Budget Gear Review: Kangaroo Outdoors Rocky Mountain Trekker

Rocky Mountain Trekker in the wilderness

The Dirt:

Kangaroo Outdoors Rocky Mountain Trekker 

What is it? Mummy style backpacking sleeping bag.

Comes with: Sleeping bag, compression stuff sack.

Weight: 3.1 pounds (in stuff sack)

Temp Rating: 32 degrees Fahrenheit

EN Rating: No

Materials: Rip-stop nylon

Insulation: Synthetic
.

Price: 36.77 on Amazon

The Rocky Mountain Trekker is a budget friendly lightweight mummy bag for 3-season backpacking. I was contacted by someone from Kangaroo Outdoors to write this review, and I have to say that Kangaroo Outdoors, the company, is a bit of a mystery. They don't have a website, and as far as I can tell, the only product they make is this sleeping bag. Regardless, the product description on Amazon assures us that "Kangaroo Outdoors is committed to bringing you only the highest quality outdoor gear. We design and test all of our items in the high Rockies of Colorado." Due to the lack of information on Kangaroo Outdoors and the Rocky Mountain Trekker online, this review will be entirely what I've observed through use.

Pulling it from the box, the first thing I notice is the size. In the provided compression sack, it packs pretty small. Without the compression sack however, it's bulky. In fact, I had trouble stuffing it in a 50 liter backpack on a recent outing. The weight isn't bad either.... for the price. Granted, today's higher end 30-degree down bags barely bust the 1 pound mark, but they are hundreds of dollars. At around 40 bucks, 3 pounds is pretty damn good, and certainly an acceptable weight for most weekend backpackers. On short trips, the weight is barely noticeable. And that's really what the Rocky Mountain Trekker is for, short trips for casual backpackers who don't want to break the bank.

The concern with buying a budget bag is always materials and craftsmanship. Kangaroo Outdoors lists the bag material as rip-stop nylon, but doesn't list a grade. Insulation type is synthetic, but doesn't say what kind. The truth is that the materials make it feel like a forty dollar sleeping bag. But it performs. On multiple backpacking trips when the temperature flirted with freezing, I always stayed warm. Granted, I was wearing baselayers and using a bag liner, but I always do, even with my Marmot and Nemo bags. On breezy, chilly, rainy nights, The Rocky Mountain Trekker continued to surprise me. Even when a chill crept in, I was able to cinch the hood and draft tubes to effectively trap my heat in. This bag does not have a European Norm rating, but the claimed 32 degree comfort rating seems pretty darn accurate.

Rocky Mountain Trekker

Like budget bags I've owned in the past, the biggest problem I had was the zipper. It didn't completely burst open like my last budget bag did, but I fought with it in the night, every night. For starters, snagging was an issue. I found completely zipping up the bag was a challenge and a chore. Even more annoying was the tendency for the zipper to unzip itself during the night. Strangely, pressure on the underside of the zipper would cause it retract. As a result, unless I had the zipper completely up and secured with the Velcro strap, it would retract during the night and I would wake up exposed. 

Overall, The Rocky Mountain Trekker is a solid 3-season bag with an affordable price tag. I would recommend it for new backpackers or anyone who can't afford a name-brand bag. For the experienced or constant backpacker, I would give it a look only if money is a serious concern for you. Otherwise, it would make a good loaner or backup. Durability may be an issue. After all, I don't know anything about materials or manufacturing. I couldn't find any warranty information from Kangaroo Outdoors either. But then again. it's only a 40 dollar bag.

Disclaimer: I was given this sleeping bag for the purposes of a review by Kangaroo Outdoors at no cost to myself. The opinions and conclusions reached are strictly my own.

Budget Gear Review: Etekcity Backpacking Stove

Etekcity Backpacking stove at Mt. Lemmon, AZ

The Dirt:

Etekcity Backpacking Sove

What is it? Canister style backpacking stove

Fuel Type: Isopro

Comes with: Stove, plastic case, attached Piezo ignition

Weight: 4.8 oz.

Size: 3.5 X 1.8 X 2.3 inches

Materials: Stainless steel and aluminum

Price: 9.99 at Amazon

The Etekcity Backpacking stove is a lightweight canister stove that sells for a ridiculously low price on Amazon. In fact, that's why I'm writing this review... Let me explain. Just over a year ago, a customer came to my store looking for a backpacking stove. After I gave him a brief explanation of the stoves we carry and the differences between them, I recommended the MSR PocketRocket. He stared at the price-tag looking perturbed for a moment, then looked at me quizzically and asked, "Why should I spend $40 on this stove when I can get one on Amazon for $10?" I didn't know how to respond at the time since I had no idea which stove he was talking about. Instead I just mumbled something about brand name, materials and construction. Feeling ignorant and unprepared, I went home that night, and in the Amazon search bar typed, "ten dollar backpacking stove," and promptly purchased the first stove on the list, the Etekcity Backpacking Stove. I would have an answer the next time a customer asked me that question.

Palm of my hand

Out of the box, the first thing that struck me was the size. Indeed, the Etekcity stove is smaller than the vast majority of canister stoves on the market. Credit the stowable pot support arms that fold down and swivel around the stove to stack on top of each other like a deck of cards. It makes for a small, very portable package. The drawback with that portability is all those joints and swivels add weight. 4.8 ounces (believe it or not) is heavier than most name brand stoves in the same class. But for ten bucks, who can complain about an ounce or two? 

The biggest problem I have with stowable arms is durability. Simply put, the more complex the device, the larger the chance the device will fail. In fact, the first time I used the stove one of the arms jammed. I couldn't get it folded without a lot of force, which, in freezing temps hurt my fingers like a SOB. It turned out that the upper portion of one of the arms bent, which prevented it from folding along the joint. It's not just the arms either. This stove feels fragile. Arms bend too easy. The Piezo ignition switch feels like it's barely on. Luckily it comes with a case. You'll need it to protect the stove while backpacking.

Top of the arms fold in to make for easy stowing.

In ideal conditions the Etekcity stove performs as well as any canister stove in its class. On warm days with no wind It routinely made 3 minute boil times. When conditions aren't ideal however is when this stove really falls short. Usually I don't put too much credence in boil times. I often ask people "what's the hurry?" There are instances however where getting an early start is imperative, and in such cases a fast boil time is important. Case in point: Last winter hunting in the Sonoran desert. I brought the Etekcity stove, and my mate brought an MSR PocketRocket. We were up every morning before light, and literally everyday we had to wait on my stove to boil water. It was frustrating for both of us. In near freezing temps with a bit of wind it took my stove three times longer to boil water for coffee then his PocketRocket. Let me tell you, waiting 15 minutes for a cup of coffee at 5:30 in the morning, for five days straight, sucked.

It's important that your backpacking stove is reliable. It needs to work, even on a shitty day. It needs to work when it's dirty and wet. Testing the Etekcity stove in my backyard one day, I discovered that it had gotten wet from being left outside under a tree dripping water from melting snow. Although entirely accidental, I thought it would be a perfect time to fire the stove up, because after all, sometimes in the field stuff gets wet. The full results of the test are in the video below, but in a nutshell, the stove failed miserably. The stove was totally fouled by water to the point that fuel would not reach the burner. The water wouldn't drain. It took me around an hour to finally get the stove working, and even then the Piezo ignition switch was worthless. Just for comparison purposes, I left my PocketRocket in the same place, for the same amount of time. Although just as wet, the PocketRocket fired up immediately.

In this case you get what you pay for. After a year with the Etekcity stove my conclusion is that it is not reliable or durable. Frankly, I'm not sure it would survive a season of regular use backpacking. After the poor performance my first trip out with it, I was too scared to take it backpacking. Yes, in ideal conditions it boils with the best of them. If you only backpack short trips in sunny weather and you're flat broke, then maybe consider the Etekcity Backpacking Stove. If you buy it, rip the Piezo ignition switch off and save yourself a little weight and a lot of future headaches. Everyone else, spend a few more dollars and buy something actually made for the outdoors.

Budget Gear Review: Buck Selkirk Knife

Buck Selkirk

 The Dirt:

Buck Selkirk Knife

What is it? Fixed blade Survival/Bushcraft knife

Comes with: Sheath and ferrocerium rod with attached whistle

Size: Blade length 4.625". Overall length 9.5". Thickness 0.135"

Weight: 7.6 oz.

Materials: 420 HC Stainless Steel. Micarta handle. 

Price: $43.78 at Amazon.com

The Selkirk is a mid-duty fixed-blade survival knife named after one of my favorite places in the world, the Selkirk mountains of the Idaho panhandle. Not coincidentally, north Idaho is also home to the famous Buck Knife factory, where most of Buck's beloved knives are made. The Selkirk is not one of those knives. In fact, the name "China" is stamped on the blade. Some people won't consider the Selkirk for this reason alone. Despite its country of origin, the Selkirk is a solid knife that should warrant consideration when shopping for a bushcraft style knife under fifty dollars.

The knife's weight is the first thing I noticed. Previously I was almost exclusively using a Mora Companion. The Selkirk is heavy, and not particularly well balanced, owing to the steel-filled handle. The hammer on the pommel takes some of the blame for all that weight. It looks cool, but I found it not as practical for hammering as say a rock or heavy bit of wood. Though it certainly adds to the overall robust nature of the knife.

Hammer time.

Speaking of the handle, the textured Micarta has a nice wood-grain look, but feels a little too slick for my liking. Despite this, the grip is mostly comfortable. I say "mostly" because although the shape is fine, the spine isn't quite flush with the micarta. The result is an uncomfortable contact of skin and steel when I'm using certain grips or performing certain tasks. You can see in the photo below (and above) that the spine is raised just slightly above the micarta along the handle. It doesn't affect how I handle the knife. It's simply an annoyance. Call it nitpicking, but to me it shows a lack of attention to detail on the part of the manufacturer. 

Spine not flush.

Enough about the handle. Let's talk about the blade. That's where this knife really shines. Out of the box the Selkirk was shaving sharp. The edge retention is great and so is the ease of sharpening. In fact, the Selkirk is one of the easiest knives I have ever sharpened. It doesn't take much with a fine stone to hone the blade back to bad-assery. Credit the flat grind and 420 high carbon stainless steel. A lot of people knock Buck for using 420, but I have been continually impressed by the razor's edge of this knife. That said, I did roll the edge near the tip several months ago. I'm not sure what I was doing when it happened because I didn't notice it until I was cleaning my knife at the end of the day.

Feather stick

Deformed

Let's not forget that the Selkirk is billed as a bushcraft knife. As far as carving, chopping, batoning and food prep, the knife performs exceptionally. The problem comes with the fire starting capabilities. The accompanied ferro rod is small, but it has to be. The rod is designed to be used in the choil of the knife, rather than the spine. To me, this is a total design flaw. For starters, the space to work with is tiny. Worse, you have to work your hand under the business end of the blade, which just increases the likelihood of an accident. Finally, if you prefer a larger rod, chances are it won't fit the tight opening of the choil. Now, the spine of the knife is not 90 degrees, but the angle is such that you can produce a small amount of sparks. Of course, you could always grind it flat on your own, but why Buck wouldn't do that in the first place is just silly.

Ferro rod is designed to go through the choil.

Finally the sheath. On other sites I've seen people knock the injection-molded sheath, but I think it's one of the stronger features of the Selkirk. It looks good, can be configured for a variety of carries, and holds both the knife and the ferro rod securely. Plus, like the knife itself, it can really take a beating. 

Overall, the Selkirk is worth considering for casual knife users, or buyers on a budget, especially if you're willing to modify the spine. Although rough around the edges, the blade is excellent, and you can count on the durability. Design flaws and sloppy manufacturing may deter some. If money isn't a concern, look elsewhere.

Budget Gear Review: High Sierra Swerve

High Sierra Swerve

Since I returned to school recently, I was in the market for a new backpack. At first I thought I could use my REI Flash 30 daypack, but a couple test runs didn't go so well. I realized I needed something else. Something without a belt, with multiple pockets for some semblance of organization, and a safe spot to put my laptop. Perhaps more importantly, I didn't want to spend an exorbitant amount of money since I already owned 4 backpacks. I just couldn't justify spending top dollar on another pack.

 Enter the High Sierra Swerve.

Like most of my budget buys, I found this pack on Amazon.com. The $35.50 price tag was really attractive, as was the hundreds of overwhelmingly positive reviews. The problem I've found with Amazon over the years, is that the overall star rating (based off average user reviews) can be misleading. People write reviews after one use, or immediately upon receiving the product. Although I always take the star rating with a grain of salt, I decided to purchase this pack because I liked the look, the design, the price, and the fact that it was made by High Sierra, a brand that I had heard good things about.

In this particular case, I found the positive reviews for the High Sierra Swerve to be mostly accurate, even taking into account the low price. I purchased the black/black/black design (I know, I'm lame) but there are plenty of fashionable designs and color schemes to choose from. The pack is made from a fabric called Duralite, which feels more rugged and coarse than the smooth nylon/polyester materials that I'm used to seeing on most higher-end packs. The material just feels tough, like if you snagged it on something sharp it wouldn't rip.

Laptop compartment w/folder sleeve.

The pack seems well made and durable. Indeed, this pack has seen heavy use since my purchase, including 2 semesters of college, and two long road trips over the summer where the pack was routinely jammed into tight spaces, sat on, buried by other luggage, and abused by children. So far its holding up great with no loose stitching, tears, or discoloration of any kind.

The High Sierra Swerve is good for school, work, travel, or day-tripping around town, but is clearly not made for hiking. It has plenty of compartments for organizing your stuff. I particularly like the small zippered top pocket which is perfect for my car-keys, MP3 player, and flash drive. The laptop sleeve is well padded and easy to reach, and my 15.6" HP Pavilion fits securely and safely (so far) inside. That being said, I find the number of zippered compartments to be overkill, especially when it takes me unzipping and searching 3 or 4 compartments just to find what I'm looking for. Out of the 5 zippered compartments the Swerve has, I generally just use 3 for everyday use. That's just me. I can imagine that some of you reading this review would consider all those compartments a bonus.

Top pocket. Great place to stash your phone during class.

It would be really hard to actually fill this pack to capacity, as it just seems deceptively huge. Its like a black-hole that swallows everything that gets too close. High Sierra lists the capacity at 1914 cubic inches (about 31 liters), but I think all the pockets and compartments just make it seem bigger than it is.

I do have a couple complaints that prevent me from being as generous as the customer reviewers on Amazon.

My biggest gripe is that when loaded full with school books and supplies (cuz' that's mainly what I use it for) the pack becomes very uncomfortable. Specifically, the back-padding (also made of Duralite) has a tendency to grab my shirt and pull it up as I walk, so that the padding rubs directly on the skin of my lower back, which can cause a burning sensation that can last for a good hour. Last semester when I had 3 big books, and my pack was really heavy, I was constantly having to reach behind my back and pull my shirt down as I walked around campus. It hasn't been an issue this semester because I'm using e-books, so the pack is much lighter, but last semester it drove me nuts. 

The side mesh pockets are too small, and wont fit anything bigger than a 16 oz water bottle. They are too narrow for anything bigger. Personally, I rarely ever buy bottled water which I consider wasteful and unnecessary. I usually use a Nalgene bottle for my daily hydration needs when I'm on the go, and a Nalgene bottle will not fit into these pockets. Maybe not a deal breaker for you, but If I was shopping for a backpack at the store and came across this pack, I would not have purchased it for this reason.

Lastly, the zippers can be stiff. They slide fairly smoothly in a straight line, but sometimes turning the corners can cause a zipper to stop in its tracks.

If you are on a budget, and need to haul a laptop around, I would consider the High Sierra Swerve backpack for your school and/or travel needs. Its sharp looking, well made, and will certainly get the job done for years to come. Just keep in mind, the back padding is uncomfortable when the pack is heavy, and you'll need to exercise a little patience with the zippers... 

High Sierra Swerve

Budget Gear Review: Suisse Sport Adventurer 30 Sleeping Bag

The Suisse Sport Adventurer is a 30 degree synthetic sleeping bag that the manufacturer describes as "ultra-compactable". I purchased this bag really as an impulse buy due to my obsession with gear, because frankly, I didn't need it. I had been eye-balling it on Amazon.com for a couple years, drawn to it's relatively light weight, supposed compactability, and low price. Somehow it wound up in my "Shopping Cart", and before I knew it, it was at my front door. I actually purchased this bag for $40.0 about a year ago, and I know that it's been as low as $30.0, though currently  (on Amazon) you can only buy it from a third party seller at $79.99. After reading this review, if you're still interested in purchasing this bag, hold out until it's sold by Amazon, as I'm sure the price will drop. Or shop around the web, I'll bet you can find it for a lower price than what it is currently listed on Amazon.

Suisse Sport Adventurer 30

The Suisse Sport Adventurer is a plain looking bag. Nothing fancy. No bells and whistles. The first thing I noticed about this bag when I pulled it out of the stuff sack, was how flat it looked. It doesn't have much loft. After feeling the bag, it seems that there is just one long thin layer of MicroTekk insulation (which Suisse Sport describes as "down like"), sewn into the bag.  

It makes for a very light sleeping bag for the price. On my scale the bag weighed 46.2oz (2lb 8.8oz), and the compression sack weighed 3.4oz, for a grand total of 49.6oz (3lb 1.6oz). Now, that wont be considered "ultra-light" but it's not bad for 30 or 40 bucks. The best part about this sleeping bag is how compactable it is. In the provided compression sack you can get the bag down pretty small, and won't have any problem stuffing this thing into your backpack.

This is the part where I go against the grain. If you look on Amazon this bag has an overall 4 star rating out of 458 reviews. That's a a whole lot of good reviews by people that bought this bag, and I imagine most of that has to do with the price.

The first night I used this bag I ran into 2 problems, and they have been plaguing me ever since to the point that I have decided I am not going to use this sleeping bag any longer.

1) Cheap zipper - It's stiff, and it snags worse than any zipper I've ever used. In fact every time I've used this bag the zipper has snagged. "Pay attention when you zip up the bag" you might be saying. Well, I do, and it doesn't do any good. It is a source of constant frustration.

Compressed in the stuff sack.

2) Narrow cut - I am a broad shouldered man. Not big by any means, just wide shouldered. I've never had a problem fitting in a sleeping bag, until now. The first night I could barely zip the bag up passed my shoulders. I struggled and squirmed and fought with the zipper until I finally got it zipped all the way up. Boy was it uncomfortable. My hands and arms had virtually no freedom of movement, and I had to sleep with them pinned to my body. I actually felt like a mummy. Well, this same night after I somehow managed to fall asleep despite how uncomfortable I was, I awoke in the middle of the night cold. After feeling around in the dark as best I could, I discovered why. The zipper had actually split, and from my shoulders down to my waist were actually protruding from the bag, exposed to the chilly night air. Oh, the actual slider body was still clasped in place, but the teeth had somehow came apart. I had actually burst out of the bag! Then of course I had to squirm my way out, find my headlamp, and fix it, which was a total pain in the ass. 

Since then I quit trying to zip it up all the way, afraid that I would burst out again in the middle of the night. Luckily it was summer in low country, so with a baselayer on I slept okay. Until my last backpacking trip to the White Mountains in north/east Arizona, where the temps can drop into the 30's and 40's at night in summer. The second night of that trip I awoke cold, and decided to zip the bag up all the way. After all, for a sleeping bag to perform to it's temperature rating (in this case 30 degrees) it has to be used properly. While trying to zip it passed my shoulders the zipper snagged, and it snagged so bad that I couldn't get it unstuck. Finally I lost my patience, and slept exposed from my shoulders up. Luckily my girlfriend was next to me (sound asleep in my good sleeping bag) to share some body heat, or I would have been even colder than I was.

Which brings me to the 30 degree temperature rating. I couldn't accurately test it because I couldn't get the zipper passed my shoulders. But I will say other than the Whites, where the temperature dropped into the 40's, I slept warm, even with my arms and shoulders exposed.

Lastly I want to comment on the quality of this bag, and that is to say that there's not much of it... Quality I mean. Other than the piece of junk zipper, I can see stitching coming out in various places already (especially around the zipper), and I've only used it 5 or 6 times. The compression sack it comes with is already splitting at the seams, despite my gentle treatment.

Bottom Line: If you are broad shouldered do not buy this sleeping bag. For everyone else - As long as you can get it for under $50, it may be worth buying as a back-up, or a loaner, but personally I would not trust it for your main 3 season sleeping bag, and I doubt it will stand up to prolonged use.

Budget Gear Review: CUSCUS Expedition 88

There are so many options out there for backpacking gear that often times it can be a headache deciding what gear to actually purchase, especially if you're new to backpacking. When I first started backpacking, I really didn't know what I was doing when I jumped online to shop for gear, so naturally (and because of my budget) I gravitated toward cheaper gear. I remember my first trip into REI. I was looking for a tent. I saw the prices REI was charging, and my jaw dropped to the floor. "This place is a rip off" I told myself, and I walked out of the store and bought a $30 two-man "backpacking tent" from another outfitter. All summer I lugged that heavy piece of crap into the mountains. It wasn't just a tent either. I bought a budget backpack, a budget sleeping bag, and a budget sleeping pad. nearly 5 years later only one of those items passed the test, and remains in my garage (okay 2 actually, but one of them is out the first chance I get). 

Even now I'm on the lookout for good buys on gear. It's just the nature of the beast when good quality gear is so expensive. Up to now I have avoided reviewing the cheaper gear that I buy, but after using one of those items in a backpacking trip last week, I thought the public had a right to know before buying some of this stuff. So as of now I am going to review a few of the budget off-brand items I have purchased and used over the years. 

CUSCUS Expedition 88 Liter Backpack.

A newer version of the same pack. Mine is gray and black.

This was the first backpack I ever bought. In the beginning, like I mentioned above, I didn't understand the need to spend $200.00 on a backpack. I found this baby on Amazon.com for $35.00 and was sold. The CUSCUS Expedition is about the cheapest backpack you can find on Amazon, and that, combined with it's huge carrying capacity is the reason I bought it. Of course, since then I've learned that bigger is not better in the world of backpacking, but at the time I thought I needed a huge pack to carry all my crap, and actually I did because all the crap I bought was as equally huge.

The CUSCUS Expedition is actually not a bad looking pack. It's gray and black, which I like. It's made of a thick canvas material. It looks durable. It has 3 huge outside pockets, and a pocket on the inside for a water bladder... And that's about the only positive things I can say about this pack.

One thing I noticed immediately was how stiff the zippers are. When those outside pockets are full of gear, it is actually very difficult to close the zippers. Now, that's not a huge problem, but let me tell you it can be a major annoyance when you take a pit stop on the trail and are holding everyone up because it takes so long to zip your pack up. The zippers however are nothing compared to the hip belt, which I will flat out say is a total piece of crap. First off the hip belt will only tighten to a certain degree, and any further attempts to tighten it will only result in the pack actually twisting on your back, or the buckle coming apart. Even while hiking, the buckle will sometimes just come apart for no apparent reason. It's quite frustrating. I bought a replacement buckle from REI in the hopes of fixing the problem, and while the buckle actually stayed together I still could not tighten the hip belt. I found the only way to adequately tighten the belt was by actually unbuckling the belt, and individually sliding either end further apart from each other, and then sucking in your gut and buckling them together. Which in the end only revealed another problem. The belt would quickly work it's way loose. When I say "quickly" I mean within 10 minutes of tightening the help belt, it will be so loose on your hips that you can look down and see a gap between the belt and your waist.

With my cousin Luke on the Tucannon River, notice his backpack rides above his shoulders.

All this of course leads to the biggest problem with this pack. It does not carry weight well at all. When I first started backpacking I was carrying 35 pounds in this pack, which should be no problem for a pack this size. But I was pretty much always miserable wearing it. You will spend much of your time trying to adjust this pack so it rides comfortably, but all your efforts will be wasted. No matter what you do the shoulder straps will hang off your shoulders causing pain and discomfort. Sure, it has an adjustable torso, but it does no good at all. The pack sags, and the weight is carried on the shoulders. I tried everything, including packing it a variety of ways, but nothing worked. Once while taking this pack on an overnighter in the William O Douglas wilderness in Washington, my hands swelled up enormously.  My fingers were like bratwursts attached to my hands. In the end the only way to carry this pack with any semblance of comfortably is to physically hold the shoulder straps up with your hands.Not fun.

The last thing I'll say about this pack is that after several years of barely any use, the stitching is coming out in a variety of places, but mainly on the zippers, the belt, and the inside pocket for the water bladder, which has completely separated from the seam.

Summary:

Sure this pack is only $35, but you get what you pay for. A poor quality, cheaply made, poorly designed backpack, with a suspension system that flat-out does not work. If you like pain, then buy this pack, but I would suggest forking over some extra dough and buying one that actually works and will last... Of course if you keep it light, and only do short mileage overnighters, then it might work okay. In that case you can buy it here.

Low rider.