I've finally discovered why it's so hard to keep my backpacking gear and clothing organized. From a recent email from Ibex:

"Woolies...Moisture managing, temperature regulating, and naturally order resistant...."

There's probably a whole raft of gear that's similarly order resistant! No wonder it's always so chaotic in my gear closet.

Too many choices? And too many overlapping choices?

In the old days, many had one backpack, one tent, maybe a couple of jackets, and a pair of boots. And they hiked.

With time, more options were presented and folks began to enjoy lighter weight gear, clothing that dried more quickly, etc. And they hiked.

Somewhere along the line -- some folks let themselves become convinced (slick marketing brochures?) that they needed a wide array of gear -- as well as depth of choices within each type of gear -- in order to "dial in" just the right match and comfort -- before they can really head outdoors!

It's all subjective, of course, but I think many of us just plain like to buy gear -- we want to eliminate any perceived "gaps" -- and get the warm, fuzzy feeling that we're "all covered". Except sometimes, some of those "gaps" are more for hikes that we "could be doing someday, maybe" -- and not really hikes that we actually or are likely to do. But we like to "be covered" just the same...

In a nutshell, I think we find our gear closets hard to organize because we buy too much and delineate too narrowly??

Edited by ben2world on 09/19/2010 11:28:36 MDT.

I have to agree. Too many choices, too much stuff. I could easily have four different pairs of pants for different conditions, but I wear the same pair year-round. Granted, if I were doing some serious winter expedition stuff I might invest in a different pair, but I'm not, so my one pair works just fine.

I try to keep good control over what's in my gear closet. I try to only have the bare minimum of each type of item. Just a couple pairs of socks, one stove, one down jacket, one rain jacket, etc....

If I buy a new item, I try to spend money on something that will replace and enhance what I already have, and I'll sell the displaced item.

I believe my closet finally reflects my budget/income/and preferred activities and methodology on the trail. Much of my gear is multi-sport friendly too, windshells, pants, shorts, gloves, headwear, often get used for trail running in the cooler seasons. I've had to whittle down and sell off duplicate/overlapping gear to acquire some larger ticket investments (quilts, down jackets, pack) however, I now have a streamlined selection of choice items that can span 4-seasons of UL travel with some deliberation and technique. All my gear fits in bins in a very small closet and is sufficiently organized. Although, now that I think about it, the new Montane Flux jacket would cover my lack of synthetic insulation....hmmm.

Darn "order resistant" gear. It will get you everytime. I personally prefer the more industry standard "odour resistant" where ever possible. Nice find James.

@ James - "order resistant gear". Heh heh... I missed that completely and gave a totally serious response!

Hah! James, did that email to you really say "order resistant?"

I swear I have a twin in The Great Beyond. :)

We do exactly the same in gear buying/replacing. Me, it's a combination of the gear freak and the minimalist in me. Love gear. Hate clutter.

Edited by ben2world on 09/19/2010 14:19:16 MDT.

"Darn "order resistant" gear. It will get you everytime."

If I had the resistant type my gear "closet" wouldn't look like this ;)

Yes, their email definitely said "order resistant". I emailed Ibex to point this out, but they were not sufficiently amused to bother replying.