Review: Black Diamond Ion LED Headlamp

Review: Black Diamond Ion LED Headlamp (2014)

Today we write you from the bottom of a dark cave, surrounded by bats, wearing Black Diamond's newest iteration of their Ion headlamp. It's cold and weird down here, but visibility is high and spirits are soaring thanks to BD's new microlamp offering. The Ion headlamp was designed to be a "just-in-case" backup headlamp, boasting stripped down size and minimal features with full lumen power.

Black Diamond Ion Headlamp 2014

The Ion underwent a total overhaul from its 2013 model. The 2013 Ion model, all things considered, looks and feels like some corporate-branded swag from an industry conference. It kinda feels cheap. The brand new Black Diamond Ion Headlamp is a whole different beast.

Lightweight, stripped-down, and with brand new touch-sensor controls, the lamp is a pretty bold move on Black Diamond's part. It's the smallest headlamp we've ever seen. People call it a "micro" headlamp, and we think that's accurate. The whole lamp is not significantly bigger than the AAA batteries inside it. It's about the size of a golf ball, if you squeezed the golf ball into a rectangle shape.

The 2014 Black Diamond Ion Headlamp has a unique touch control system that is unlike any other lamp we've seen. It has several light settings on it that are all controlled by touch, instead of traditional buttons. You swipe your finger across the surface of the front of the light, and various different swipe motions have different effects.

The 80-lumen Ion has seven different light modes: white light, white strobe, white adjustable dim, red light, red strobe, red adjustable dim, and lock. All of these modes are accessible with different touch motions on the face of the lamp. The touch motions are described in detail in the Ion's instruction manual, and it will probably take you about 15 minutes to get comfortable with all of them. Without the tactile feedback of a clicky button, you have to just know the commands. Don't expect to be able to operate it with winter gloves on, by the way. 

The battery life on this headlamp is really short. We got about 12 hours of intermittent use out of it; maybe less. It's only got two AAA batteries in it, so we didn't expect it to last forever. After testing all the touch controls at home, it only lasted for one night of camping. I'd keep some spare batteries around if you plan to use it often. 

The Black Diamond Ion 2014 is a lightweight, compact emergency headlamp that will far exceed your expectations. Its performance is great for such a small lamp and its beam looks like one from a much bigger lamp. That said, don't expect to make this your full-time lamp. 

The Bottom Line

Black Diamond Ion Headlamp ($22.95 on Amazon) is a small, lightweight headlamp that functions as a backup to your full-size headlamp. It provides ample light for camp tasks or night climbing, but don't expect it to match your regular headlamp in brightness or battery life. The price is right for this little guy, though. It's small and cheap enough to carry as a spare in your camping kit for emergencies. The touch control system is innovative and intuitive once you're used to it. 

Ariel M. Castro
Rugged Innovations

Review: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

Review: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

A headlamp is an absolute necessity in a climber's kit. It's one of those gadgets that you don't need at all... until you do. And when you do it's usually a sketchball situation where you're glad you have the headlamp. Our team had just such an experience lately and were fortunate enough to have a Black Diamond Spot Headlamp ($29.95 on Amazon) for the job.

Team RI was doing a leisurely 7 pitch trad route at First Creek Slabs with a team of four just outside of Red Rocks Canyon in Las Vegas -- It was supposed to be a quick day trip. A three hour touuur.... Lady Luck (5.7) is a great moderate slab haul with a huge variety of climbing: big hollow huecos, forgiving slab with balancey moves, some exposed arete areas, a couple of juicy fist crack sections, and basically everything you'd want out of an afternoon of moderate multipitch climbing. The descent, on the other hand, was a total bear. We ended up getting lost and rapping in the dark. You probably saw that coming.

Enter the hero of our story, Black Diamond's Spot Headlamp. Two of us on the team had this headlamp and the other two of us had some generic crappy ones from Wal-Mart. We going to credit the Black Diamond Spot Headlamp with keeping us from ending up as hamburger meat at the bottom of a sparsely-traveled sandstone cliff. We'd like to thank all the appropriate deities and BD for keeping us safe for the umpteenth time.

Black Diamond Spot Headlamp in action.

The lamp itself is BD's entry level device and the cheapest one they make. The 2013 model is for sale at $29.97, and it's one of the best value headlamps you'll find. Even though it's Black Diamond's lowest model, the headlamp performs better than either of the department store headlamps our team had. It's bright. We used it on our abseil fiasco and it allowed us to spot features and anchors in the pitch black of Nevada night from around 50 feet.

Since it's the entry level model, it doesn't have much in the way of features, but we're okay with that. At the end of the day, your headlamp has one job and must do it well. The Black Diamond Spot cranks out 90 lumens, which isn't as much as more expensive models, but it was plenty for pitch black rapping misadventures. Maybe if you're a kayaker or mountain biker, you might want a brighter lamp. For a climber, BD's 90 lumen light is plenty. The headlamp has several different LEDs on it, including a red one that is designed to preserve your night vision. The main light set has a fader which allows you to turn down the brightness. We could see that being useful in dusky situations or when you're trying to infiltrate an enemy compound or something. 

We totally didn't die. Thanks BD!

The hot

The BD Spot Headlamp is an affordable multi-lumen fiend from one of the most trusted names in alpine sports. It's $29 bucks. That's cheaper than a sandwich and a beer at a ski lodge. It's an incredibly high-value head lamp with great performance and a long battery life. 

The not

It's hard to find any gripes about it. It's a stripped down lamp without many features. It doesn't have rechargeable batteries, it doesn't have an over-the-head strap, and it won't call you back after a first date. It's 90 lumens. If you can find a better lamp for the price, let us know! 

The bottom line

The Black Diamond Spot Headlamp ($29.97 on Amazon) is a little powerhouse of a lamp at a great price point. We credit it on saving our hides on multiple occasions. If you want a durable, powerful lamp for a low price, look no further. The Black Diamond Spot Headlamp is a great value and doesn't skimp on performance.

Be safe, 

Ariel Castro

Rugged Innovations

Review: Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack

Review: Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack

Whether you live and breathe all-day multipitch trad epics or prefer to spend those hot, sunny afternoons projecting huge boulders, one thing is clear: you better bring some water. Hydration is critical to your performance as an athlete. 

We picked up the Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack recently and have taken it on three big trips so far -- a multipitch adventure in Red Rock Canyon, a sport climbing day in Owens River Gorge, and an afternoon of bouldering in the Buttermilks. We put some serious miles on this backpack, both vertical and horizontal. Here's what we found.

Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack camping in Owens River Gorge

One of the first things you notice about the bag is the quality of workmanship. From the seams on the zippers to the rough ripstop material; Osprey has put a lot of thought into making this backpack. It feels like you could drop it off a cliff and it would be waiting for you at the bottom without a scratch. It's just solid. 

Dog for scale.

The bag is covered in features. The front of the bag has loop zippers instead of pull tabs, which make opening easier. The zippers have exterior plastic seams, which protect them from warping and increase water resistance. The top front has small loop for mounting your helmet, a mesh pocket with snap closure for quick access goods, and a cinch for holding ski poles if that's your thing (I use it to strap down a light sweater for when the winds pick up). The hip belt has pockets on either side for snacks, cell phones, etc. The very front pocket has a key clip and separate mesh compartments for small goodies. The chest strap has a magnetic clasp for attaching to the hydration hose that is great for keeping the hose free of your hands but accessible when you need it. The only problem with the magnet here is that when you put the backpack on the ground, it picks up small iron and metal flakes from the dirt. After a day of bopping around in the desert your magnet is covered in metal flakes. 

Osprey Hydraulics reservoir

The 3-liter "Hydraulics" water reservoir is unique and of much higher quality than any Camelbak or other brand I've ever seen. The back-facing side has a stiff internal frame that matches the inside of the backpack like a puzzle piece. The internal frame of the water reservoir keeps it snug and distributes the weight more evenly along your back than a Camelbak hydration sleeve, which just reverts to a long cylinder and slides around inside your backpack. My one complaint about the water reservoir is that it can be a MONSTER to get open. Maybe some sand got into the thread of the cap of it? It's hard to open, even for a climber... and hand strength is kind of our thing. It will test your pinch strength, that's for sure. Another small nitpick is that if you forget to move the mouthpiece into the "locked" position, it can drip a little. Just don't forget.

One Manta 20 please, on the rocks

The back panel is brilliantly designed. There's a curved internal frame with ridges that allow airflow and then an inch-deep space followed by a tight mesh that touches your back. The result is a small meshed window between your back and the bag that allows air to flow freely and keep your back cool. Bicyclists take note!

There are several straps that are used to cinch the bag down closer to your body. This is designed to lower the surface area of the bag to reduce wind resistance and to keep the weight of the bag closer to your center of mass which increases your stability. I've noticed that you can also use the straps to clip other items to your bag. I like to cinch my helmet down close to the bag so it doesn't bounce around. 

There is a rain cover hidden in a secret compartment in the bottom. It takes about ten seconds to deploy and has the added advantage of being bright red -- great for visibility on the cloudy, dark days when you'd be most likely to need a rain cover. It's removable, which is great because we live in Nevada where yearly rainfall is usually around ten inches and the days when it does rain are usually just a light sprinkling. Nevadans just don't really need rain covers. Still, the rain cover is a nice detail and I can see it being quite handy in weathery areas. 

Deploying the rain cover on the Osprey Manta 20 Hydration Pack

Bottom line: 

The Osprey Men's Manta 20 Hydration Pack ($139 on Amazon) is about as advanced a backpack as I have ever seen. It packs so many useful features into 1220 cubic inches that it will take you a few days just to figure out how to use it to its potential. As a climber, the pack's main pocket is just big enough to hold a pair of climbing shoes, a harness, and chalk. If you're planning on using it for more than a basic climbing day, you may want to upgrade to the Osprey Men's Manta 28 Hydration Pack ($149 on Amazon) or the Osprey Men's Manta 36 Hydration Pack ($159 on Amazon), which are only slightly more expensive but hold much more. The pack's water reservoir holds three liters, which is enough to keep one person hydrated for a full day of hard athletic activity. I highly recommend this bag for trad climbers that need a lightweight day bag, boulderers who are looking for a all-in-one session pack, and bicyclists who want a low profile hydration bag for long rides.

Review: Grand Trunk Parachute Nylon Double Hammock

Review: Grand Trunk Hammock

We spend our weeks working hard and our weekends scaling mountains, exploring forests, and otherwise causing a ruckus in mother nature. It's rare that we have time to just do nothing. We shouldn't neglect the importance of nothingness, though. The American Psychological Association's research shows that relaxing in nature (specifically while looking at trees) can actually make you smarter! We're not making this up. Go stare at trees for a while.

Relaxing with Carl, RI's kitty mascot.

At Rugged Innovations, one of our favorite methods of tree-staring involves putting up the hammock on a sunny afternoon and kicking back with a glass of wine. There's something about being suspended in the air surrounded by nature that brings a sense of total relaxation.

For just such occasions, we have the Grand Trunk Double Hammock. This hammock blows your grandpa's woven cotton hammock out of the water. No contest. First of all, the entire thing is made out of parachute grade nylon that will not degrade like the cotton hammocks of the past. My kids will be using my Grand Trunk Double Hammock long after I've bought the farm. It just feels solid.

Our research indicates it comfortably fits two people and a cat.  It's got the largest portable hammock bed space on the market and it's rated to 400 lbs. You could throw a party in there. The entire Grand Trunk hammock fits into an attached carrying bag that is roughly the size of a football. It's great for space conscious camping in dry weather, because all you need is the hammock and a sleeping bag. The attached carrying bag hangs off the side of the hammock once it's set up, which is great for holding sunglasses, camera, cell phone, or in our case, two bottles of Pinot Noir... It's a free country.


Grand Trunk also carries a pretty wide variety of other hammock and camping gear, like super lightweight hammocks, hammocks with sleeping bags built in, mosquito netting covers for hammocks - you name it. The Grand Trunk Double Hammock ($64.99 on their site) comes with the hammock, attached carrying case, high tensile hanging ropes, two nautical-grade carabiners, and the promise of a tranquil weekend.

Relax,

Ariel Castro
Rugged Innovations

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received the Parachute Nylon Double Hammock for free from Grand Trunk as coordinated by Deep Creek PR an Outdoor Retailer Public Relations Company in consideration for review publication.

Review: Marmot Limelight 3P Tent

Review: Marmot Limelight 3P Tent

Marmot Limelight 3P Tent

The Rugged Innovations team takes to the woods bi-weekly to hunt Bigfoot and re-apply our campfire musk (it's an aphrodisiac). We picked up a Marmot Limelight 3P ($278.95 on Amazon) tent for the trip and went to Boca Lake in California. I'm going to spoil this whole review right now: we didn't find any sasquatches. 

The Marmot Limelight 3P is really easy to put up. If you've looked at new tents by North Face, REI, and other outdoor manufacturers lately you'll notice they're going towards more complicated tents with more features, more poles, and more crap. The Marmot Limelight 3P cuts the frills. You won't find arched doorways and flying buttresses here. It's a rock-solid tent with rock-solid features. 

The tent package includes a footprint, tent, and rainfly that all go up quickly. There's a lot of gear in the package so it can be challenging to roll back into the bag. The poles are sturdy. One minor annoyance is that the two cross poles are permanently connected in the middle. It can make tear-down a bit complicated - once you unclip the poles, you have to take apart a 30-foot aluminum crucifix, one end at a time. Speaking of poles, I really like that the poles clip to the tent. Lots of tents make you slide the poles through a sleeve. These poles just clip right onto the top of the tent. It's quick and easy. The entire setup takes 10 minutes. 

Stakes -- totally unrugged. 

Unless you're me. I must channel some kind of pent-up white collar rage when putting in tent stakes because I bent FOUR of them trying to hammer them into the hardpacked clay with the butt of my hatchet. What are the stakes made out of? Pudding? Holy crap. Good thing it comes with eight stakes or my tent would've hitched a thermal and been in the troposphere by nightfall. I recommend buying some heavier-duty stakes if you're camping somewhere with hard topsoil. 

The innards of the Marmot Limelight 3P are comfortable and spacious for two people. Three people would fit but would be very snug. This Tauntaun will keep you cozy all night, Luke. As you can see in the picture above, it is extremely well-ventilated. The ventilation is great for hot summer camping and for preventing condensation in the morning. If you choose to attach the rainfly it provides little vestibules to protect gear that you don't want to keep in the tent (wet boots, wet dogs, etc). The rainfly has a window in the side so you can spend all night looking at... darkness? It's a pointless feature. I wish the window were on the top for stargazing.

The Marmot Limelight 3P Tent At a Glance:

The Hot: 

• Light, airy, well-ventilated
• Very easy to pitch
• Sturdy in weather
• Footprint included
• Great looking!

The Not:

• Flimsy stakes
• A bit expensive
• Difficult to pack up into carrying bag

The Bottom Line: 

The Marmot Limelight 3P tent ($278.95 on Amazon) is a great investment for a weekend camper. It's one of the easiest tents to pitch we've ever seen. It's a car trip or day trip kind of tent -- backpackers will want to choose something lighter and smaller when packed. It looks great and has every feature that you will want in a weekend camping tent... and probably a few you wouldn't have thought of. While it's a bit pricier than alternatives, I am definitely happy with the product and feel like I've gotten my money's worth.

Be safe.

Ariel Castro
Rugged Innovations

p.s. After writing this review, I was contacted by a Marmot rep, who mailed me a new set of tent stakes for free. I must say, I am impressed with their customer service!

Review: Adayak's Organic Cotton T-Shirts

Review: Adayak's Organic Cotton T-Shirt

Adayak Organic Cotton T-Shirt

Adayak is an apparel company with a strong focus on outdoor ethic and conservancy. They've been operating since 2010 and they really deliver on that focus: they've joined up with the Nature Conservancy to run a campaign where they donate $1 for every t-shirt sold to the Plant A Billion Trees fund.

We talked to David, the founder of Adayak, and he was nice enough to send us one of their 100% hand-spun Brazilian organic cotton t-shirts. I took the shirt out for a day of outdoor climbing and had a few thoughts.

First of all, the organic cotton material is great on a hot day. It's a thin, summerweight cotton shirt that is light and breathable, but the construction is rugged enough to withstand some rock-related tugging and abrasions. I'm a clumsy climber and things get bumpy sometimes.  My closet is the result of decades of sartorial natural selection. Weak clothing gets destroyed. Only the strong survive!

The color of the shirt is ideal for climbing. As a climber, wearing dark clothing while climbing in the High Sierras is a big no-no. The Adayak shirt is a nice light tan color and it has found its way into my climbing day rotation. The design on the shirt is pretty cool, too!  I am not sure who the figure is; it looks like Tommy Caldwell rappelling to me. It may be hard to tell from the pictures, but the image looks like it is hand-painted. It's already become one of my favorite shirts.

If you're looking for a new shirt or hoodie -- either for yourself or for a climber in your life -- I suggest avoiding the big manufacturers and supporting Adayak's small business. Their products have fun designs, the quality is great, and the prices are reasonable. Adayak's conservation efforts will help protect our crags and valleys for the next generation of explorers.

Be safe.

Ariel Castro
Rugged Innovation

Review: Castle Brook Paralace Boot Laces

Review: Castle Brook Paralace Boot Laces

Castle Brook Paralaces in situ.

Castle Brook got in touch with us about reviewing one of their rugged boot laces recently. Touted as "the toughest bootlace on the market", we knew we had to check them out. We're Rugged Innovations, after all. We don't mess around with no sucker swag! We took Castle Brook's laces for a bumpy ride in the high Sierra mountains to see what they're made of.

Actually, it turns out their website already tells us what they're made of. The laces are made of seven nylon strands wrapped in a 550 lb. test Nylon Kernmantle sheath. The aglets are made of poloyefin, which is the same material as Frodo Baggins' sword sheath. The construction is solid and feels like it can weather a storm. They're like mini climbing ropes.

The first order of business was to determine if the laces were up to snuff. I got the 60" Shadow Black Paralaces and put them on a pair of waterproof Merrell boots. What better test of gear's mettle than a hot summer day hiking and multipitch trad climbing up in Donner Pass, CA!

On the road. 

My climbing partner and I got lost on the way to the route and had a bit of an epic. You don't realize how diverse an ecosystem of mosquitoes, gnats, and flies can be until you're miles away from your car, irreversibly lost in a dank alpine forest. We tromped around in the woods like a bunch of Smurfs and finally ended up at the climb. The laces held up just great against nature, the elements, and an increasingly frustrated wearer (me). The paralaces didn't cut or even scratch when bumped against sharp rocks, stumps, or fallen logs. Excellent! We put the laces through as much abuse as we could handle.

We're pretty pleased with these laces so far. They are rugged, strong, don't stretch or hold a shape after being tied up, and look badass. At $7.99 direct from their website, the value on these laces is incredible. We'll keep putting miles on these boots and let you know if anything comes up, but I have a feeling the Castle Brook Paralaces will last for years and years.

Be safe.

Ariel Castro
Rugged Innovations