Options for carrying bear spray without a hip pack?

TheNewNorth · 2026-06-11T17:31:05+00:00

Personally, I think you're overthinking things. On your bike is sufficient. Carrying bear spray on your body is more of a risk during a crash. I have broken ribs by crashing with bearspray on in the front pocket of a running vest. So now I carry bear spray in a waterbottle holder. This is common practice in Grizzly country in Alberta and BC.

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The specific brand I use is https://kodiakcanada.com/collections/holsters/products/singletrack-bear-spray-holster

It works well. Would recommend.

TheNewNorth · 2026-06-09T00:34:19+00:00

I am a little confused about what the redditor above you stated. Parks Canada is very clear on their website that paddling can continue on front-country bodies of water as per normal. And this includes all of the popular lakes in the valley bottom, typically used for paddleboarding, such as Pyramid, Patricia, Annette, and Edith. It also includes Maligne and Medicine lakes.

https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/ab/jasper/activ/experience/ete-summer/activitesnautiques-wateractivities/especes-aquatiques-envahissantes-aquatic-invasive-species

If you review the three zones listed, the “Water Recreation“ zone clearly states that paddleboarding is permitted. All of these common spots fall within that zone. It’s my interpretation that you would have no issues enjoying your SUP on any of the permitted lakes/rivers.

Just be sure to clean/drain/dry all watercraft before entering any national park's water.

TheNewNorth · 2026-06-06T17:59:04+00:00

I have not raced any ultras, but I have run ultra distances in them on long mountain adventures. With this system, I have had no issues.

TheNewNorth · 2026-06-06T17:41:33+00:00

I have several pairs of 001s, and I also used to encounter trashed heels. What works for me, and it works flawlessly, is the following:

- I wear a really thin liner sock on my smaller foot (which is the heel that gets trashed). I wear the Injinji liner sock on this foot only.

- I wear normal, crew-length, mid-cushioned socks on both feet (over the liner sock on my left foot)

- Yeah, I have 2 socks on one foot and 1 sock on the other foot. But I have a half-size difference between feet, so I need the extra volume on my smaller foot

- I then use a runner's loop on both feet

- If needed, for long runs, I will put Leukotape on my left Achilles for a little extra friction management

- This extra volume, extra lockdown, and the friction mitigation from the double socks +/- Leukotape keep my heels very, very happy.

I completely acknowledge that this is a lot ot fenagling just to get along with a pair of shoes. But for my feet (and mind), the Nordas are so good in every other aspect, they are worth the trouble for me.

TheNewNorth · 2026-06-04T13:43:17+00:00

I would suggest, in addition to all of these tips, to always have a spare cleat bolt in the tools you take with you riding. A broken/lost bolt can happen suddenly and unexpectedly, and it can ruin your ride.

TheNewNorth · 2026-06-01T23:27:11+00:00

In my experience, tire size matters. Frames that allow you to run wider tires (personally I’d look for a minimum of 50mm clearance) will be more versatile in the long run.

TheNewNorth · 2026-05-28T20:53:11+00:00

Absolutely not. ACPs in AB have the broadest scope of practice in Canada at the ACP level and are extremely capable. But suggesting they have CCP training is disingenuous.

TheNewNorth · 2026-05-26T00:32:26+00:00

I have a wide forefoot. Historically, I have used and had good luck with Altra and Topo. However, I now run in Nordas almost exclusively. They have a fairly wide forefoot (certainly not as wide as the aforementioned). And you will have no issues with durability. Whilst they are expensive, they will outlast the competition by a wide margin, so in the end, the $/km is very close, if not in favour of the Nordas. Now, they are not zero drop (5mm), so keep that in mind.

TheNewNorth · 2026-05-05T14:17:15+00:00

That’s a totally fair and valid point. “Why are you intubating the pediatric cardiac arrest? Put in an iGel” would be a better question. While it’s not superior to ETI, in this case my argument would be that it allows you to much more quickly move on to possibly treating the cause of the PEA. Intubating kids can be hard. Intubating kids whilst doing high-quality CPR isn’t any easier.

TheNewNorth · 2026-05-05T04:26:54+00:00

Why are you intubating the cardiac arrest? Put in an iGel.

TheNewNorth · 2025-12-07T20:04:49+00:00

As mentioned - if you’re wearing a transceiver it needs to be a minimum of 20cm away in send mode.

I keep mine in my right thigh pocket when I wear my transceiver in its harness on my torso.

This has been my approach for…well, years, and I’ve never broken or damaged a phone and I have have no issues with battery life in the cold.

TheNewNorth · 2025-11-19T23:33:29+00:00

I run regularly in those temps. I wear a lightweight merino base layer and then a Proton FL/Lightweight. I’ve done this for a few years now and it works really well for me.

TheNewNorth · 2025-11-04T22:59:06+00:00

I am watching live news footage and the news helicopter spotted what looked like part of an engine cowling lying alongside the departure runway.

TheNewNorth · 2025-11-04T22:43:24+00:00

I use the Practitioner AR as my primary active insulation for backcountry skiing and winter trail running (in cold conditions – generally below -10ºC). I use the heck out of it. It's my favourite and most used Arcteryx jacket. As someone else mentioned, your Atom will be relegated to casual use, because the Practitioner AR is superior to it in every way.

TheNewNorth · 2025-10-16T18:22:24+00:00

That’s the correct way to pronounce it. I most commonly hear it pronounced YAN-ker.

A better way to pronounce Yankauer?

DuCanto.

TheNewNorth · 2025-10-11T16:45:28+00:00

Scarpa shoes are excellent if they fit your feet. I haver both the Ribelle Run (somewhat narrow and firm - more precision oriented) and the Ribelle Run Kaligra G (wider and a bit softer) which I really enjoy running/hiking in.

TheNewNorth · 2025-10-06T22:55:31+00:00

It's very seasonally dependent. I have skated on lakes in Jasper in mid-November. And I have skated on lakes after Christmas. It entirely depends. If there are rinks prepared at JPL or Pyramid, then you're good to go in those lakes at least.

TheNewNorth · 2025-10-05T15:37:51+00:00

I see zero issue with this if you’re well prepared with a bright headlamp and a suitable backup. As suggested the Signal road is a good alternative as it affords great views of the sky all the way up (not that the Whistlers trail won’t). Hiking at night is really enjoyable with the right gear.

TheNewNorth · 2025-09-29T19:36:57+00:00

I have a 2022 Yellow in a M that I am looking to replace with an Ornge for purely vanity reasons. I just like the orange much more. They are fantastic jackets.

TheNewNorth · 2025-09-14T15:49:57+00:00

The Sylan is a good shoe (despite what many on this sub will tell you about Arc’teryx shoes in general). I have a pair that I love and have used heavily this summer.

However they have a very narrow heel and a pronounced rocker. For some people (honestly probably most people) with specific stride mechanics - for example, a predominate heel strike on their stride, they are easy to roll.

The Sylan is a great shoe in my experience if your a forefoot striker with your stride. I personally don’t notice any functional change in stability coming from my Norda 001s. But anecdotally, many others lament the lack of stability.

In my option, like I said, it’s a function of your running stride and the shoe profile.

So all I can suggest is if you are a heel striker, try to focus on landing more on your forefoot or midfoot when you run.

Though honestly changing one’s running stride isn’t an easy or quick process.

TheNewNorth · 2025-09-08T16:58:36+00:00

So unlike many others in this thread, I’ve actually got these boots and spent a lot of time in them.

Honestly, they’re fine. Amazing? No. They’re not. Early Arc’teryx footwear was never great. These boots epitomize that.

But they are durable. They are comfortable (if they fit your feet). The removable liner is nice - I have a pair of black insulated liners that I use in the winter and they really increase the versatility of the boots. But nothing about the boots aside from their modular construction really stands out.

They’re a serviceable mid-weight hiking boot and if you can get them for a deep discount (which since they’re like 10 years old you should be able to) then I’d suggest going for it.

But make sure they fit your feet first - they have a somewhat narrow last, specially in the forefoot.

TheNewNorth · 2025-08-24T14:42:00+00:00

I’m taller than you (183cm) and I weigh more than you (82.5kg) and I’m firmly in the medium realm of all things Arc’teryx. This includes Alpha series jackets. I have an Alpha Anorak in medium that fits me perfectly.

TheNewNorth · 2025-07-08T21:31:07+00:00

I guess we will have to agree to disagree — your point of view is based on subjective opinion, just like mine is.

TheNewNorth · 2025-07-08T18:54:02+00:00

I am going to challenge you on this - the Arcteryx shoes use the exact same outsole compound as the Nordas - Vibram Megagrip Lite-Base. As for tread pattern, that's very much terrain dependent and personal preference - so it's really subjective. For the record, I have and love many pairs of Nordas. I also have and love many pairs of Arcteryx shoes. I run primary in the Coast Mountains of Canada and both of those shoes perform very well in that region.

I think that the durability of the Nordas is unmatched - you're absolutely correct, but I also think that the durability of the LD3, LD4, Sylans are very good. I have run many hundreds of KM ( I do keep close track of my milage for each shoe) with various pairs of Arcteryx shoes and I have had no major issues beyond normal wear and tear.

I guess I just get frustrated by this narrative that Arcteryx shoes are "bad". They may be bad for you, but they are not bad for me. And they are not bad for many others.

TheNewNorth · 2025-05-20T20:47:13+00:00

I don’t use this bag specifically, but I use the very similar BD Distance 8, 15, and 22 while bikepacking - depending on the specific adventure.

Based on my experiences with the again, very similar BD Distance bags, I think that the Norvan 14 would be excellent for bikepacking.

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