Field tests

Gear reviews

Every review here comes from real nights out. Verdict up top, data underneath, failures included.

The Light Animals Can't See: Why Your Headlamp Needs a Red Mode

I've shined a bright red light directly into a coyote's face and he never flinched. The science of red and green light, why deer can't find you in the dark, the bug trick nobody talks about, and the headlamp we run.

Verdict: A headlamp with a red mode isn't a nice-to-have — it's the difference between moving invisibly and announcing yourself to every animal on the mountain. We run PEAX lamps: red is proven, green is under test.

The 6-Yard Test Is Lying to You: How to Actually Choose a Hunting Bow

Archery season just ended, which makes right now the smartest time to buy a bow. Why the shop test sells comfort instead of durability, why the best in the world quietly shoot Hoyt, and the one guy in Montana we'd send you to.

Verdict: Buy your bow now — not next fall — and buy it for the backcountry, not the pro-shop bale. For hunting, durability and consistency beat counter-comfort, and that's why Hoyt is our pick.

Two Years in a PEAX Dyneema Tipi with a Winnerwell Titanium Stove: The Honest Hot-Tent Review

I melted a KUIU tent, folded a stove pipe in half, and still won't camp any other way. Two years of real use in the PEAX Solitude 4 Dyneema tipi with a Winnerwell titanium stove — failures, fixes, and all.

Verdict: The best backcountry shelter system I've ever run — an about-7-lb hot tent that turns miserable trips into good ones — but it's for people willing to learn, not a pop-and-go system.