Pricing Wilderness Survival Gear
8/15/21
Tent
- Marmot Tungsten 2P Tent with Footprint, $214
- Half Dome SL 2+ Tent with Footprint, $279
- Best selling on REI.com
- REI Co-op Quarter Dome SL 2 Tent, $349
- Most Ratings on REI.com
Sleeping Bag
- REI Co-op Trailbreak 20 Sleeping Bag - Men’s, $109
- Second best-selling backpacking, synthetic-fill sleeping bag with rating 15-29 degrees
- Exceptional value at $109
- NEMO Forte 20 Sleeping Bag - Men’s, $200-$210
- Best-selling backpacking, synthetic-fill sleeping bag with rating 15-29 degrees
- Best-selling backpacking, synthetic-fill sleeping bag with rating 15-29 degrees
- Temperature Ratings on REI Website:
- 1-14
- 15-29
- 30-39
- 40+
Sleeping Pad
- NEMO Tensor Insulated Sleeping Pad, Regular, $160
- By far the most rated sleeping pad on REI.com with 363 ratings
- Best-selling sleeping pad on REI.com as well
Backpack
- Osprey Atmos AG 65 Pack, $270
- 159 ratings
- Best selling men’s backpacking backpack on REI website at time of this research
- Accommodates up to a 3L reservoir
- Osprey Atmos AG 50 Pack, $240
- 51 ratings
- 51 ratings
- Size categories on REI Website:
- Weekend: 35-50 L
- Multiday: 50-80 L
- Extended: 70+ L
Stove / Cook Pot
- Soto Amicus Stove Cookset Combo, $45
- Built-in lighter
- 1000 and 500 mL aluminum cook pots
- Stoves (Cook pot not included)
- MSR PocketRocket 2 Stove, $45
- MSR PocketRocket Deluxe Stove, $70
- Best-selling non-Jetboil
- Includes built in lighter
- MSR PocketRocket 2 Mini Stove Kit, $85
Headlamp
- Petzl Tikka Core Headlamp, $50
- Includes the Petzl 1250 mAh CORE rechargeable battery
- Lithium ion
- Can also run on 3 AAA batteries
- Includes the Petzl 1250 mAh CORE rechargeable battery
After-tax Total (may include food/consumables not listed above): $954.78
8/19/21
Hydration Sleeve
- Gregory 3D Hydro Reservoir - 3 Liters, $40
- Best-selling hydration sleeve on REI.com
- 138 ratings average 4.5
- Osprey Hydraulics Reservoir - 3 Liters, $42
- Second best-selling hydration sleeve on REI.com
- 298 ratings average 4.0
Water Purifier
- Grayl Geopress Water Purifier Bottle - 24 fl. oz., $90
- Best-selling water purifier bottle on REI.com
- 1169 ratings, average 4.8
First-Aid Kit
- Adventure Medical Kits Mountain Series Hiker Medical Kit, $25
- 2nd best-selling first-aid kit on REI.com
- 1044 ratings, average 4.6
Camp Shovel
- Vargo Titanium Dig Dig Tool, $25
- Titanium
- TheTentLab The Deuce #3 Heavy Duty Backcountry Trowel, $22
- 2nd best-selling camp shovel on REI.com
- 1157 ratings, average 4.2
- Aluminum
Hiking Shirt
- REI Co-op Sahara Long-Sleeve T-Shirt - Men’s, $35
- Best-selling non-hooded polyester long-sleeve shirt on REI.com
- 75 ratings, average 4.7
- Fabric: 92% polyester/8% spandex
Bear-Resistant Food Canister
- BearVault BV450 Food Container, $70
- 2nd best-selling bear canister on REI.com
- 237 ratings, average 4.1
- BearVault BV500 Food Container, $90
- Much larger than BV450
Hat
- REI Co-op Screeline Cap, $27
- Best-selling ball cap style hat on REI.com
Portable Power
- Skullcandy Fat Stash Portable Battery Pack, $40
- 10,000 mAh (milliamp hours), 36 Wh (watt hours)
- BioLite Charge 80 PD Power Bank, $70
- 20,000 mAh, 74 Wh
Dry Sack
After-tax Total (may include food/consumables not listed above): $426.67
10/2/21
Jacket
- Patagonia.com: Men’s Micro Puff Jacket, $150
- PlumaFill synthetic insulation
- On sale from $250
- Backcountry.com: Patagonia Micro Puff Insulated Jacket - Men’s, $150
- Black not available
- “Watch this BEFORE you buy a jacket for backpacking” YouTube video by Dan Becker
- Key characteristics: Packable, Lightweight, Warmth
- Key decisions:
- Hood/no hood
- Down (feathers)/Synthetic (man made)
- Down is very packable and very lightweight
- Synthetic is less packable and heavier but will be much warmer when wet than down
- Recommended jackets:
- Patagona Micro Puff 9.3 Oz/264 G
- Arc’teryx Atom LT 14.6 Oz/415 G
- Arc’teryx Cerium SL 7.1 Oz/200 G - very lightweight, made of down
- Marmot Azoz - budget option, 700 fill
- Arc’teryx Cerium SV 14.6 Oz, 414 G - pricey, winter jacket
- Higher number on down (600, 650, 800) is the fillpower. Higher means puffier feather.
- 600 fill may be as warm as an 800 fill, but will be heavier
After-tax Total: $161.28
10/3/21
Utensils
- humangear GoBites Uno Spork, $3
- Most-Rated eating utensil for camping
Hammock
- ENO Doublenest, $70
- By far the most-rated (704 ratings) hammock on REI.com
- Best-selling hammock on REI.com
- Khaki/Olive look like a great color combo
Hammock Straps
- ENO Atlas XL Hammock Suspension System, $40
- In-store recommendation:
- Extra length compared to standard ENO Atlas
- More width means easier on the tree - both Atlas and Atlas XL appear to be 1.5", per research after purchasing though
- In-store recommendation:
- ENO Atlas Hammock Suspension System, $30
- Brand to match the hammock
Knife/Multitool
- Leatherman Free P4 Multi-Tool, $140
- 6th bestselling multi-tool on REI.com
- Designed for one-handed operation with magnets
- Gerber Truss Multi-Tool, $50
- Most inexpensive multi-tool on REI.com that includes knives/saws
Carabiner
- Black Diamond LiteWire Carabiner, $8 x 2 = $16
- HotForge version below seemed too large - overkill
- Black Diamond HotForge Screwgate Carabiner, $12
- Pack of 3 ($30) is best-selling carabiner on REI.com
Pillow
- NEMO Fillo Elite Pillow, $45
- Nemo Fillo Pillow is the top rated camping pillow. Fillo Elite packs down much smaller.
Compression Sack
- REI Co-op Lightweight Compression Stuff Sack, $22
- Bestselling compression sack on REI.com
- 15 L fits my REI Co-op Trailbreak 20 Sleeping Bag
After-tax Total: $370.00
10/16/21
Socks
- Smartwool Mountaineering Extra Heavy Crew Socks, $18.73
- Best-selling socks on REI outlet
- Discounted from $24.95 to $18.73
- Smartwool Hike Medium Crew Socks, $15.73 x 2 = $31.46
- 2nd best-selling socks on REI outlet
- Discounted from $19.95 to $15.73
After-tax Total (with $20 discount card): $34.34
All-in total: $1947.07