As we put together to welcome in 2024, we’re taking time to look again at the place we’ve traveled. Particularly, we’re taking a look at the place the world-renowned Mild Toes weblog has taken us over these final 12 months.
Our purpose is to make Mild Toes our group’s go-to vacation spot for uplifting interviews with outside fans, helpful suggestions and tips for the path, adventuresome tales from the backcountry, useful gear highlights, and all issues light-weight backpacking. Because of visitor contributors, skilled interviews, and our top-shelf, in-house artistic brainstorming workforce, we’ve revealed some fairly enjoyable content material this 12 months, if we do say so ourselves.
To find out the perfect Mild Toes blogs from 2023, we used a extremely scientific course of that concerned wanting on the variety of views every of our articles obtained this 12 months and mixing that with an total vibe test. Following this thorough evaluate, we’re excited to current you with the highest 15 Mild Toes weblog posts from 2023!
We kicked off the 12 months with an academic piece on the seven ideas of Depart No Hint (LNT). Curiosity within the open air has continued to extend every year, and we wished to supply some accessible data on how we are able to all scale back our impacts on the surroundings whereas we discover. Try the article for a historical past of LNT ideas, who ought to use them, the place to make use of them, and particulars on every.
This 12 months, we have been excited to launch our Quick Kumo 36 backpack, a pack made for path working, fastpacking, and record-setting. To have a good time the most recent member of our line, we additionally kicked off a weblog sequence all about fastpacking, together with this introductory weblog concerning the sport.
Our fastpacking weblog sequence additionally included three visitor posts from record-setting fastpacker Jeff Garmire. He supplied tales about his background with fastpacking, suggestions for rookies, and different ideas on learn how to make fastpacking give you the results you want based mostly by yourself private objectives.
The Gossamer Gear workforce begins getting enthusiastic about our April Idiot’s Day weblog months upfront every year. After an extended listing of questionable concepts, this 12 months we settled on helium-filled backpacks. As a result of why take much less when helium can permit you to take extra?
For Mom’s Day, we shared a visitor submission from Jennifer Stoneking-Stewart, who has hiked 1,000+ miles along with her two kiddos, now 8 and 10. The weblog was as lovable because it was informative. Jennifer detailed the “ten necessities for teenagers” whereas on path and mirrored on a few of her favourite recollections from their time collectively within the open air.
We launched you to our phenomenal design workforce this 12 months in an interview with Greg and Carrie Fritsch. We’re happy with our small, family-oriented method to every Gossamer Gear product. You may as well be taught extra about this father–daughter design duo in a brief movie we launched about them earlier this 12 months.
Relying on the place you reside, you would possibly encounter extra rain throughout the spring and summer time months. Wet hikes throughout hotter climate require particular planning, so we shared some suggestions to assist maintain our group adventuring all through popup rainstorms within the spring and summer time months.
Courageous Trails is a nonprofit working to scale back boundaries that LGBTQ+ youth face to getting outdoors. Via quite a lot of outdoor-focused management actions, they assist LGBTQ+ youth construct group and profit from the optimistic results of time spent in nature. We interviewed Thursday Sadler, who developed and coordinates the group’s backpacking program, to be taught extra about their work.
Our weblog editor’s (me!) thorough, private evaluate of the Crotch Pot drove roughly a million gross sales of the treasured backcountry kitchen merchandise. I imply, kind of that many, ya know? We did obtain one Instagram remark about it that stated it was the primary evaluate this particular person had learn that truly made them wish to attempt it. Our weblog editor will maintain onto that go with for the remainder of her life, so thanks @johnpriddle. Additionally, it created many confused questions from her relations and shut mates.
It was actual sizzling in Texas this summer time, y’all. Ky Harkey, the chief adventurer at LoneStarParks.com, who has hung out as a NOLS backpacking chief, Wilderness First Support teacher, and director of interpretation for Texas State Parks, wrote a visitor put up for Mild Toes on learn how to maintain adventuring within the warmth safely. We’re grateful for the break within the warmth and know we’ll flip to this weblog for good reminders come subsequent summer time.
We have been excited to launch the DCF Whisper ultralight shelter this 12 months. This spacious, storm- and bug-proof shelter weighs simply 9.8 ounces and is our founder’s go-to set-up. Glen wrote a visitor weblog for Mild Toes sharing how he developed this design over time. There are solely 100 of those restricted version shelters out there.
Our light-weight tarp shelters, the Solo Tarp and the Twinn Tarp, are nice for backcountry sleeping, however we wished to spotlight a few of their different makes use of this 12 months too. So, our workforce gathered collectively to listing 21 very sensible makes use of for the tarps that our group of light-weight, multi-use fans can discover. We additionally determined to launch the #GGTarpChallenge. In the event you can show to us that you simply’ve used the Solo Tarp or Twinn Tarp for all 21 of those makes use of, attain out to our workforce for a particular prize bundle!
This 12 months, we obtained to interview Bryan Conant, the chief director of Los Padres Forest Affiliation (LPFA), and Paul Cronshaw, one in every of our fantastic model ambassadors and an LPFA volunteer, concerning the group’s work. Their ideas impressed all of us to search out extra methods within the new 12 months to assist to our public lands. You may as well be taught extra about their annual used gear fundraising sale, which gives numerous Gossamer Gear merchandise at nice costs!
We additionally obtained to interview Gabe Vasquez, a Marine Corps veteran and lengthy distance hiker, about his work to help veterans’ psychological well being. Via quite a lot of outside adventures, Gabe has raised greater than $40,000 for Semper Fi & America’s Fund (SFF), a nonprofit that cares for the nation’s critically wounded, ailing, and injured service members, veterans, and army households.
This 12 months, we launched a brand new daypack, the Loris 25. We additionally up to date our standard Vagabond Jet to recycled material and launched the Minimalist 19 in our fan-favorite colorwave, tropical mist. Having the precise daypack alongside on your adventures could make an enormous distinction. We put this weblog collectively to spotlight the options to search for in a daypack and evaluate 5 daypack choices we provide at Gossamer Gear.
Thank You and Glad New Yr!
From all of us at Gossamer Gear, we wish to categorical how a lot we respect you being part of our group. You made the journey a fantastic one this 12 months and we’re excited to get to maintain climbing with you into the grand vistas of the long run. As we shut out the 12 months, we want you all of the happiest of trails in 2024!
Be sure to share your adventures with us by tagging tagging Gossamer Gear on social media (@gossamergear) and utilizing the hashtag #takelessdomore. And you probably have an thought for a visitor weblog, be at liberty to succeed in out to korrin@gossamergear.com!