Gear Review

Not wanting to carry my extremely heavy hiking boots, I decided to get something that I could both wear and carry through the shit-filled streets of India (where flip flops don't cut it) and hike through cold, wet, and snowy Nepal.
After walking through human and cow feces covered Indian streets and hiking 270 miles through the Himalayan mountains I must say that I was quite happy with these shoes. The North Face Ultra 104 GTX XCR are heavy trail runners that don't look completely stupid (like most running shoes) and allowed me to hike through snow, rain and mud. The heavy sole and gortex lining kept me stable and dry. I got a few blisters, but that's bound to happen any time you hike 10+ miles per day. Check 'em out here, cause they are worth it.

Underwear while traveling is always a hassle. It starts smelling like shit (literally, not figuratively) after a few days of hot and humid weather or long days of hiking. On a whim, I bought a pair of Exofficio boxers that had the tag line "6 months, 60 countries, 1 pair of underwear." It wasn't just a ploy. Even though I brought 3 pairs of underwear with me I wore these 9 days of every 10. On that tenth day I usually went commando. The underwear dried in hours after a thorough sink-wash and didn't retain smell - a must for those long days of hiking. If you are planning some months abroad or just hate changing your underwear from day to day, I highly suggest them.

Mylinh wants to give a shout out to her light trail hikers. The North Face Hedgehog GTX XCR treated her well - she especially like that the light color helped her spot leaches creeping up to her ankle. She escaped much more blister-free than myself (men are supposed to get calluses) and her soles gripped like no other, even on the slippery Everest base camp rocks. If you're a chick, check 'em here.