Field Journal

Sidetracked Equipped
A new digital publication showcasing new and noteworthy outdoor gear

The plan for Sidetracked Equipped was simple, the location made the trip superlative. A weekend away, with fellow outdoor enthusiasts, testing and photographing our favourite new gear for summer hiking and camping. The location: the Apuan Alps, Tuscany, Italy. A place where out of the sunflower and lavender fields immortalised by Picasso, stands fiercely jagged mountains, rising up like gnarled fingers reaching for the starry skies.

Our team of five flew to Pisa, duffle bags bulging with gear, and headed down to our base near the mountainside village of Via Botteghino. The plan? To spend a couple of nights exploring the mountains and camping on the most picturesque spots we could find.

In front of the camera was Jenny Tough, a fast packer and halfway through an epic adventure to run across a mountain range in every continent. Sophie Nicholson is an outdoor journalist, avid skier and mountain biker, and Tom Hill a superfit adventure racer and cycling fanatic. Directing it all was John Summerton, the founder of Sidetracked, and our photographer was Rachel Keenan, a Scottish adventure photographer.

For three days, the team spent every available second in the mountains, making camps amongst the olive groves in the foothills and high in the mountains. The unseasonable snow offered challenging but apt testing conditions, and the terrain was suitably steep and cutting.

The conditions meant we could test warm weather summer gear, plus a few garments to zip up against the cold. We tested tents and sleeping bags, hiking boots and waterproof jackets, multitools and stoves, backpacks and head torches. Here is everything you need for a summer adventure.

We’re already planning the next Sidetracked Equipped for this winter, but in the meantime enjoy the sun.

Check out Sidetracked Equipped here.