This time of year, I swear everyone and their dog publishes a gift guide. In my opinion, these guides vary highly in quality… some of them have decent suggestions, whereas others have only high-priced items or a bunch of affiliate links. So here’s my attempt at doing better.
This list contains items I enjoy and use often. None of these are affiliate links (one day, I’ll be cool enough to have an affiliate program!), and all of these are reasonable gifts to buy for someone. This means two things: first, these are affordable (as much as your ski buddy would love to get a new pair of skis this year, that’s not actually a practical or reasonable gift), and second, these gifts are something you actually can buy for someone else (without needing to know their clothing size, for example).
1. A Voile ski strap
Seriously, these are the most useful things for any skier, and they’re small and inexpensive, making for a great stocking stuffer.
After many rides on many ski buses trying to keep track of skis and poles while not falling on the slippery floor while walking in ski boots, we discovered these, and they’ve been a game changer. Use them to tie your skis and poles together, giving you one compact bundle to carry. Now you can stand tall in crowded ski bus like a pro.
Conveniently, they’re available on Amazon:
2. A portable dog bed
If you’re getting a gift for a person who loves their dog (and frequently takes their dog places), this is an easy one.
I first thought of the idea after visiting with my one of my friends, who’d brought an old yoga mat for Tuck to sit on while we chatted at a local park. Needless to say, Tuck didn’t really sit on it… but I thought it was a good idea. A few months later, we moved to Denver for a short stay, and everywhere (and I mean EVERYWHERE) in Denver is dog-friendly. Jerry and I enjoy visiting breweries, so we thought we’d pick up a portable dog bed so Tuck could comfortably join us on brewery visits. He actually seems to like it… the top part is soft, there’s some padding inside, and the bottom part (that touches the ground) is a water resistant fabric, making it fairly durable.
RuffWear has a cute version of this that’s intended to be used as a sleeping bag for dogs… it’s adorable, but I couldn’t bring myself to spend quite that much money on something Tuck might hate. I may one day upgrade to the fancy version, but for now, the travel dog bed works just fine.
3. Rechargeable hand warmers
If you have a friend who always has cold hands, rechargeable hand warmers make for a great gift! I definitely wouldn’t recommend these for skiing (they’re a bit large/bulky for that), but I really love these for hiking or walking in the winter. I like to use them while walking the dog, who despite hating the cold, spends an awful lot of time sniffing around in terrible weather. These have a surprisingly long battery life; I think I only recharged them once last season.
4. A light or medium-weight wool buff
A lightweight buff is great for a skier or a hiker. For cold skiing, I have a layering system of ultra warm buffs and a hood. However, for warm-weather skiing and cold-weather hiking, I don’t really need or want a super warm buff, but some form of neck protection is necessary for the wind and sun.
I didn’t realize I’d use this so often, but honestly, I wear it for lots of outdoor activities in cool or cold weather. If it gets too hot, you can always pull it up over your face and use it as a headband.
5. Goodr sunglasses
Who doesn’t need another pair of sunglasses?
Jerry and I LOVE our Goodr sunglasses. Last year, we picked up a pair each at the checkout aisle in REI (their national park series is fun). Since then, we’ve each bought an additional pair. These have quickly become our go-to sunglasses for everything: driving, hiking, sailing, you name it. The glasses are relatively large (without looking oversized or comical), so they shade your eyes well even on sunny snow days. The frames are apparently indestructible; we’ve really put our glasses through their paces, and they haven’t broken yet. They even fit on top of my normal glasses, allowing me to continue to be too cheap to buy prescription sunglasses.
As proof that these are a great gift – I gave my dad a pair recently, and he really likes them too!
6. An Osprey Daylight Plus backpack
If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you’ll know that Jerry and I are big Osprey fans. Not only do they have an epic warranty in case your backpack gets eaten (see the third story of this post), but their gear is high quality and well designed.
If you’re interested in spending a little more money on a gift, a guaranteed all around win is an Osprey Daylite Plus backpack. This backpack is perfect for day hikes and traveling. It’s small and lightweight (so it packs easily) but still has enough structure to be comfortable after a long day of hiking.
The Daylite Plus is slightly bigger and is therefore much easier to pack. That being said, you can often find better deals on the Daylite. Jerry has a Daylite Plus, and I have two Daylite packs (I use one for hiking and one for work travel). While our hiking daypacks are the older styles of this bag, Osprey’s new versions look really professional – which is why I use one for work trips. The bag compresses to be very flat, so it even fits in the back pocket of my travel backpack.
7. Kuju Coffee
If you’re looking for a gift for a coffee drinker who hasn’t tried Kuju Coffee yet, they’re in for a treat. These are individual servings of pour over coffee. To use, open the package, and balance the little filter over your cup. Pour hot water on top, and let it seep through the coffee. In a few minutes, you’ll have some absolutely amazing coffee with minimal trash to pack out.
We prefer the dark blend, but I should say that it’s very dark. Generally, Jerry makes the first cup, then I make a half a cup after him (using the same grounds), which makes my coffee weaker, which I prefer.
One thing that makes these better than other pour over options is the cleanup. On our first backpacking trip together, we brought pre-ground coffee and filters and a collapsible pour-over funnel. This made great coffee, but the amount of leftover grounds we had was…intense. Because we were backpacking, we had to pack it out, and carrying heavy, waterlogged coffee grounds is not ideal. Somehow, the Kuju coffee manages to get similarly good coffee with fewer grounds, making it ideal for backpacking. We like these so much we even use them for camping and road trips.
8. A Black Diamond Spot headlamp
Headlamps are incredibly useful for so many things – backpacking, car camping, as emergency gear for hiking (you should always have a flashlight in your backpack when hiking). As a result, you want it to be compact, lightweight, bright, and dependable.
We use Black Diamond’s Spot headlamps, as they meet all of these requirements. They’re bright, they have a red light mode to preserve night vision, and their new version is compatible with either a rechargeable battery pack or three AAA batteries. Note: when heading out into the backcountry, you should always pack backup batteries for critical equipment or have a way to charge equipment while you’re out there.
While most experienced backpackers or hikers probably already have a headlamp, this is an ideal gift for someone who is wanting to get into hiking or camping more.
9. Sea to Summit collapsible cups
Sea to Summit makes fantastic collapsible cookware. While these are necessary items for any backpacker, campers and hikers can also benefit from owning a collapsible cup. There’s something kind of nice about having a cup of coffee before heading out on the trail (and yes, these work great with Kuju coffee linked above) or unwinding with a glass of wine at the end of the day.
These collapsible cups can do it all. They’re easy to clean, lightweight, and can be used with hot liquids (without burning your hands). We’ve had ours for years now, and they continue to be an important part of our backpacking and camping gear.
That’s it! Nine instant-buys for anybody on your list who likes to get outside or travel.
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