partnership with Backcountry + ShopStyle collective
Goodness I proud of this crew.. Braun, Anisten, Emery, my Dad, my Niece and my Father-in-law and his brother took on the Subway in Zion National Park! So many have asked about my gear! I remember my whole childhood my dad shopping at Backcountry.. He’s a Geologist and spends SO much time outside in the elements. When they asked me to partner on the first campaign I did with them, I remember how excited I was to work with them + tell my dad all about it. Since then, it’s turned into an incredible long term partnership and I’m SO grateful I get to work with them. I truly can’t think of a better place to grab most of my gear than at Backcountry! 🙂 They are the best of the best when it comes to outdoor stuff, and have a team of Gearheads ready to help you on their site 24/7 with any questions you may have.. Plus, My code: TARABC15 will work on your first full price purchase (some exclusions do apply!)
If you’ve hiked before, you know that a good pack makes or breaks the whole dang hike.. You’ve got to carry that thing in and back out + be sure that your core is strong enough to do so. Every adult had a big bag, so there was no way possible we were taking over the girls’ packs half way through and we made that super clear!! Pack what you can carry, and no extra! Emery and Anisten carried Osprey Tempest Packs. The biggest selling feature for them was the shoulder strap pocket that held their phones and lots of room for snacks.. but the big things I looked for was the hip and chest support and the breathable mesh back. It’s got the clip for helmets + so many other awesome things. Osprey is great because they design them specifically for male or female body types. We grabbed the Osprey Pack Hydraulics Hydration Reservoir for inside their bags so they didn’t have to carry water bottles that distributed weight unevenly.
My niece carried a camelbak mule pro 14L hydration pack! She said hers was awesome, too! I’ll link a bunch of pack options below that would be great for teens and women.. in my opinion, Osprey has a better support. My code: TARABC15 will save you on your first full price order (some exclusions do apply!)
Braun’s Shirt | Helmets | Harness
Repelling is not for the faint of heart. Haha. Truthfully, only two of us were actually experienced here. We made sure to grab all the right gear, though! One bad move could have really done some damage if we were not wearing these helmets. We really loved these! They were low profile, and had good airflow through them. Plus they had the ratcheting piece on the back for a snug fit. They also come with a headlamp clip. There are SO many options for harnesses! We just did our own research and looked at reviews and chatted with the Gearheads on the backcountry site to see what was the best option for us. My code: TARABC15 will save you on your first full price order (some exclusions do apply!)
I think the most asked question about the Subway hike I got was about my hat.. ha! It’s truly the best hat EVER. It’s a Tilley.. and man, they make some dang good stuff. It’s super light weight, adjustable (doesn’t squeeze your head unless you want it to!), and moisture wicking. There is a little pocket you can put a key if you wanted to. I have had mine for years, and I love it so so much. It’s the only one I wear on a hike like this. Here are some other options I thought about for the girls, though (they didn’t want to match me..). My code: TARABC15 will save you on your first full price order (some exclusions do apply!)
Best Hat EVER! | Shorts | Hiking Packs | Birkenstocks | Teva Sandals
I think I packed about 12 pairs of shorts to decide from the morning of. A bad pair of shorts could have literally ruined the trip in my opinion 😂 Too tight, too loose, rides up, scratchy/uncomfortable.. I was STRESSED over this 12+ hour choice, and I needed something that would dry very quickly too. I went with these Patagonia Barely Baggies Shorts and they were great! They have a longer length version if you prefer extra length! Here are other shorts that are the same feeling material.. the pattern ones are so cute! My code: TARABC15 will save you on your first full price order (some exclusions do apply!)
Gosh, footwear.. we all brought two pairs of shoes (except for my dad, who wore his chaocos the WHOLE time!)
Emery: Sneakers + Chaco Mega Z
Anisten: Salomon Hiking Shoes + Tevas Hurricane Drift Sandal
Me: HOKAs + Chaco Mega Z
I grabbed the HOKA speedgoat 5 trail runner sneakers for this hike.. the one thing above all I love about HOKA is that there is no “break in period” for them. They’re just as comfortable today as the day I bought them and I’ve never got blisters from them. They’re really lightweight and have an awesome grippy sole. All that extra foam below has a purpose, and it totally worked. I was comfortable the whole time.
I’ve come to love my Chacos more than keen or tevas. I feel like with either of the latter, I was constantly still getting rocks up under my heel, or my foot was slipping in them, or I had blisters, etc. Chaco Mega Z (I don’t like the ones with the piece between my toes!!) have been a dream! My code: TARABC15 will save you on your first full price order (some exclusions do apply!)
And lastly on the MUST grabs for this hike – these sea to summit dry bags. I was a little skeptical of them (mostly because I was scared to have soaked everything) but they were AWESOME! None of them leaked, and they kept our stuff totally dry. When we were done we just took our packs out, rolled them up + packed them back away. They’re really light weight, so they didn’t add many oz to our bags. They have multiple sizes and colors available. My code: TARABC15 will save you on your first full price order (some exclusions do apply!)
Oversized Tee | Joggers | Sneakers | Stanley
The best part about Stanley items being on backcountry!? My discount code works!! My code: TARABC15 will save you on your first full price order (some exclusions do apply!)
BTW – I promise I didn’t look like this after the hike, but I did grab some comfy stuff to change into afterward. These boyfriend tees are the best. They’re oversized, crew neck and just a really awesome fit (size up in anything stoic brand!!). I know I’ve shared these joggers with you before because I have them now in black + green! They’re a stretchy material + fit really great. It’s got a thicker waistband but they don’t cut into you.. they just fit really awesome. The gray color is cute too! Here’s some other clothing items I’m loving at backcountry lately..
