Amazing Eco-Friendly Gear We are Excited About

Outdoor Retailer is the place to be to find the latest and greatest in outdoor gear technology. This year, we were focused on eco-friendly products that make hiking, climbing, backpacking, and getting outside less impactful than ever before. We crawled the showroom floor of Outdoor Retailer this week to uncover the most amazing innovations in eco-friendly gear.

Rumpl Blankets Creates Blankets from Trash

This July, Rumpl is re-launching their signature camping and outdoor blankets and creating an impact. Now, all of the synthetic fill and the outer shell will be 100% post-consumer recycled. This is big news for blankets – now you can snuggle up with a synthetic you can feel good about. Their new line of Nano Loft fill offers a vegan alternative to their sustainably sourced IDFL down. Rumpl isn’t stopping with sustainable blankets, they are on a mission to offset their carbon emissions by 2020.

Get Behind the Grayl Water Filter Movement

The search for the perfect water filter has finally come to an end with Grayl’s new Geopress water filter technology. Launching NOW, you can get a quick-and-easy water filter system without the hassle of pumps or flimsy bags. Simply dip, press, and drink with 24 oz of fully purified water. What we love about this filter is you can essentially use it anywhere, from a stinky pothole in the desert to the high alpine lakes of the Rockies, even in a train station in India. Unlike other filters, the Grayl Geopress removes viruses, bacteria, and protozoa, and participates in the 1% for the Planet initiative. Coming from someone who has gotten sick from bad water filters, we couldn’t be more excited about the Geopress.

Black Diamond No Water DWR Finish

Black Diamond announced that all of their DWR products (think water-resistant shells, backcountry ski wear, rain pants, and more) now use a no-water finish. Most DWR finishes require a large amount of water to produce and add to the fabric. The GTT Green Theme technology uses zero water to create waterproof clothing. Black Diamond’s new line of Highline Stretch shells and Swift Pant are excellent examples of technical wear you can feel good about.

Introducing the Fully Sustainable Shoe and Footbed by SOLE

SOLE is known for the best athletic footbeds money can buy. Their re-cork initiative partners with various organizations to run cork recycling programs at restaurants, bars, and even the general public. Using carbon neutral shipping, SOLE closes the supply stream by picking up the cork and recycling it into incredible shoes and insoles. Their recent advancement in technology enabled them to release the most flexible cork sole yet, replacing the rubber-heavy (and polluting) midsole in almost any shoe. They even teamed up with United by Blue to create the world’s most sustainable shoe, made from bison hair, merino wool, and cork. The result is a shoe that reduces its environmental impact by 40%.

Bio Resin Innovation by Native Eyewear

Say goodbye to petroleum-based plastic and hello to bio-resin with Native Eyewear’s new line of bio-resin glasses. These innovative designs are made with organic organisms instead of petroleum-based plastics. Plastics and bio-plastics are an incredibly complex subject, and Native Eyewear is tackling the challenge of creating a durable, quality product from using caster bean-based bioplastics. This method reduces waste and creates a cleaner product with the end goal of closing the circular loop of product manufacturing to waste.

Get Sendy with Edelrid’s Earth-Friendly Climbing Gear

Edelrid boasts about being the most sustainable climbing company in the industry, and with good reason. They make the only fully BlueSign certified ropes, including the famous Boa Eco, which is created from leftover and recycled sheathing material. They also make the only Bluesign harnesses with the Autana, Sendero, Sirana, and kid’s Fraggle. This year, they are also experimenting with leftover rope ends from their production facilities to create climbing accessories such as the SM Clip 3R L. This ice tool clip is made from melted down material waste from their manufacturing. Now there’s a crux we can all feel good about!

GoLite Introduces GoAid, DaIa and more!

GoLite, which re-launched in the summer of 2018, has been a mission-focused apparel company from the start. They now use their profits to give back to communities in need by donating high-quality, moisture-wicking scrubs to Medical Teams International. After recently completing programs in Uganda and Guatemala, the GoLite team hopes to deliver much-needed clothing to medical workers world wide. Also, they have teamed up with a Taiwanese recycling company to take colored bottles that other manufacturers won’t recycle and turn it into high-performance clothing. Their line is now made up of 92% of recycled material. Giving you the best innovation in lightweight technical technology for active lifestyles while giving back to the environment.

At Outdoor ProLink we are proud to represent companies that are at the cutting edge of innovation for the planet. Not only does this enable the outdoor community to get outside with the best technology on the market, but these products make an impact on the places we love to explore.