Category: Reviews

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Rottefella Xplore Ski Binding Review

By Jeff Hawkins, Mazama Nordic Backcountry Ski Instructor

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I learned about the Rottefella Xplore binding last winter and purchased a pair along with new skis and boots for this winter. I’ve been out on them about 10 times, and it’s time for a review. In short, they are fantastic, and I love them. I’ll never go back to NNN-BC.

Before sharing details it’s important to know that I ski Nordic backcountry – away from forest roads, away from trails, never in groomed tracks, and I rarely encounter other skiers or even another set of tracks. A perfect ski day is 8-12 miles of breaking trail with plenty of climbing and tele turns. This is Nordic backcountry not AT backcountry; I do that too, but not on this gear.   

I paired the Xplore bindings with Fischer OTX Excursion 88s and Madshus Panorama boots. This is a lot of change, which makes separating the impact of the bindings from the other equipment a bit difficult. What I can say for sure is that I’m executing tele turns way better this year. Yes, my skills have improved, but I think it’s mostly the equipment.

The Binding

Rottefella borrowed from AT bindings with a twist. Custom-engineered spring plungers are installed in each side of the boot, and the plungers snap into slots in the binding.  This yields the wide and stiff connection between boot and binding of the AT binding, along with the ability to step-in and release while standing.   

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Video showing the release mechanism.

What I Like

Control.  I noticed this instantly. On the first few strides and turns, it was immediately apparent that the connection between my foot and ski was more solid.  Some of this improvement might have been the Madshus Panorama boot, which is a bit sturdier than the Madshus Glittertind that I previously skied on NNN-BC bindings.

Range of motion.  The Xplore binding pushes back against the toe of the boot just as the NNN-BC binding does.  With the regular insert, the push-back feels less than the NNN-BC, which allows for a longer stride before the ski lifts off, and yet it is still stiff enough to keep the heel of the ski up when lifting the ski through corners. The zero push-back (free pivot) and stiff push-back (hard flex) inserts need to be ordered separately (Rottefella calls them the Free Pivot and Hard Flex). I haven’t tried them, but I can see the advantages – zero push-back insert for long flattish tours where getting the most out of the kick and glide is important, and the stiff push-back insert when working through challenging terrain with lots of direction changes.

Snow/ice clogging.  One of my main complaints about the NNN-BC is the wad of snow/ice that builds up in the central slot of the binding that puts an annoying upward pressure on the bottom of the foot between toes and the ball. This doesn’t happen on the Xplore. Yes, some build-up does happen, especially on the heel plate, but it is easily cleared by stomping down once or twice.  

My other big complaint about the NNN-BC is when snow/ice clogs the pin clamping mechanism making it difficult to snap binding closed. Multiple attempts are sometimes required even after clearing both the mechanism and the boot. The Xplore solves this problem too. 

Entry and exit while standing. Because I rarely get in and out of the bindings other than at the start and end of the trip, bending over to close the binding isn’t a big deal for me, but Rottefella thought about this too and it’s a nice feature. Lining up the spring plunger pins to snap into the bindings requires precise foot placement and if you haven’t done it just right, one side might not have snapped-in. Be sure to give the boot a test twist before launching off.  In the 10 or so times out so far, I’ve had ice clog the pin slot on one side of one binding once; it was easy to clear.  

Heel risers are another nice feature.  I haven’t used them and might not for a couple of reasons, I am quite flexible, and they don’t seem convenient to use. I don’t use risers on AT bindings until it gets quite steep so it seems unlikely I’ll use them on Nordic gear where climbing is generally less steep. I also found it challenging to lift the heel risers without removing thick gloves. Ice builds up around the heel risers (see photo above) which might require getting out of the ski to clear the ice. Doing this on a steep slope while also removing a glove seems like a recipe for dropping something down the hill.  That said, this is likely a useful feature on long steady ascents.

There is a leash accessory too. These people thought of everything.  

Issues

After this glowing report,I need to share one known issue. It’s a manufacturing problem that Rottefella knows about and has arranged to fix.  On some boots, Alpina and Alfa per this report, the spring plunger can get stuck in. See photo below (notice the second image is of the opposite side of the boot). I have not experienced this issue with the Madshus Panorama boot.

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This would be a big deal, and probably a deal-breaker, if there wasn’t an in-field work around. If the pin is stuck in, press the pin on the opposite side of the boot inward with a tool small enough to depress the pin below the surface of the boot. This will dislodge the stuck pin on the other side.  I think the internals are something like this (image below). Notice how pressing in one pin deeply will push out the other.

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If a pin on your boot gets stuck, contact support@rottefella.no   In the western United States, they will probably instruct you to ship the boots to a company in Henderson, Nevada. The repair and return shipping are free. Shipping to Nevada is on you. Turn-around time is currently around three weeks. Slightly faster if you pay for expedited shipping. 

That Rottefella thought about the possibility of a stuck pin and engineered an in-field fix further impresses me as to the overall quality and optimization of this impressive binding. I can see it replacing the NNN-BC standard.  

Other Thoughts

The NNN-BC uses a metal clamp on a metal pin.  The Xplore uses a metal pin in a plastic slot. I’m curious about the longevity. How long will the plastic last before it wears, and the joint loosens up?  Based on how thoughtfully Rottefella engineered all other aspects of the binding, it seems likely they did wear/life testing to find a plastic compound that will last for years. I’ll find out.

And before wrapping up I want to give a shout out for the Madshus Panorama boot and the Fischer Excursion 88 ski.  I’m thrilled with both. I’ve worn Alpina and Fischer boots and found both too wide for my feet. Tightening them down causes too much pressure on top of the forefoot without reducing width,leaving my feet pinched yet slopping around. A friend with wide feet can comfortably wear the Glittertind boot (the predecessor to the Panorama) which fits very similar to the new Panorama. Whatever Madshus did seems to accommodate both wide and narrow.  Kudos to them. Other manufacturers should pay attention.

The Panorama boot also has a built-in snow cuff with a draw-cord, so gaiters are not needed. I choose instead to wear my pants over the boots and under the Velcro strap that engages the external boot stiffener (see image below).   Either way, you will be unlikely to get snow in the boot.

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As for the skis, I used the Fischer S-Bound 78, the precursor to the OTX Traverse 78 (perhaps the same ski with different graphics) for more than ten years. They worked well in backcountry with good glide and good turning. Stepping up in width to the OTX Excursion 88 improved handling in ungroomed conditions. There might be some reduction in glide, but I haven’t noticed it.  

The Bottom Line

The Rottefella Xplore bindings with Fischer OTX Excursion 88s and Madshus Panorama boots is a great combination, and my recommendation to anyone who skis Nordic backcountry in the conditions and terrain we have in the Pacific Northwest.

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Book Review: The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative

Author: Florence Williams; Reviewer: Brian Goldman

Have you ever wondered what compels hikers and climbers to endure fatigue, insect bites, blisters, and cold? Is there something about immersion in nature that we inherently need? Are we collectively suffering a “nature deficit disorder?” Do some countries have better national policies of improving health by providing access to nature? Florence Williams, author of The Nature Fix, traveled the world to uncover studies in neuroscience, medicine, and big data about the restorative influence of nature on our physical and mental health. In short, informative, and witty chapters, Williams displays a gift for clearly explaining the science behind nature’s positive effects on our brain and health.

In Japan, where they’ve coined the word karoshi—death from overwork—the government is creating over one hundred forest therapy sites for people to engage in shinrin yoku, forest bathing. Williams visited Yoshifume Miyazaki, a physical anthropologist whose research found that when people take forest walks, there is a 12 percent decrease in cortisol (your body’s main stress hormone), a 7 percent decrease in sympathetic nerve activity (which governs fight-or-flight behavior), a 1.4 percent decrease in blood pressure, a 6 percent decrease in heart rate, and a better mood and lower anxiety. In a country with a high suicide rate and tsukin jigoku—commuting hell—where workers shove you into a train during rush hour, nearly 25 percent of the population now walk forest therapy trails yearly. As Miyazaki explains, “we’ve spent 99.9 percent of our time in nature, a feeling of comfort can be achieved if our rhythms are synchronized with those of the environment.”

Immunologist Qing Li, a collaborator with Miyazaki, has studied natural killer (NK) immune cells, a type of white blood cell that can send self-destruct messages to tumors and virus-infected cells. Sure enough, three days of hiking boosted these NK cells by 40 percent for an entire week. Although not completely confirmed, Li suspects that NK cells are boosted by phytoncides, otherwise known as “nice tree smells.” These are essential oils emitted by evergreens and other trees. Li himself uses a humidifier with cypress oil in his house since he found that those who sleep inhaling a cypress scent experience a 20 percent increase in NK cells and less fatigue.

In Korea, where forest bathing is called salim yok, the Forest Agency has established dozens of healing forests with dominant cypress trees. Scientists in Korea confirm the medicinal aspects of phytoncides as antibacterial and capable of “reducing stress 53 percent by lowering levels of cortisol and blood pressure 5–7 percent.” The soil also contains geosmin, which holds streptomyces bacteria, a key to many antibiotics. Two other studies looked at eleven- and twelve-year olds who suffer from “borderline technology addiction” (BTA). After two days in the forest, researchers found lower cortisol levels and improvement in self-esteem. Armed with this research, Korea has planned a National Forest Plan “to realize a green welfare state, where the entire nation enjoys well-being” through work and school programs.

In Finland, economist Liisa Tyrvainen tweaked the experimental design of Miyazaki and concluded that Finns have elevated measures of restoration, vitality, and creativity when walking outside, but they must be in nature at least five hours a month. If you’re outside even longer, “you will reach a new level of feeling better and better,” she concluded.

Singapore is considered one of the top “biophilic cities” in the world. Almost half of the country’s 276 square miles are under some sort of green cover. The population has grown by 2 million; however, the percentage of green space has increased from 36 to 47 percent. Although many of these green spaces are gardens, greenhouses, paths with green corridors, and parks with constructed nature, the government’s vision has succeeded in making this country an oasis in SE Asia. Studies have shown that mortality rates are lower near urban parks.

Other positive health effects of nature: Williams uncovered research in Ohio, Singapore and Australia suggesting that being outside in sunlight stimulates the release of dopamine from the retina, which prevents the eyeball from getting too oblong, thus preventing myopia (nearsightedness).

Awe: According to the author, Irish philosopher Edmund Burke may have understood the effect of transcendent experiences in nature. He traipsed the countryside and found that for something to be “awe-inspiring” there must be “vastness of extent” in which our senses find it difficult to make sense of it—which in turn inspires feelings of humility and a more outward perspective. Dacher Keltner and colleagues at UC Berkeley have found that experiencing awe was the only emotion to significantly lower levels of IL-6, a marker for inflammation. Lower levels are better; higher levels are linked to depression and stress. Keltner also suggests that the emotion awe causes us to reinforce and share emotional connections. Ever wonder why you take those pictures on your cell phones and send them to family and friends?

The book continues by showing how military veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) have diminished symptoms when rafting or backpacking, and how exercise and exploratory play among children increases verbal and math ability, lowers impulsivity, and leads to a threefold decrease in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity (ADHD) symptoms.

Could the positive effects of immersion in nature apply to our educational systems? Yes, indeed. The author states that Germany has more than 1,000 forest kindergartens called Waldkindergarten, where students are out in all kinds of weather. In one instance, after a large tree fell during a storm, the teacher launched a nature-based curriculum in which children sawed off branches to make the tree safe for climbing. In so doing, students practiced dexterity, teamwork and learned about cause and effect. In Scandinavia, 10 percent of preschoolers spend their entire days outside. In Finland, students have recess outside 15 minutes out of every hour. In contrast, two-thirds of the students in this country are Vitamin D (the sunshine vitamin) “insufficient.” In both the U.K. and the U.S.A., rickets, a disease caused by a lack of Vitamin D, has quadrupled in the past 15 years.

The Nature Fix confirms that even small amounts of exposure to the natural world can improve our creativity and enhance our mood. Williams shows how time in nature is not superfluous but is essential to our species. As our modern lives shift dramatically indoors, spending more time in nature is more urgent than ever. As the author succinctly states, “Go outside, often, sometimes in wild places. Bring friends or not. Breathe.”

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Book Review: Wild Adventures We Have Known by Jolene Unsoeld


by Louis F. Reichardt

The name Unsoeld resonates among Americans of my generation because of Willi Unsoeld’s legendary West Ridge ascent, traverse, and bivouac on Mt. Everest with Tom Hornbein in 1963. Completed shortly after President John Kennedy’s speech committing the United States to reach the moon by the end of the decade, this mountaineering achievement captured our imaginations at a time when optimism about our country and the world was high. Written by Jolene Unsoeld, Willi’s wife, with extensive text transcribed from her husband’s myriad lectures, this book indeed describes two lives, each full of adventures as wild as advertised. For those interested in the remarkable careers of both Willi and Jolene, the text more than meets expectations. The pictures of family, mountains, and peoples of distant lands are well chosen and provide attractive and welcome supplements to the author’s text. Although Willi sadly died in 1979 in an avalanche on Mt. Rainier, he lectured so frequently that the book provides innumerable, vivid, first-person examples of his humor and adventurousness. The book is consequently written as much by Willi as by Jolene.

Jolene & Willi engagement photo.

From reading this book, my single most vivid impression is how much as Americans we have changed from our shared senses of purpose, trust in the value of government, and optimism that infused our citizenry during the decades after World War II before trust in government was shattered by the Vietnam War and Nixon presidency. The text describes the life of a family who lived when America built bridges to the world, the civil rights movement pushed us towards the original vision of our Declaration of Independence, and America initiated with little controversy bold and imaginative projects such as the Peace Corps and placing a man on the moon.

The text traces Willi’s and Jolene’s family histories from before their births during the Great Depression through their early adventures as individuals and a couple. This review can recapitulate only a tiny subset of the many images the book captures of their lives. As one example, using Willi’s lecture notes, it describes Willi’s early infatuation with climbing, including his first fall, happily only about 20 feet. Shortly after, he enlisted in the army in 1944 as a seventeen-year-old, too young for active duty, but old enough to experience basic training, including crawling through mud under fire of live ammunition. With a strong sense of immortality, he used a weekend pass while stationed in Kentucky to drive to Colorado where he completed a challenging technical ascent of the East Face of Longs Peak, somehow managing to hitchhike back to Kentucky before the 5 p.m. Monday deadline.

Camp on Nanda Devi.

Equally fascinating is Willi’s description of his hitchhiking by every imaginable mode of transportation around the world, leaving the U.S. with $300 in his pocket and returning with $250. Along the way, he completed several worthy ascents in the Alps, including a solo ascent of the Matterhorn, met several of Europe’s most illustrious climbers, and made an unsuccessful attempt on the then unclimbed Himalayan peak, Nilkanta. As Jolene summarizes, “one of the most important things Willi came back with is “… that people the world over are made of pretty much the same stuff. The best way of understanding the fellow on the other side of the world is to go live with him on his level,” truth that today faces challenge from the highest levels of our government.

Jolene’s early life was equally interesting and included two years in Shanghai shortly after the Japanese invasion of China. Happily, the family returned to the U.S. before Pearl Harbor and escaped internment. This international experience gave Jolene a very similar philosophy and sense of our shared humanity that Willi acquired in India.

Willi and Jolene met as students at Oregon State College, where both escaped frequently to the Cascades, and were married in 1951. The book’s descriptions of their subsequent life together include adventures in the Tetons, a shared first ascent of the North Face of Grand Teton, the fulfillment of their plan to have four children, and the subsequent close encounters of Jolene and her young children with the bears that shared the Teton campgrounds. Willi’s education during this period included completion of a BS in Physics and a doctorate in Philosophy and Comparative Religions. Within three years of their marriage, Willi’s mountaineering adventures expanded to Makalu in 1954 and Masherbrum in 1960. Jolene describes candidly the challenges this posed to a marriage in which one partner was left for months of uncertainty with young children after which they were reunited with a wealth of unshared, but rich experiences.

Willi & Devi in the North Cascades.

My favorite section of the book is one that describes their lives together in Nepal from 1962 to 1965, where Willi was first Deputy Director and then Director of the Peace Corp. The story of his recruitment by Bob Bates, the first Nepalese Peace Corp Director, is simply hilarious; an ascent of Glacier Peak in the North Cascades with only one crampon; a tent pole as an ice axe; and a long john top as a substitute for pants. At that time, Sargent Shriver, President Kennedy’s inlaw and national Peace Corp Director, interviewed all candidates and Willi’s interview took place during a flight to Chicago with Shriver, on such short notice that Willi had no chance to take luggage.

The first cohort of Peace Corp volunteers embarked with the Bates and the Unsoelds together for Nepal and spent the first year improvising at they learned how to make a difference in the lives of citizens of a foreign country with which Americans had little prior experience. The book brought back to me the joy and wonder I felt during my own first visit to Nepal and its wonderful people in 1969. Nothing I write in this review can do justice to Jolene’s descriptions of their experiences there.
Somehow, Willi’s full-time job as Deputy Director in Nepal did not dissuade Sargent Shriver from granting him leave to join Norman Dyhrenfurth’s 1963 Expedition to Mt. Everest where Tom Hornbein’s and Willi’s first ascent of the West Ridge and bivouac created a legend.

Jolene’s text includes descriptions by Willi of this expedition and his exceedingly long recovery from frostbite and hepatitis that I was not previously aware of. More importantly, the text focuses on the challenges of separation when one’s partner is left with small children in a foreign land. Willi’s and Jolene’s letters to each other provide an intimate portrait of the expedition and life in Nepal complemented by superb photography of the mountains, expedition, and Nepalese people.

After Everest, Willi assumed the directorship of the Nepalese Peace Corp and subsequently a less satisfying year’s assignment with the America’s Nepalese AID mission. The book describes their return to the States and difficulties of readjustment where Willi became Deputy Director of Outward Bound, responsible for overseeing activities at the first five American sites. Most interestingly, it describes the creation of Outward Bound by the German Jewish educator Kurt Hahn, which he started in the UK to enhance through “intense mini-life experiences, young people’s … capacity to cope with life,” a program designed to increase survival of sailors whose ships had been torpedoed by German submarines. Willi and Jolene clearly adopted Kurt’s philosophy that the “intense personal challenges at Outward Bound force students to recognize … their fears … in order to perform well … on a mountain, or in life.”

Following Outward Bound, both Unsoelds were involved in the State of Washington’s visionary creation of Evergreen State College, partly at least to deal with the unrest resulting from the Vietnam War and Civil Rights Movement, where Willi integrated his life’s experiences into teaching the next generation.

This was the period when Jolene took her first steps toward what became a remarkable career of public service as a Washington state legislator and three term Member of Congress. Only the first tentative steps in this career are described in this book, but the ethics and commitment that must have inspired the confidence of her constituents are present throughout.

The final chapters of the book focus on their children’s adventures when it was still safe for Americans to travel overland to Nepal, before the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and revolution in Iran. These adventures culminated with Willi’s and their daughter Devi’s return to the Himalaya for an attempt on Nanda Devi, a peak that Willi first saw on his unsuccessful expedition to Nilkanta in 1949. Devi, the mountain’s namesake, died unexpectedly high on this mountain. The book describes the deepest emotions of Willi, Jolene, and their children as they coped with this loss, a downside of releasing a child to live a life of risk. For me, a member of this expedition who continues to think about the “what ifs” that might have altered this outcome, this was the most personally moving section of the book. The family’s photos of Devi, the mountains and the local people are beautiful.

Their tributes to her life will resonate with every reader. Finally, much more briefly, Jolene addresses her family’s loss of Willi during a winter climb on Mt. Rainier in 1979.

The book describes a family that has lived lives full of hope, optimism, and achievement, but has also suffered far more than its share of tragedy.

To attempt a summary, this is a book that will interest everyone who enjoys biographies describing lives of exceptional individuals. The text is well written, candid and moving throughout. One suspects that some of the text from Willi’s lectures might have been condensed if he had been able to personally adapt them for this book, but this is a minor quibble. Not every section will have the same appeal for each reader. Some may be more interested in the mountain episodes, others in Nepal, still others in family descriptions, but this should not be a deterrent. The exceptional lives, philosophies and ethics of Willi, Jolene and their children accompanied by exceptional photography make reading this tome a wonderful experience. Jolene is currently working on a description of the more recent stages in her life’s exceptional adventure in politics, including her service as a Congresswoman.

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Nutritional Bar Review: Natural fuel with flavor for every taste

Photo credit: Wendy Marshall

Wendy Marshall got involved with the Mazamas through BCEP in 2014. Below, Wendy gives us a thorough report on the bars that will fuel our adventures and tantalize our taste buds. An outdoor sports enthusiast, she loves hiking, snowboarding, and studying rocks and wild plants. She also volunteers periodically with Bark, a local forest conservation non-profit. She is steadily becoming a full-time writer and novelist, fueled mostly by apples, tea, German fruitcake and dark chocolate. 

by Wendy Marshall

My early hope was to coax some of these companies into advertising partnerships with the Mazamas, with the goal of bringing an infusion of monetary and promotional support to both sides. I had enough sense to realize I was getting ahead of myself. A better first step was simply to inform people, letting relationships grow organically, and seeing what evolves. My very next idea was to review my ample stash of promotional gifts, with a focus on easy-to-pack food bars and snacks of the type I love to bring on hikes and snowboarding trips. Clearly, mountain sports types have heard of Clif Bar, PowerBar, and Luna. But what other vistas awaited us? What nutritional benefits could these products offer to the discerning consumer in search of fresh territory? Or, for that matter, to people seeking their preferred zone, be it vegan, paleo, or gluten-free?


“We’re all nuts here.” Where I’m from, that saying is a compliment. My trekking choices tend to agree. Where would snack bars be without nuts? The very nuttiest of these is one of my favorites.

KIND Snacks
“Ingredients you can see and pronounce” is the mantra of KIND Snacks, plus a business philosophy of, well, kindness. Aside from Clif, this may be the most familiar snack bar to us. I first encountered them at a Hope on the Slopes skiing fundraiser for cancer research, where KIND was a sponsor.

KIND has already partnered with the Mazamas for at least one event, at which I got to try their Black Truffle sample bar. I love this bar for its earthy, less-sweet flavor. It has a savory truffle bite to balance the honey, and the satisfying chewy-crunchy texture typical of KIND bars, using whole nuts and grains.

Truffles not your thing? KIND has 20 flavors of nut bars, and yet more options with added flax, antioxidants, protein, or drizzled in yogurt. Being a dark chocolate fan, I also enjoyed the Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew bar in the KIND “Plus” line with added antioxidants, which had a rich, yet not overbearing sweetness. What’s an antioxidant? It’s a molecule that protects cells and body tissues from damage by oxygen. In short, it helps keep you from literally “rusting” and aging, always a concern with hard-working muscles and sun-exposed skin. The bars’ highest natural ingredient is cacao, the chocolate bean; other good sources are dark fruits like cranberries, blueberries and pomegranates, whole grains, and fresh vegetables like spinach and carrots.

For those wishing to skip chocolate, I recommend Maple Glazed Pecan and Sea Salt. KIND also offers snack clusters in a pouch. Their products are gluten-free, non-genetically-engineered (GMO), and many are dairy-free as well. Find them at major Portland natural grocers and at kindsnacks.com.

Rawnola Bar
Fittingly, I first encountered a Rawnola bar at a forest activist work camp in the Mt. Hood wilderness. Earthling Organics of California uses ingredients as close to their source in nature as possible, such as raw coconuts and almonds, in that what’s best for the planet is what’s best for us. Or, as they put it: “Snacks for intelligent lifeforms.” Their nine-organic-ingredient, gluten-free, sprouted granola bar in Vanilla has a firm crispy-crumbly texture, finely ground and nice to chew, with a strong coconut-almond flavor. If Vanilla seems too sweet, Rawnola also comes in Cacao, Goji Berry, and Matcha. The last contains chlorella, a powerful plant protein great for promoting muscle growth and healthy cells, with a full set of amino acids and vitamins, including lots of Vitamin B12. Yep, it’s a green bar. Rawnola is available at most major grocers like Whole Foods, and Alberta Co-op. Also at earthlingorganics.com.

Nothin’ But Foods
Here’s a peek at what may arrive soon. This company, who uses nothin’ but organic stuff like oats, nuts, seeds, fruit and honey, offers baked, gluten-free granola cookies and snack bars in four flavors. I like these for their chewy granola texture and notably vivid flavors—out of the citrus kick of Ginger Lemon Cashew, intense cacao of Chocolate Coconut or ripe, fruity depth of Cherry Cranberry Almond, I couldn’t pick favorites. California is littered with vendors, and I heard Nothin’ But wants to spread into Costco stores. Until then, hunt them down at
nothinbutfoods.com.

Whole grains and seeds are good sources of energy. I especially love sunflower seeds, which are easy to pack or add to salads. Sunflower seeds strengthen the heart and bones, balance cholesterol, and reduce cancer risk. Both grains and seeds form the bulk of some of the following snacks.


Bobo’s Oat Bars
I found the name, handmade look, and story of this product endearing. Bobo’s sprung from a mother-daughter team in Boulder, CO, and still prides itself on four basic ingredients and a small-batch baking process. Inside the humble, clear wrapper, you’ll find a thick, hearty, chewy, and incredibly satisfying and flavorful bar. They all taste potently fresh, whether of bright tangy oranges or a coconut that’s just been cracked open. Just as good as a newly-baked oatmeal cookie. So far I’ve tried Cranberry Orange, Coconut and Apple Pie, but this company has 15 flavors of bar to choose from. Just looking at them makes me want to either start baking or head to my friend’s farm to play in the fields.

Bobo’s Oat Bars are gluten and dairy free, vegan, and non-GMO. These get a definite thumbs-up. Then again, I like my oatmeal. Oats are a slow-burning source of whole grain proteins and complex carbohydrates, full of nutrients and fiber, which help lower cholesterol and prevent heart disease. Bobo’s may have begun humble, but it’s now everywhere: Whole Foods, New Seasons, Safeway, REI Co-op, Albertson’s, and at eatbobos.com.

Umchu
Marketed as “primitive nutrition,” food bars don’t get much simpler than this. I love the name of one: Seeds and … seeds! Be ready to nosh on this chewy, gooey, very seedy bar, which is free of wheat, soy, and dairy. You’d think a snack with a cave-man on it would be suitable for paleo eaters. Since that’s a very distinct diet, I’ll let readers judge for themselves by the ingredients—seeds of flax, sesame, sunflower, and pumpkin, plus brown rice syrup. That’s all. Speaking of flax, if you’d rather not eat fish or fish oil, flax seeds are known for their high content of the beneficial Omega-3 fatty acid, along with many vitamins, minerals and all essential amino acids. Umchu offers six other flavors of bar, too, micro-batched in Edmonds, WA. Whole Foods or Alberta Co-op can hook you up, as can umchubar.com.

Honey Stinger
The founders of this company, with roots back to 1950, did energy foods before “energy bar” was cool, using one of the greatest natural energy foods, honey. Now they’re at it again, with a dozen types of organic bars, energy chews, and other goodies. I’ll have to go with the Super Fruit & Ancient Grain bar, packed with dried berries and seeds, but I also like the chews. Honey Stinger is well-known for their sponsorship of athletes and organizations, and they’ll be joining us again at Hope on the Slopes 2017. Natural grocers, climbing gyms, sporting goods stores—these guys are everywhere including honeystinger.com.

Taste of Nature
These snacks are laden with good things, topped with visible whole seeds and nuts like a KIND bar. There are 20 flavors, all mostly organic, certified gluten free, non-GMO verified, kosher and vegan. Some flavors are unusual, too, such as Key Lime Pie, Brazil Nut, and Pomegranate. My lone sample, Dark Chocolate Cherry with 10g protein was pure delight, bursting with cherry flavor and crunchy seeds. This is a Canadian company. Unless you venture across the border, the easiest way to try these is ordering via tasteofnature.ca or tasteofnature.com. I’m tempted to ask for a variety pack.

Nosh
It’s an ideal name for a quick snack. Not a bar but a similar-sized pack of loose, whole-grain nibbles a bit like a lightweight trail-mix, Nosh has a base of puffed rice and comes in five flavor combinations. These are creative, such as my favorites, Blueberry Lavender Lemon and Coconut Chai. Besides the unique flavors, I love the addition of tiny, dried currants in the mix. For their size, black currants pack lots of vitamins and minerals along with protein and fiber. Nosh is dairy-free, vegan, certified organic. Safeway, Market of Choice and Vitamin Cottage carry Nosh, or find them at
thoughtfulfood.net/nosh-organic.

Chewy fuel. For those who prefer a smoother, dough-like consistency like that of a PowerBar, the following will hopefully fit your pack.


Raw Revolution
Raw Revolution was started by a nurse and chef. They offer all-organic, plant-based live superfood bars, vegan, gluten-free and kosher too, high in protein but without refined nutrients. I like their Golden Cashew bar, which has fat cashews in a tangy, nutty matrix, while Chocolate Raspberry Truffle grabbed my sweet tooth. At least six flavors, found in natural co-ops, grocers, and at rawrev.com.


Go Macro
Go Macro caters to the macrobiotic diet, which focuses on mostly whole grains and vegetables, an overall balance of salty-sweet, hot-cold, yin-yang, etc., and positive holistic energy in food. The Go Macro representative I spoke with told me proudly they had one of the highest-selling products on the market. I really like their “Sweet Revival” Sesame Butter and Dates bar, whose rich seed matrix has a natural, delicate sweetness. Cashew Caramel, however, is milder in flavor. Dates are high in nutrients and fiber, easily digested, help your body metabolize energy, and may prevent cancers. Vegan, soy-free, and no GMOs. Find up to 12 flavors at major grocers, or gomacro.com.


Picky Bars
Picky Bars are an exercise-focused line launched by three professional athletes. They’ve hit on a 4:1 ratio of carbs to protein, an ideal balance for workout nutrition. They offer at least eight flavors, mostly organic, not a GMO in sight. I tried their Cookie Doughness bar, which resembles a condensed cinnamon-raisin cookie in both texture and taste. Yum! I found these guys at Trader Joe’s or at pickybars.com, where you’ll find a summary of ingredients and health benefits.

Protein power. Some companies express their innovation by dedicating their product line to healthier, sustainable, and at times very unusual sources of protein. Here are a few.

Chapul
“You’re not paleo until you eat bugs.” That’s the grabber for Chapul cricket protein bars, which do, in fact, have cricket flour in them. What? Why eat crickets? This daring company is all about sustainability. My Chapul representative explained that crickets use only 8% of the food and water as cows to produce the same amount of available protein for people, and create only 1% of the greenhouse gases (cows are farty, and gobble lots of resources). Crickets, she said, have twice the protein of beef, 15% more iron than spinach, and as much B12 as salmon. I quickly began to understand. But was I ready? After a deep breath, I tried the Thai bar. It was unique in its hints of ginger and lime, but otherwise? Delicious. Pleasant texture, like any other moist, soft energy bar, yet not overly sweet. I’d never know I was eating bugs. I recommend these not just for adventure, but also their high nutrition content and genuinely tasty, cultural flavor combinations like the Aztec bar with dark chocolate, coffee and cayanne. Chapul bars come in four types, which you can sniff out at Alberta Co-op, Food Front Co-op, Natural Grocers Vitamin Cottage, or at chapul.com.


Evo Hemp
If you’d rather not eat animals or bugs, try hemp, the plant source of easily digestible protein. Hemp seeds, I learned, are a nutritionally complete food. They are 33% protein, 35% essential fatty acids like Omega 3 and 6, and contain all nine essential amino acids, plus there’s all that lovely fiber. These raw health bars, which come in six flavors, are vegan, non-GMO, gluten-free, and are labeled paleo outright. Evo’s Apple Pecan bar is dark, moist and crumbly, full of seeds and spiced apple goodness, maybe my ideal of what a homemade fruitcake should be. The company offers hemp seed baking flour and other items as well. Find them at natural grocers and at evohemp.com.


RxBar
This whole-food protein bar draws on the power of egg whites for much of its 12 grams of protein, with an overall emphasis on simple nutrition. In fact, it lists its four main ingredients on the front of the wrapper, along with “No B.S.” There’s a few more, but all are basic and pronounceable. I tried the Chocolate Coconut, a dense, chewy brick with whole morsels of nuts, fruit and chocolate inside. This density gives a substantial feel to your snacking, and there are eight flavors to pick from. RxBars are gluten-, soy- and dairy-free. CrossFit gyms carry them, but so does Trader Joe’s and rxbar.com.

Savory alternatives. If the thought of eating yet another sugary-sweet energy bar makes your throat clench in a Gag reflex, fear not, other options exist.

Mediterra
A company inspired by family meals in Greece, and based on the Mediterranean diet with its focus on fruit, vegetables, grains, and olives. I tried two of their savory bars, Bell Peppers & Green Olives and Black Olives & Walnuts, and loved both. These savory bars, which come in four flavors, have a great balance between sweet and savory, with the former being very subtle. Chewy sun-dried chunks pair well with crisp, puffed amaranth seeds. Mediterra also has four types of sweeter bar with yogurt and oats. Of these, I like the Apricot & Pistachio bar, a pungent, fruity bar, dipped in white yogurt. Again, I like the harmony of complex flavors. I look forward to trying all of these! All are non-GMO, gluten-free. In the Portland area, Market of Choice, GNC, Pharmaca and possibly Whole Foods carry Mediterra along with their site mediterranutrition.com.

Gopal’s Healthfoods
Power wraps? What are those? A savory snack stick made from ground nuts and seeds, wrapped in nori, the seaweed used for wrapping sushi. These aren’t sweet at all, and resemble a stick of jerky, but they’re vegan. I tried the Masala wraps, which have a dry texture and a spicy, warm taste. Nori is rich in protein, iron, iodine (typical of seaweeds), and fiber, and lowers both cholesterol and risk of cancer. Gopal’s is dedicated to ethical products for the planet and specializes in 100% raw, sprouted, organic foods. What’s this scoop on sprouted foods? A seed, like an egg, is like an armored food storage unit. Much of this fuel is starch, which a human body converts to sugar. When the seed sprouts, the young plant begins consuming the starch, resulting in a food with higher protein and fiber, and a lower glycemic index. Eat sprouted bread, rather than white or whole wheat, and you’ll feel fuller faster. Some seeds, like flax, are so well-armored that your body has a hard time utilizing them, unless they’re freshly ground into flour or sprouted.

Besides Power Wraps, Gopal’s offers four types of nutty, fruity Rawma snack bar, which I have yet to try, as well as raw food crackers and cookies, Sprouties seed packs, Rawmanola clusters, and much more. Alberta Co-op and Food Fight! carry their products; other natural grocers may, as well as their site gopalshealthfoods.com.


Rhythm Superfoods
These people make vegging out easy, even for people who dislike eating vegetables. Not bars but vegetable chips or “bites,” they’re delicious alternatives to trail mix or granola clumps. I particularly like all three flavors of Broccoli Bites, which are crunchy and bursting with savory spice. They also have beet chips and kale chips. Most natural grocers and food co-ops will offer them and their site rhythmsuperfoods.com.

“Are you like a vegetarian, or what?” I can’t count the times I’ve been asked something like this, perhaps because I look like one. What I am is odd: I shy away from chicken and turkey, but like red meat (thank you, cows) and salmon. Just don’t mention the chocolate. Here are three choices for carnivores.

Epic
Epic had a nice booth for their 100% naturally-sourced animal products. In keeping with paleo ideas, they believe in the wisdom of our ancestral diet, but just as important is for animals to live and graze as naturally as possible. Holistic, biodynamic ranching, Epic argues, can restore grassland, unlike the industrial farming and agriculture practices we’re seeing today. I’d never eaten buffalo, so I gave their Bison bar a try. It’s salty yet sweet, incredibly piquant with a slight smoky taste and cranberries inside. It’s not pure bison but also contains bacon, and this is noticeable. Epic offers 11 types of meat bar, and lots more (salmon fillets, too). Most natural grocers and health food stores carry them, or go to epicbar.com.


Mighty Bar
Mighty Bar specializes in pure grass-fed, organic prairie beef from Down Under, with a farmers’ cooperative over 20 years old. They have three flavors of bars; I tried Cranberry & Sunflower Seed. It has good flavor, but a bit harder texture, more in the style of juicy jerky than Epic’s bison creation. Whole Foods, New Seasons and Alberta Co-op carry them; mightyorganic.com.


Tanka
Tanka is worth checking out. Native American Natural Foods makes these buffalo-meat snacks to advocate natural and healthy eating, a Native respect for living things, and racial interconnectedness. Tanka offers four flavors Tanka is widespread, from New Seasons and Whole Foods to Pharmaca, Food Front, Little Green Grocer, REI, co-ops, and many others including their site tankabar.com.
What a ride. Mighty bars, picky bars, kind bars, power wraps, a revolution in food. The most difficult part of this journey for me was choosing, from such bounty, which to discuss. Variety, the omnivore’s dilemma, is truly the spice of life. For such wholesome, certified products (at the expo, I learned just how costly certification is), all are reasonably priced. Of course, if you’re bold, you can also try making food bars of any sort, as I’ve done. But often, you may not have time.

When stuffing your pack with snacks this coming year, why not try something new? Many of us take joy in striking out on a path we’ve never explored before. But I discovered there’s no less of a thrill in walking up to someone you’ve never seen, who’s offering their passion to the world via a company they started only a month ago, and asking, “Can I try it?” That way, there’s plenty of room to be adventurous.

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Of Mountains and Men: An Extraordinary Journey to Explore Why Some People Feel the Irresistible Urge to Climb Mountains

Book written by Mateo Cabello. Review by Sue Griffith


Fresh off the Haute Route, Mateo Cabello stumbled upon the Mountaineers’ Cemetery in the garden of Zermatt’s St. Mauritius Church. There, he was drawn to a small, bronze plaque commemorating the 1948 deaths of three friends while climbing the Matterhorn. Inexplicably moved by the memorial, Cabello wonders what it is that compels people to climb mountains—particularly where death is imaginable—and why he has never felt a longing to do so. In Of Mountains and Men: An Extraordinary Journey to Explore why Some People Feel the Irresistible Urge to Climb Mountains, Cabello examines the short lives of the three young climbers in an effort to find his answer.

A political economist by trade and self-described hill-walker, Of Mountains and Men is Cabello’s first book. Because he is not a climber and has never summited a mountain, the author brings an impartial perspective to the task. He digs deep into the archives of the Oxford University Mountaineering Club where the climbers had been members while students, connects with surviving family and friends of the three men, and retraces some of their steps while celebrating his own love of mountains. Cabello interviews accomplished climbers and tackles an impressive list of climbing and mountaineering literature, ranging across time from Leslie Stephen’s The Playground of Europe to Jon Krakauer’s Into Thin Air. In the process, he examines his motivations for writing the book and for writing it the way he did. Part memoir in this sense, the author reveals his own feelings about climbing while also searching for a more universal truth.

Rejecting the idea of mountaineers as larger-than-life conquerors, Cabello zeroes in on the human side of climbing. His book is a study not of those single-minded climbers bent on claiming records, but rather the story of a trio of talented young men who shared a love of mountains and were drawn together by their zest for life. Climbing was just one of the things they did, albeit an important one. In that sense, mountaineering may simply be the search for one’s own soul. “Climbers and mountaineers,” Cabello writes, “go to mountains in the hope of measuring themselves against the most powerful rivals that nature may offer. And they do it, not despite the risks that it involves, but because the risks are an inherent part of the joy of being measured.”

In the end, Cabello never quite finds his answer. He concludes, correctly I believe, that trying to define precisely why people climb is a pointless exercise—the reasons are as diverse as the people who climb. The mountains call to some people while others never hear the call. Cabello is sure about one thing, however. The important story is not about how climbers die but rather how they lived. Climbing is about life.

Read the book for its survey of mountaineering literature, to help articulate your own reasons for climbing, or to enjoy the story of three inspiring young men who celebrated living by seeking mountain tops.

Cabello, M. (2016). Of Mountains and Men: An Extraordinary Journey to Explore why Some People Feel the Irresistible Urge to Climb Mountains. United Kingdom: Oxford Alpine Club.

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New Cams: 2016

by Topher Dabrowski

With so many manufacturers introducing new cams for 2016, I wanted to take a quick look at the newer cams on the market and do some comparisons to see how much of a benefit they offer. Obviously there is a lot of talk about light weight and improved features,but how much lighter and what is it going to cost you?

I’m going to focus on Black Diamond (BD), Metolius, DMM, Wild Country and Totem cams, since those are the main newer offerings for the year.

Black Diamond and Metolius both announced an ultra light (UL) cam which will supplement their current offerings of Camalot C4s and MasterCams, respectively. Only Metolius has gone as far as putting its entire set of MasterCams on a diet as well as adding two more sizes on the upper end, a number 7 & 8, which is in the range of a Camalot 2 & 3. The larger sized MasterCams of the previous generation tended to be a bit wobbly due to the single flexible stem and the larger mass of the cam lobes. However, with the reduction in mass, it seems like Metolius was willing to go a little bigger and also add a stiffer cable. Black Diamond’s new line of UL cams does not include the .3, 5 or 6 yet, so if you wanted a complete set those would have to be made up with the C4s.
There is no news yet if BD intends to update those cam sizes and offer a UL version.

DMM has changed up the design of the lobes on its Dragon cams to be a bit “stickier” and profiled to be thicker in the sweet spot for more contact with rock. They offer a full line of cams with extendable slings from size 00-6, which is equivalent to the BD sizes of 0.3-4. It is interesting to note that DMM has color coded its twin axle Dragon cams to match the colors of the BD Camalots for a given size. One would guess this was done to ease interchangeability and familiarity of cam sizes for Camalot aficionados.

Wild Country, too, has updated the Friend to offer a twin axle design cam which also closely resembles the Camalot C4. Wild Country has taken the cue from DMM and added extendable slings to the new units, while also matching the size and colors of the Camalots. Could this be a trend towards an industry standard? Unfortunately, the Friends only come in the 0.5-4 sizes for now so the equivalent smaller 0.3 and 0.4 sizes would have to be made up with either the previous Helium Friend cam or another brand entirely.

Totem, a lesser-known Spanish company, offers a unique cam that is a dual independent stem design. It allows the cam to function in a quasi-offset nature which helps it perform well in flaring cracks and also affords aid climbers the ability to actively place only two lobes of the cam. Totem is expanding the range with two units, one which will be similar in size to the 2.0 Camalot size, which Totem calls a 1.8, slung with orange Dyneema. The other is the 0.5 size, equivalent to a 0.2 Camalot and is slung in black Dyneema.

I wanted to compare the new UL cams to the existing C4 cams as well as the DMM, Wild Country and Totem cams for a common 0.3-4 size set. Unfortunately, this was a bit of a challenge since only the DMM Dragons came as a complete set that covered the range. To try and make a reasonably fair comparison, I supplemented what each manufacturer might have available for the missing sizes. For the Wild Country cams I chose the equivalent Helium Friends. To make a complete set of Camalot ULs I threw in the 0.3 C4. I couldn’t do much for Totem since they don’t make an equivalent size to the BD 3 or 4. Similarly, the MasterCam ULs don’t have a BD 4 equivalent, so I used the Camalot UL 4 to complete that set as it seemed the logical choice.

I made three main comparisons and summarized the mass and costs of a chosen cam set between manufacturers. I highlighted the lightest set and lowest cost in the second set of tables.

(01) – Wild Country offers the smallest set of new cams (six in total) from 0.5-4, so I used this as a basis for the first comparison and substituted in a Camalot UL 4 for the Metolius set. The lightest and lowest cost set is the MasterCam UL with the Camalot UL C4 added as the biggest cam. The new BD Camalot ULs were the most expensive set while the C4 and the new Friends were almost the same mass.

(02) – This comparison is for the common 0.3-4 Camalot set. Again,Metolius has the lightest and lowest cost set of cams and BD has the most expensive set with its ULs. The Friends, Dragons and C4s are all very close in mass but the Friends and Dragons do have the extendable slings.

(03) – Here I tried to bring Totems into the mix. Since they have a set that is limited in the upper range by a Camalot 2 size equivalent, I simply compared an equivalent set from 0.3-2.0. Metolius, again, has the lightest and cheapest set of cams. The Totems are not overly weighty given their added functionality, but they are pricey.

I suppose one could start to look at the savings with reduced number of runners when considering the cams with extendable slings. My typical sling is a Mammut Contact 8 mm with two CAMP Nano ‘biners, all of which weighs in at 78 grams. Given a set of DMM or Friends from 0.3-4 with extendable slings, I might be able to leave those runners behind and save 624 grams off my rack. It would really depend on how much the route wanders and if those extended slings are long enough.

I have yet to get my hands on any of these units but, from a preliminary look at these specs, there are already some glaring differences. In the end, though, only getting out on the rock with these on my rack will tell whether or not these design discrepancies are significant or not.

About the author: Topher Dabrowski started his climbing endeavors early and has been adventuring and climbing all over planet Earth for almost 3 decades. His activities include mountaineering, big walls, alpine, mixed, rock, ice, bouldering and long distance trail running. As an active member of the local ASCA rebolting chapter he can often be found replacing suspect anchors and reducing your chances of an expensive hospital bill.

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Gaia App: Viable GPS Replacement?

by John Godino

I’ll always remember my first introduction to the navigation potentials of a smart phone. A few years ago on a North Sister climb, we ended up taking an unexpected route back to camp. On our cross-country bushwhack, we experienced a little of what might you call “positional uncertainty.” I called a halt for our team, got out my map and clunky old GPS receiver, waited for it to get fired up, and then started plotting our UTM coordinate on the map to find out where we were. One of the younger members of our climb team strolled over and said “Hey, can I show you something? Here’s exactly where we are.” And he showed me his iPhone screen, with a reassuring little blue dot directly over a high resolution map. That was when the lightbulb really went on for me: the holy Grail of navigation (a good map with a “you are here” mark) had arrived.

GPS smartphone apps can now go head-to-head with dedicated handheld GPS receivers. Along with increasing chip speed, screen size, and battery power, smart phones actually have several advantages: more intuitive user interface, much better screen resolution, a much wider range and better quality base maps, and a vastly lower price.

The two main potential problems with GPS smart phones, fragility and running out of batteries, are easily solved with a sturdy case and an auxiliary battery pack and extra cable. GPS works on your phone without cell phone coverage, and you can download free, high quality maps ahead of time for use when you are in the backcountry.

Most climbers already carry their phone. Why not add one more navigation tool that only costs $20, doesn’t weigh anything, takes maybe 30 minutes to learn, and might just really save the day sometime?

One of the leading wilderness GPS apps is called Gaia GPS. Gaia has a few key features that put it at the head of the pack. It’s really focused on backcountry use, and not recording every arcane statistic of your hike and letting you post it to social media. They have terrific technical support, a wide variety of base maps, including satellite imagery and open source map layers, and the interface is easy enough to get you up to speed in a few minutes. And, it’s only $20, compared with a standalone GPS receiver that starts around $200 and goes up to $600, ouch! Gais GPS has a version for both iPhone and Android users.

The Mazamas is partnering with Gaia GPS to introduce more of our members to this powerful tool. This is being done in two steps. One, all Mazamas climb and hike leaders are eligible to get a free copy of the app. This will be rolled out over approximately the next year, and will be coordinated within the climbing and trail trips committees.

More broadly, Gaia has generously offered the Pro version of their app to all of the Mazamas membership.

To access this offer, you first need to purchase the app for $20, but then you will get an upgrade to the Gaia Pro, which normally cost $40 a year. This opens up lots of new map layers, lets you plan trips and print maps from the Gaia website, and more.

There are a some good resources to learn to use this app. One, if you go to mazamas.org and navigate to Resources then Maps for Hiking and Climbing, you’ll see a video link for a tutorial on how to use the app. Watching this video for 10 minutes will give you the foundation that you need to go start practicing. If you’d like more in-depth training, the Mazamas have a skill builder class in smart phone GPS coming up in June that still has some openings.

But, you really don’t need a class. Watch the instructional video, go for a walk around your neighborhood for an hour or so, mark some waypoints, record a track, practice downloading maps for use outside of cell range, use the Guide Me function to get distance and bearing to an existing waypoint, and you’ll get the hang of it pretty quickly.

And now, next time you experience a bit of “positional uncertainty,”you’ll have a solid tool to get yourself unlost.


Author’s Note: Electronic mapping tools do not replace paper maps. We recommend always carrying a paper map with you on your backcountry adventures.