Ah the glory of the mountains! The fresh air! The vistas! The gaping, awe inspiring, rolling majesty of all that is huge and way out there....

And then something starts to itch.

Or you are bored.

Or cold, or smelly, or whatever, and the discomfort is all you can think about. On some level, the challenge of living in the mountains is about overcoming your baseline zone of comfort and trying something new. Without stretching our boundaries, we won't grow. No one, however, said we should be miserable.

After spending considerable time this summer training for and summiting the Grand Teton in Wyoming, I looked through my gear and pulled out a few not so standard items that were life savers. These tiny things don't add much weight and made a huge difference in the quality of my trips.

So here are: The top 10 essential (or not) pack items.  

So I guess I'm sponsored... (See banner to the right...)

Earlier this year I was approached by Markhor Climbing to write gear-centric blog posts for them. They said they'd provide the gear. I said I'd provide the "OMG YES!" After a few months of finagling, dawdling, moving, and talking, I'm finally writing! I've been dubbed a "Sponsored Average Climber," and I intend to live up to that title the best I know how: by using their gear in an extraordinarily ordinary way. You can read more about the sponsorship here, or you can take a look at the small-time Markhor Climbing gear website and see what they are all about.

This week I got the chance to test out the EMS MoJo backpack. I tried it out in a few different scenarios, and while some were more of a fit than others, I kinda like this zippy little back pack.

(Photos by the incredible Peter W. Carey)

Two words: Electric boots.

Whaaaat?!? I got to field test these babies, courtesy of Columbia's new Omniheat product line. I'm sure you've all seen the commercials - hot girl in small clothes is rolling in the snow, and as soon as she puts the jacket on, she is warm. Thank goodness, I was so worried (*Sarcasm). Who knew they were making BOOTS too!!

Time for what you've all been waiting for! The 2010 Rock and Sky Gear awards!

Since this is the first time I've done them, I doubt you've actually been waiting, but I had to make the intro sound exciting somehow.

It's the time of year where everyone is posting their favorite gear reviews, awards, and gift suggestions. I feel left out, so I've decided to do my own gear award post. Unlike those big web sites where brands send them free products to review, I have to buy my own gear. That's why the awards are going to normal person gear, and not the newest stuff on the market. I purchased it myself after doing tons of research and thought it was worthy of mention. So without further excuse or explanation - THE 2010  ROCK AND SKY GEAR AWARDS!!

Ps. If anyone wants to send me free gear to review, that'd be awesome too. :-D

Today I got a completely awesome and surprising package in the mail from Champion: A box of gear to "test out" as I train and travel to conquer my Everest.

Obviously I had to try everything out immediately...