ALSO TRIED...

ALPKIT LEDGE £60

If you’re not familiar with Alpkit by now, you should be, as it makes great stuff for exploring the outdoors and sells it directly to users at a great price. Its new range of rucksacks, and specifically the Ledge, is a prime example. All the features and performance you want from a general mountain daypack are here – a drawcord closure, an extendable top lid with zipped pockets on the inside and outside, stowable loops for your ice axes or trekking poles, a DWR coating for weather protection, pockets on the hip fins, external webbing ladders, buckled compression straps, a hydration sleeve, an internal stiffener in the back support, venting channels for airflow, load lifting adjustors on the shoulder straps, a re-positionable sternum strap, Alpkit’s threeyear Alpine Bond promise, and, umm, well that’s about it. Which, for just £60, is bloody good. www.alpkit.com

SUEME TREE TRUNKS £20 OR £46 FOR THREE

When was the last time you thought about your pants? And we mean, really thought about your pants? You see, while we all tend to accept that proper wicking base layers are preferable to cotton t-shirts, when it comes to underwear we’d wager that most of us are still walking in our everyday cotton kecks. And this is a bad idea for all the same reasons that walking in cotton t-shirts is a bad idea – namely sweat retention leading to discomfort and chafing. The SueMe Tree Trunks for boys (and Beech Shorties for girls) are made from 95% beech tree pulp, which is highly breathable, sweat wicking, and contains antimicrobial qualities to prevent the build-up of bacteria and odours. Seams are placed to avoid rubbing sensitive areas, and the whole manufacturing process is carbon neutral. Plus, each pair is supplied with a free packet of beech, birch and wild meadow flower seeds, so your heart can feel as good as your nether regions. www.sueme.com