Best Outdoor Brands for Hiking and Backpacking
JUMP TO: ARC’TERYX / ENLIGHTENED EQUIPMENT / FEATHERED FRIENDS / GOSSAMER GEAR / HYPERLITE MOUNTAIN GEAR / ICEBREAKER / LA SPORTIVA / PATAGONIA / RAB / SMARTWOOL / TARPTENT / THERM-A-REST / ZPACKS
Author: Sam Brilleman
Most of us have probably heard of the big names when it comes to outdoor brands and gear... backpacks by Osprey, shoes by Salomon, or bikes by Trek. Many of those outdoor brands are almost household names. However, there is a huge range of other outdoor gear manufacturers who are smaller scale but still doing amazing things.
A Tarptent pitched in the Australian Alps. Tarptent — who make backpacking shelters — are an awesome outdoor brand and a perfect example of innovative gear coming out of the cottage industry.
Many smaller businesses in the outdoor gear world manufacture their products entirely in-house (known as the "cottage industry”) rather than outsourcing the manufacturing process to external contractors. This close proximity to the manufacturing process means that many cottage manufacturers experiment with novel and innovative designs, as well as often allowing gear customisation. In addition, smaller businesses are often more willing to communicate directly with their customers.
At Ultimate Gear Lists, we believe that a healthy and thriving cottage gear industry is highly beneficial for the backpacking community.
Therefore in this post we put a spotlight on some of the best outdoor brands for hikers and backpackers, including many from the cottage industry. This list doesn’t only include smaller businesses though. It also includes several bigger outdoor brands who are industry leaders in terms of quality and innovation.
Nonetheless, what is certain is that each of the businesses listed below are doing something awesome that is worth checking out!
Therm-a-Rest… an outdoor brand capable of bringing the comfort of your lounge room to the outdoors. Fuck yeah!
Note: This list is not intended to be exhaustive. Rather it is a selected list that highlights some of my favourite outdoor brands and businesses. I will expand and update it over time. The list is in alphabetical order, not in order of preference.
ARC’TERYX
Arc’teryx are in no way a small business or a cottage company. In fact they are perhaps one of the most popular outdoor brands in North America. But that doesn’t exclude the fact that they are also one of the best.
Arc’teryx make high performance, high quality gear for a number of outdoor pursuits including hiking and backpacking. They focus predominantly on clothing, footwear and backpacks and prioritise durability and performance over anything else, including price.
Arc’teryx Atom SV (left) and Beta LT (right) in Yoho National Park, BC, Canada. The Atom SV — now superseded by the Atom AR — is one of the best synthetic insulated jackets on the market.
I used to be sceptical of the price tag attached to Arc’teryx gear. And to a point I still am, particularly now that many Arc’teryx products are manufactured offshore in parts of Asia and elsewhere around the globe. But when I bought my first Arcteryx product a number of years ago I began to realise what all the fuss was about. It was an Arc’teryx Beta LT Jacket and it was f**king epic. The cut, the hood, the pocket positioning, the durability. Everything was spot on and it made every jacket I had owned before that seem like a waterproof sack. Arc’teryx has a reputation for perfecting their designs and with many of their products it definitely shows.
Of course with the scale at which they now produce products, the number of manufacturing plants they operate, and the fact that they are now owned by China’s largest sportswear brand some might believe it’s only a matter of time until Arc’teryx begins to cut corners.
Although it’s not the lightest of the light, I still love my Arc'teryx Beta LT Jacket.
Nonetheless — for now anyway — Arc’teryx remains one of the best outdoor brands for hiking and backpacking. They design some of the best high-performance outdoor apparel. They still manufacture many of their products in Canada. They stand by the quality of their gear with a pretty awesome limited warranty — e.g. they recently replaced a jacket of mine at no charge when it started delaminating even though it was several years old. And they have a number of policies around social and environmental responsibility. All pretty cool really…
ENLIGHTENED EQUIPMENT
Enlightened Equipment is one of the best manufacturers of ultralight backpacking quilts and sleeping bags. Founder Tim Marshall started the business in 2007 as a one man operation — sewing all the quilts himself in his home basement.
The business has now grown to more than 50 staff, all operating out of their facility in Minnesota, US. Backpacking quilts remain their core business, however their product line has expanded to include sleeping bags, rain gear, tarps, and more.
Enlightened Equipment aims to make some of the lightest, simplest, and cheapest ultralight backpacking gear on the market. In their words…
“Ultralight. Straightforward. Affordable.”
The Enlightened Equipment Revelation backpacking quilt has kept me toasty on many chilly mornings!
And another great feature of Enlightened Equipment products is that they are often customisable.
The Enlightened Equipment Convert features in our list of the best sleeping bags. And the Enlightened Equipment Enigma (sewn footbox) and Revelation (zippered footbox) both feature in our list of the best backpacking quilts. All are testaments to the quality of Enlightened Equipment’s gear!
FEATHERED FRIENDS
Started in 1972 by husband and wife team Peter and Carol Hickner, Feathered Friends have grown into one of the most popular manufacturers of high-quality down garments for lightweight backpacking and alpine adventures.
They are best known for their down sleeping bags. But they also manufacture other down garments, including jackets and pants.
The Feathered Friends Lark UL is my favourite sleeping bag for when the temps might be a little too cold for a backpacking quilt.
All their products are made with the highest quality goose down (e.g. their sleeping bags are made with 900 fill power goose down or better) and sewn to the upmost standard.
In fact, Feathered Friends offer a lifetime warranty against defects in workmanship or materials.
Better yet, 100% of the goose down they use is responsible down standard (RDS) certified, meaning it has been sourced from farms that are independently assessed for their animal welfare standards.
Feathered Friends Eos jacket is one of the best ultralight down jackets around.
My favourite Feathered Friends sleeping bags are the Feathered Friends Lark UL for the shoulder season or the Feathered Friends Flicker 20 UL for summer. But their awesome products don’t just include sleeping bags. For instance, the Feathered Friends Eos and Helios are two of the best down jackets money can buy.
And after almost 50 years of trading, Feathered Friends sleeping bags are still manufactured at their factory in Seattle, Washington!
GOSSAMER GEAR
Gossamer Gear is another pioneering manufacturer of ultralight backpacking gear. Near the turn of the millenium Glen Van Peski — founder of Gossamer Gear — was hiking through the mountains with his son’s boy scout group. Realising there was nothing fun about lugging an oversized and overweight backpack through the mountains he started seeking a better way.
Encouraged by the writings of Ray Jardine — famous rock climber and pioneer of ultralight backpacking — Glen started to sew his own backpacks. Several iterations later and his craft had improved so much that other hikers started asking Glen to sew them a backpack.
As word spread and demand grew Glen knew he couldn’t keep up. So around 2004 he transformed his lounge room project into a full blown business, hiring staff and expanding the product line.
These days Gossamer Gear primarily manufacture backpacks and shelters, but also some accessories such as trekking poles and cooking equipment.
Their backpacks are particularly popular. Made from Robic nylon, they provide an awesome balance between weight, durability, and cost. They are also super comfortable and highly functional.
The Gossamer Gear Mariposa Backpack in action — it’s comfortable, ultralight, and really functional.
I am a big fan of their Gossamer Gear Mariposa Backpack for multi-day backpacking trips — it features in our round up of the Best Backpacks. But to be honest, Gossamer Gear’s entire product range is top notch so I’d suggest checking it out!
Gossamer Gear now operate out of a warehouse in Austin, Texas. However they are still a relatively small operation with only a few staff. And still loyal to their original objective of making the best ultralight backpacking gear.
HYPERLITE MOUNTAIN GEAR
Hyperlite Mountain Gear manufacture ultralight backpacks, tents & shelters, and accessories. Mike St. Pierre started Hyperlite Mountain Gear in the early 2000’s, driven by a frustration at the lack of durable, ultralight, and design-driven backpacking gear that was available. His solution was to design and construct products that were minimalist in design and made from ultralight materials.
Hyperlite Mountain Gear focus on designing products that are void of unnecessary features. The goal is to reduce products to the bare essentials that are required to get the task done. Their products are made from Dyneema Composite Fabrics (DCF), formerly known as Cuben Fiber. DCF is an amazing material — 100% waterproof, super strong, and seriously ultralight (the only downside is that it is expensive).
Hyperlite Mountain Gear manufacture all their gear in-house in their factory in Maine, USA — an old cotton mill from the 19th century!
They may not have a history as long as some of the other outdoor brands on this list, but in the relatively short time they have been around they have certainly made an impact amongst the lightweight backpacking community.
Their Southwest and Windrider backpacks are fast become a favourite amongst thru-hikers and lightweight backpackers. They are comfortable, bombproof, and weigh less than a kilogram — you can read about the HMG 3400 Southwest in my review of the best lightweight backpacks.
Hyperlite Mountain Gear also make some of the coolest tarps and tents around, and their pillow stuff sack is one of my favourite backpacking pillows. Be sure to check them out!
ICEBREAKER
Icebreaker — it may well be the first thing many people think of when they hear the words “merino wool”.
Icebreaker was founded in New Zealand in the mid 1990’s and initially sold merino wool garments in just 14 stores across the tiny nation of New Zealand. However their success in New Zealand (merino wool products are awesome!) led to later expansion — first to Australia, and then globally.
Icebreaker’s product range includes all kinds of high performance and everyday merino wool clothing — underwear, socks, baselayers, midlayers, jackets, and more.
The Icebreaker Sphere Women’s Short Sleeve is perfect for travelling and taking on the mountains of Pakistan!
Their products are now manufactured in China and sold in around 50 countries. And in 2017 the company was bought by the multi-billion-dollar VF Corporation, one of the biggest outdoor clothing companies on the planet (who funnily enough now also own Smartwool — perhaps Icebreaker’s main competitor in the merino outdoor clothing industry).
However even with offshore manufacturing and a monster parent company Icebreaker seem to maintain their high product quality. They also offer a lifetime sock guarantee, which is pretty cool (it even includes replacing socks that get holes from natural wear and tear)!
One other cool (and important) aspect is that Icebreaker continue to maintain policies around sustainability, and human and animal welfare. They also conduct audits of their supply chain. You can read about their philosophy and policies on their website.
Or perhap just check out some of their awesome products! One of my favourite hiking t-shirts is the Icebreaker Tech Lite SS and the Icebreaker Anatomica Boxer Briefs are some of the comfiest undies for hiking.
LA SPORTIVA
La Sportiva are one of my favourite outdoor footwear brands. They make my favourite shoe for hiking… the La Sportiva Ultra Raptor. This shoe is f**king awesome!
My La Sportiva Ultra Raptor shoes taking a beating on the Tonquin Valley Circuit in Canada.
La Sportiva have been around a long time. Born in Italy in 1928, this company provided footwear to Italian soldiers during World War 2 and has been making quality footwear ever since.
They are by no means a small cottage company, rather they have a huge worldwide presence and are well known for their climbing, skiing, hiking, and mountaineering ranges of footwear.
What made me add them to this list? La Sportiva do a great job of combining technologies across their different niches.
For instance, the Ultra Raptors are trail running shoes with an aggressive tread for stability in mud etc. Yet the soles of the Ultra Raptors also have small rubber stubs made from the same sticky rubber used on La Sportiva’s rock climbing shoes — this means they stick like glue on wet rocks! So you get the best of both worlds.
small sticky rubber stubs on the sole of the La Sportiva Ultra Raptors helps them to stick to wet rocks.
The durability, comfort, and technical features of La Sportiva footwear make them one of my favourite outdoor brands.
PATAGONIA
Business seems to be constantly booming for Patagonia. Their popularity and growth seems to have grown exponentially from day one, and even more so in recent years! (I am just seeing Patagonia merchandise everywhere).
But this is a brand that deserves to have its name shouted from rooftops.
Patagonia not only makes great quality and innovative gear… they are also one of the most environmentally and socially conscious companies on the planet.
Take these as just a few examples: In 1984, they opened one of the United States’ first workplace child care centres for their staff. In the 1980’s they started using recycled paper for their catalogues. In 1996 their distribution centre in Reno was fitted out with entirely recycled materials. They exclusively use organic cotton, predominantly use recycled polyester, and are now incorporating hemp into their fabric lines. Each year they donate 1% of sales or 10% of profits (whichever is greater) to grassroots environmental organisations.
The Patagonia Down Sweater is an awesome ultralight down jacket, popular among lightweight backpackers.
The environmental policies of Patagonia aren’t marketing spin. They are built out of genuine love for the planet and a desire to try and reduce the footprint of human impacts. If you want to hear it all from the horse’s mouth then a great read is Let My People Go Surfing, the autobiography of Yvon Chouinard, founder and still current owner of Patagonia.
Patagonia have a huge range of outdoor gear and clothing. Perhaps some of their most iconic pieces for lightweight backpacking include their Down Sweater or Capilene Baselayers.
RAB
Rab is perhaps one of the best known UK manufacturers of mountaineering and climbing gear. Founded in 1981 the brand began with Rab Carrington manufacturing sleeping bags and clothing in his Sheffield, UK, attic.
These days Rab Carrington is long retired and the brand is owned by Equip Outdoor Technologies Ltd (who also own the Lowe Alpine brand). Yet Rab continue to manufacture high quality mountain clothing. Although their product range includes clothing, sleeping bags and shelters, it is their insulated clothing range that is generally the most popular.
I often reach for my Rab Electron Down Jacket in the shoulder season — in terms of warmth it falls somewhere between their Microlight Alpine Jacket and the heavier Neutrino Endurance Pro Jacket.
Amongst the best down jackets on the market are the Neutrino Endurance Pro and Microlight Alpine Down Jacket. Rab are also one of the few brands to make down insulated trousers.
They also have an awesome range of shell jackets — for instance the Kinetic Plus Softshell Jacket or the lightweight Vital Windshell Jacket.
Heading into the serious cold? Check out Rab’s Expedition 8000 Mitten!
SMARTWOOL
For many hikers merino wool is the pinnacle when it comes to next-to-skin layers. It is highly breathable, insulates when wet, is quick drying, soft to the touch, and naturally odour-resistant. And Smartwool is one of the heavyweights (figuratively speaking) of the merino wool clothing industry.
Founded in the 1990’s, Smartwool initially started out as a manufacturer of merino wool socks. To this day it is still predominantly a manufacturer of socks, however their product range has been expanded to include various apparel including baselayers, midlayers, and underwear.
With their explosive growth — Smartwool products are now sold in thousands of stores across almost 50 countries — they obviously attracted the attention of bigger fish in the outdoor clothing industry. And in 2005 Smartwool was bought by Timberland — a company now owned by the multi-billion-dollar VF Corporation, one of the biggest outdoor clothing companies on the planet.
Nonetheless Smartwool continue to make some of the best merino apparel around. So for the foreseeable future they remain one of the best outdoor brands, helping to keep numerous hikers warm, dry and comfortable.
I personally wear a range of Smartwool products when hiking, the most notable of which are the Merino 150 Boxer Briefs, Merino 150 T-Shirt, and Merino 250 Quarter-Zip. The latter two make the perfect merino setup for layering. You can read more about those products in our Best Men’s Hiking Shirts and Best Men’s Hiking Underwear reviews.
THE Tarptent CLOUDBURST 3 IS EXTREMELY SPACIOUS AND STILL WEIGHS IN AT 52 OUNCES!
They make single or double wall, freestanding or stake supported, single or double entry, and one-person through four-person designs. All shelters are fully enclosed with "no-see-um” netting to provide full protection from bugs and insects.
They have a focus on being lightweight. For instance their three-person Cloudburst 3 is massively spacious and still weighs in at 52 oz (that is less than 1.5 kg)!
They also make designs suitable for use with trekking poles which can provide additional weight savings for those hikers who use them. You can check out Tarptents full product listing page here.
Some of the cool and innovative things I love from this outdoor brand are the sidecar add-on that converts one of your vestibules into an enclosed shelter for your dog… how cool is that! Or the popular Double Rainbow, which has a novel design that includes open vestibules that provide full shelter even in heavy rain.
THE TARPTENT DOUBLE RAINBOW HAS TWO VESTIBULES THAT CAN BE RAISED OPEN TO PROVIDE VENTILATION AND VIEWS, EVEN IN RAIN.
Their website also includes a bunch of tips and useful info, including this Tarptent Basics 101 page that is worth checking out.
One important thing to note is that their tents do not come seam-sealed by default. That means that a standard purchase will get you a tent that is not fully waterproof on arrival! Rather, you need to paint the seams with silicone yourself (Tarptent sell pre-mixed silicone for you to use). Alternatively, if you are happy to pay a little bit extra, Tarptent provide a seam-sealing service so that your tent is ready to go as soon as it arrives on your doorstep.
Tarptent are based in Nevada City, California, USA, with their shelters being sewn in Seattle, Washington.
THERM-A-REST
In the early 1970’s Therm-a-Rest developed the first ever self-inflating sleeping pad. It was a pioneering invention that would dramatically increase the comfort of hikers and other adventurers sleeping out in the backcountry.
Fast forward 50 years and Therm-a-Rest are now recognised globally for making what are — arguably — the most innovative, high quality and lightweight sleeping pads on the market. Their range includes self-inflating pads, closed cell foam pads, and inflatable air pads — and of course includes the uber-popular range of NeoAir sleeping pads.
The sleeping pads alone would give Therm-a-Rest a deserved place on a list of the best brands in the outdoor industry. However Therm-a-Rest also have a wider product line related to your entire sleep system. And most of it is pretty friggin’ awesome.
The Therm-a-Rest Pump Sack is a handy addition to the NeoAir Xlite Sleeping Pad.
Their Hyperion 20 sleeping bag offers quality and performance in a seriously ultralight and ultra-compressible package. Their Vesper 20 backpacking quilt is similarly ultralight and awesome. You can read more about those products in our reviews of the Best Sleeping Bag Brands and Best Backpacking Quilts.
They also make one of the most comfortable backpacking pillows and one of the lightest backpacking chairs on the market.
Therm-a-Rest may not be as environmentally focused as a company like Patagonia, but they excel in the areas of technology and innovation.
They also still manufacture many of their products at company-owned factories in Seattle, USA and Cork, Ireland meaning they continue to maintain a high level of quality.
How epic is their Triplex tent! It’s massive, seriously ultralight (24 OUNCES), and still durable.
Since starting business in 2005 Zpacks have grown steadily and consistently both in terms of product lines and customer base. Today they are one of the most popular manufacturers of ultralight tents and backpacks. Although their product line now also includes sleeping bags, quilts, rain gear, clothing, and other numerous backpacking accessories.
Joe Valesko — the founder of Zpacks — is an accomplished thru-hiker who originally built homemade gear for himself. When other hikers on the trail started asking him where he got his gear he realised their was a gap in the market for Zpacks to fill.
Starting with one sewing machine in his lounge room, the business has grown to numerous staff operating out of a manufacturing facility in Florida. And all their gear is still built in the United States.
Zpacks initially focused on making gear from Dyneema Composite Fabrics (DCF), formerly known as Cuben Fiber. DCF was originally designed as a material for making yacht sails — it is strong, 100% waterproof, and seriously ultralight. However DCF is also extremely expensive and not quite as durable against abrasion as some other alternatives.
After almost 5 years of everyday use the time had come for me to replace my 0.22 ounce Zpacks wallet! Old on the left, new on the right.
Zpacks have now branched out slightly. The majority of their gear is still made from DCF — including all their tents, dry sacks, and rain gear — however their backpacks are now available in either DCF or alternative Dyneema fabrics.
My favourite item has got to be the Zpacks Triplex… as a 2-person three-season shelter this tent is unbeatable. But there are many other items I could list off as favourites too. From the ultralight wallet (0.22 oz!) that I carry in my pocket every day, to the ultralight fleece beanie I use daily in winter, to the pillow dry bag which we awarded top pick for best dry sack pillow.
MORE INFORMATION
So there you have it, a round up of the best outdoor brands for hiking and lightweight backpacking. If you loved reading about these brands, then you’re likely to enjoy reading some of our other gear-fiend related articles:
Happy hiking and take care out there in the wild!
The epic peak of Mt Cook, New Zealand, as seen from Mueller Hut.
