I really like the Yama tarp. I’m pretty sure I bought the last one they had because it switched to “out of stock” after I placed my order last year. I had been considering Borah Gear for a long time, but when push came to shove the lead time was too long.

I haven’t had any heavy rain with the Yama, but I did use it in some bad ass winds last fall. It required 12 stakes and tying the ridgeline to trees instead of my poles, but it held up. I’ve had similar winds flatten tents so I was worried about a tear. I’ve also used it as a sun shade on the beach and it stood up to strong winds there as well.

The sleeping pad is fine. It was very cheap and has no insulation. Not a good pick for cold weather. My body doesn’t handle foam pads as well as it used to so I wanted to try an inflatable. I’ll use this until it breaks or I plan a trip in the cold. I cut it short and sealed it with an iron to save weight. It is similar to the cheap uninsulated Klymit pads. I’ve got somewhere between 10 and 15 nights on it and I’m officially sold on inflatables over foam.

Last year I started section hiking the MST. I did section 9 and 10. Section 9 includes about 45 miles of road hiking, and I used a skateboard for as much of that as I could. Section 10 is all on trail so I ditched the board and used the larger pack so I could carry more food.

On that trip I used everything on the list except for the sunscreen. I could carry less pocket knife but I like the stubby little morakniv. I use their larger knives in my normal life and they can really take a beating. I also didn’t use most of the first aid kit, but there’s nothing in there I would leave at home.

Using the little 20 liter pack has me GASing for something ultralight and about 30L in size. That would give me all the space I need with enough room to swap to different rain gear and sleeping bags as weather requires.