Ever since I can remember I have always wanted to have the coolest looking gear out there. Then I grew up and realized that looking good is the least of your concerns when it comes to outdoor gear. There is such a diverse market of almost every piece of gear out there that getting the right piece for you can seem overwhelming.
My addiction started with the small things, hats, gloves, but they slowly became more and more expensive, now I'm into climbing shoes and boots. Then I began to drown in the overwhelming world of choosing my hardshell jacket. A hardshell jacket is a jacket that is water and wind proof, but that's where the black and white are no longer. Do you want Gore-Tex, or the company's three layer fabric. Do you want a rainshell or alpine jacket? Is it parka length of a coat, harness compatible, you get the picture. After many hours on eBay and Craigslist I settled with OR's Furio hardshell for $180ish new with tags (see the link for specks). A goretex/goretex pro garment that was designed to be light and durable. The downside, it was bright orange, I called it my construction jacket and the first few times I wore it it preformed well but I was disappointed with how dirty it became. I even looked at OR's website to see if I could trade it for a darker color.
Today Dennis and I, Dennis the man responsible for getting me addicted to being outside and gear, went up to Saint Mary's glacier with the hopes of summiting James Peak. With a high of 24 degrees Fahrenheit and 'slight' wind for Empire, CO, we gathered our gear and up we headed.
Slight must mean different things to different people.
When we got to the glacier we had put on both Gore pants and Gore jackets as the wind howled so hard and fast that the skiers got to the slope, looked at the wind, and turned around. After talking to a gentlemen who was well versed in avalanche safety we decided to not climb the glacier but to enjoy the day and just play around in the snow.
Got some cool pic's of the wind and both of us decked out in our Gore, it was sweet.
On the way down we had lunch, and there we sat bundled in gear enjoying the relative calm that is found below treeline, and it is there that my mind was changed on my orange jacket.
"I love this jacket, but I hate this color," I said, "because it gets dirty so easily"
"That is what makes the jacket come to life, is that it is dirty. A new shiny jacket that has never been used has no stories, but a dirty, beat up coat, has many tales to tell." responded Dennis.
That's not exactly what he said, but that is what it boiled down to.
I thought about it, and I liked that idea, in fact I already had my first story for it. On the back is a discolored spot where I leaned against a rock before finishing Kelso Ridge. I was already imagining the stories that had yet to happen in this jacket.
My entire attitude flipped, something that I had taken and looked at as a hindrance became the record of this chapter of my life in the mountains.
It made me stop and think, What else have I been thinking was a hindrance that could become a good thing? That is what the mountains taught me today, just because something is different doesn't mean it should be judged or thrown away, maybe its you who needs to change.
From now on I will look for gear that is as bright as possible, orange if possible, so that I can make as many memories as possible and have a one of a kind record.
K
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