Posts Tagged gift ideas
Vapur Collapsible Water Bottle
We’re regularly preaching on here about the evils of single-use plastic water bottles, so we like to keep an eye on water bottle designs that make it easier to avoid this marketing-driven environmental disaster.
This reusable, collapsible bottle from Vapur got on my radar recently when I was at an adventure travel trade show and several companies (including Eddie Bauer) were handing them out as promos. I’ve used one a few times now and while it’s kind of an unusual thing to get used to, it has some big advantages.
The main one is that you can pack this thing without taking up any space. Since you can’t go through security with a filled water bottle anyway, you can stow this in your carry-on and then use it at a water fountain on the other side of the TSA security theater. It’s also freezable, so you can have very cold water later on a car trip or even use it as an ice pack in transit. The plastic is BPA-free of course and the top pops off for easy washing. You can buy replacement tops too and keep using the same bottle.
Now you might think this wouldn’t stand upright, but the way it’s designed it will stand up until it gets pretty empty: there’s an extra section on the bottom that expands when the bottle is filled. It also comes with its own carabiner threaded through a whole, so you can hang it on your pack filled or not.
These run about half the price of a stainless steel quality plastic bottle, but there are some disadvantages. Like the Sigg kind of metal ones, this has a narrow opening at the top. That makes it harder to wash if you’re putting something besides water in it.
The other problem is you can’t use this with a SteriPen water purifier. You’d have to purify the water in something else and transfer it to here. Or use a pump filter. This only matters in countries where you can’t trust the water though. Just go from the tap if you’re in the first world.
You can buy direct from Vapur (and order ones with your logo on it if you’re a trade show exhibitor) or check out the selection from Amazon, some of them with cool artist drawings like the one at the right. Or check prices online for other retail outlets.
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Posted by Tim L. in General Gear, Kids and Family, Travel Light on December 22nd, 2011
The Screwpop Tool – Now Black and Customizable
Close to two years ago I reviewed a cool little $5 item that I’ve used plenty of times since: the Screwpop. It’s a handy tool that opens beer bottles (that always gets my attention), has a Phillips screwdriver, and a regular flat-head screwdriver. With those out, it’s also a hex nut wrench (should your nut be the right size). See the details here.
These days, unless you encounter an especially dickish TSA agent, you should be able to carry this with you on a flight. But if they do confiscate it, you’re not out a fortune at least.
The original version, still available, is chrome, which is hard to print on. So now there’s a black version. This looks cool on its own, but the one key advantage is that you can customize it for your company, your band, your store, your website, whatever. So instead of giving people some useless schwag they’ll toss in the garbage or a ballpoint pen that will die in a few months, you can hand out something they could still be using a decade from now.
To show me how this works, the Screwpop people did a sample run of their tool with the Practical Travel Gear logo and website address—see the photo at the top. Pretty darn cool.
Want one? (Contest now closed)
I’m handing out some of them at the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market in January, but I’m going to send three of them to our readers. First you have to do one of these three things:
1) OR
Then send an e-mail with which one(s) you did to tim [ at] practicaltravelgear.com. Include your name and physical shipping address. That’s it!
I’ll pick three winners at random from the submissions, which must arrive by midnight, December 23, 2011. The Screwpops will ship out the first week of January. (No sorry, while these make great stocking stuffers, you’ll have to buy one if you want it in time for Christmas.)
If you don’t win, you can get the newer black Screwpop for $6 at ScrewpopTool.com.
* UPDATE – WE HAVE WINNERS! Congratulations to readers Janice Z, Sam G, and Brian C. Sorry, you’ll have to lay out six bucks for one of your own if that’s not you.
Posted by Tim L. in Adventure Gear, General Gear, Travel Light on December 14th, 2011
Eagle Creek Accessories to Keep Your Money Safe
Many types of urchins would love to get hold of your money or credit cards when you travel. Keep it all safe with these under-clothing accessories.
There are a few practical travel gear items I’ve been using since I first set off on my first trip around the world many years ago. One of them is the venerable under-pants money pouch from Eagle Creek. Officially it’s the Undercover Hidden Pocket. I’ve had one of these under my pants in a few dozen countries and as a result, the total amount I’ve been pick-pocketed in all time is…30 rupees in India. (And that really was in my pocket—I’d just gotten change at a movie theater.)
Sure, you can buy things that hang around your neck and go under your shirt, but I don’t like the feel of that—especially in sticky tropical countries—and it’s too easy for someone to do a cut and pull in a crowd. To get this thing out of my pants would be tough though, especially since it’s usually attached to my belt. (You can pin it with a giant safety pin if not wearing a belt.) Then when you need your money or credit card, it’s easy to pull this out and get to them.
There are three places to put things: a main compartment good for a passport and bank notes, two equal smaller ones for credit cards or another currency folded. Speaking of choices, there are also two different belt loops. One is brown, one is black, to match whatever belt you’re wearing. The other just folds out of the way.
It’s all made from ripstop nylon and I can attest that these things hold up through years of daily use on the road. If you’re carrying a passport though you should put that inside a Ziploc bag to be safe. If you get caught in a total deluge, this thing is not completely waterproof.
The Undercover Hidden Pocket comes in black or khaki and lists for $12, which is not a bad investment for something that will help you hold onto the rest of your money. It would make a nice gift for a person about to go on a long international journey. You can find this money pouch at most any outdoor gear or luggage shop, but you can also order it online from Backcountry, Altrec, or Moosejaw.
Undercover Leg Wallet
Another option, if you’re going to be somewhere that involves having pants on every day, is this Undercover Leg Wallet. Instead of going between your underwear and your pants/skirt, this attaches snugly to your leg. 
It kind of feels like you’re packing heat, so if you want to pretend you’re a detective with a concealed weapon, this will do it.
I’ve used this a couple times, but it’s not something that would be my first choice. It’s harder to get to this when you’re pulling out money to pay a bar tab or buy something in a market. Plus it doesn’t work with shorts or a skirt. It has to go on your calf unless you have really skinny legs.
On the plus side, it’s larger and doesn’t hinder movement in any way. This seems to me to be a great choice for people who spend a lot of time in dicey situations: third-world journalists and NGO field workers, for instance. If someone gives you a good once-over, they’ll see a money pouch attached to your belt or hanging around your neck. They won’t see this.
As with the first item above it’s made with wicking ripstop nylon and has a soft surface for the part that goes next to your skin. Ample pockets keep your goods separated and the straps close with adjustable Velcro.
You’ll find this Undercover Leg Wallet at many physical retailers and it lists for $18. Get it online at Backcountry, eBags, or Altrec.
See more Eagle Creek gear reviews
Posted by Tim L. in Business Gear, General Gear, Travel Light on December 8th, 2011
OverLand Equipment Bidwell Bag
Sometimes, finding the right size bag for a day of exploration is like “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” This one is too small. The other one is too big. But you need one that’s just right. The OverLand Equipment Bidwell Bag is big enough to fit necessary gear, but small enough to tote around town without looking like you’ve got a suitcase hanging from your shoulder.
The nylon bag comes in three colors: tangerine, gray (called “dove”) and blue-violet. Each bag has a contrasting color design on the front flap, which is pretty enough to distract me from my usual no-design preference. In fact, someone stopped me on the street to praise the stitching.
The bag’s large, interior compartment has two mesh holders for water bottles, and even when you fill both of them there’s still room for more of your gear. Of course, if you try to cram two 1-liter water bottles in there, not only is there less room, but also you may have difficulty zipping up the pocket.
A flap with a magnetic closure protects the front compartment, which has five organizer pockets, a sixth zipper pocket and a leather key ring. All your small items, like cell phone, wallet, keys, pens and more can be kept here—so you don’t have to dig for them in the larger compartment.
The leather shoulder strap is adjustable, so you can make it long enough to use cross-body, or just leave it to use slung over your shoulder. I haven’t yet used the bag enough so that the shoulder strap softens, like most leather does, but I’m looking forward to the stiff strap getting some character. Luckily, the strap isn’t so thick or stiff that it digs into your body when you use the bag, so my small issue is really one of personal taste and not comfort.
Last, but not least, there’s an exterior pocket on the back of the bag, so it’s a simple stash spot for a small book or items that you may want to get to quickly. Airplane tickets would go perfectly in the pocket.
The OverLand Equipment Bidwell bag lists for $75 on the OverLand Equipment website.
Posted by Jill in General Gear, Travel Light on December 2nd, 2011
New SteriPEN Freedom: Smaller and USB Rechargeable!
The beloved SteriPEN water purifier keeps getting better. I loved my original Traveler and and the Steripen Opti was even better. I’ve lost count of how many international trips those two items have kept me healthy—dozens. But ever since I laid eyes on a prototype last January, I’ve been looking forward to checking out this new Steripen Freedom.
In case you haven’t heard of this product, it’s like a magic wand for tap water you don’t trust. You wave this around in clear water (not muddy creek water) and it’ll kill the nasties with ultraviolet light. I have yet to get the runs even once while using this and it has enabled me to drink tap water from all kinds of dicey places.
This one takes the best aspects of previous models (like the little LED lights from the Opti version that help you see that it’s on) and adds some very key new features.
1) This one recharges by USB.
The reason this Freedom version is smaller is because it doesn’t require two bulky batteries. Instead there’s one small one that recharges. It has a standard micro-USB female plug and the cord has a regular USB on the other end. So you can use the included cord and plug it into a charger or laptop, or you can use something like a Chargepod or iGo and leave the cord at home. Before you could buy a bulky solar adapter case for the batteries, which works, but under this new system you can carry something more compact and powerful along to harness the sun’s energy instead like a Solio or Brunton Restore charger.
Per the official specs you can purify up to 40 times on one charge, so figure you’ll get at least 15 liters out of it before you need to plug it in again.
2) It’s even lighter
This Steripen Freedom is not just smaller. It weighs in at 2.6 ounces (74 grams). This has gone from “I should have room” to “Help me find this little thing in my bag!”
3) It’s also a flashlight
The Opti model sort of has a flashlight…in a pinch if you didn’t need much light. But this one will really light up the path to the latrine. It’s kind of tricky to get it to come on as that involves some shaking and moving around your hand to make it kick in, but the light is a dedicated one on the opposite end from the purifier lamp. It works pretty well once you get it going and stays on for three minutes.
When you buy this travel gadget (list price $120), you get everything pictured in the right side photo here: purifier, USB cord, wall adapter, and the handy Neoprene case it all fits into. This is a worthy investment for yourself and a nice thing to do for Mother Nature: it can potentially keep 1,000+ single-use plastic water bottles out of the world’s landfills, streams, and oceans. Or if someone near and dear to you is about to depart on an international journey, this would be a very thoughtful and useful gift.
See more at the Steripen.com site and buy this online at REI or Summit Hut.
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Posted by Tim L. in Adventure Gear, General Gear, Kids and Family, Travel Light on December 1st, 2011
