2024-7-15

Author

AWO Life
July 17, 2024

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Happy blazing hot summer, adventurers! In this roundup, we’ve got everything from roof top tents to coolers, new all-terrain tires, vehicle organization, and some great new campsite accessories and gadgets!

  • Intrepid Geo SOLO RTT

  • Fox Factory Silverado

  • Cooper Discoverer Stronghold A/T

  • Yeti Roadie 15

  • Super Pacific HuckPacks

  • Joolca inflatable hot tub

  • AllTrails Park Pages

  • Nemo Stargaze EVO-X Chair

  • Insta360 GO3S

  • Nemo Field Tube

  • Athletic Brewing summer beers

Recent Stories

Intrepid Geo SOLO RTT for one

If you’re traveling solo but still want a roomy, comfortable, well-appointed place to snooze, the new Intrepid Geo SOLO rooftop tent is it. Measuring 88.5″ long, it’ll sleep the tallest folks, and it sets up in seconds. Lots of storage, windows, and accessories come standard, too! Read more...

Fox Factory Silverado is a 700hp beast!

No, you don’t need (or want) this for overlanding, but if you’re looking for a faster, louder, more audacious off-road truck than the F-150 Raptor, this is it. It’s about twice as expensive, but comes with all the latest Fox Live Valve and tons more tech. Read more...

Cooper Discoverer Stronghold AT

Looking for a more affordable all-terrain tire with good grip on a variety of surfaces and has the load ratings to handle fully built vehicles or towing and hauling? Cooper Tire now has it. Read more...

Yeti downsizes with new Roadie 15

The latest Yeti Roadie is also the smallest and most affordable, perfect for solo outings. It fits 22 cans, or 16lbs of ice, wine bottles, 2-liters, or some combination thereof. Read more...

Super Pacific HuckPack Duffel & SBO

We all need better organization for road trips, car camping, and the vanlife. Super Pacific’s new kits help make that happen. Read more...

Joolca lets you take a hot tub anywhere

It goes anywhere, inflates in minutes, is ready to soak in under two hours, and stays hot for days. Or use it as an ice bath. Read more...

Gear, Gadgets & Tech

AllTrails adds Park Pages for Local, State & National Parks

AllTrails has added Park Pages for every National Park, plus lots of state and local parks, too, giving you detailed info on trails, amenities, hours, prices, and more, including reviews and trail recommendations.

You’ll have to subscribe to get it, but the latest update also added redesigned trail pages that are easier to read, live activities & group updates, collaborative planning, and Open AI-assisted recommendations if you just can’t figure out what to do.

Nemo Stargaze EVO-X camp rocking chair

The Nemo Stargaze reclining camping chair is pretty awesome, but it requires a few seconds of tent pole-like assembly. If that’s too much, and you don’t mind a few extra ounces, the upcoming Stargaze EVO-X (shown) is a folding version of the reclining rocking chair that requires no assembly.

Insta360 GO3S is the world’s smallest 4K action cam

The Insta360 GO3S 4K gives their micro action camera a resolution bump and lets it shoot a whopping 200fps slow motion. It’s now waterproof to 10m, and works with Apple’s Find My, so you can locate the tiny camera anywhere.

It keeps the flip-up screen on the Action Pod, which doubles as a remote control with live view, making it easy to frame shots from anywhere. The camera is magnetic, so you can stick it on their neck pendant, your fridge, fence poles, etc. Available two-prong mounts work with all standard action cam accessories, too. MSRP is $399, bundles available.

Nocs Field Tube premium monocular

Binoculars are big, and, honestly, kinda hard to get dialed. But monoculars are small and light and easy to use, and the new Nocs Field Tube is a waterproof, durable option that’s perfect for active adventures (or spotting routes).

Available in 8x and 10x magnification options, they have anti-reflection and anti-scratch lenses, are nitrogen filled to prevent fogging, and IPX7 waterproof. Textured rubber exterior and wrist strap make them easy to hold onto. Also works great as a telephoto for smartphone cams. MSRP $125.

Limited edition Athletic Brewing summer beers are here

Looking to stay sharp while kicking back at the end of the day’s travel? Athletic Brewing has five seasonal/limited edition non-alcoholic beers that look tasty. Choose from Layback Lime & Salt, NZ IPA (sessionable New Zealand-style IPA), Chelada Amara (like a Michelada), Birra Chiarra (Italian IPA, very light), and Raspberry Sour (which might already be sold out).

There’s also a new-ish Downwinder Gose in the regular rotation. I’m a fan, and they have a new “Athletic Club” membership that gets you unlimited $10.99 six-packs for a year with free shipping over $20…which is kind of a better deal than their subscription program, so I’m probably switching. Use this link for an extra $10 off your first order.

Field Notes

Big Deals

Wandering Thoughts

I just got back from six weeks in Japan, the highlight of which was seven days of bikepacking in the Kii Peninsula, south of Osaka.

My son and I had a plan, but once we hit the ground we made constant adjustments.

I mapped the original route to avoid big roads almost entirely, but that meant an insane (40k+ feet) amount of climbing. I was prepared for it to be a sufferfest; some real Type 2 fun.

Fortunately, Japan’s roads are stellar, and away from the big cities they’re also extremely lightly trafficked. So, we were able to cut that elevation down by half and streamline the route. We ended up with about the same mileage, it was just more enjoyable.

The luxury of “overlanding” by bike was that we could shoot off on side quests, stop and take pics or explore by foot, and snack at any little spot we wanted. We took full advantage, and you can check a small fraction of the photos & experiences on my personal Instagram.

Each day, we basically finished by chasing daylight to our campsites. That didn’t leave a lot of time for hanging out, but we were pretty baked by all of the riding with loaded bikes, so it was fine. But it added a small element of urgency to the tail end of each day’s ride.

That, on top of re-routing on the fly, asking for help via Google Translate, and making plenty of gambles on whether or not some restaurants would be open , added …something… to the experience.

Personally, I like knowing that we can figure it out. That we could manage a few extra miles after an already long day. And that we’re fine refueling with weird food now and then.

And I love that I had a travel partner who could put up with that, too. It’s rare, I think, but when you find someone that shares your idea of what a “good vacation” is, that’s special.

I have a lot of friends, but only a few who I think would repeatedly tolerate that sort of mild stress in pursuit of undefined and unguaranteed adventure.

There are two takeaways:

First, if you find a friend that A) you can stand to be around 24/7 under stressful situations and B) do so for more than a day or two, hold on to them. It’s special.

Second, don’t be afraid to figure stuff out on the fly. Yes, I planned a lot for this trip, but also wasn’t married to that plan. I left a few ends intentionally loose, assuming we’d be able to figure it out as needed. It usually works out fine, and when it doesn’t, it’s a helluva story to tell.

The result was a trip that exceeded my expectations, and I think a lot of that was because we didn’t know how everything would turn out in advance.

Here’s to figuring things out on the fly, and to friends who’ll put up with that.

Cheers,

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This Adventurous Way of Life newsletter is a periodic recap of the best new gear, gadgets, and tech for those who dig the outdoors, camping, cooking, overlanding, vanlife, and the adventurous active lifestyle. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Friday.

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