Southern Oregon Hiker

If your an avid rock climber, skier or mountaineer then you’ve probably heard of Scrapa. They are a premier manufacturer of active footwear. I believe they are best know for their rock climbing shoes. They are an Italian company founded in 1938. I had never heard of them until I stumbled onto their shoes while browsing Zappos a couple years ago. I was looking for a good walking and hiking shoe that had a boot like feel and Vibram soles. I have a hard time finding footwear with soles that last as long as the tops and that’s why I wanted Vibram soles. I also can’t stand the feel of most sneakers. They almost all just feel like cheap crap. I wanted something with a high quality premium boot feel that wasn’t a big waffle stomping boot. My first experience with  Scarpa wasn’t the Zen Pro, it was the standard..

Got this hat in May 2017 from  Zappos and love it. Its a great sun hat with a quality build. Being an old dude with thinning hair I just can’t take direct sunlight on my melon any more. I’ve worn this hat on every hike, walk and backpacking trip scene I got it. It does a great job of keeping my head nice and cool.   Pros: Great for keeping head cool and protected from sun Quality build Fits large head well   Cons: Would be nice if chin strap was removable Not sold in any local stores in my area

I bought a pair of these poles from REI in April of 2018. I use them pretty much every time I go hiking. Before I bought them I had never used trekking poles and honestly thought they were only for cross country skiers or people with bad knees. I would see perfectly healthy looking people using them on short easy trails and kinda laugh to myself. Then when I started hiking with an old friend of mine and he said I should get some I decided to give them a try and I’ll never go without them again. Trekking poles are a must have in my opinion. If your joints are getting old and hurt you even on short hikes they will help for sure. They are also great for helping you delay joint issues if your lucky enough to not already suffer from them.     Pros: Super light..

I’ve been using the Osprey Daylite Plus Daypack for about 6 months now. I primarily got it to carry water and a second layer of clothing. I bought it from my local REI store. I’ve taken it on several day hikes around southern Oregon. It has lots of great features and I’m really happy with it. I got the black one but it does come in a few different colors. I also ended up buying a 2.5 liter Osprey water bladder for it. This pack works very well for day hiking in both cold and hot weather. Plenty of room for extra clothing, a rain jacket, first aid kit, lunch and other items.   Pros: Great fit with good venting on back to keep you from getting super sweaty Lots of storage room with several pockets Durable quality build from Osprey Many color options   Cons: Not easy to get..