(Observe: This 12 months’s listing incorporates lots of your previous favourites, together with 20 new additions. I understand that December 24 could be very late for a Christmas reward publish, however what the hey, this text has by no means actually been concerning the pressies. Pleased Christmas to everybody, and should your festive season be stuffed with peace, marvel, and not less than two or three stomach laughs. Cheers, Cam).
Within the 12 years since its launch, the preferred articles on The Climbing Life haven’t been about outside expertise, backpacking gear, or journey reviews from far-flung locales. Nope, they’ve been about crappy hiker presents that you may decide up for lower than 5 {dollars}.
From Walmart with Love.
Subsequently, after a three-year hiatus, I’ve determined to mud off the festive season favorite and provides my thrifty readership extra of what they appear to like. With out additional ado, if cash’s tighter than a hairpin flip however for some inexplicable purpose, you’re feeling a way of obligation to offer your hiker buddies one thing, contemplate the next 70 reward concepts for below $5 $10.
1. A Field of Ziplocs – Just about everybody takes Ziplocs (or equivalents) backpacking. However let’s be sincere, nothing says, “I don’t give a shit about you” like plastic luggage for Christmas.
2. Path Patches – Superb reward for hikers that need everybody to know that they’ve thru-hiked the Appalachian or Pacific Crest Path however aren’t fairly able to take the calf tattoo plunge.
3. Socks – For lower than $10, you could have to go artificial and even cotton. No Merino Wool or any of these different fancy blends. If potential, attempt to make your selection seasonal-appropriate. You already know those with little Christmas timber and snowmen on them……..perhaps some reindeer as effectively.
4. Dental Floss – Along with serving to to maintain your enamel clear, uber-strong dental floss can be utilized as thread for gear repairs within the subject, an emergency substitute for a damaged shoelace, and even a makeshift clothesline below your shelter at evening.
5. Bandana – You possibly can usually discover these multi-purpose gems on the backside of out of doors retailer cut price bins. Potential makes use of embody: towel, water filter, neck safety, pot cleaner, tent drier, pee rag for she-hikers, hanky, makeshift gaiters, helpful to put on in your face throughout sand storms, and useful in case you are low on funds and determine to rob a comfort retailer.
Bandana………..7-Eleven mode.
6. Hacky Sacks (set of 6)– I’ve a number of hippy hiker mates that love these little luggage. At simply over $3 every they symbolize wonderful worth, weigh solely a few ounces, take up just about no house in your pack, and might make for a enjoyable diversion throughout lengthy days on path. With each third set bought, patrons will obtain a complimentary eBook copy of The Mild Artwork of Bong and Pipe Making.
7. Rest room Paper – In the event that they aren’t too choosy with reference to softness/high quality, $10 value of bathroom roll can probably final the giftee all of a multi-month thru-hike…………not less than when supplemented with the stuff they are going to pinch from motels, eating places, fuel stations, and classier public restrooms.
8. Titan (or Voile) Straps – Used to carry collectively two trekking poles when pitching mid-style shelters in probably stormy situations. I used this stable setup throughout my latest journey to the Faroes/Greenland/Lapland (see photograph beneath).
MLD Duomid, Arctic Circle Path, Greenland.
9. Loopy/Tremendous Glue – Helpful for sleeping mat repairs, small holes in tents, and at a pinch, even cuts and blisters.
10. Tent Pegs – If you wish to go fancy, for a $10er you may in all probability decide up a number of titanium stakes. Alternatively, you should buy six to eight of the Military Disposal Retailer selection.
11. Plastic Disposable Kitchen Gloves – You should purchase 100-count packs (or extra) of those for a tune on Amazon. They can be utilized as a part of a layering system in your arms when mountaineering in extraordinarily chilly and moist situations. For particulars, see “The right way to Maintain Your Arms Heat Whereas Climbing in Chilly Climate.”
12. Baking Soda – One other wonderful multi-purpose merchandise that extra hikers ought to learn about. Makes use of embody toothpaste, deodorant substitute, cleansing pots and drink bottles, antacid for upset stomachs, and helps to take away foot odour from footwear. As well as, baking soda assists in relieving itching related to insect bites, bee stings, and poison ivy/oak.
12. Head Internet – Weighs solely an oz or two and is usually a sanity saver through the peak of bug season. Certainly, when the midges, mozzies, or sandflies are swarming, I’m unsure there’s a higher value-for-money merchandise in a single’s backpacking equipment.
13. $10 Goodwill Reward card – Polyester Hawaiian-style shirts, solar attire, saggy shorts, 100wt fleece – the listing of cut price basement hiker choices are virtually infinite. Keep away from socks, underwear, and bandanas. There’s low-cost, and there’s simply plain cheesy.
Tatu Jo – Legendary long-distance hiker and long-time connoisseur of thrift retailer mountaineering shirts (photograph courtesy of Whitney LaRuffa).
14. Hand Sanitizer – I haven’t had a case of the trots within the “backcountry” (so to talk) since 1999. I think that the diligent use of hand sanitizer is a part of the explanation. I all the time hold a small bottle useful in one of many shoulder strap pockets on my backpack (together with sunscreen and lip balm).
15. Folgers Basic Decaf On the spot – None of that fancy Through stuff from Starbucks. The truth that it’s decaf leaves the giftee in little doubt as to how you actually really feel about them.
16. Simpsons Bic Lighters – Customised Bic lighters that includes characters and scenes from The Simpsons. Whereas cooking up a feast at day’s finish, these little flame throwers are positive to carry a smile to your fellow hiker’s dials. And keep in mind…….
17. Six-Pack of Ramen – A culinary staple for backpackers. If you happen to actually wish to make an effort, choose singles with quite a lot of flavours.
18. Tyvek Groundsheet – This may really value you nothing if you will discover a chunk in a building website dumpster. Customise the scale for the giftee. It’s the little issues that rely.
19. Reconstituted Talenti Ice Cream Container – A much-loved mainstay of the cold-soaking crowd. The Talenti container sports activities a large mouth, a screw-top lid, and naturally, the not-to-be-scoffed-at bonus of a (semi)tasty pint of ice cream.
20. Diaper Pins – This one is courtesy of long-time subscriber Gerry B, who wrote that “old style diaper pins are a lot bigger and stronger than commonplace security pins, and I hold a pair hooked to my packs for drying socks or different items of clothes.”
21. Dr. Bronner’s Cleaning soap: Helpful travel-sized selection pack. Weight-conscious hikers can repackage into mini-dropper bottles (see beneath). Not solely are they inexpensive and sensible, however gifting Dr.Bronner’s is a none-too-subtle manner of claiming, “mate, you really want to work in your hygiene.”
22. Mini Dropper Bottles (2 Pack) – For nearly twenty years, I’ve repackaged my hand sanitizer and Aquamira in these tiny bottles for all of my backcountry journeys.
23. Trash Compactor Bag – When bought in packets of 10 or 20, these infants normally work out to between $1 and $2 a pop. It puzzles me as to why anybody would spend $40 plus for a dyneema pack liner, when a trash compactor bag weighs about the identical (a tiny bit heavier) and performs simply as effectively for a fraction of the value.
24. Zipper Cleaner – Retaining tent zippers clear charges simply behind laundering your sleeping bag on the listing of issues hikers are liable to overlook on the finish of an extended backpacking season. Zipper upkeep is very vital if a lot of your mountaineering is finished in coastal or desert environments (Tip: All the time be mild with zippers; by no means pressure a caught zipper).
25. Condoms – Along with the plain, the previous Johnny bag can be used as an emergency water holder (as much as 2 liters) in case certainly one of your bottles develops a leak. In addition they come in useful as a water-resistant cowl in your cellphone throughout river crossings. It’s even potential to make use of the contact display screen by way of the latex – helpful for secure sexting.
Whether or not you’re sexting or fording a difficult river, if it’s not on, it’s not on.
26. Bag Balm – Bag Balm now is available in sensible travel-sized 1/4 oz tubes. Not solely does these items works wonders on thigh and bum chafe, however it additionally is useful in case you are overcome by the urge to take advantage of a cow whereas out on path (i.e. Which was its unique function when developed again in 1899).
27. Titanium Stitching Scissors – I’ve a few gram weenie hiker mates who love this stuff. They tip the scales at solely 0.3 oz, and should you add the mini-tweezers from the Swiss Military Basic, you’ve a gossamer weight combo (0.4 oz), which ought to cowl just about all your restore and tick elimination wants whereas out within the subject.
28. 3M Micropore Tape – Breathable paper medical tape. Adheres effectively. I’ve used it for years as an alternative of band-aids and different adhesive strips.
29. Ibuprofen – Vitamin “I”. A hurting hiker’s greatest good friend. Will be discovered in lots of (if not most) hikers’ First-Help kits. Overlook concerning the identify manufacturers akin to Advil and go generic. For $10 you may normally decide up a 100-count bottle at most main supermarkets.
30. Backcountry Bidet / Reconstituted Sports activities Drink Bottle (600ml) – Low-cost and multi-purpose. You possibly can decide one up at any petrol/fuel station. Search for bottles with a flip-cap spout. Present you care by together with the next directions and warnings on an accompanying Put up-it be aware:
A. You’ll want to fill the bottle to the highest earlier than use, as roughly solely the primary 200 ml are squirtable;
B. Quick, sharp squeezes fired at an upward angle of 45° work greatest, and;
C. Professional Tip: Don’t put the spout too near your freckle, as accidents can occur, and there’s nothing worse than discovering poo floaties in your consuming water over the course of the mountaineering day.
A sports activities drink bottle and 4 squares of TP are all you want in your morning constitutional.
31. Bleach – Overlook about these fancy filters and chlorine dioxide drops. Bleach tastes horrible and will not be very efficient combatting giardia and crypto, however what the hey, for $10 you should buy sufficient to final you a few thru-hikes after which put your financial savings in the direction of a course of Fasigyn.
32. Inflatable Pillow / Wine field bladder – The redneck’s backcountry pillow. For bogan bonus factors and a surefire thumper of a headache the next day, pack in a full field and drink all of it on the primary evening of your journey.
33. Security Sun shades – A lot of completely different choices. Go for one that provides good UV safety. You possibly can usually decide them up for round $10 a pair on-line or at {hardware} shops.
34. Electrolyte Tablets – Particularly useful when mountaineering in sizzling temperatures and/or for folk that frequently endure from muscle cramps.
35. Ultralight Backpackin’ Ideas – Greater than a decade after it was revealed, Mike Clelland’s Ultralight Backpackin’ Ideas nonetheless charges as some of the informative and entertaining books on how one can lighten your pack weight.
36. Make America Nice Once more cap – Sensible and crappy. Regarding the former high quality, the hat’s brim helps to maintain the solar’s damaging rays off your face. As for the crappy half…….effectively………..
37. Hand Rake (Set of two) – Talking of the porn-star-hushing, document-squirreling, disinfectant-boosting, tax-avoiding, NFT-hawking, election-denying, riot-fanning, wannabee-Greenland-purchasing, former Commander Bankrupt In Chief, certainly one of Trumpy’s most memorable ideas was to comply with Finland’s instance in serving to to maintain America’s “forests flooring clear.” Hikers can do their half by choosing up a pair of those light-weight leaf scoopers for his or her subsequent backcountry tour. They weigh below 12 oz a pair and are simple to strap onto the again of your pack when not in use. With each second pair bought, patrons will obtain both a “Rake America Nice Once more” or “I Love Finland” bumper sticker.
Leaf scoopers/hand rakes are an awesome possibility for both the yard or your subsequent backpacking journey.
Need to go the additional mile in forest hearth prevention? This Finnish woman reveals us how by caring for the forest ground close to her residence.
37. Beer Koozie – Multi-purpose merchandise. Emergency mitten, storage in your DSLR lenses, paw protector in case your canine steps on a cactus, and helps to maintain that post-hike beer that you simply left in your automotive refreshingly lukewarm. Earn gram weenie bonus factors by buying it from certainly one of your favorite ultralight cottage gear firms.
38. Therm-a-rest Z-Lite Seat Pad – When your previous Z-Lite has gone flatter than gander’s arch, lob off a few segments and reward them to a mountaineering buddy looking for a bit extra back-country consolation throughout their noon breaks. Alternatively, huge spenders can splash out on a new Z-Seat Pad and share the posterior love amongst three of their hiker mates.
39. Frogg Toggs / DriDucks Rain Pants – The entire Frog Toggs swimsuit will value round $22. Nevertheless, whereas the jacket could also be a practical possibility for a lot of three-season backpacking excursions, the pants (est. worth $0.10) are about as sturdy as a pair of Altras on something however manicured trails. No matter the surroundings, likelihood is you’ll blow out the crotch, bottom, or rip a gap in one of many legs inside a few days of leaving the trailhead.
Frog Toggs pants within the subject (photograph from BWCA.com).
40. Mylar Blanket (Pack of 10) – A cut price at lower than a greenback a pop. Along with being utilized in emergencies, house blankets can be employed as a light-weight floor sheet, signaling mirror, and makeshift tarp.
41. Baskin & Robbins Pink Spoon – If you happen to order a sundae at Baskin & Robbins, it comes with a semi-durable, difficult-to-lose, long-handled pink plastic spoon. I used certainly one of these for 2000 miles on the Pacific Crest Path in 2012.
42. The Fellowship of the Ring – That is the primary a part of “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, and for my cash, one of the best thru-hiking story ever written. You possibly can typically decide up a used copy for lower than a fiver on Amazon. Principally, it’s the story of a various bunch of fellows who went out for a multi-month stroll, obtained as much as plenty of memorable adventures, met some cool path angels, took some zero days, had some variations of opinion with reference to route choice, cut up into separate teams, stood by one another when instances had been robust, completed their journeys at completely different termini, and, lastly, met up for celebratory post-hike beers on a subject referred to as Cormallen at journey’s finish.
The boys from the Fellowship with the Misty Mountains within the background.
43. John Muir’s Works – You possibly can decide up both a paperback or Kindle model of “The Yosemite” and “My First Summer time within the Sierra” for lower than $5 on Amazon. Greater than three a long time after first studying Muir’s works as a youngster, he stays certainly one of my favorite wilderness writers.
44. Tenacious Tape – An improve from duct tape for out-in-the-field gear repairs to your tent, rain jacket, or wind shirt
45. Mini Cube – This one is courtesy of my good friend, Liz “Snorkel” Thomas, backpacking sage, writer, and Queen of City Via-hiking. In response to Snorks, “5 mini-dice weigh in at grams and supply hours of leisure for hikers trapped in a tent or shelter on a wet or snowy day. Good for Yahtzee, Farkel, and the rest you may make up.” A 100-pack will set you again $5.
46. PeakFinder App – This advice is from my previous mate, Paul Magnanti (Pmags). Whereas mountaineering in Colorado’s Sangre de Cristo vary in 2016, Mags blew me away when he began randomly rattling off the names and altitudes of each mountain nearby. Simply once I thought he was taking the piss, he confirmed me the PeakFinder app on his cellphone ($3.99 as of 2022). To make use of the app, merely level the digicam at your mountain of selection, and a panoramic drawing will overlay the picture and provide you with all of the related particulars. It at the moment has info on greater than 950,000 peaks all over the world (Observe: Different helpful apps for hikers embody PlantNet (free, easy, quick, and correct plant identifications), SkySafari (simple to make use of astronomy information to the evening sky), and Knots 3D (take a wild guess).
PeakFinder App (photograph from peakfinder.org).
47. Nan Shepherd’s “The Dwelling Mountain”: Shepherd was a Scottish poet and nationalist who’s commemorated on the nation’s five-pound be aware. “The Dwelling Mountain” is Shepherd’s superbly written testomony to the fun and wonders of strolling in nature, particularly in her beloved Cairngorm mountains.
48. Dehydrated Cocktails – Excellent for hip flask-carrying backpackers that wish to prolong hiker midnight previous 9 pm. Taste choices embody Mango Margarita, Mint Mojito, and Blood Orange Mai Tai.
49. Personalised Revenge Voodoo Doll – When sharing somebody’s path combine has left you with a debilitating case of the trots, otherwise you picked up a bit of greater than you bargained for throughout a wild evening at Path Days, reward your self certainly one of these personalised light-weight dolls (3.2 oz / pins included). Positive they value a bit over $10, however it’s laborious to place a worth on an excellent dose of path revenge.
Personalised Revenge Voodoo Doll
50. Backpacking Expertise/Instructional Books – A lot of the backpacking recommendation you see on YouTube is 90 p.c tip and 10 p.c iceberg. For people simply moving into the game, I extremely advocate choosing up a handful of traditional hiking-related texts, which is able to complement the time you spend out within the boonies in serving to to construct your backcountry talent set and data base.
51. The underside half of a Platypus bladder – When your platy bladder is discoloured, more and more brittle, and the seam on the high has ruptured, minimize it in half and regift the underside half to an ultralight hiker good friend. They’ll then use it to scoop water from filthy puddles when mountaineering in pink rock nation or alternatively make use of it as a poor man’s consuming vessel.
52. Plastic Bathe Curtain – Overlook about fancy supplies akin to Dyneema Composite Materials (DCF); the legendary Grandma Gatewood used a plastic bathe curtain for rain safety when she turned the primary girl to thru-hike the Appalachian Path in 1955. In doing so, she could have inadvertently turn out to be the originator of the Poncho Tarp.
The legendary Grandma Gatewood.
53. Spam satchels – America’s favourite thriller meat. Cheap, long-lasting, and full of fats and protein, (in principle) spam looks like it might be an excellent possibility for calorie-loading long-distance hikers. Till you really style it. I throw up a bit of in my mouth simply occupied with it.
54. Mack’s Silicone Ear Plugs – Anti-snoring resolution. In response to their promo spiel, Mack’s “have been saving marriages since 1962.” Essential for anybody considering of going from hut to hut within the Alps or mountaineering the Appalachian Path through the common season (Observe: As a bonus, I can personally attest that Mack’s silicone plugs work nice within the pool as effectively, for these of us which might be liable to swimmer’s ear infections).
55. Beano Extremely – When your mountaineering associate is overdoing it on the dehydrated beans, and his or her farts would make a skunk blush, supply them some Beano Extremely to chop issues off on the pass.
56. Croakies (or equal) – Helpful reward for noggin-perching sunglass wearers, akin to myself, that frequently scratch or lose sun shades out within the boonies.
57. Smartwater bottle – Light-weight (1.3 oz), lengthy, slender, easy sides, and fairly sturdy, Smartwater is the consuming vessel of selection for a lot of weight-conscious backpackers.
58. Spiky Therapeutic massage Ball– Light-weight and compact merchandise that helps to scale back muscle ache and stress within the ft, calves, hips, glutes, and shoulders. For a bit of more money, you may go for a lighter and extra environmentally pleasant cork possibility from Rawology.
59. Handsfree Umbrella Clamp – Useful accent for umbrella customers (particularly people who wield trekking poles) that clips onto virtually any shoulder strap.
Greg “Malto” Gressel on a dampish hike in New York’s Adirondack mountains (2015).
60. Paper Espresso Filters – Low-cost-as-chips merchandise that’s helpful for pre-filtering soiled or silty water.
61. Lodge/Spa Slippers – Tipping the scales at round 70 gr/2.5 oz, lodge slippers are an inexpensive, gentle, compact, and comfy camp shoe possibility. They’re additionally ultimate for backcountry huts when it is advisable to go away your mountaineering footwear on the door.
62. Sponges – Featherweight, multi-purpose merchandise that can be utilized as a pot cleaner, condensation dryer, and, should you’re actually determined, to take in the final drops of water in a shallower-than-shallow pothole (Observe: A straw could be a greater possibility for the final level).
63. Blaze Orange Vest (and hat) – Important equipment when mountaineering throughout searching season in lots of locations within the US. Within the phrases of PMags (seen within the photograph beneath): “Carrying blaze orange is nice for security; hunters admire it, and it’s a respectful manner of sharing the outside amongst all customers.”
Yours really and Pmags throughout a 2014 journey within the Mount Evans Wilderness.
64. Foot File/Callus Remover – You possibly can usually decide foot information up for below $10, however for one thing as vital as your ft, I’d advocate spending a wee bit extra for a mannequin that’s going to do the job effectively and final for the lengthy haul. I purchased a Probelle a number of years again, and it’s nonetheless going robust.
65. Nikwax Down Wash – For arguably probably the most cherished (and infrequently the most costly) merchandise in a backpacker’s equipment, it surprises me what number of people don’t take higher care of their sleeping bag/quilt. In a nutshell, laundering your bag or quilt every year will assist it last more and insulate extra successfully (Observe: If you wish to go the additional yard, purchase the giftee a number of tennis balls to help within the drying course of).
66. Lint – Makes for an awesome emergency hearth starter. Empty the contents of your garments dryer’s lint catcher right into a tiny Ziploc bag. Throw in some further lint out of your stomach button simply to offer the reward a extra private contact.
Stomach lint extraction – Japanese fashion.
67. Packing Pod Pillow – I have a tendency to not use loads of stuff sacks once I hike, however during the last couple of years, I’ve periodically introduced alongside a few SMD packing pods. Other than being useful for organizational functions, these brightly colored pods are additionally the right measurement to make use of as a pillowcase, filled with no matter clothes objects you’re not sleeping in.
68. 100 Wt Fleece – Sturdy, breathable, and moisture-resistant lively put on. A superb value-for-money merchandise that (as a rule) has a spot in my backpacking equipment regardless of the surroundings or season. They’ll normally value a bit of over $10, however you may usually discover them on particular for below $20 or $30.
69. Mini Carabiners – Ideas the dimensions at 0.1 oz/3 gr and can be utilized for guyline attachments, drying hooks, and hanging bear luggage. Poncho tarp customers can use them to make a fast transition from poncho to shelter mode when it’s raining.
70. Fanny Pack – Fanny packs are just like the fruitcakes of the backpacking world. They get loads of shit, however on the finish of the day, you’ve obtained to tip your cap to a utilitarian merchandise that merely refuses to go away. Talking of one thing/one that’s unimaginable to kill…………..
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