Apparel: Caring for Your Apparel
Waterproof/breathable shells depend on relatively delicate components in order to function. Wash them enough, but not too much.

Apparel: Understanding Outdoor Apparel
Backpacking clothing both keeps you comfortable and keeps you safe from the wilderness perils of heat-related illness, dehydration, and hypothermia.

Apparel: What to Buy in Apparel?
Understand fabric characteristics (natural vs. synthetic) and the layering system (layer next to skin, insulating layer, outer shell layer).

Backpack: Understanding Backpacks
Learn when to use a day pack, soft pack/rucksack, internal frame backpack, and external frame backpack.

Backpack: Which Backpack to Buy?
A poorly fitted pack can lead to sore shoulders and bruised hips.Take the time to fit your pack properly and adjust it on the trail as needed.

Boots: Caring for Your Boots
Special care should be taken when drying wet boots. Once dry, leather boots should be treated to restore suppleness and water repellency.

Boots: Understanding Boots
More backpacking trips are ruined by sore feet than by all other causes combined. Feet need care and protection.

Boots: Which Boots to Buy?
A good fit is more important than anything else, with boots. Badly fitting footwear means blisters and sore feet, regardless of the quality.

Carabiners: Understanding Carabiners
Use carabiners for belaying, rappelling, prusiking, clipping into safety anchors, securing the rope to points of protection, and numerous other tasks.

Compass: How to Use a Compass
I am hiking toward a visible mountain, but it is getting dark and I'm afraid I'll lose sight of the mountain. How do I make sure I get there?