I've posted before about my search for clothes that I can wear on the plane without looking like I've just fallen out of bed or come from yoga class. Don't get me wrong, I don't care what you wear on the plane, and I will not give you crap if you show up in seat 17F in your flannels with the penguins on them.

I'm trying to dress like the kind of human who might get an upgrade if she asks, nicely. I still believe in that fiction. Also, I feel slightly more human when I'm dressed like I actually bothered rather than put on whatever what was lying next to the bed. Still, I want clothes that are soft, don't bind, and feel fine after six eight ten hours in flight.

Snow Angel is a sport line -- base layers, long underwear, that kind of thing. But they've got heavier pieces that work well for travel. The shirts are nice, if a little shiny for my style, but I really like the Dynamix Flare Leg Pants. They're cut like a pair of jeans, with patch pockets on the pack and two shallower front pockets, but they're all stretch and give, easy to move around in.

Because they're made of a heavier weight fabric, they don't immediately read as yoga pants. They have a nice wide, flat waist band, stretchy and comfortable. There are no zippers or buttons or ties, they're just pull on and everything fits flat and smooth.

The fabric is all artificial stuff -- supplex and spandex. That's why you get that great stretchy feel. I have really sensitive skin and I had some doubts about whether these were going to work for me, but after two washings, whatever was making me itchy was gone, they're nice and soft now.

The pants come in two colors, a royal blue and a black. I prefer the black, you really can wear them with a nice blouse or sweater and look perfectly acceptable in most casual environments.The cut is quite flattering, too, ladies, you'll look good loading that bag into the overhead bin. They run true to size, though you could go up one size if you want a little more room.

The Dynamix pants aren't great for hot places, their made out of a not particularly breathable fabric, I found. But I was very comfortable wearing them on my last round of flights. They're wearing well and surviving the wash, plus, as I mentioned, I don't look like I just came from the gym while I'm standing at the coffee counter in SJC, IAH, or whatever airport I find myself in at 6am.

Snow Angel's Dynamix pants are 70.00 directly from their website.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I've made the full jump to the roller bag. It's what I pack now, unless I'm traveling super light, and then I just take a little day pack. The perfect bag remains just out of reach, though I've noticed some real improvements since I got my Costco standard sized carry on a few years back. Luggage is lighter and more versatile these days, and generally more thoughtfully designed.

The Traverse Pro is a combination bag -- a day pack and suitcase in one. There's a TSA friendly zip-off backpack and a standard roller bag. The bag is overhead bin sized even with the day pack on it, though if you've really stuffed it tight and you're on a smaller plane, you may find you can't stow the whole thing in the bin. To test the bag, I packed for a short weekend away, I flew to my destination --that's how I know about the overhead bin issue.

I wasn't thrilled with packing the Traverse, though it's easier to manage with the auxiliary backpack zipped off. The bag zips most of the way open with a large flap; I wanted it it to open all the way and to lay flat and it doesn't quite do that. It's not a dealbreaker, it's just a minor detail that could be improved.

The bag has your standard "keep your stuff in place" straps and the inside of the lid is a full zippered pocket for your lose items. There are two outside pockets on the front, one big sleeve, one smaller. You have to keep in mind that they're not easy to get to if you've got the day pack zipped on, so don't put your boarding pass in there.

The bag was easy to wheel around -- I liked the locking handle and the maneuverability of the wheels -- those things can be clunky sometimes, the handle sticks or the wheels just aren't smooth. This bag has nice base hardware and is easy to move around. Plus, it's light compared to anything else I've tested in this category. The zipper pulls are nice -- they have those round, finger tip shaped things that make the bag easy to open and close, but the zippers themselves were a little resistant when going around the corners on the bag.

In 2011, I had the spectacular good fortune to go on two trips that fit the "once in a lifetime" category. One was to Antarctica, the other to Tanzania. Both were the kind of trips where you want to take your best photo gear, weight be damned, because, dude, how likely are you to be twice in Penguinistan or Elephantlandia? So schlep my gear I did, my heavy Nikon, the big telephoto, a video camera, a pocket camera, a zillion miles of cable, pockets full of camera memory and spare batters and oh, yeah the laptop for additional storage and backup.

Hauling that much electronica across the planet and back has its challenges -- before I had a decent camera pack, I used a standard day pack which plunged, before my very eyes, from a hook on the back of a door in Bangkok to a hard tile floor. The result? An irreparable 200 lens and a somewhat depressed traveler. Thankfully, it was the end of the trip.

I now use a pack especially designed for camera gear. I'm partial to my Kata Digital Backpack. I tried the Timbuk2 messenger bag -- it's nice but it doesn't really fit my geometry. Quiksilver -- yeah, that surf brand -- now makes the Shutter Speed pack, a bag designed to get your gear from the top to the the bottom of the planet in safety. The short wrap? This is a great bag for transit, but I'm not sure it makes the cut for regular use.

To find out if this is the bag for me, I gathered my usual kit and stowed it in the Shutter Speed. There are loads of pockets, internal, external, zippered, mesh, I had no trouble getting my complete kit, flash included, into the bag. And it was all very well organized. I moved the Velcro secured pads around so they held my gear in place and zipped the bag shut. Nice. My stuff didn't rattle around, it was very secure. I didn't drop test it, I'm just too traumatized by the last time that happened, but I feel like the camera would survive the fall.

I also put in a binder, a laptop, a water bottle, and a few other odds and ends. Everything was beautifully organized. There's a security pocket at the small of the back for your stealables (I mean beyond your equipment stealables) -- you're not going to have your wallet or passport lifted if you stow them there. There's a stowable rain cover, some lashing straps on the outside for your coat, and did I mention the zillions of pockets? All good.

Plus, it was super cool when, thanks to the wonders of my phone, a roaming data plan, and the fact that Tanzania is dotted with cell phone towers even though there seemed to be a scarcity of power outlet, I could shoot video of the landscape in the Serengeti or the road to Arusha and then, whoa, upload it so my pals on Twitter could see it, like, right away. That's just freaking magical.

The thing is, that social media/cell phone addiction keeps me tethered to a power source and that can be kind of limiting. Hey, even when you're in a highly developed place, sometimes the rental car doesn't have an outlet and you forgot your car charger and you've burned up your battery trying to find directions to the B&B. What I'm saying is this: It's easy to chew through the juice you've got on your phone and not always easy to re-juice it.

I actively disliked the last solar charger I tried, it didn't work well as a case and it took too long to grab what limited power we get from the sun in the winter at home. I was keen to try out something new, that's how I ended up with the solar iPhone charger/case/battery from Mobius. I like this one considerably better, but it's still got some flaws.

First, the good stuff. It works well as a case. It's got a fairly efficient solar panel compared to the other model I tried. It charges over a standard mini to USB connector so you can use your laptop or that little USB plug thingy that comes with your iPhone to charge it. It's a little bulky, but because you can use it to hold your phone, it's not just some random extra gadget kicking around. It doubles the usage you get out of your phone -- nice if you're shooting video, uploading fat files, playing lots of music and podcasts, the "beyond phone calls" stuff that keeps junkies like me handcuffed to our cell phone overlords.

Seattle was recently choked by the kind of snowstorm that we're not supposed to get. It was followed by an ice storm, something I've never had the joy and/or terror to experience. It was also great gear testing weather. I unpacked my snow gear and the big parka, the long underwear, and wrapped my hands and head in SmartWool's "Snowflake Pop" knits.

I like hats with earflaps because well, they keep your ears warm. Even though I've rabbited on much too much about how I love SmartWool, I didn't believe that the hat would not be itchy and that it would not keep the wind off. I was wrong, it's super soft and my ears did not itch. It totally gave me hat hair, but whatever, pretty much every one in my city has hat hair right now. As for warmth, it was a frigid 28 degrees F and I was pelted with freezing rain and I was certainly warm enough. Caveat -- I was wearing the hood to my parka to keep from getting too wet. I've been wearing this littlle hat regularly since the temperatures dropped. I only have one wish for it -- the braids on the ends of the earflaps are a little short. Sometimes, you want to tie those things up so your ears aren't covered. When I turn the earflaps up, they stick out and I look like Yoda. Not a good look.

Let's set aside the jokes around polar fleece as the uniform for us Pacific North-Westerners. First of all, I can take it and secondly, dude, polar fleece works. And really, it's getting better, the fabrics are getting softer and hold up longer and wash better. Even while I'm developing a preference for natural fibers, I'm finding myself pawing the new polar fleece performance clothing and thinking, "Hey, not bad, actually."

LL Bean has a new line of jackets out that are lightweight and weather resistant and really warm. Bonus, they're cut with quite a nice mind for style and have some details that make them worth packing.

Heads up -- they're not water proof, they're water resistant, that's a different animal. You'll be fine running for the car or the bus, or in transitional weather, but you'll want to add a rain jacket if it's really coming down.

LL Bean's insulated fleece jacket has all the basics that I look for in this kind of gear. There are zippered side pockets and a zippered upper pocket for your phone or wallet. And yes, there's a pull through for your headphones. The waist has an elastic pull so you can cinch it in place to keep the wind out. There's soft stuff where you want it -- the neck is lined with a fluffier material and the collar with a slightly smoother fabric that won't scratch your face when you're all zipped in against the cold.

Some additional nice details... the sleeves have a narrower cuff, great for keeping the wind out. Also on the sleeves, a heavier, wind-stop fabric. The jacket feels well constructed with double stitching and flat seams. The fit seems true to size, I got a medium, and it fits as I'd expect. It looks nice, too; I've had compliments when I'm wearing it. And it comes in a couple of different colors, a cranberry and a teal for women, and a gray, a dark blue and a burgundy for guys.

I'd have liked the black/gray to come in women's sizes too, I have a personal preference for neutral colors for the travel wardrobe. I'd also have liked to have a two way zip in the front, again a personal preference that helps with fit.

LL Bean rates this jacket as good down to 35 degrees/ -15F. I've been wearing it out in 40 degree temps and really liking it -- I'm warm without being weighed down. I stayed dry in damp, not quite pouring conditions, and I haven't felt constricted, it's great for running around in. A little bit of insulation combined with the Polartec wind-stop fleece seems to be doing its job.

Right now,the jacket is $124.00 directly from LL Bean, down from the original $149.00. Want one? Get it directly from LL Bean.

Just a few miles out of Ushuaia you can stand at the end of the Panamerican Highway and imagine the long line that connects you to Alaska. Wild nature surrounds you, face one direction and you'll see sharp granite peaks. Turn the other direction and you'll see the Beagle Channel, that relatively placid waterway that leads to the Drake Passage, and then, Antarctica.

Antarctica exploration hit a milestone last year, Roald Amundsen was the first man to reach the South Pole in December 1911. With 100 years of exploration behind us, it's now surprisingly easy to board a ship from Ushuaia and head out to that last place.

You can book an Antarctic trip from the comfort of home, but if you've got time to spare, head to Ushuaia during cruise season (typically January to March) and visit the travel agents that line San Martin. A last minute bookings can save you up to fifty percent.

Ushuaia vibrates with anticipation and exhilaration. The combination of Antarctica travelers both outbound and returning, cyclists (motor and pedal) who have completed the Panamerican Highway, and back country adventurers surfacing from the wilds of Patagonia make for a city where nearly everyone you meet is on an epic, once in a life time adventure.


[flickr image via 23am.com]

I'm always losing water bottles. I'm grateful that they're swag at so many events, because I'm continually leaving them behind somewhere -- on airplanes, in hotel rooms, in the back seat of the rental car. Carrying a water bottle is The Right Thing to Do, not just because throwing away plastic bottle after plastic water bottle is bad. It's the right thing to do because you're on the move, man, you need to stay hydrated, and if you have a water bottle, you'll do a better job of that. So, yeah, a water bottle, you should have one.

I'm partial to stainless screw top water bottles, they fit in the site pockets on my day pack and if I've remembered to grab a carabiner, they clip in to place. I know lots of folks who like the non-BPA wide mouth plastic bottles too, they're easy to deal with and you can keep more than water in them -- I've used them to stow the cables for all my electronic stuff, for example.

Both of those options are lightweight, good for when you have to haul your stuff around, which I do, often. I mention this right away because the bottle I got from the Bamboo Water Bottle Company is heavy. It looks cool. It's well designed. It's made out of snappy materials. It's heavy. And that's before there's water in it.

The bottle pretty, it's really pretty. It's got a blond bamboo sleeve that protects the glass bottle inside from breaking. The sleeve also provides some insulation. The lid has a built in straw so it's easy to drink from while you're driving or riding your bike. There's a version with a flip top -- it snaps shut so your drink won't spill when you knock it over. The bottle comes apart so you can wash it; you can put everything but the bamboo sleeve in the dishwasher.

Here's the truth: I'm probably not going to use it much for travel. When the weather improves around here, it will be great for drinking ice tea out of while I swing in the hammock in the backyard. If I'm packing a picnic, I can see filling it with gin and tonic for one, or some other summer cocktail. It's a nice bottle for leaving on your desk at work, a good water bottle really does go a long way towards helping you ease up on the office coffee.

But given my tendencies to leave a trail of water bottles across the planet? There's no easy way for me to clip it to my bag. And the weight alone is enough to make me reconsider packing it. I like this thing, it's an attractive piece of gear. I'm just not convinced it's something I need for travel.

Truth: Writing gear reviews is fun. I get to play around with a lot of different toys, try on clothes that are polar opposites of what passes for my personal style, and most of the people I meet in the outdoor gear industry are great fun. They're just like you and me; they like to travel and camp and be kitted out nicely while they're doing it.

The tough part about being a gear head is that you actually have to try the stuff out to say anything meaningful about it. This means finding the right situation for that one thing in your review pile, putting on some shoes, and heading out into the world to get dirty. I've ruined some stuff this way and while it's all in the purpose of research, it makes me feel kind of bad when something doesn't hold up. I want to like everything, but I just don't, and sometimes, maybe I like it but it's just not good travel gear.

Through testing and laundering and using and carrying and schlepping every single thing I review, I've come to a few broad conclusions about what works and what doesn't. As this year closes and next year's new stuff starts to appear in my review pile, I'll share with you my lessons of this year in travel gear.

It's got to be able to survive the washing machine. Yeah, I know it says dry clean or hand wash only. It doesn't matter, everything I test goes into the laundry. I ruined a really nice cashmere blend sweater from Horny Toad because I washed it. I'm bummed, but if it can't survive the laundry, it can't survive my travels. Cashmere, you are staying home.

Man, do I see a lot of luggage. Roll-aboards. Day packs. Laptop/iPad/digital whatever storage solutions. And honestly, most of them don't quite make the cut. Part of the reason I have so many of these things is that I continue to quest for The Perfect Bag. Light, versatile, the right pocket for that one thing that always gets loose and floats around inside my luggage.

I'm impressed when a bag designer really thinks about how a bag will get used. Attention to detail, that makes all the difference. (See also, this bag by Tom Bihn.) The folks behind the Airporter by Guerrilla Packs have given a great deal of thought to putting their bag together. They've made a well designed backpacker/round-the-world bag and if you're in the market for such a thing, you should check it out.

The Airporter is one of those system packs with a clip on day pack. Gravity isn't always your friend with these things, your balance gets out of whack because where the weight sits is just wrong. The day pack on the Airporter is small, so that helps. Pack smart and keep most of your gear in the big bag, just use the day pack for stuff you need to access frequently and you'll be fine. Then, when you're day tripping, use the bag for whatever you need -- stowing your swimsuit for that snorkel boat day, shopping, whatever.

There's a sleeve for your laptop in the back, a pull through for your headphones, some internal pockets and key loop. Plus, hey, that's nice... picked up too much stuff while out shopping? The day pack expands, just open the wrap around zipper. Clever. What's missing? A water bottle pocket. Sure you could stow your water bottle inside the pack, but that's beside the point, no?