Latest Posts

Big Agnes on Denali
Essays From the Field
"Spending two or three weeks on a high-altitude arctic mountain does not need to be uncomfortable. When you have a cozy jacket and bed it makes all the discomforts of mountaineering a little more manageable." Read the rest

“Copper Spur Meets Empress Gulch”
The Campfire Chronicles
"To shed some light on the power and movement occurring inside the tent during this barrage, the force of the hail shut the roof vent, my Garmin was vibrated out of the roof pockets, and Ponderosa pines all around took a significant haircut. When the storm passed, I climbed out feeling lucky and rewarded having just witnessed the awesome power and now beauty of Mother Nature." Read the rest

Walking the Walk to Talk the Talk
Company News
Our mantra at KNS Reps has always been use the gear we sell. So, on a beautiful Fall day in September, I planned to hike over West Maroon Pass to Aspen to visit my friends at the Ute Mountaineer, and hang with Sam, my good buddy whom also works on the buying team at the shop...I have been selling outdoor gear for over 20 years, and it was refreshing to see a myriad of folks getting after it. I thought of sharing my sales pitch for Big Agnes several times, but kept it to myself. Maybe this foray into the wilderness will lead these hikers into the Ute Mountaineer, or their own specialty retail store back at home. Read the rest

“Life is Good” Backpacking with a Four Year Old
Essays From the Field
"After some exploring with headlamps around the nearby lake it was time for bed and jammies. I brought a couple of Ivy’s paperback books to read, and it was lights out for a super tired kid. I was eventually joined under our tarp by my friends, and we talked into the night about the day and how lucky we are to live here and have little girls to do this stuff with." Read the rest

Training for Iceland along the mighty, muddy Rio Grande
Stuff We Like
"Morale still high and smiles in abundance - till we ran out of water. I could see that river in the distance, but it was increasingly clear that our route wasn't going to bring us to it. It had come time to make the decision to leave our bikes, and carry backpacks, bottles, bladders and the filter to the Rio. An hour later I'm opening up the gravity filter and realize it's missing the "clean" bladder. Minor inconvenience - we'll use other bladders and bottles..." Read the rest