8 things. All things that make summer even better than it already is. Photos: Provided
I like summer. You do too, I’m assuming, because if you are like me, outside is better than inside. I’ve done a fair amount of very uncomfortable trips in my life, though, and as I’m getting older, I’ve begun to realize that comfort is okay. I don’t have to sleep in a surfboard bag on a Big Island beach. I don’t have to shit in a hole in Mexico for months on end. I don’t have to squint into the sun, roasting my retinas with a pair of gas station sunglasses, or sit on large rocks. I don’t have to haul my things around in a ripped garbage bag. I can find a happy medium between dirtbag trips and lux ones.
This summer, I’ve been using a few pieces of gear — eight things, to be exact — that have helped me live in that happy medium between sitting on rocks and carrying my stinking trunks in a plastic bag, and if you are like me — which we’ve already established that you are — they might help you too.
Related: Best Car Camping Gear | Best Beach Coolers | More Gear Reviews
Sit like a king/queen, courtesy of YETI. Photos: YETI
1. YETI Hondo Beach Chair
I’ve sat on many uncomfortable things over the course of my life. My bony butt, for starters, but also many ratty old folding chairs that offer nothing more than an inch or two of space between the ground and said bony butt.
YETI’s Hondo Beach Chair is a throne built for the beach. It weighs almost nothing, has a handy little shoulder strap making it easy to cart around, and has a variety of reclining positions that can make you look like you’re sitting at attention or you’re ready to go to sleep. It does, of course, have a handy drink holder for “water.” The only issue with it? It costs $300, which is a lot for a beach chair. But if you’re an avid beach-sitter like me, it’s worth it.
For more options, check out our guide to The Best Beach Chairs.
It slices! It dices! Photo: Benchmade
2. Benchmade Bugout Knife
Knives are very handy. Dangerous, too, but when you’re outside doing fun things, the ability to cut something with a sharp piece of metal comes in handy often. For years, I’ve carried a larger multitool, but despite its variety of different functions, I’ve noticed that by far the most valuable function is the blade.
Benchmade’s Bugout has a wildly impressive blade. Made from high-grade steel and laser-cut for precision and strength, each knife is made to Benchmade’s exacting standards. A soft knife is the worst, and Benchmade knows this. With the Bugout, I’ve cut everything from twine to zip ties to branches, canvas, and fiberglass, and the thing is still as sharp as when it came out of the box. Utility aside, the grey/redstone model is as sexy as any knife I’ve ever owned.
Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose. Photo: Raen
3. Raen Rhyme Sunglasses
I’m frugal. Or, as my partner likes to say, I’m “cheap.” She’s appalled, however, at the amount I’ll spend on a good pair of sunglasses, but the eyes are the window to the soul, as they say, and I need a clear view out into the sun lest my soul become darker than it already is. I’m a ’90s kid, raised on Nickelodeon and Kurt Cobain, and the style of Raen’s Rhyme model sits comfortably in that spot that’s not so incredibly ’90s it’s ugly, but just ’90s enough that they make me feel slightly nostalgic. Fashion is cyclical, right?
Inside that subtle bit of styling, Raen has packed, as they always do, a ton of features that make great sunglasses great. The cellulose acetate frames are handcrafted and have a wire core construction. The rivets are made from premium materials, and they feature ZEISS lenses, which, in my opinion, are pretty much unbeatable.
For more great sunglasses, check out our guide to the Best Beach Sunglasses.
Keep time. Look good. Don’t worry about beating the hell out of it, because it’s tough as nails. Photo: Vaer
4. Vaer D4 Meridian Solar Dive Watch
I’m not a very fashionable guy. Sure, I like to look good, but I don’t want to look like I want to look good. I want subtle fashion. Nothing flashy. Something utilitarian and sparse, but classy as well. I also want my things to be as maintenance-free as possible, which is why I’m a huge fan of Vaer’s line of solar dive watches.
The D4 line in particular meets just about every box in my checklist. At under $500, it’s hard to beat price-wise for what you get. With its perpetual solar-power movement, it never loses a second — as long as you wear it, or leave it in a bright place for a while. With just six hours of daylight, the thing will keep time reliably for six months.
It’s a watch made for people who spend time in the ocean, but also occasionally dress themselves up a bit. It lands right in the middle of those massive watches that dangle hopelessly and those skinny, penny-sized watches that skim along the wrist. Not too big, not too small. Not too flashy, not too subtle. It’s a workhorse dressed up in almost-formal clothes, walking the fine line between a night on the town and a day at the beach.
Want to see what’s past that next headland? Look through this. Photo: Nocs Provisions
5. Nocs Field Tube
Nocs Provisions makes a pretty incredible little piece of equipment called the Field Tube. It’s simple: just a small monocular that is insanely handy. I’ve used it while hunting for waves, fishing, staring at whales… hell, even golfing. It’s tiny and light, waterproof, and feels as though you could throw it off a building. It’s nothing fancy — just a handheld little gadget that helps you see farther than you could before. With a no-slip grip, it’s fully waterproof, and because of its nitrogen-filled internal chambers, it’s fog-proof. If you’re looking to see just a little farther in a variety of different places, the Nocs Field Tube is going to be a thing you’re happy to have in your bag.
Keep your food and drinks cold and your hands free with the YETI M20 Soft Backpack Cooler. Photo: YETI
6. YETI Hopper M20 Backpack Cooler
YETI makes good things to keep your drinks cold. Food, too, but if I’m being honest, I gauge a good cooler by its ability to cool a beer. Another gauge is how easy it is to haul with me, and most often, I’m using a cooler for a day trip that involves a bit of a hike. Rolling coolers with telescoping handles are all well and good, but a backpack is, well… better.
The Hopper M20 is just about perfect for those day trips. It’s just big enough (18.5 inches wide with 9.5 inches in diameter, and 18.8 inches high) to pack 18 cans of whatever you want with the recommended 2:1 ice ratio. It uses magnets to shut, along with a pair of sturdy snap buckles for good measure, and it’s made of a high-density fabric that, so far, has resisted any and all attempts by errant branches to rip it.
Read our full review of the YETI Hopper M20 here, and check out our review of backpack coolers here.
Bone conduction is where it’s at. Photo: H2O Audio
7. H2O Audio Tri-2 Multi-Sport Headphones
Where I live, summer is flat. Waves cease to exist, so I generally run to keep my surfing lungs in fighting shape. I hate running with a passion, but I love surfing more than I hate running, so I do it. I need to be distracted from how much I hate running, though, so a good set of headphones is a must-have for me. And H2O Audio makes incredibly good headphones.
The ones I’ve been using as I chug along, hating my life and tasting pennies, are bone-conducting. I’d never used them before, so I was dubious about how well they’d work. For those out of the know, bone-conducting headphones don’t go in your ears. Instead, they sit just in front of your ear and transmit sound through the bones of your skull. That effectively bypasses the eardrum, sending sound vibrations directly to the inner ear. You can hear your music extraordinarily well, but you can also hear other things around you. It’s weird. Weird and awesome. Car coming up behind you? You know it. Someone screaming at you because you’re about to run into a sink hole? You’ll hear them.
Designed for endurance athletes (not me), H20 Audio’s Tri-2 Multi-Sport Headphones are waterproof as well. I’ve done a couple of longer swims with them in, and they work wonderfully. With eight GB of memory, you can load thousands of songs on and not worry about drowning your phone in the water if you’d prefer not to use Bluetooth and a waterproof phone case.
YETI’s Cayo Backpack is a deep hole of all-weather protection. Photos: YETI
YETI recently came out with a new bag. As we’ve come to expect from YETI, it’s made for the elements. The Cayo is weather-resistant — not waterproof — and made from YETI’s DryHide shell. It’s super durable, has zippers that seem to be made to withstand the strongest of yanks, and is perfect for those few day hikes to somewhere remote and beautiful. You can’t chuck the thing in the drink and expect your stuff to stay dry, but it’ll hold up to a deluge if you’re caught in one. At 25 liters, it’s not going to be a bag you’re taking on a month-long trip, but it’s a fantastic carry-on that you can chuck in a boat, get covered in sea spray, and find your valuables safely tucked away from the elements afterwards.
For more great backpacks, check out our guide to The Best Daypacks.
Related: Best Car Camping Gear | Best Beach Chairs | Best Beach Coolers | Best Flip Flops
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