Hiking gear

Hiking gear I bought with my own money, with reasoning and justifications.

The general rule is that the less you carry, the farther you go, and hiking in Europe is typically hut-to-hut anyway, so there is no need to carry a sleeping system or food supplies for more than one day. However, the weather may change dramatically in mountains very quickly, so it's better to be prepared by always having rain gear and extra base layer with you.

There are a plenty of videos discussing outdoor gear on YouTube, most of them completely useless and rigged with paid promotions.

Two school of thoughts regarding footwear: mountain boots and trail running shoes, and it seems to me that tail running shoes are the most versatile ones, being comfortable on approach and providing enough grip and protection on the rocks, while walking a few kilometers on the road in mountain boots is experience far from being pleasant, including follow-up blisters and injuries.

• Altra Lone Peak 7 trail running shoes
  • Zero drop and wide toe box
  • I'm not happy with the grip and durability, probably replace with Topo Athletics Pursuit 2
• Silverlight socks
• Bridgedale waterproof socks
  • Helps walking in snow and wet conditions
• Icebreaker merino wool t-shirt
  • Holds a lot of water while being relatively warm
• Naturehike carbon trekking poles
  • Lightweight, cheap and durable
  • At this price point I don't care if it breaks
• Naturehike rain poncho
  • Works also as a makeshift tent, which is good for camping in mountains without shadow
  • 100% waterproof unlike the breathable rain jackets
• Decathlon hiking pants
  • Lightweight, water-resistant and windproof
• Decathlon running shorts
  • Seems to be out of stock
  • Lightweight and plenty of pockets
• Odlo merino base layer
  • mostly for safety reasons
• Rab Mythic Alpine Light Jacket
  • mostly for safety reasons