Check out Off-Piste Magazine’s expert ski gear reviews, including backcountry skis, AT ski boots, tech bindings, avalanche beacons, avalanche shovels, ski jackets, backcountry ski pants, ski packs, headlamps, AT ski boots, crampons, climbing skins and more. We use the gear we write up, and the reviews here represent the best of the gear we’ve tested.
Support us! Off-Piste Mag may earn a small commission from affiliate links when you shop through our links and banners.
Club Ride Mountain Surf MTB Shorts – Adventure Ride Ready Adventure pedaling season here in the Pacific Northwest runs nearly year-round. Come late March, big miles and long hours in the saddle are the norm. Big miles require quality bike shorts. Bib shorts are the style of choice for most roadies and endurance riders, but coming from the mountain bike… Read More
Wacaco Nanopresso – Portable Espresso Maker Strong coffee and adventure go hand in hand. When traveling and backcountry trips require packing coffee-making supplies, you can go as basic as a cone filter or upgrade to the popular Aeropress. Both methods offer a solid approach to brewing a stout cup of coffee with their own merits. For those who appreciate the… Read More
DPS Lotus 124 2.0 – Alchemist Edition For the most part, backcountry ski waist widths have settled into the 100-115mm zone over the last couple of seasons. You can confidently grab a pair of skis with a waist in the low hundreds for just about any day of touring. Between rocker, sidecut and lightweight core materials, these skis are agile,… Read More
Ski Crampons When the snow conditions are firm, nothing offers uphill touring security like ski crampons or, as they say in German, ”harscheisen.” The What Ski crampons are climbing tools that attach to your ski bindings (or ski as with some aftermarket telemark solutions) and pivot underfoot as you skin up the hill. They are made for use on firm… Read More
The Ogso Schwarztor – A Quiver of One – 135-104-120 Choosing one pair of skis to do it all in the backcountry is a big ask. There’s no shortage of good skis. It’s finding the one ski that blends playful powder skiing with confident control while keeping it light underfoot that’s the hard part. I typically spend my winter on… Read More
The Best Ski Socks Ski socks may be low on the gear glamour scale, but a fresh pair of good quality ski socks feels mighty nice sliding into a pair of boots. High-quality socks can mean the difference between a good day and a bad day of skiing. From comfort to durability, high-quality socks outperform cheap socks. The tight weaves… Read More
Marker Alpinist 12 Tech Binding Dynafit set the tech binding standard, and many have followed. One of the more recent alpine touring tech bindings to turn our heads is the Marker Alpinist 12. Marker is, of course, well established in the alpine binding world and first stepped into tech binding design with the Kingpin. Blending the security of an alpine… Read More
Voile SuperCharger – Do-It-All Versatility As ski season ramps, we’ve got a few ski reviews to share. First up is the Voile SuperCharger. It’s a carry-over ski from last season, but it would be crazy to leave the SuperCharger off our list of favorite backcountry powder skis. Editors’ Choice Voile launched the SuperCharger in 2017-18, and Off-Piste chose it as… Read More
Backcountry Ski Pants Patagonia Snow Guide and Arc’teryx Rush FL Softshell Ski Pants You gotta get up to get down, and skinning uphill requires breathability in your outerwear. It’s easy enough to shed your ski shell when breaking trail, but your ski pants are a different story. As a result, backcountry ski pants need to vent or, better yet, be… Read More
Ski Waxing for the Backcountry Backcountry skiing is a far cry from ski racing, but freshly waxed skis are still important to keep you sliding and slashing through the pow. And the good news is that ski waxing for the backcountry is not rocket science. In fact, it’s downright simple. You only need a few basic tools and supplies to… Read More
Ogso Skis There’s a rising new ski brand making its way into North America, Ogso Skis. Based in Chamonix, France, Ogso offers a variety of skis ranging from modestly-waisted mountaineering boards to wider freeride designs. Ogso makes lightweight uphill-friendly models and heavier descent-oriented boards. Ogso founder and ski mountaineer, Tom Seidensticker, describes Ogso skis this way, “The skis are balanced… Read More
The Black Diamond CoEfficient Hoody has become my go-to layer for just about everything from technical pursuits to just plain hanging out. The last time a piece of technical clothing worked its way into my everyday life as deeply as this fleece was my old Patagonia Puffball vest, which I still wear. Though Black Diamond has dabbled in clothing over… Read More
Ultralight Boot Crampons – TechCrampon 250 The slogan, “If I can’t climb it, I won’t ski it,” helps keep me out of trouble. However, come spring, there are situations when a steep slope may be too firm to climb, but in time will soften into good skiing. Climbing steep firm slopes requires the right tools, namely boot crampons. But, for… Read More
Vacuum Insulated Beer Growlers The evolving world of water bottles is heavily weighted toward vacuum-insulated metal bottles these days. The new breed of stainless water bottles is durable and free of chemicals. They keep cold liquids colder and hot liquids hotter than any of the basic single-wall designs we’ve all been using for years. The price is weight and dollars…. Read More
Portable Chargers for the Backcountry Electronics in the backcountry are the norm. Apps like Gaia (GPS), Strava, Avenza and RidewithGPS turn our phones into worthy gps and navigation tools for adventure in any season. However, keeping electronics fully charged and ready to go on a multi-day backcountry trip requires back-up power options. There are many portable chargers and storage batteries on… Read More
