my love of my STM Trust shoulder bag stems from sturdiness and attention to detail in the design. This bag carries most of my portable office everywhere I go, on planes, in coffee shops, and at conferences. Often — especially at conferences — it ends up being packed to the limit with press information, marketing booklets, and my own notebooks and cameras.

I seriously put this bag through it’s paces. Not one seam has yet come undone, which is, to me, amazing. This is a very strong bag. It is also intuitively made, with pockets designed for my laptop, tablet, e-reader, charging cords, cellphone, notebooks, pens, business cards, passports, and more. It is also causal enough for day-to-day use, yet professional enough for business meetings. It’s the best all-round day bag I’ve owned.

Clothing & Accessories

Scottevest*

A few years ago Scottevest handed out free travel vests to all TBEX attendees. I thought it looked like a ridiculous product — until I tried it. They’re actually wonderful. Scottevests have more pockets that you can count that are designed to look good, even when stuffed full of crap. They also have nice design touches, such as inside pockets with sunglass clothes inside, pockets with attached keychains so you can’t lose your keys, a pocket for a tablet in the small of your back, and a transparent inside pocket that you can operate your smartphone through.

I rarely wear my Scottevest except for when I’m traveling, but it is excellent for the road. You can carry everything you need in one garment — which would be otherwise impossible — and which is great at in the airport because you only have to take one garment off to go through security.

GoLite Running Jacket

There isn’t anything too special to say about my GoLite Running Jacket, except I love it. Every traveler needs a good lightweight, windproof, water-resistant jacket, and this one is perfect. The fact that it’s a running jacket means that it’s super comfortable and functional in outdoorsy situations, such as hiking, but the fact that it’s plain black means it’s also nice enough to wear out on fancy occasions as well. Unfortunately, since GoLite closed up shop this year, these are probably hard to find.

Clothing Arts Pick-Pocket Proof Pants*

Clothing Arts specializes in pick pocket proof pants. So, they have hidden pockets and the visible pockets can be fixed shut with a combination of zippers and buttons. They would be extremely hard for a thief to get into.

I’ve never worried much about pickpockets. I have my own methods for making sure my money and valuables are safe. But, I’ve still found these pants to be awesome for travel in ways similar to the ScotteVest. The pants are very well-made, comfortable, and good looking. I also like the large number of pockets because I’m often loaded up with gadgets while on the road, and I love the fact that I can zip up my pockets to prevent my phone, passports, and other valuables from falling out when I sleep on the plane or bus or in the airport, which always worries me.

Fitness

HiTec Water Shoes*

Unfortunately, I cannot find these shoes on the HiTec website, and I have already run them into the ground and thrown them away, so I don’t have a photo of my own pair and had to find this one on the web. I loved these shoes though. They were super minimal, just nylon with a thin sole, but that’s what made them so good. They packed smaller than a pair of flip flops and were good for the gym, running, light hiking, and on boats. They were super versatile, and so easy to carry.

** To any shoe brand reps that may be reading, I am currently entertaining replacements, if you carry something similar

Resistance Band Set

I try pretty hard to stay fit while I travel. It’s not always easy, but I’ve learned that with a pair of running shoes and a set of resistance bands, I can get a great workout anywhere. If there’s a park nearby even better. If that park has a chin up bar and a bench or picnic table, then I have everything I could possibly need.

The resistance band set is key. As soon as you have a tree, post, or chin-up bar to wrap it around you can a modified form of nearly any exercise you can do at the gym. And they roll up into a nylon bag smaller than my toiletries kit.

Electronics

Jawbone Big Jambox

I first stumbled across this speaker at Outdoor Retailer. The rep had two of them running on battery power (which lasts for hours) and it sounded like a full-on home stereo. Then, as they blasted hip-hop, he poured a cup of water on each. The water bounced off in time with the bass. I was sold.

The Jawbone Big Jambox is not cheap, but it’s a wonderful bluetooth travel speaker. I’ve carried mine across three continents and it’s gotten totally beat up in my bag, but still sounds great and, after a year, I can still listen to music for at least a couple of hours on battery (I’m not even sure how long, because the battery has never died while I was using it). This is a wonderful little travel luxury.

Kindle

There’s not much I can tell you about my Kindle that you don’t already know. I just want to carry a lot of books in a small package that’s easy on the eyes, and that’s exactly what this wonderful little bundle of literature does. And it fits in the inside pocket of my ScotteVest or jacket on plane and bus rides.

Chromecast

Traveling with my Chromecast has enabled me to enjoy the series’ I love (I’m looking at you Game of Thrones) in the comfort of hotel rooms everywhere. Even budget hotels these days usually have flat screen TV’s and free WIFI. When you’re in a budget hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka, for example, as I was a couple of months ago, the cable selection can be less than ideal. But, as long as your TV has an HDMI port and you have a WIFI connection, you can stream anything you can find online to your hotel room TV with this wonderful little device, which is about the size of a lighter. Entertainment on the road has never been so portable.

I’m always looking to improve on my portable home. What pieces of travel gear do you recommend? Let me know in the comments.

The post My Favorite Travel Gear of 2014 appeared first on XpatMatt.

In January I visited winter Outdoor Retailer (OR) 2014 — the biggest trade show for outdoors and travel brands in North America — in search of the newest, most innovative, products that help people to travel longer and better with less baggage. This list contains the most innovative, versatile, travel-friendly products that I found.

Disclaimer: This article contains several affiliate links, which means that if you click on the link and buy something I will be paid a small commission on the sale. Those links, however, had no affect on choices. Products in this list were chosen solely because I think they’re amazing.

1) The Eagle Creek Convertabrief

I travel for business quite a bit, usually to conferences. I often have to stuff my laptop bag until it’s overflowing — such as at Outdoor Retailer where I was carrying a laptop, tablet, notebook, jacket, video camera, DSLR camera, and various items that I picked up for review during the show. The Convertabrief is perfect for a guy like me.

Features:

• Large storage space and sturdy construction
• Optional shoulder and backpack straps (wearing a heavy bag with a shoulder strap gets very uncomfortable)
• Laptop and tablet sleeves that are exposed when the bag is fully unzipped and laid open, enabling the owner to simply open the bag when passing through airport security, rather than having to remove electronic devices for x-ray inspection.

To see a demo of the Convertabrief jump to 0:45 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $175

Available: July 1st

Where to find it: EagleCreek.com, REI, Backcountry.com, and other major retail outlets

2) The Craghoppers Compresslite Jacket

It’s hard to pack for trips where you’ll encounter a wide variety of weather conditions. Clothing for the cold is usually exceptionally bulky and heavy. That’s where the Craghoppers Comprsslite jacket comes in. It’s a great all-round jacket made especially for travel that can be packed down into a pouch small enough to fit in even the smallest of daybags. And, at $85, it’s an affordable enough to buy specifically for a trip.

Features:

• Good down to -10°C
• Packs down into a tiny compression bag
• Simply designed and comes in numerous colors

To see a demo of the Compresslite jacket jump to 1:40 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $85

Available: Now

Where to find it: Craghoppers.com

3) The CamelBak All Clear Water Purifier

I’ve spent a lot of time in countries where the tap water is not fit for consumption. It’s a huge nuisance to have to buy bottled water constantly. Water bottles are also an enormous source of waste. I would have loved to had one of these on my trip. The All Clear water purifier uses UV rays to render bacteria, viruses, and protozoan cysts infertile so that they are unable to reproduce and make you sick. Saving the hassle and waste of buying water is totally worth it to me. It could even save you money in the long run if you use it enough.

Features:

• Charges via USB
• Purifies water in 60 seconds
• Capable of thousands of purifications–enough to last years longer than you’re likely to actually use it

To see a demo of the CamelBak All Clear jump to 2:13 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $99

Available: Now

Where to find it: Backcountry.com, CamelBak.com, REI, Cabela’s, and other major retail outlets

4) The Jetboil Flash Compact Cooking System

Eating in restaurants is pretty much unavoidable while traveling. I, however, don’t care much for restaurant food. It’s often overly greasy, fatty, and salty, because those are cheap ways to make it taste good. Eating in restaurants is also pretty much always more expensive than cooking for yourself, but that’s difficult to do on the road. Enter the Jetboil Flash system. Want to cook oatmeal and coffee for breakfast? (That’s my favorite breakfast.) Jetboil has you covered. Want soup, stew, or pasta for dinner? No problem. The characteristics that makes the Jetboil especially travel-friendly are the ease and speed of use, and the design, which enables both the stove and gas to be packed in the pot without wasting any space.

Features:

• Compact, packable design
• Goes from packed to boiling water in about 45 seconds (literally, that’s how long it takes the guy in my video)
• Jetboil provides tons of recipes for its customers

To see a demo of the the Jetboil Flash system jump to 3:09 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $99.99

Available: Now

Where to find it: Jetboil.com, Backcountry.com, REI, and other retail outlets

5) Switch Interchangeable Lens Sunglasses (with Prescription Lenses)

Good sunglasses and eyeglasses are expensive. So, when traveling, you want to keep them protected. That means carrying bulky hard-cases to protect your eyewear. Well, that’s what it used to mean. Switch Sunglasses have a magnetic interchangeable lens system that enable you to carry only one set of glasses that allows you to simply pop out the lenses (held in place by strong magnets) and switch them for different ones. The lenses are carried in a hard case about half the size of a deck of cards. Director of Switch Sales, Sport Retail Division, Marc Sanford, who I know personally, is a quality zealot. Switch Sunglasses, despite their exceptional design and top-of-the-line polarization, cost a fraction of the price of other big-name sunglasses of comparable quality. I’ve had a pair for years, and have never wanted another.

Features:

• Magnetic interchangeable lenses
• Functional, comfortable, stylish design
• Low price compared to other sunglasses of comparable quality
• Prescription lenses available

To see how easy it is to change lenses, I strongly recommend watching the demo of the the Switch interchangeable lens system at 4:13 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: Standard sunglasses with 2 sets of lenses: $139 – $149. Custom prescription glasses with one pair of polarized lenses are around $700 – $800.

Available: Now

Where to find it: SwitchVision.com, REI, and other major retail outlets

6) Goal Zero Switch 8 Solar-Powered Device Charger

Travel — especially my personal brand of way-off-the-beaten-path-working-in-the-middle-of-nowhere travel — often results in long periods of time depending on unreliable third-world, power-surge and outage-prone, power. Or, even worse, with no power at all. If you’re traveling for pleasure, this is an annoyance at best. If you’re traveling for work it creates enormous logistical problems. Goal Zero is dedicated to creating portable, sustainable power solutions for people  like me. They have several different solar chargers and batteries that I’d love to try out, but the most broadly appealing is the Switch 8 Kit, which includes one felt tip marker-sized battery (which can be charged by USB as well as the solar panel) that can be used to charge your phone, tablet, or camera. The solar panel is small, compact, and, apparently, fits very will in an airplane window, which is pretty great for frequent travelers.

Features:

• Battery will charge in 4 hours by USB and 4 – 8 hours by solar power
• Full battery can charge a smartphone 1 – 2 times
• Full battery can charge a GoPro 1 – 2 times
• Full battery can charge a DSLR camera once
• Whole kit takes up the space of one thin notebook and on thick felt marker and weighs just 1 lb

To see a demo of the Switch 8 Kit jump to 6:02 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: Switch 8 Battery: $39.99 and Nomad 7 Solar Panel: $79.99

Available: Now

Where to find it: GoalZero.com, REI**, Backcountry.com**, and other major retailers. (**Online price for full kit at time of writing was just $99.95)

7) XShot Pro Camera Extender

This simple yet ingenious product is one of the most useful photo accessories I’ve ever come across. It’s a simple telescoping with a handle on one end and an attachment on the other end (they have models that can hold a GoPro, smartphone, or point-and-shoot camera) for taking selfies. The attachment on the end even has a ball-joint for full manoeuvrability. So simple, yet so useful for a person like me who travels alone frequently, but still wants some good photos for Facebook.

Features:

• Telescoping rod with handle
• Models that can accommodate GoPros, Smartphones, and point-and-shoot cameras

To see a demo of the XShot Pro jump to 6:46 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: Around $30 for the normal XShot and $74.95 for the XShot Pro

Available: Now

Where to find it: XShot.com, REI, and other major retail outlets

8) Pacsafe Metrosafe Bag Line

Pacsafe specializes in making anti-theft travel bags for everyone from the round-the-world backpacker to the weekend tourist. Their newly updated Metrosafe bag line is a set of affordable, inconspicuous, and stylish bags created for your average day or night out on the town that include all of their unique anti-theft features.

Features:

• Hidden wire exomesh to prevent anyone from slicing through the material
• Zippers with smart-lock security, which requires two-hands to open (as a deterrent to pickpockets) and can also be fully locked
• Slash proof straps that can easily be looped around a stationary object to prevent bag snatching
• An RFID-blocking pocket

To see a demo of the Metrosafe jump to 7:21 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $60 – $100 depending on the model

Available: Now

Where to find it: Pacsafe.com, Backcountry.com, REI, and other major retail outlets

9) Arc’teryx Carda Jacket

The older I get, the more I find that I need to travel with clothing that’s both functional when I’m doing outdoors activities but also looks good enough to wear to a business meeting or a fancy dinner. That’s why I get so excited when I find gems like the Arc’teryx Carda jacket. This beauty is water and wind resistant, layers well, doesn’t wrinkle, and packs down to a tiny little bundle that I can put in the bottom of my day pack. It’s one of the most functional travel garments I’ve seen yet.

Features:

• Arc’teryx soft-shell wind- and water-resistant technology
• Non-wrinkling
• Small packing
• Exceptionally good-looking

To see a demo of the Carda Jacket (done by yours truly) jump to 9:20 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $299

Available: Fall, 2014

Where to find it: Arcteryx.com, Backcountry.com, REI, and other major retail outlets

10) Nau Tech-Nique Dress

This product requires a disclaimer: Nau is my all-time brand crush. This Portland company was started by a group of former employees from some of the biggest brands in outdoors with the goal of creating  outdoor clothing that is not only functional, but also ultra-stylish and 100% sustainable. All of their products are made from innovative recycled materials, are super comfortable, and look amazing. The Tech-Nique dress just happens to be one of this season’s highlights. This urban dress is super low-maintenance, looks good with a wide variety of clothing, and is stain resistant and wrinkle-free.

Features:

• Recycled polyester stretch fabric
• Spill resistant
• Non-wrinkling
• Packs small and light
• Looks fantastic

To see a demo of the Tech-Nique dress jump to 10:24 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $200

Available: Fall, 2014

Where to find it: Nau.com, REI, Backountry.com, and other major retail outlets

11) Kelty Flyway 43 Backpack

If I were to travel with only one carry on backpack I would definitely take the Kelty Flyway 43. Kelty has long been one of my favorite companies because they know how to design for travelers’ needs, and the Flyway 43 is one of their finest achievements. This backpack, when stuffed full, pretty much exactly hits the limit for carry-on size bags. It fully unzips exposing the main compartment for easy packing and unpacking. There are numerous compartments for keeping your electronics and other accessories organized. It also has a built-in rain cover and a laptop sleeve.

Features:

• Spacious, easy-to reach, main compartment
• Fully-packed it meets carry-on requirements
• Laptop sleeve
• Built-in rain cover

To see a demo of the Flyway 43 backpack jump to 11:17 in the video at the top of the page.

Price: $129

Available: Now

Where to find it: Kelty.com and other major retail outlets 

Have you tried any of the products on this list? Do you have any suggestions for awesome travel gear that you’ve found useful? If so, let me know in the comments so I can include it in future round-ups!

The post 11 Of The Best Travel Products You’ll Never Want To Be Without appeared first on XpatMatt.

My Favorite Clothes of the Summer

While at the Winter Outdoor Retailer retailer conference I stumbled across a brand that I’d dreamt of for a long time — a brand that is socially conscious and makes outdoors clothes that are functional and packable, but that also look stylish when you’re out on the town. That brand is called Nau.

Shirt

In this photo, only my t-shirt is by Nau, but you can expect to see more from them on my gear updates in the future. This Nau Ayre t-shirt is a blend of organic cotton and Tencel, a quick-drying fibre. It’s lightweight, breathable, packable, and looks awesome.

Shorts

The shorts are the USA-made Osmium Point Six Pant.

My Outdoor Photography Gear

If you’ve been following my blog for any period of time, you know that I spend a lot of time outdoors taking photographs and compiling photoessays. I’m constantly on the lookout for new gear to help keep my cameras safe and creating the best images in a wide variety of environments.

Favorite Camera Bag

I’ve gone through a lot of camera bags in search of the ultimate outdoors bag for my gear. his year I’ve been using a 15L LowePro Flipside Sport, which is made specifically for outdoors photography. It carries a ton of gear, has a pocket specifically for a hydration system, comes with a rain cover, and, my favourite part, it rotates from your back to front on a waistband and then drops down and opens from the rear, effectively creating a table on which you can change cameras and lenses rather than putting your gear down in the dirt, mud, snow, or whatever other nastiness may be on the ground.

Hiking Shoes

I love shopping online for cheap outdoors gear. I picked up a sweet pair of Patagonia hiking shoes that I wear for all be the must extreme hikes (the were prefect for climbing to Angel’s Landing).  I was fortunate enough to run into the folks from Boa closure systems, who added their patented closure system to the shoes, which actually makes the shoes lighter (when wet) and fit better. Now I’m loathing the day that I’ll have to replace them.

Main Camera Body

Nikon D90: I love this camera, but I’m hoping to upgrade to the D600 soon and relegate this one to backup body.

Second Camera Body

Nikon D80: Which I will hopefully soon retire to the position of backup-backup camera. Interested in this camera? Make me an offer!

Lenses

I shoot with all Nikkor lenses. I usually carry a 20mm f/2.8, 35mm f/2, 50mm f/1.8, 18-105mm f/3.5 – 5.6, and 100 – 300mm f/4.5 – 5.6.

Video and Underwater 

I recently upgraded to a GoPro Hero 3 silver edition. It’s fantastic. The images are beautiful and the underwater capabilities are much better than the previous models.

My Mobile Office

Both of my jobs are remote, so I frequently work on the road. My mobile office is pretty much just a 13″ Macbook Pro (though I’m planning to upgrade soon).

Last year I also picked up an Eagle’s Nest Outfitters Reactor hammock. It packs small and light, and can be put up in about ten seconds using the company’s Slap Strap.

What’s your favorite gear for travel and work? Have any suggestions for how I can improve my collection?

The post My Favorite Travel Gear from this Summer appeared first on XpatMatt.

We’re taking this job very seriously.

Serious people doing serious jobs require serious equipement. Below is a list of the most important gear that we’re taking with us. Click on the name of any piece of gear for more information about it.

Matt’s Gear for the Hill

Merino Wool Beanie

I love wool. It’s cool in the heat, warm in the cold, warm when wet, and is probably the the most comfortable type of wool to wear.

Heyburn 2.0 Jacket

This athletic shell allows a wide range of movement, keeps out water, and also vents heat when I’m working hard to keep me cool.

Stash Gloves

Water-repellent leather with poly/merino wool moisture-wicking liners.

Accelerant Jacket

This is a great insulation layer. It vents heat, wicks moisture, and even repels a fair amount of water when worn as the outer layer.

Heyburn 2.0 Pants

Fit and look great on the hill, but have StormRepel® technology that keeps out the elements to an extreme degree.

Salomon Team Grip 2011 160cm

This true-twin flat-to-rocker all-mountain shredder won the Transworld Snowboarding Good Wood award among others.

Rome 390 Bindings

These all-mountain bindings with a small footprint to maximize flex are a perfect compliment to the Grip.

Burton Grail Boots

If your boots wreck your feet, it’ll wreck your season. So bought these bad boys, which are said to be the best on the market.

Emilie’s Gear for the Hill

Logo Pom Beanie

This acrylic cutie is easy to wash and keeps me warm in all but the most bitter cold. My go-to beanie for the hill.

Heyburn 2.0 Jacket

This athletic shell allows me to move freely, keeps the water out, and has zippers to cool me down when things get heated.

White Cloud Layer Fleece Jacket

A versatile and very pretty second layer that keeps me warm and looks great in the lodge. Just be careful with the hot chocolate!

Stash Gloves

They keep out the water well, and when my hands are wet the poly/merino wool liners wick the moisture away from my skin.

Heyburn 2.0 Pants

They have StormRepel® technology that really keeps out the elements, but I like them because they’re pink.

K2 Superific Skis w Marker ER3 10.0 Bindings

Very pretty women-specific, shock absorbent, perfect for groomed runs. Elevated tips make it easy to turn in soft snow.

Lange Venus 8 Boots

Designed for intermediate-advanced female skier, these boots are comfortable and good for a narrow ankles like mine.

Matt’s Baselayer

1/4 Baselayer Top

This midweight base layer is made to keep me warm and to use my body heat to transfer moisture away from my body even faster than other wicking fabrics.
 
 
 
 
 

Midweight Baselayer Pants

Emilie’s Baselayer

1/4 Baselayer Top

This midweight top is warm and comfortable, and keeps my skin super dry, even when I’m sweating. It dries really fast after you wash it too.
 
 
 
 

Midweight Baselayer Pants

These are made of the same fabric as the top, so they’re also comfortable and warm.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Cameras

We’re going to be documenting a lot of this trip in photos and videos. We’re also going to be doing video interviews with locals and then compiling their responses about certain topics into short videos. Here’s what we’re going to use.
 

Nikon D90

This is our go to camera for photos and when we want to shoot the best quality video possible. It shoots up to 4.5 frames per second, so it’s not the best camera on the market for shooting action, but it’s definitely a good workhorse.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Nikon D80

For the sake of space, we probably won’t bring this out to the hill. The D80 will accompany us into town (while the D90 is charging at home) to shoot hotels, restaurants, and city life.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Nikkor 18-105mm VR f/3.5 – 5.6 AF

This, with a polarized filter, will be our go-to lens on the hill. Normally, we prefer to shoot with prime lenses and move to frame the subject. On the hill, however, it’s not always easy to get into position and this lens allows has enough versatility to make up for our lack of mobility, but still produces tack-sharp images.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Nikkor 70-300mm VR f/4.5-5.6 AF

This lens, although one of the nicest in the kit, won’t come out of the bag except on special occasions when the only way to a good angle for the shot is from far away.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 AF

This will be used primarily for food, detail shots, and perhaps occasionally for shooting super-sharp HD video mood footage.
 
 
 
 
 
 

Nikkor 35mm f/2 AF

Slightly slower and less sharp (in my opinion) than the 50mm, we generally use this when we’d like to use the 50, but need a wider angle.
 
 
 
 
 

Canon G10

This little guy has all manual controls and takes great images. It’s always in our bag as a backup, just in case.
 
 
 
 
 

Polaroid Waterproof Housing for the G10

This well-built, but cheap (only $100) waterproof housing means that we always have a good camera ready to shoot, even when conditions are so bad that we’re afraid to pull out our DLSRs.
 
 
 
 
 
 

GoPro Hero

The GoPro is great for taking crisp HD video and images of action. We use it mainly for self-shots (while mounted on a mono-pod) and POV shots using the head mount. It’s great for getting unique perspectives.
 
 
 
 

Zoom Q2HD

The Q2HD is a good HD camera with an exceptional microphone, which is exactly why we bought it. We’re going to be doing a lot of impromptu video interviews during the tour, so we need something small we can whip out to do interviews on the spot.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

SunPak Ultra 7000 2in1 TriPod and MonoPod

This is a good sturdy tripod that for low-light and long exposure photos, as well as for the video interviews and, of course, taking photos of ourselves. The monopod is perfect for throwing the GoPro on to do some self-video on the slopes.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Kenro Mini Tripod

This will be our portable video interview tripod. We’ll put the Q2HD on it and throw it in a bag to carry around on the hill or out on the town.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Caselogic SLR Sling

We bought this bag just for this trip. It’s perfect for shooting on the hill. The low-profile means it doesn’t carry a lot, but it sits flush against your back so you can barely feel it while making turns. When it’s time to pull out the camera to snap some pics or to hop on the chairlift, it slides easily around in to the front, so you never have to take it off.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Lowepro Fastpack 250

This is the office backpack. It carries a computer, hard drives, and any lenses or accessories that we’re not using. It mainly just sits in the hotel room caring for unused gear.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Computers and Phones

This trip is more than a research project, it’s an interactive social media campaign. To edit photos and video, update the blog, and share our trip on social media, we need serious portable processing power. Also, we’re big techie dorks and love our electronics. This is what we’ll be using.
 

Matt’s Tech Toys

Macbook Pro 13-Inch

What is there to say? When editing photos and videos, there’s no better workhorse than a Macbook Pro. Never leave home without it.
 
 
 
 
 
 

Samsung Galaxy SII

This was considered one of the best phones of 2012 for a reason. With a Dual-core 1.2 GHz and up to 32GB of memory, it rarely slows down and I can’t imagine it running out of memory. The 8MP camera takes excellent photos ready for sharing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. I even use them on my blog every now and then.
 
 
 
 
 

Emilie’s Tech Toys

Macbook 13-Inch

The little sister to the MacBook Pro, this baby has nearly the same processing power and the same sleek look, but a significantly different price tag. It’s wonderful for downlaoding a day’s worth of photos and then blazing through them — while lying in bed and listening to the radio ;).
 
 
 
 

iPhone 4

This phone is my darling. I can’t tell you what I went through to get it in white. It’s nearly a year old, but hasn’t slowed down a bit. The photos are crisp and bright. I actually use email, Twitter, and Instagram on this more than on my computer.
 
 
 
 

How do you like our gear? Are you jealous? Do you have any suggestions for improvements?
 
Leave a comment and let us know!

This page contains some affiliate links, which means that if you click on some of these product links and then buy something, I’ll receive a small commission for sending you to the website. So, I totally appreciate it if you go buy some stuff — especially expensive stuff. I don’t, however, recommend these products to make money. I only recommend products for two reasons: because they’re cheap or they’re awesome. Occasionally they’re both, and that makes me very happy.