Hiking Gifts That Don't End Up in the Cupboard
Mowser's hiking gift list: the smaller gear he uses on every trip, from a headlamp that's never run flat to his cooking kit, gloves and drink bottle.
If someone in your life is into hiking, buying them a gift is hard. Get it wrong, and it ends up sitting in the cupboard. This is the list I'd hand my wife: the smaller gear that's changed how I pack over the last couple of years, in the same order as the video.
One tip first. Leave the big stuff, the pack, the tent, the boots, to the hiker. That has to fit them. Stick to the smaller things they'll use on every trip.
Pretty much everything here I bought with my own money. Kathmandu sponsored the video and sent me the XT gear free. The Pika Lid was given to me. Nitecore and On Track have sent me gear in the past. Some buttons are affiliate links, so I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
A headlamp that's never died
The Nitecore NU25. I've had it for at least two or three years now.
It goes up to 400 lumens, double my old Petzl Bindi, and it's about two thirds of the price. Nitecore make a few versions with different head straps. This is the light one, and it's the one I keep reaching for.
Field noteIt just keeps coming in my pack, trip after trip, and it's never run flat on me.
A small cooking kit
These days we each take our own stove and our own tent. So I take an MSR Pocket Rocket 2 and a small Toaks 750 pot. The stove and a small gas canister fit inside the pot.
Pika Lid. It clips onto the pot and stays in place, unlike a lot of the lids that come with these pots. I can pour easily, and when the pot's hot I use my spoon as a handle. It's not game changing. It's just really useful.
A mini Bic lighter. It goes inside the lid. If you want a tiny gift, it's a nice stocking filler.
Fire Maple FMC-XK6. When it's me and my wife, I take this bigger pot instead. It's a bit more solid, still not that heavy, and it works well with the Pocket Rocket.
Any one of these makes a good gift. Together they're a full cooking setup.
Field noteThe Pocket Rocket actually sat in the cupboard for a couple of years. Now it comes on pretty much every trip.
A shoulder pocket for the phone
It's where my phone lives, right there to take a photo, take a video or look at the map. I've had this one for about six years, and it still looks basically new.
The only thing I don't like is the attachment. On a really steep climb, or pushing through scrub, it can unclip. It's never fallen off, but you hear it go, and you have to clip it back in.
Field noteIf you hike with your phone, I'm yet to find a better shoulder pocket than this one.
Gloves I talk about all the time
The Showa Temres. I first took them on the same trip as the shoulder pocket, and they've both come on every trip since.
Hundreds of you have asked me where to buy them. The availability comes and goes. They're normally on Amazon, and some Australian gear stores have them sometimes. One viewer emailed me to say he'd finally found a pair in a shop in Launceston. Another bought three pairs from the US, for himself and a family member.
Field noteIf you can get them, they're well worth it.
Kathmandu XT Series
Kathmandu sponsored the video, and they sent me this gear free of charge. I'm not obliged to put it on my list. I just think it's good.
The DeltaPeak t-shirt and the Cordura LT shorts are the ones I'm absolutely loving. I wear them all the time. The shorts have no liner, they're light, and you can thread the drawstrings so they sit on the inside, not poking out the front.
Field noteIt's been a struggle to find many faults. Anything I've found has been really minor.
A drink bottle
After maybe twenty years of using a hydration bladder with a straw, I'm reaching for a bottle in the side of my pack now. It's the Mazama M!GO.
I really like the colour options, and I got a sipper cap that screws on the top, which you can get as well.
Field noteI'm even using it in the car now.
Food, if you know what they like
Before a big trip I don't always have time to dehydrate enough of my own food, so I'll often have a fallback, and I've used On Track Meals a fair bit. The slow cooked Australian steak is my favourite, and the coconut ginger chicken was really good as well.
On Track have sent me some of their meals, but I've bought plenty of them myself too. Food is a bit of a gamble as a gift, so only buy it if you know what they like.
More from my pack
These weren't in the video, but they're all from my own pack lists: the Suunto A-10 compass, the Hydrapak Flux bottle, Patagonia Capilene thermal bottoms, the Zenbivy pillow, Sea to Summit Quagmire gaiters, the Helinox Ground Chair and the Hyperlite camera pod.
FAQ
If you only buy one thing, make it the Nitecore NU25. It's never run flat on me.