After a long and unexpected hiatus, Ben Wanderin’ is returning.

This blog has always been an excuse for me to write. It serves no existential purpose beyond getting words out of my head and onto your screens. As such, new posts only happen when I feel like writing them. And honestly, I haven’t felt much like writing in recent years. Recently, though, I’ve been reminded that writing is my only real superpower. It is the means through which I can help (in whatever minuscule way) the world and its inhabitants maintain sanity in an otherwise insane period in history. So I’m going to go for it… and you’re invited along again.

I have a lot of content almost ready to be posted… including thoughts from my John Muir Trail walk in July 2025, the excitement of following a mountain lion for days in Utah’s Canyonlands, and more.

But we’ll start with a good ol’ gear review. The folks at Minimal Gear (makers of thru-hiker favorite CNOC hydration accessories) have kindly sent me a batch of goodies from their brand new Cowboy Camping line. With our traditional spring Utah trip fast approaching, I’ll have an opportunity to put these accessories through the red dirt ringer. Here’s a short preview.

Minimal Gear’s Cowboy Camping sub-brand offers ultralight backpacking accessories made from flashspun HDPE fabrics. Most of us have already used flashspun HDPE in the form of Tyvek groundsheets. Rather than repurposing home wrap Tyvek (which can be heavy, bulky and crinkly when new), hikers can now use a range of products made from carefully chosen flashspun HDPE in appropriate weights and thicknesses.

According to Minimal Gear, this variation in flashspun HDPE fabrics is what makes Cowboy Gear products feasible. “After years of proving itself in the field as a groundsheet and as material for accessories like stuff sacks and bags,” the company says, “flashspun HDPE… fit the bill. This material comes in various weights and textures; it can feel solid like paper or be bonded and have a soft in-hand feel like most fabrics.”

My initial reaction confirms this statement. The Claim Jumper groundsheet is similar to the “kite Tyvek” I typically buy from Boulder’s iconic Into The Wind kite shop, though perhaps with an improved nap. The Saddle Bag and Pot Wrangler have a different feel to them… smooth and soft, with an ease of use that previously required multiple Tyvek washings.

All three items fill a need within my UL quiver. I’ve been looking for an upgraded groundcloth solution that didn’t cost as much as the fancy options offered by ultralight tent makers. Finding an appropriately sized stuff sack for clothes and shoulder season layers is always a challenge. And I’m glad to finally be able to throw away the dismal carrying sack Toaks ships with its pots.

The next time you see this gear, its pearly white gleam will have been replaced by the permanent reddish orange stain that can only come from Utah dirt. I’m excited to see how it performs in the field.

Much, much more to come in the weeks ahead. But I’m sure happy to be back!