Introduction, sitemap, and latest updates

Welcome!

Welcome to Alex’s Quick Reference Guide. This purpose of this website is to help people head out on their adventures in backcountry hiking and urban adventure travel, safely and comfortably (within the bounds of Type 2 fun, of course).

Whenever we look for advice on outdoor adventure, we often find ourselves surrounded by conflicting voices on how to do things, where to go, what to buy.

To help narrow down a bewildering set of choices, I’ve synthesized a combination of historical best practices, trade publication reviews, customer feedback, lessons learned from my own experiences, and lessons generously provided to me by mentors who have logged more nights in the backcountry.

No guarantee is provided here, except these these:

I will never host ads on this page, never draw commission from a sale I made based on the purchase of recommended products, or attain any material benefit from the advice I provide here. There are no affiliate links, and there never will be. There is no link to any social media, and there never will be. I don’t want or need followers, and I don’t solicit gear donations in exchange for reviews. If I get anything from this, it’s because you decided to tip me.

I don’t want any followers. There will also never be a single sentence written by a machine on this website. Except for basic spellcheck, there will never be a single sentence edited by a machine either. It’s just me: no nonsense, no algorithm. If I’m wrong about something, contact me and I’ll do my best to fix the error.

By having these guardrails in place, I will be able to provide you the most unbiased advice possible. This advice is intended mainly for beginners, otherwise, maybe you could consider this ‘refresher training.’ I can’t teach you everything from the ground-up, but if you need quick and reliable answers, I hope you find it useful.

One more thing: I won’t write about anything I don’t know enough about. Regarding canoeing, kayaking, mountain biking, alpine climbing, cross-country-skiing, and trail running, please check out alternate resources.

Wherever you’re going, have fun out there. And get home safe!

Latest updates

2026-07-17: Sitemap added. Hyperlinks will be added to the sitemap over time.

Sitemap

  1. Introduction
  2. The ten essentials: Description and recommendations
  3. The ten essentials (plus two more essentials): Recommendations
  4. The ‘big four’
  5. The big four: Recommendations
  6. The hiker’s clothing system
  7. Hiking apparel recommendations
  8. Hiking apparel recommendations: Beyond the basics
  9. Repair services
  10. Parts of a typical alpine-style backpacking pack/trekking backpack
  11. What makes ‘women’s fit’ backpacks different?
  12. Why doesn’t this ‘unisex fit’ backpack feel right?
  13. How should my backpack feel when I’m wearing it?
  14. Pack fitting in a nutshell
  15. What kinds of backpacks are there? Which one do I need?
  16. Technical sidebar: Backpack manufacturer design tendencies
  17. Technical sidebar: Why are backpacks so expensive?
  18. Hiking backpacks: Categorization
  19. Hiking backpacks: Recommendations
  20. How should my hiking shoes/boots fit?
  21. Hiking footwear: Recommendations
  22. Putting it all together: Complete 3-season backpacking packing checklist
  23. 3-season backpacking gear list: Recommendations
  24. How to travel with carry-on luggage only
  25. How to travel with carry-on luggage only: In a nutshell
  26. Carry-on and personal size limits for select airlines
  27. Carry-on and personal size limits for budget airlines
  28. Travel backpack recommendations
  29. Travel backpack recommendations, simplified
  30. Technical sidebar: Theft avoidance, deterrence, and recovery
  31. Technical sidebar: Photography tips for beginners
  32. Technical sidebar: Travel photography
  33. Technical sidebar: Nature photography
  34. Packing lists: Introduction
  35. Carry-on travel checklist with recommendations: Men’s version
  36. Carry-on travel checklist with recommendations: Women’s version
  37. Personal item checklist with recommendations: Women’s version
  38. Technical appendix A: Frequently Asked Questions, asked one time, by me, to myself
  39. Technical appendix B: Online resources and further reading
  40. What Alex uses
  41. What Alex can do for you