THE item you can't do without

[socalsmooth]

It could be an article of clothing, but maybe some other piece of gear that you cannot live and work as a field tech without. For me, that item is the Under Armour Heat Gear undershirt. It's made from recycled bottles and is made in Jordan which is novel. I mean, what items do you have from Jordan?

Somehow it works great as both a warming layer but it's light enough to keep me cool in the summer. I wear it to keep the sun and bugs off of my arms.

Unfortunately, I can't find a link for it. Good lesson: if you find something you like, buy A LOT of them and take good care of them. I pretty much never wash these things, and I'll keep doing that as they appear to be irreplaceable!

What else is essential for you?

[salAmanda]

A down vest. Not one in particular, but something lightweight. I was pretty iffy on vests, didn't know what the point was, but now I totally get it. They're great! perfect for layering and stuffing in a pack and they look cute! pretty essential for me.

[Return2Thra]

When it comes to clothes, I just like to get whatever's cheap or on clearance. As long as it fits more or less and works decently I'm not that picky. But I don' t like to be without my U-Dig-It. Simple but effective if you know what I mean. https://www.ustgear.com/tools/shovels/u ... 56920.html

Sorry if TMI, but normally I'm pretty regular, but every now and then... well you know. A snack size Ziploc bag of TP and this trowel are always in the pack. Have you ever resorted to using notebook pages? Well, once is the amount of times you'd do that, I'm saying based on experience. Also could theoretically double as a weapon and maybe even a fire starting tool if you can make some sparks fly up bashing it on a rock. I haven't used it for any of these purposes, but who knows. If you're creative enough you can come up with some other uses for it too.

[aldiquarter]

To say that the proper footwear is essential is so basic that it's not even worth saying. But while most people would take that to mean a good, sturdy pair of boots, what I've found matters just as much is the right sock setup. Mine is a bit..unusual maybe. When it comes to hiking socks, I'm a SmartWool all the way kind of guy, but I can't just wear them on their own. I've tried offical "sock liners" like from North face but they just make my feet all sweaty. No, instead I've found that what works for me is regular old ladies socks, Goldtoe specifically. Yeah I get some weird looks when I'm browsing in the hosiery section, but if someone were to ever ask (they haven't yet) I'd just say I'm getting my wife her favorite socks as a gift.

[ScurvyBrother]

To say that the proper footwear is essential is so basic that it's not even worth saying. But while most people would take that to mean a good, sturdy pair of boots, what I've found matters just as much is the right sock setup. Mine is a bit..unusual maybe. When it comes to hiking socks, I'm a SmartWool all the way kind of guy, but I can't just wear them on their own. I've tried offical "sock liners" like from North face but they just make my feet all sweaty. No, instead I've found that what works for me is regular old ladies socks, Goldtoe specifically. Yeah I get some weird looks when I'm browsing in the hosiery section, but if someone were to ever ask (they haven't yet) I'd just say I'm getting my wife her favorite socks as a gift.

No worries on the cross-dressing man. Our society is much more tolerant of all that these days. But SmartWool? Yikes, it's like $30. For a PAIR OF SOCKS! They're fine except when you wash them once and they get those blue edges around where they start to fray.