Hiking

Interest in outdoor recreation has soared since the Covid-19 pandemic. It's no wonder, then, that manufacturers launched innovative products throughout 2022 to help athletes go farther, faster and deeper into the backcountry. Here are the highlights.

The newly launched Collapsible Pour Over coffer maker presents as a particularly practical solution to backcountry brewing, offering the enjoyment of a classic drip coffee and packing completely flat for easy transport.

The ouTask lantern has been designed for after-dark adventurers who need more flexibility than a regular head torch, flashlight or overhead lantern can offer – and features a telescoping light pole, built-in tripod and omnidirectional light head.

Nothing stops a relaxing hike dead in its tracks quite like an ankle-crumpling misstep. The high-rising Terrein Ascent boot from German startup Terrein with its ankle-stabilizing piston is designed to make such incidents a problem of the past.

Vaude has taken the next steps in "Leave No Trace" backpacking, simplifying a backpack down to a single material and 3D-printed components. Billed as the world's first recyclable backpack, the Novum 3D pack previews a more eco-friendly form of gear.

When sourcing drinking water in the great outdoors it can pay to take no chances, and a new line of bottles co-developed by CamelBak and Lifestraw is one designed to keep risk of contamination to a minimum.

Dutch designer Arnaud Desseyn has graced our pages with a couple of interesting portable stove designs before. The FireTower is his latest creation, featuring a neat rocket stove design that folds flat and slides into a book-sized bag for easy carry.

There are times when less is definitely more, and loading up a backpack for a trek into the wilderness is certainly one of those times. Here's a handful of compact camp stoves that can get you cooking with materials that can be sourced on your arrival.

Many hikers use trekking poles, plus they carry a folding camp chair in their backpack. The TrekChair is designed to both save space and reduce weight, by integrating the poles into the chair's frame.

For two decades, US company Jetboil has specialized in portable stoves for adventurous souls and has now launched what it calls the lightest backpacking stove ever made, the 7.1-oz (200-g) Jetboil Stash.

Nine years ago, we heard about a towable backpack setup known as the Monowalker Hikingtrailer. Well, a new version is now being crowdfunded, and it's claimed to be sturdier, more adjustable, and capable of carrying even more gear.

On December 25, 2011, a cyclone destroyed Norway's Tungestølen Tourist Cabin, which had served hikers for over a century. Commissioned to create its replacement, Snøhetta designed a cluster of cabins that are shaped to mitigate the wind's effects.