3. Watch

Often the most overlooked item for modern-day adventurers who may not wear a watch, a solid, ruggedized outdoor watch can produce huge dividends for you in the backcountry, and often times provide a badass and fashionable accessory to perk up and dandify your everyday wardrobe.

Best Use:

Measuring distance, calories burned, time on the move, altitude, barometric pressure – oodles of things you might not fully understand but will earn you tons of kudos and brownie points when mentioned to your trekking, cycling or climbing partners. Oh, and they also tell the time.

Why we love it:

Not only does it add an element of ‘bling’ to your outdoor apparel, an outdoor watch can pack a ton of super-handy features into a tiny little bundle.

Staff Recommendation – Casio G-Shock 100 Digital/Analog Watch ($99)

Water resistant to 200m, 10m dropping G-shock resistance, a 10-year battery life and generally tough as nails, this sturdy slice of wrist garnishing is just about as unbreakable as they come without making the thing bulletproof.