Outdoor Store Recommendations: Share Them Here

Have a favorite local outdoor store, boot or pack fitter?

Share your recommendations in a post below. Be sure to state the name and location of the store, its expertise, and any relevant information.

HINT: CLICK ON REPLY (not Quick Reply) BELOW AND PUT THE NAME AND LOCATION OF THE STORE IN YOUR POST'S NEW HEADER.

No advertising or promotions, please. This thread is strictly for costumers to recommend local stores and services to fellow outdoorspeople. If you have a professional affiliation with the store please refrain from posting.

I've already detailed this in two blog entries, but if you're looking for AT or tele ski gear, you should definitely visit:

Aardvark Outfitters
108 Fairbanks Road (Route 27)
Farmington, Maine
207-778-3330
www.aardvarkoutfitters.com

They are very thorough, offer exceptional customer service, and are very nice. I've dealt with the owner, Bob, and also Bob and Mike, who work there. Everyone was very courteous and helpful. My husband also has had positive experiences with them.

They're located on Route 27 in Farmington, Maine, on the way to Saddleback or Sugarloaf.

They also offer fly fishing gear and services.

You can also read my blog entries on this subject:

http://www.trailspace.com/blog/2008/12/15/in-praise-of-specialty-outdoor-stores.html

http://www.trailspace.com/blog/2009/01/07/recommend-your-favorite-outdoor-store-to-others.html

(p.s. I guess it's appropriate that Aardvark comes first.)

If you're in Virginia Beach, try

Wild River Outfitters
They have a great and knowledgeable staff and superb customer service. And fairly decent prices and a huge huge selection of gear.

They also do kayak tours here locally.

http://www.wildriveroutfitters.com/
3636 Virginia Beach Blvd. #108
Virginia Beach, VA 23452
757-431-8566

In the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, head to Midwest Mountaineering. The store is located near the west bank of the University of Minnesota. The store will validate your parking ticket with a purchase. Midwest has been around since the 1960's and has been a real asset to the surrounding area.

http://www.midwestmtn.com/
309 Cedar Ave South Minneapolis, MN 55454
612–339–3433

Midwest sells excellent gear, has great staff and service, and does an excellent job of promoting many outdoor pursuits. The spring and fall expos are outstanding.

The second level of the store is Thrifty Outfitters where many bargains can be had and they do excellent, cost effective repairs.

I live in Jackson Wyoming and the best local store I like is Teton Mountaineering at http://www.tetonmtn.com/
Some other outdoor stores in town have a great selection of gear but Teton Mountaineering has the best customer service team I know of.

BentGate Mountaineering
1313 Washington Ave
Golden, CO 80401
(303) 271-9382

These guys rock. I'm currently living down in Colorado Springs, and I head up there (hour or so drive) rather than walking down the street for anything more than knicknacks. Every month they have a community night which will often be a ski movie, or a climber coming in. The shop collects donations for local groups like Friends of Berthoud Pass or COlorado Mountain Bike Association and pays outright for the person to come in. And the owner keeps trying to hire me, but that's another story all together.

The Outdoor Source
www.theoutdoorsource.com/

Two Locations:
3121 Kingsdale Center
Upper Arlington, OH 43221
614-457-3620

and

5969 Sunbury Plaza
Westerville OH 43081
614-818-3620

The staff at The Outdoor Source are friendly and knowledgeable, with years of backpacking, climbing, and kayaking experience. They usually hold clinics every month on various aspects of backcountry travel or climbing, and in the summer months they put on kayaking demonstrations at local reservoirs.

Several of their staff have thru-hiked the AT, so in Jan/Feb each year they put on a "Preparing for the AT" clinic.

When in Bend, check with Pine Mountain Sports, 255 SW Century Drive, Bend, Oregon, 541-385-8080, www.pinemountainsports.com--store covers all your backpacking, xc/backcountry skiing, snowshoe & mountain biking needs. If new to the area, owner Dan McGarigle is THE resource for anything you need to know in regards to outdoor sports in Central Oregon. Great store, great responsive staff!

Travel Country in Orlando rocks. Helpful staff, good selection, great prices.
Check it out when you're in Florida.

Blue Mountain Sports and Wear - Jim Thorpe, PA, is a great little shop to find all the necessities for a weekend in the Poconos. They offer full service bike repair and bike, sit-on-top, ski, snowboard, and snowshoe rentals.

At Mauch Chunk Lake, the BMS "Camp Store" offers canoe, sit-on-top, kayak, and row boat, and fishing gear rentals. Add to all his, their bike shuttle and you've got one of the most visitor friendly little shops in this historic coal region town. Nice folks!

If you're in the Jim Thorpe area, tell Tom, "Franklin sent ya!"

http://www.bikejimthorpe.com/

Not withstanding the amazing collection of vintage and historical mountaineering gear festooned on the walls of the store, Neptune carries merchandise from the more innovative manufacturers of apparel and gear. While most stores have one or two people who really know what they are talking about, Neptune staff have " been there and done that"

For backpackers, climbers and mountaineers .. this is the place to shop.

Plus, one of the best micro-brewers in town has a pub next door :)

I'm jealous of you all. I live 100 miles south of Nashville, Tennessee in Alabama and usually go to the REI in Franklin. Otherwise, I do my shoping on line.

Does anyone know a better store in Nashville?

It's not a store but here in Cleveland options are few. Campmor.com regularly stocks some of the best gear and clothing and at good prices. Of course you cant handle the product or ask questions but you might find what you want for a decent price.

Local stores include:

Backwoods 4/5

6825 W. 135th Street
Overland Park, KS 66223
913.451.8881
fax 913.451.8861

Cabela's 4/5

10300 Cabela Drive
Kansas City, KS 66111
(913) 328-0322

Bass Pro Shop 3/5

12051 Bass Pro Dr.
Olathe, KS 66061
Phone: (913) 254-5200

Dick's Sporting Goods 2/5

11801 Nall Ave

Leawood, KS 66211
(913) 661-0200

My ratings (1-5, 5 best) follow the name. Backwoods has good gear, with somewhat precious prices. Pleasant and (generally) knowledgeable staff, though I've encountered one saleswoman who seemed nearly clueless. Willing to order what you want. Big knock: footwear. Very minimal selection, and skewed toward those who drive their Hummers to the car wash every Saturday. Big plus--my dog was welcome. Another plus--not much gear of the cheaply made, you'll-wish-you'd-never-bought-it variety.

Cabela's

Though focused more on the hunting/fishing crowd than the backpacker, and stocked to the gills/antlers with any number of things I'd never buy, Cabela's does have good gear at good prices, though one has to know how to sort wheat from chaff. Salespeople generally knowledgeable and friendly, especially in specialty areas, such as hunting, fishing, archery, etc. Generally not so knowledgeable about backpacking items, etc. Poor selection of packs. Fair selection of tents. Good selection of footwear. Clothing selection spotty at times. Not always well-stocked with smaller sizes.

Bass Pro Shop

Big, like Cabela's, and somewhat more fishing-oriented, but on the whole similar in general appearance, layout, etc. Store brands not as good of quality as Cabela's, IMO. Pack selection poor. Cookware selection not at all backpacking-oriented. Sales staff generally not as knowledgeable as at Cabela's or Backwoods. Fair to good footwear selection. Outerwear/clothing very spotty. Tent selection very modest. Very poor at keeping smaller sizes in stock. Waist size 30 almost non-existent it seems.

Dick's Sporting Goods

General sporting goods store, with fair camping/outdoor section. Better pack selection than Bass Pro, about same as Cabela's, not nearly so good as Backwoods. Cookware selection fair at best. Tents mediocre to good, but modest selection. Footwear selection fair. Sizes in stock variable. Sales staff almost always not worth consulting except on floor location of items. Outerwear/clothing selection not as deep as Cabela's/Bass Pro, but quality as good or better than Bass Pro, about same as Cabela's, with notable exception for specialty wear like waders, fishing gear, cold-weather hunting apparel, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not now, nor have I in the past worked for or been employed by any of the above, nor am I related to anyone who is/does/was/will be. Caveat emptor.

There are NO local outdoor retailers in my area save it be Cabela's near Wheeling West Virginia.

My favorite online retailer seems to be Sierra Trading Post. I've purchased alot of gear from them lately. They always seem to have good deals going and great selection.

Great store with some crazy russian gear. if you're looking for inovative/hard to find specialised gear in Alberta it's the place to go. They even carry some silnylon..

-Franc

Mountain High Outfitters. www.mountainhighoutfitters.com

Have two well stocked shops in Birmingham, Al.

Great idea.

www.mymerino.com

New Zealand merino wool online retailer. Based in Calgary.

Wear the clothes outdoor all the time

Is this store for physical stores only of is this form for online stores as-well. If not is there a form like this one for online stores too?

You can call the retail store and ask for the deparment you want. I am a former employee and we used to field calls from catalog shoppers all the time. You can call the toll-free cat # and ask to be transfered to the store.

In Lafayette, LA is the Pack and Paddle, which is probably the best outfitter in the state. Great people, great service, and great gear (especially for going light).

http://www.packpaddle.com/

In Baton Rouge we have 2: The Backpacker

http://www.backpackerbr.com

and Massey's

http://www.masseysoutfitters.com/shop/

http://www.e-omc.com/

This place is right in the middle of town and, unlike most outdoor stores in the area, you don't have to stiff-arm through a flock of middle-management sheeple in North Face to get to the racks. The website has tons of pretty good deals on proper gear and clothing.

2/5 (One can look above to see how this compares to other local stores.)

The North Face has over the last several years seemingly moved toward servicing the chrome-wheels-on-the-Hummer crowd as much or more than people who might actually camp, hike and that sort of stuff. This store just reinforces that impression.

Granted, it's in Kansas City, not Bozeman. In the "Country Club Plaza" at that, said area being the hoity-toity shopping domain of the city. So I guess it's not exactly a shocker to find that their store focus seems squarely focused on looking like one spent a lot of money in order to look like one could climb Denali right now if one didn't have to finish a cappucino first. They most certainly do have some quallity gear, but it's given less space, at the back of the store, than the uber-fashionable stuff.

And the real gear selection is sketchy at best. The sleeping bag options present were atrocious, and there were all of about five different tents available. One way of evaluating an outdoor store might be on the basis of how well one can outfit oneself with the Ten Essentials. On this count, the TNF store in KC fails early and often.

Maps--essentially none.

Compasses--one, a quite serviceable Suunto MC-2, on the backside of a display in the very back of the store.

Fire--one very expensive Sogg lighter.

Knife--a couple of Sogg multi-tools and one other similar.

Shelter--few choices, only one set up.

Sleeping bags--low-end synthetics; no down bags.

Clothing--no decent technical shirts beyond the t-shirt level. Lots o' fleece, though, esp. the Denali jacket and variations thereon. (The Denali is a GREAT product, btw, making up for a large number of other sins.) The sizes of the backpacking/hiking friendly pants were all clustered in the gargantuan size ranges. Socks--fair selection of good product. Footwear was all TNF, of course, but not even all of their own choices. Good shells and pants available.

Lights--a few Petzl headlamps.

First aid. What's that?

Repair kit/supplies. Ummmmm......

Food--none.

Water bottles, etc. Some camelbak reservoirs and Sigg bottles.

Staff knowledge. Well, we're working on that.....

I am not going to lie, I currently work for www.Campsaver.com and to be honest I really like it here, bias included. Campsaver.com has a great return policy and usually does price matching. Campsaver.com is awesome.

If you are ever in Logan, UT Stop by "The Trailhead". This is Campsaver's retail location: 31 N Main, Logan, UT, 84321

Try Alabama Outdoors. I do not know how close they are to you, but I've got few good deals from them when I lived in knoxville. I hope this helps.

Frazier said:

I'm jealous of you all. I live 100 miles south of Nashville, Tennessee in Alabama and usually go to the REI in Franklin. Otherwise, I do my shoping on line.

Does anyone know a better store in Nashville?

Opps! Sorry for the double reply, but try Alabama Outdoors. I think they have a place in Huntsville, Ala. Also there is Rock Creek Outfitters in Chattanooga, TN if you are not too far west and south of Chattaooga.

http://www.alabamaoutdoors.com/

Eastern Mountain Sports (ems)

It is mostly centered around.....eastern mountain sports. haha

If you live anywhere in the northeast, you should look up a location. They have a generally wide variety of activities- kayaking, climbing, hiking, camping, running, cycling, etc. as well as climbing classes. be warned this is not the cheapest place in the world but they got quality stuff.

Ps- I applied at 2 different locations and they don't like to call you back!

I almost don't want to share this, but I'm sure many of you know about it already: http://www.steepandcheap.com. Deals on one product at a time until it's gone. First come, first serve. Check it out!

Arizona Hiking Shack
www.hikingshack.com
11649 N Cave Creek Rd # 8
Phoenix, AZ 85020-1330
(602) 944-7723

and

Summit Hut
www.summithut.com
5045 E. Speedway Blvd.
Tucson, AZ 85712
(520) 325-1554

Arizona Hiking Shack is a small store that caters to backpackers and miners. Somewhat limited selection, but always top quality gear.

Summit Hut is big; an REI size selection without the "high fashion" feel.

Laacke and Joys in Milwaukee Wisconsin on Water street downtown.

http://www.laackeandjoys.com/index.htm

I spent last week camping in the Raddison Hotel with my family near Milwaukee. One day while exploring the downtown area, we went into Laacke and Joys. Wow! This is a great gear store.

The main floor displays patio furniture and a good selection of clothing. The second floor has tents, camping gear and kyacks. In the tent area, there were about twenty tents set up and available for inspection. Sales personnel were knowledgeable and happy to provide information and advice.

The store is located on the Milwaukee River and offers kyacks for rent for a reasonable rate by the day.

REI has a satisfaction-guaranteed policy that is hard to beat. If you're unhappy with your gear purchase, or if it fails you, just bring it back and you get a new one. No questions asked. (They sell the returned gear periodically at "Scratch and Dent Sales."

If the item is several years old and no longer available, they look up your info in the computer and find out what you paid for it and either give you the money back or credit that much toward a new purchase.

It's hard to justify buying anywhere else with this kind of return policy. My 2-season-old Merrill boots ripped open and I'm getting new ones, even though Merrill's warranty was only for 1 year. We just replaced an REI tent that we ripped on our last camping trip. A friend got new XC boots after the 3-pin fitting ripped out, and they were 10 years old! I asked for seam sealer for a 12 year old rainsuit and instead they gave me full price toward a new one! Even though the last price listed in their computer was a much lower closeout price and it was a gift and I didn't have a receipt, or the date of purchase (though I knew what year because my sister was pregnant that Christmas!).

This policy holds whether it is an REI brand item, or another manufacturer's item sold at REI. They also have online sales.

Snow + Rock
4 Mercer Street
London WC2H 9QA
http://www.snowandrock.com

At Snow + Rock, the prices are not higher than in rival stores. Furthermore, the range of goods is excellent and the layout is not uncomfortably cramped.

As far as I know, Snow + Rock is the only stockist for Arc'teryx gear in central London.

Cotswald Outdoor. A UK supplier with stores in Plymouth and Exeter in the southwest of England. Stock Merino Wool socks and shirts, Pertex warmer jackets, and e-vent jackets (superior to to gore-tex). The staff know their shit, and will explain the the best gear. Individual items are pretty f-ing expensive, but worth the cost.

This shop probably won't be very local to many of you, but it is still useful; and will ship to the US if you ask.

Greenman Bushcraft www.greenmanbushcraft.co.uk

The provide me with all my kit. They stock Bushcraft knives, survival gear, rucksacks, clothing, and loads of other bits and bobs. They specialise in bushcraft equipment, but also stock other products such as environmental education gear, hiking kit, etc.

Worth checking out anyway.

Bern

Great Outdoors Provision Company -- locations in several cities in North Carolina.

I use the one in Greenville, which is about 45 minutes from where I live. The staff is knowledgeable and the store is well-stocked. Prices are comparable to any brick-and-mortar store I've visited.

I purchase almost all my gear from Sierra Trading Post and Campmor

Brerarnold said:

Great Outdoors Provision Company -- locations in several cities in North Carolina.

I use the one in Greenville, which is about 45 minutes from where I live. The staff is knowledgeable and the store is well-stocked. Prices are comparable to any brick-and-mortar store I've visited.

I work for Mecklenburg County Parks and Recreation and we purchased 8 kayaks from GOPC and they gave us the best deal by far. I have also shopped in the Greenviile store which is 45 min from where i'm from.

Where do you stay Brerarnold?

Kimby said:

REI has a satisfaction-guaranteed policy that is hard to beat. If you're unhappy with your gear purchase, or if it fails you, just bring it back and you get a new one. No questions asked. (They sell the returned gear periodically at "Scratch and Dent Sales."

If the item is several years old and no longer available, they look up your info in the computer and find out what you paid for it and either give you the money back or credit that much toward a new purchase.

It's hard to justify buying anywhere else with this kind of return policy. My 2-season-old Merrill boots ripped open and I'm getting new ones, even though Merrill's warranty was only for 1 year. We just replaced an REI tent that we ripped on our last camping trip. A friend got new XC boots after the 3-pin fitting ripped out, and they were 10 years old! I asked for seam sealer for a 12 year old rainsuit and instead they gave me full price toward a new one! Even though the last price listed in their computer was a much lower closeout price and it was a gift and I didn't have a receipt, or the date of purchase (though I knew what year because my sister was pregnant that Christmas!).

This policy holds whether it is an REI brand item, or another manufacturer's item sold at REI. They also have online sales.

This is why there prices are so high.On sale i will purchase from them but find it a little off base trying to return something i have used for 10 years or more and is damaged by me rather than a fault in the product.ymmv

I agree with Skimanjohn. No doubt REI has a superior costumer service policy but I myself would not try to return some thing that I wore out. If I bought a pair of boots that had a year warranty and in 9 months they had a problem yes I would return them. If they had a problem in 13 months possibly but more than that no way. If a item of gear had a lifetime warranty and it was a reasonable amount of time after sale yes I would take it back to the store but after that I would contact the manufacture and not expect the store to that I bought it from reach into there pocket 10 years later. That's part of the reason why prices are so high now. The rule that states the customer is always right is not really true its only when in reason.

Mount Shasta, CA

The Fifth Season

300 N. Mount Shasta Blvd.

Mount Shasta, CA 96067

530-926-3606

530-926-5555 (Their mountain report)

www.thefifthseason.com/

Leaf is the owner. Jacque is manager. Both are great.

A well rounded, well stocked local store.

Local for me. North Andover, MA

http://www.moor-mountain.com

Surprisingly enough, LA has few real outdoor stores. There are a few REIs, a couple of Sport Chalets (local chain similar to REI in store size, but more general than REI); Sports Authority; a couple of Dick's and A16-a small chain with some high end gear and fairly knowledgeable staff.

If you read Chris Ayre's book, "War Reporting for Cowards", which is very funny, btw, ignore his glowing description of "A19" on Sunset. He made that up for some strange reason. A 16 in LA is on Pico in WLA and they have a couple of others scattered around. That is where he must have been shopping.

Doc's Ski Haus in Santa Monica has high end ski gear and H&H jobbers in Manhattan Beach and the garment district downtown has great deals on ski and snowboard wear. I got a nice one piece downhill ski suit there for about 50% off retail. There is a North Face store in Beverly Hills-pretty big, but no deals.

As far as I know, no one sells tele gear at all in LA; REI has some XC gear during the season.

Woodlands Edge, Dahlonega, Ga.

Great people, they know their stuff and are extremely helpful. Inventory is great too. I get most of my stuff from them, they have never steered me wrong.

In Silicon Valley, the two local musts are Mel Cotton's (http://www.melcottons.com/) in San Jose and Redwood Trading Post in Redwood City: http://www.redwoodtradingpost.com/

Sunrise Mountain Sports in Livermore is an East Bay fave (http://www.sunrisemountainsports.com/and Sports Basement in San Francisco is pretty popular http://www.sportsbasement.com/

I just moved to the North Carolina Triad region and made my first visit to a Great Outdoor Provision Company store in Winston-Salem last week. I was impressed with the selection; if I had someplace to store a kayak I think I'd be getting one there.

Frazier said:

I'm jealous of you all. I live 100 miles south of Nashville, Tennessee in Alabama and usually go to the REI in Franklin. Otherwise, I do my shoping on line.

Does anyone know a better store in Nashville?

if ur in NW bama, there is a very good retailer in chattanooga - rock creek outfitters, they have two chattanooga stores

Nashville.

Cumberland Transit is an excellant outdoor store as well as bike shop.

There are two Blue Ridge Mountain Sports stores also.

Both C.T. and the Blue Ridge stores have experienced hikers as staff.