We’re having a bit of a warm period, but you never know when you’ll need down jackets and cold weather sleeping bags. Going on a holiday, maybe? PSE just released the lightest compound bow ever and new watches from Suunto bring effective satellite navigation to your wrist. This is What’s New Outside.
New Gore-Tex Jackets: We made an attempt at explaining Gore’s new C-Knit backer to you last week. Here’s 10 jackets for men and women employing the new technology, as well as a good look at their technical merits. [The Gear Caster]
The Quest For Better DWR: Durable Water Repellant coatings are a difficult thing to get right, but are vital to the performance of hard and soft shells alike. Here, Patagonia walks you through some of the technicalities that make them so finicky and explains its pursuit for more eco-friendly options. [The Cleanest Line]
Sleeping Bag Buyer’s Guide: Backpacker has a good writeup on the ins and outs of sleeping bags, just as the weather starts get cold. If you’re shopping, start here, but it’s also a good explanation for everyone so you can make more informed choices in the future. [Backpacker]
Zion National Park And Canyoneering Permits: Following the deaths of canyoneers there last month, the National Park Service is trying to figure out how it can make exploring Zion safer, while still allowing access to its unique landscape. [Outside]
Lightest Compound Bow Ever: This new PSE Carbon Air weighs just 1.45kg, lighter than my Full Throttle. It’s nearly as fast too, with a 340fps IBO speed. That’s gonna make longer holds and high volume shooting less fatiguing, while the carbon frame should reduce vibrations and make the bow even quieter. [PSE Archery]
Suunto Navigators: Suunto is adding GPS/GLONASS navigation to its great line of outdoors smart watches. Looks like a great rival to our smart watch of choice, the Garmin Fenix 3. Hopefully we’ll be able to test one soon. [Suunto]
What We’re Up To: I flew to Wyoming for the weekend to test Weatherby’s revised Mark V rifle and its new 6.5-300 cartridge. Flew home yesterday and cooked antelope heart bruschetta for dinner. You’ll read more about all that soon. Meanwhile, Chris is on his way to Nepal, we’re he’s going to spend two months rebuilding a rural village decimated by the earthquake. We’ll be tracking his progress.
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