OGE Is Coming to Essex: Your Questions, Answered We get it. People have questions. Lots of questions. Well, we’ve got answers for you. Let’s dispel some of the myths that have cropped up since we first announced that we’re opening a second Outdoor Gear Exchange store in the Essex Experience shopping center. Jump to the questions below if you need your answers in a hurry. First and foremost: Just because we’re opening a new location doesn’t mean we’re … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

5 Quality of Life Upgrades to Inspire You to Get a New Tent If you’ve been rocking the same tent for a few seasons now, you’ve probably amassed at least a few grievances about how it was designed: Maybe you don’t like the way the fly’s zippers open and close, or you don’t have enough storage space inside the tent. Maybe you’ve spent a rainy day hunkered down in it and the way the vestibules are configured made it feel claustrophobic. Before you … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

Tried and True Gear: Canoe Camping Ahhhhhh…. Canoe Camping. Ever popular, always different. The beauty of canoe camping stems from the fact that you can bring the whole kitchen sink, and then some with you. Weight is not really a concern unless you have portaging to think about. For multiple weeks out on the river, or lake hopping, a slimmer backpacking style approach might be the ticket. For the weekend overnight at the local lake on … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

Tried and True Gear: Climbing Bouldering, Trad climbing, sport climbing, top roping. A lot of ways to get on the rock. It’s also a lot of gear to think about. The general approach is that depending on the type of rock, length of route, saftey, time, all come together with what you end up climbing on most. If you love to boulder, you just need some friends, a crash pad, some shoes, and some chalk. … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

Tried and True Gear: Backpacking Backpacking is one of those outdoor pursuits that lives on a giant spectrum. Folks will go for 3 days, some folks complete entire thruhikes that last months on end, over thousands of miles. There is also a wide variety of gear, when you pick that gear, and a specific reason it has a place in the pack. Some people love being as light as possible. No large comforts. You can … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

Building Trails for EveryBODY Vermont Adaptive, a nationally-recognized organization that empowers people with disabilities to recreate outside, believes that “everyBODY” should be able to enjoy the same physical, mental, and social benefits that time in the outdoors can bring. By supplying individuals with adaptive equipment, education and experience, Vermont Adaptive is able to cover half of the equation—but what about the trails themselves? With networks ranging from Burke to Bennington, there are over … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

Session & Progression: Take Your Mountain Biking to the Next Level Since 2020, mountain biking has grown in popularity nationwide. You have a bike and have been riding, but how do you progress from being a green/blue trail cruiser to a black trail crusher? OGExpert Kenzie is here to share her tips and tricks. She is a BICP (Bike Instructor Certification Program) Level 2 instructor with a passion for getting a diversity of riders out on mountain bikes. 1. Go Back… Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

Hard Boot Splitboarding Part 2: The Gear This blog post is meant to be a continuation of a piece that was published on our website last winter titled My Season As A Hard Boot Splitboarder. If you haven’t read that article, and you’re still trying to decide if it makes sense for you to make the switch to hard boot splitboarding, I recommend you start there first. For this post, I wanted to go a bit … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

A Fat Bike Q&A, Or: Why Fat Bikes? If you’ve ever wanted to extend your biking season past when most people—but not all—would throw in the towel and wait for spring, you’re in luck. Because fat bikes. Purpose-built for soldiering through wooly winter terrain, their extremely wide and often studded tires can make short work of snowy trails that conventional mountain bikes would balk at. That’s all well and good, you say. But what if you … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more

Meeting the Full Circle Everest Team Have you ever wanted to see what the power of community, lifting up those around you, and a common goal can do? Look no further than the Full Circle Everest Expedition Team, the first all-black mountaineering team to summit Mount Everest (also known by its Tibetan name: Chomolungma, Mother Goddess of the World). We were extremely fortunate to have four members of the Full Circle team come to Burlington … Read more >> The Outdoor Gear Exchange Blog ..read more