HikerDeals' Best-of-the-Best Outdoor Gear Deals:
- Sierra Trading Post: Extra 15% Off Fishing, hunting & Work Gear
- Moosejaw: 10% off with coupon code MOOSE, extra 10% off sale items with code SUPERSALE
- Sierra Trading Post: Extra 10% Off Boots, Shoes, Gear, and Workout Apparel + January Coupon 10% Off $100+ Orders
HikerDeals Bargain, Deal, and Sale Archive for June, 2007
$40 – Montrail Orbit Women’s Climbing Shoe
With plenty of boots companies getting into the climbing shoe game preices have been falling steadily for several years. Even better is that great climbing shoes like this Montrail Orbit end up at bargain prices during closeout sales. From Mountain Gear.com the Orbit gets to take advantage of Montrail’s heat-moldable boot technology to make it a super-comfortable all-day shoe. Normally asymmetric (ie: very curved) shoes like this are really uncomfortable for long periods of time, expecially because they never really break-in with all the rubber wrapped around your foot. Not the case with these, just read the MGear reviews.
Aside from being a top-quality shoe, these Montail Orbits are 53% off and available in euro sizes 37.5 – 40.5 (about a US women’s 7 – 10, or US men’s 5½ – 8½).
Eastern Mountain Sports Coupon: 20% Off 1st Item, 15% Off Next Two
A big coupon for Eastern Mountain Sports right now: get 20% off your most expensive item and 15% off each of the next two. Click any of the links to auto-apply the coupon and the discount will be taken at checkout.
EMS.com is a smaller-than-REI, outdoor gear chain with good service. They have major brands and good self-branded gear for hiking, backpacking, climbing, cycling, and other outdoor sports.
Brands excluded from the discount are Merrell, Patagonia, and Necky. Already on-sale items are also excluded. Coupon expires July 4, 2007.
$130 – Marmot Titan All-Mesh Backpacking Tent
The Marmot Titan tent is entirely mesh from the flor panels on up – for unmatched breathability on hot summer trips. It’s also only 4 pounds, 10 ounces, but still spares taller sleepers from choosing between curling up or getting cold feet with their bag pressed against the tent end, being almost 8 feet long. Rounding out this 2-person, 3-season tent (maybe only 2½-seasons unless you’re carrying a warmer sleeping bag in early spring & late fall) at Sierra Trading Post are dual doors and vestibules to keep scrambling and late-night wakeups to a minimum.
A new item a Sierra Trading Post this week, the Titan is also eligible for free shipping on $75+ orders until July 5, 2007 <<– just use that last link to apply coupon and then search for item #88182.
$5 Off All Orders at PETCO.com Pet Store
Another online pet shop coupon, this one for PETCO.com. This one is good for $5 off all orders placed online, just click through the links and it will be applied to your shopping cart at checkout (expires June 29, 2007).
$10 Off $75+ Coupon for PETsMART
PETsMART is offering $10 off all orders of $75 and up. Not a bad coupon with summer starting, expecially if you need to stock up on food before boarding the pet during vacation or just need plenty for them to chew on if you’re lucky enough to plan a trip they can join you on. Click through the banner or any of the links to apply the coupon and the $10 discount will appear in your cart once your order total is over $75 (expires July 2, 2007).
$30 – Bates DuraShocks Hot Weather Boots, 82% Off
Bates boots aren’t a product you might expect to see on Hiker Deals, even though they are durable, lightweight, and comfortable boots. These boots are designed for long days of unplanned, joint-endangering moves – not the typical grab-pack-and-move-forward days of backpackers. Bates boots are typically found on the feet of hunters, police, and (if they’re smart) fire and trail crew workers. The average college kid on summer break trail-duty may not know about these, but my friends who are familiar with them either work year-round on a hot shot fire crew (ok, winters are for park cabin-repair and avalanche-chasing) or taking backcountry water and fish samples all over the country. They know the brand and a few other work-boot brands beat hiking boots for extra ankle support and lack of blisters when you’re swinging a mattock or crouched over a streambed for hours each day.
If you’re interested now, these hot-weather Bates boots are 82% off their regular $175 price, at the LA Police Gear shop.
$99.97 – Patagonia Inner Limits Backpack, 33% Off
On sale for just $99.97 at the Altrec gear shop, this Inner Limits backpack from Patagonia is designed as a low-profile, winter-geared pack that will make for a great long hike daypack or weekend pack for ultralight campers. The low-profile shape also means that it will keep gear closer to your back (which also means closer to your center of gravity) to help it stay put on rough terrain and make it more comfortable to carry than if it were in a half-empty big pack that lets the gear hang almost a foot behind your shoulders.
Currently available in blue and burnt red colors, Patagonia lifetime warranty included despite clearance pricing, and free shipping from Altrec.
$65 – Primus Multifuel Stove – Liquid & Canister Fuel-Compatible
The year the Primus Multifuel stove was introduced it made a huge splash at the Outdoor Retail Expo (the convention where all sorts of gear-store employees and gear junkies beg and borrow to get into each year) when Primus ran it for several days straight on 151-proof rum. A few other stoves could briefly burn “151″, but they would usually clog and need cleaning after just a few hours. In addition to burning on bad fuel and boiling a quart of water really fast, this stove can trim the flame down to a low simmer without sputtering out.
What was even more impressive was that Primus had the foresight to make the stove compatible with both liquid-fuel bottles and compressed gas cartridges. I know most backpackers spending more than a week in the backcountry or out in the winter prefer liquid fuel, but canisters are cheaper if you don’t go camping that often and always easier & safer for new campers to use.
The newest multifuel stoves add the ability to run on vegetable oil (aka: biodiesel) but the original Primus Multifuel is still a fast-cooking, durable stove worth a look when it’s priced at just $65 and ships for free.
BackcoutryOutlet Gear Sale “It’s all on sale”
The Campalicious sale at BackcountryOutlet means all of their already marked down gear has even bigger discounts now.
I try not to post any sales where I can’t say “everything is at least 30% off”, but in this case it really does look like they’ve knowcked an extra 10-20% off most things. For example: Salomon trail hiking shoes & Vasque approach shoes (in the climbing section, who knows why?) are 50% off, there’s a 40-degree sleeping bag from The North Face for 40% off, and even their Oakley sunglasses are 35% off & some Smith sunglasses for 50% off. I’ll link to specific deals and bigger-than-normal bargains here later. In the meantime, at least go gear browsing and remember BackcountryOutlet has free shipping on all $50+ orders.
Sierra Trading Post – Free Shipping on $75+ Coupon
Update: The August coupon is out and is good for 8% off all orders of $88+. All links in this message to Sierra Trading Post have been updated. August coupon valid until September 5th, 2007.
There’s a new Sierra Trading Post coupon out. It’s an even better deal than last month’s too: get free shipping on all orders of $75+. To use the coupon, just click through any link in this article and the discount will be applied to your cart automatically when your cart total reaches $75 or more. Coupon expires July 5th, 2007.
Eastbay Shoes Coupon, 20% Off of $99+
Eastbay is one of the best shoe and workout gear stores online. They’re even better becuase they have big, fat coupons: like this one for 20% off any order of $99+ (except some Nike stuff, sunglasses, and a few other up-market sport items).
Just enter coupon code LKS17699 at checkout for the discount (expires July 7, 2007).
Bridgedale Wool & Synthetic Hiking Socks on Sale at Altrec
Bridgedale is an sock company from Ireland that has really pushed the used of multiple weaves and mixed wool/synthetic yarns in socks. Most of their hiking and trail socks have thicker, softer pads under the foot and around the heel to cushion and stop rubbing in your boots, and they have thin, tough knits over bones and joints to help stop pressure-spots. The mix of wools and synthetic fibers in their yarns also balance between the wicking and absorption of wool and the evaporating softneww of synthetics.
The selection of sale models at Altrec.com is great too. There are Bridgedale socks (at least 20-30% off) for hiking, running, and day-to-day/casual use, plus free shipping on orders of $45+, and some expedition and skiing socks are 50-60% off.
$62.50 – Giro E2 Cycling Helmet Clearance
It’s been a while since I’ve posted any cycling gear on Hiker Deals and it’s been because there haven’t been any good prices worth mentioning.
Not any more: The Giro E2 cycling helmet is on sale now for $62.50, 50% off, at Sierra Trading Post. That is a bit expensive compared to some basic cycling helmets, but this is their high-end model with great ventilation and a really comfortable fit (and I mean that because I’ve had problems getting Bell and Limar helmets to stay comfortable for more than an hour at a time but not with any Giro helmets).
Also, if you’re going to be buying more than just the helmet, make sure to check out this click-to-apply free shipping at Sierra Trading Post coupon for all orders of $100 and up.
20 Tips: Backpacking, Hiking, and Outdoors with Children
Tahoe World posted a great review of the book “Monsters in the Woods: Backpacking with Children” (this link to Amazon.com) by Tim Hauserman. Though the book focuses on taking children backpacking and outdoors, it has even greater value when you consider that it’s really about getting children away from the TV and getting to spend time with their parents. The reviewer says the book is “an absolute delight” and will “inspire you to think about planning a hike or a short day trip sharing the surroundings with a child.”
I never actually went backpacking with my parents, but they did take me hiking and spent plenty of time with my brother, sister, some friends, and I on fishing trips and cabin-in-the-woods vacations. Those trips helped me be ready to take the next step to camping and backpacking on my own. What I learned on those trips and when backpacking also helped prepare me to survive life once I moved away more comfortably – when I arrived at college I was one of few students who could cook (on a stove or a hotplate) and knew what I didn’t need well enough to not burn through the credit cards buying “home living” accessories for my dorm room.
Invaluable whether you buy the book or not, the Tahoe World review includes the book’s list of “Twenty Quick Tips for Backpacking with Kids”. Whether you’re camping with children or friends remember tips #1, #6, and #11:
1. Don’t go too far, take it slow, enjoy the journey.
2. Explore, play, have fun —how far and where you go are secondary.
3. Sometimes it is the little things that can mess up a trip, so be sure everyone puts on sunscreen and reapplies it on a regular basis. Then keep children fed and hydrated.
4. Keep talking or play games while hiking to distract children from their potential misery.
5. Bring cards and a good lightweight paperback for a rainy day in the tent.
6. Quit the lesson while it is still fun.
7. Take a layover day at a nice lake.
8. Bring a friend. Our children love you but might have more fun with a friend.
9. Learn enough about backpacking and hiking to feel comfortable in the woods.
10. Don’t be discouraged after a tough sleepless night or when you cannot get things to work. Focus on joy.
11. Love the ones you are with, or at least learn from them. Watch experienced backpackers—copy them, as ideas are free.
12. Always leave an itinerary with a responsible party, and follow it.
13. Go on the Internet and find a star/satellite chart for the area you are visiting.
14. Be a parent, not a wimp. Be positive and supportive of your child. Deal with the situation and move on. Kids look to you for strength and fortitude, so fake it.
15. Tell bad puns and scary stories.
16. Understand that dirt is o.k. and it is part of the fun.
17. Do your part to protect the areas you backpack in.
18. When you put your bear canister away for the night, make sure to put it a good distance from your tent.
19. If you venture into high-altitude terrain and you live at low elevation, try to spend a day or two acclimating to the altitude before starting you trip. Take it easy the first day.
20. Laugh, giggle, guffaw, whoop, titter, and chuckle as much as possible.
via Two Heel Drive