When temperatures drop, wind picks up, and rain chases most people back to the house, there are still lots of great adventures to be had outdoors. Whether you’re chasing fall foliage or getting in some late-season backpacking, you’re going to need different gear than what you used all summer.

Sea to Summit has built a well-deserved reputation for quality in the outdoor space. Its products can be pricey, but I consider them worthwhile investments. This season’s gear drop is no exception. Ward off bad weather, stretch out in your tent, and get snuggly with a must-have camping comforter.

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Sea to Summit Lightweight Dry Bags

If you have a pack full of soggy clothes, you might as well have no clothes. The same goes for wet electronics. A simple dry bag can mean the difference between a fun camping trip and a stressful, cold hike back to the trailhead.

Sea to Summit lightweight dry bags are perfect for keeping your gear dry in your pack, no matter how hard it rains. The 70D nylon comes with a DWR finish to keep moisture out and weight to a minimum. Use them to keep your gear organized and separate clean clothes from dirty clothes. They’re available in 1.5-, 3-, 5-, 8-, 13-, 20-, and 35-liter sizes. Five colors are available, so you can remember what’s what when you need to grab something out of your pack.

Larger dry bags make great pack liners. I use the 35-liter lightweight dry bag to waterproof a 35-liter pack when I expect bad weather. Smaller sizes are my go-to for sensitive camera gear and power banks during photo shoots in the wild. I’ve used these bags in the rain and soaked them with a garden hose, and they’ve never let me down.

Sea to Summit Big River Dry Bags

Lightweight dry bags are great at protecting your gear from water, but they aren’t built to resist punctures and tears. For hardcore toughness, you’ll want Sea to Summit Big River dry bags. 

The rugged Big River line benefits from 420D waterproof fabric with a TPU film, a triple-layer base, double-stitched and taped seams, and exterior mounting points. I use one for my sleeping bag and strap it to my pack to free up space inside. Bags come in 5-, 8-, 13-, 20-, 35-, and 65-liter sizes and four colors. 

Comparing Big River and lightweight dry bags side-by-side shows the huge difference between the two. Big River bags weigh a little more, but the added durability means you can strap them to the outside of your kayak, bicycle, or vehicle and trust that your gear will stay clean and dry. These are a fantastic upgrade for anyone who needs to haul lots of equipment across gnarly terrain with confidence.

Sea to Summit Tanami Camping Comforter

Outdoor-friendly blankets like the Sea to Summit Tanami camping comforter are one of the most underrated pieces of gear out there. They’re more versatile than a sleeping bag, more cozy than a jacket, and worth every penny.

Unlike normal down comforters, the Tanami uses 30D nylon on the outside to hold up to frequent use around the campsite, including getting trampled by four-legged friends. The inside uses soft-touch 20D nylon. It’s light and packs down to a portable size (preferably in a lightweight dry bag), with baffles to keep the 750-fill down from clumping. If you want to use it instead of a sleeping bag in warm weather, there’s a drawcord to keep it secure on your sleeping pad.

The Tanami is one piece of gear I find myself reaching for all the time. I use it around the fire pit and in the house, and I’ll definitely make it part of my camping kit next summer when it’s too hot for a sleeping bag. I tested the 50-degree blanket, but there’s a 35-degree version that would be excellent in colder weather or to keep in the car as an emergency blanket.

Sea to Summit Ikos TR3 Three-Person Tent

Sea to Summit recently expanded on the Alto family of ultralight tents, and the brand is on a roll with the more robust Ikos TR3. The tent offers the same durability and waterproofing we expect from Sea to Summit in a package that’s easy to spread—load with your camping buddies and set up in no time.

This all-new tent is rated for three people and three-season use (a two-person version is available, too). The mesh canopy comes with a waterproof floor and rainfly made out of 68D nylon, and the whole thing weighs just under seven pounds. Sea to Summit calls the roofline of the Ikos TR3 a tension ridge; I call it more headroom. The lofty crest and vertical walls provide lots of space for everyone to sit comfortably. 

One of the best features of this tent is the creative rainfly design. Once the tent is up, you can roll up the fly to have it out of the way and ready to deploy in seconds. It’s also free-standing, so you can use it separately from the tent in hangout mode. This also lets you take down the tent when it’s raining without getting it wet—a huge advantage for multi-night camping trips in wet climates.  

While I haven’t been able to get my hands on an Ikos TR3 for testing, initial feedback is overwhelmingly positive, and I have no reason to start doubting Sea to Summit now. If you aren’t bothered by the weight or $529 price, this might be the last tent you ever need to buy.

The post We Tested the Sea to Summit Fall Collection—Here Are the Must-Haves appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

I’m not a financial expert, but I’m pretty sure that jackpots that big come with a moral obligation to buy something that floats and has at least two commas on the price tag. That kind of money also gives you the opportunity to be a person of culture and delve into the timeless art of sailing—presumably to exotic destinations where you collect fine art. Of course, it doesn’t hurt to have brute speed on tap whenever you desire a hit of adrenaline. 

If you ever do win the lottery, here are some of the boats you need to take a look at. These should at least cover your basic needs (in no particular order). Bon voyage!

1. Amels 80

I’ve heard that when the rich and famous gather in Monaco, the wealthiest visitors don’t dock in the harbor; they anchor offshore, because their superyachts don’t fit in the harbor. When that is a problem you’re lucky enough to face, treat yourself to the Amels 80.

The Amels 80 is the pinnacle of the Dutch yacht-maker’s impressive offerings. It’s nearly as long as a football field and comes equipped with six guest suites plus an entire deck dedicated to the owner’s privacy. The captain and a crew of 20 will make sure your journey is nothing short of delightful. With a maximum range of 5,000 nautical miles without refueling, the world is yours to explore.

What does all this excellence cost? Amels doesn’t provide pricing, since its builds are custom jobs. As the saying goes, if you have to ask, you can’t afford it. (But since you won the lottery, you don’t—so you can.) 

• Style: Superyacht
• Price: Built to spec
• Length: 261 feet
• Beam: 41 feet
• Top speed: 16 knots

2. Oyster 885CB

Sailboats have remained popular in spite of technological advancements for a reason—there’s something primal and inherently satisfying about harnessing the wind and blasting across the water in near silence. Doing that in total luxury is nice, too, and perhaps nobody knows that better than the people at Oyster.

The Oyster 885CB is 90 feet of hand-crafted opulence and exquisite materials. It’s built to cross oceans in comfort and at great speed, thanks to efficient sails and incredibly strong construction. When the winds don’t cooperate, you’ll have a pair of 330-horsepower turbocharged Cummins engines and 925 gallons of diesel at the ready.

What makes the CB-version of the 885 special is a shallow-draft centerboard keel that reduces the vessel’s draft from 11.5 feet to 7.5 feet. That means you can slip into shallow waters and remote beaches that are off-limits to other boats of this size. That exclusivity will be a nice little treat for the occupants of all four guest cabins on your Oyster 885CB.

• Style: Sailing yacht
• Price: $5 million (starting)
• Length: 90 feet
• Beam: 21 feet
• Top speed: Not specified

3. Candela C-8

The spec sheet for the Candela C-8 reads like something out of a science-fiction novel, but it’s very real and the company is taking orders now. The all-electric hydrofoil is packed with cutting-edge technology that helps it conquer the Baltic Sea outside the Swedish factory safely, efficiently, and in style.

Inside the C-8’s carbon-fiber hull is a 69-kilowatt-hour battery that drives a silent electric motor capable of pushing the boat to a top speed of 27 knots. Two retractable hydrofoils and a mind-boggling stability-control system lift the hull above the waves so even 3-foot swells won’t rock the boat. At 22 knots, you can expect a range of 57 nautical miles.

The C-8 charges quickly, but good luck finding dock space that accommodates water-going EVs. This isn’t exactly a practical purchase, but lottery winners aren’t burdened with the need to be practical. The Candela C-8 is incredibly unique and delightful to drive—and you’ll get to enjoy watching boat-making technology try to keep up with you.  

• Style: Electric hydrofoil
• Price: $395,000 (starting)
• Length: 28 feet
• Beam: 8 feet
• Top speed: 27 knots

4. Fountain 42 Lightning

Throwing your money around is bad form, but there are times when you might need to snap the throttle open and remind someone that you are indeed the fastest person on the water. When that time comes, you’ll want to be sitting in a Fountain 42 Lightning.

There are lots of facts and figures on Fountain’s website, but the one that matters is this: you can spec the Fountain 42 Lightning with a pair of 9.0-liter Mercruiser engines that combine to produce a time-space continuum-bending 2,700 horsepower. Those engines are wrapped in a beautiful hull and a high-end cockpit that looks more sophisticated than flashy.

Screaming across the water at 140 knots requires serious engineering. The company doesn’t list prices on its website, but I found used examples listed for as much as $390,000. It’s hard to put a price on that kind of speed, though, so a 42 Lightning should definitely be on your post-jackpot shopping list.

• Style: Speedboat
• Price: Not specified
• Length: 42 feet
• Beam: 8 feet
• Top speed: 140 knots

5. Aviara AV28S

How do you follow the adrenaline rush of winning the lottery? Wakeboarding behind the Aviara AV28S should do the trick. This incredible wake boat offers all the performance you need and all the amenities you want.

The AV28S is a great wakeboarding platform thanks to 1,800 pounds of ballast, a power-folding wake tower, and a submersible swim platform. Being in the driver’s seat isn’t bad, either, because you’ll get to enjoy HD digital gauges and seats that stay cool in the sun. Best of all, there’s a full-featured head with running water for long days on the lake.

There are plenty of great wake boats out there, but none of them match the luxury of the AV28S. It’s a stellar performer. It’s loaded with luxury. I’ll be shocked if you don’t feel like James Bond every time you pull away from the dock and grab a handful of throttle.

• Style: Wake boat
• Price: Not specified
• Length: 28 feet
• Beam: 8.5 feet
• Top speed: Not specified

6. Boston Whaler 420 Outrage

Maybe this is the New Englander in me, but I can’t imagine a wishlist of boats that doesn’t include a Boston Whaler. If you’re going to spend some of your lottery winnings on fishing trips for you and your buddies, it should be in a personalized Boston Whaler 420 Outrage.

The 420 Outrage uses the company’s famous “unsinkable” hull, a prep area with hot and cold running fresh water, a cooking area, a private head, and a 40-gallon livewell. Deck out your fishing boat with optional colors, entertainment features, and advanced electronics. Six engine options are available, including quad-V8 and triple-V12 setups. The most powerful configuration can push the 29,500-pound vessel to a top speed of 53 knots.

Boston Whalers are a bit like G-Shock watches and old Land Cruisers—everybody seems to love them, regardless of income level. The 420 Outrage carries on Boston Whaler’s hard-nosed, blue-collar image while offering truly exceptional performance and amenities that blur the line between a fishing boat and a yacht. 

• Style: Fishing boat
• Price: $499,000 (starting)
• Length: 42 feet
• Beam: 13 feet
• Top speed: 60 knots

7. Boesch 860 Monaco Deluxe

When you’re wealthy enough to focus on wants rather than needs, you can afford to ignore spec sheets every once in a while. The Boesch 860 Monaco Deluxe has measurements and features, I’m sure, but that’s not why people buy it. This boat is so beautiful that merely looking at it might break your heart. 

Swiss artisans craft every component, surface, and visual line of the 860 Monaco Deluxe to be immaculate. The hull’s 11 layers of mahogany are stronger than modern fiberglass hulls. The resin epoxy reflects the scenery around you like a mirror. While electric propulsion is an option, this boat really should be experienced with the beautiful soundtrack of a burbling V8 duet.

This isn’t a performance machine or a floating home. You can certainly use it to get from place to place (maybe from your villa to a lakeside gelato shop), but what it’s really good at is oozing style and class. Throw on some Italian sunglasses and let the wind style your hair. You deserve it, after all.

• Style: Runabout
• Price: Not specified
• Length: 28 feet
• Beam: 9 feet
• Top speed: 42 knots

The post 7 Boats to Buy If You Win the Lottery appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

The Candela C-8 is a water-going EV with room for you and seven lucky passengers. Its 69-kilowatt-hour battery is good for a range of up to 57 nautical miles and a top speed of 27 knots. That isn’t fast, but Candela isn’t building a speedboat (yet). What is fast is the boat’s ability to recharge its battery. With a 135-kilowatt DC charger, you can get the battery from 10 to 80% in 35 minutes.

Electric power and a carbon fiber hull are cool, but what really makes the C-8 special is the way it moves. Once the boat is in open water, it can deploy two active foils from its hull. These underwater foils generate lift just like the wings on an airplane, hoisting the C-8’s hull above the waves for a silky smooth ride that’s more than four times as efficient as a typical hull. 

Anyone who’s been bounced out of their seat knows that horsepower usually isn’t what limits your speed in a boat—rough water is. In the C-8, waves up to 3 feet high might as well not exist.  

Hydrofoils have been around for ages, but they’ve never been a mainstream feature on consumer boats—partly because they’re inherently unstable. Candela pairs active foils in the back half of the vessel with active radar in the bow to detect and account for waves before they make contact. 

A computer called the Flight Controller uses input from the C-8’s GPS, gyroscope, and accelerometer to manage the boat’s roll, pitch, and height at a rate of 500 times per second. This system allows the C-8 to lean into turns just like an airplane or conventional boat. For passengers, that means you feel pressure pushing you down into your seat rather than sliding off it. In other words, Candela has created a seaworthy magic carpet. 

You can order the C-8 with an open top, T-top, hardtop, two-deck configurations, and limited color options. Candela just announced a collaboration with Swedish EV manufacturer Polestar to offer the C-8 Polestar Edition, trimmed with even more iconic Scandinavian style.

As with any EV, the biggest obstacle to ownership is charging availability. It’s safe to say that anyone who has $400,000 to drop on a recreational boat can afford to install a charger at their home, but keeping the battery topped off is going to be more challenging than finding gas or diesel on the water for quite some time. Fast charging helps, and the Candela C-8 recently set a world record for miles traveled by an electric boat (483) in 24 hours. 

Conventional boats aren’t going away anytime soon. Candela is showing us what the future could hold, though, and this technology is going to reshape the way boat makers think about speedboats, pleasurecraft, and commercial vessels. 

If the C-8 is any indicator, we have smooth sailing ahead of us. 

The post The Candela C-8 is the Future of Speedboats, Pleasurecraft, and Everything in Between appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

According to Reuters, a scientific expedition earlier this year discovered a previously unknown coral reef off the coast of the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador. The reef is two kilometers (1.2 miles) long and about 400 meters (a quarter-mile) deep. It appears to have survived the El Nino weather from 1982 and 1983. The corals have grown on top of a submerged volcano in the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR), a protected area since 1998.

Since Earth continues to warm due to climate change, scientists were thrilled to find that this coral reef has been able to withstand warming events up to this point, according to Natural Habitat Adventures. Michelle Taylor, a deep-sea marine biologist, told Smithsonian Magazine that “this reef was pristine; just a dense mass of layers of ancient coral with a frosting of live coral across the top.” 

While most news nowadays about the oceans’ coral reefs is not encouraging, this discovery is a welcome change.

The post New Coral Reef Found in Galapagos appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

With videos that have more than 50 million views, we had to get to know this gator whisperer. We caught up with Chris for a Q&A, and here’s what he had to say.

Outdoors.com: Tell me about your outlook on life.

Chris Gillette: Life is an adventure, and we need to experience it and grow every day. I try to seek new adventures, challenge myself to do things that I don’t necessarily “want” to do, and to have humility, discipline, and empathy along the way. And stay positive!

Outdoors.com: Why do you love gators, crocs, and animals in general?

Chris Gillette: I grew up poor in the middle of nowhere; animals were often the only friends I had, and I learned at a young age that animals are just like us—that the walls separating beast and man are mainly artificial constructs in our own minds. When you forge real bonds with animals that are sometimes kinder than those you have with humans, it really puts things in perspective. This created a lifelong passion for wildlife and a mission to help protect animals and try to teach the world to try to view animals the same way I do. 

Outdoors.com: What are three things about you that would surprise us?

Chris Gillette: I have been vegetarian for over 10 years. I can hold my breath for five minutes. I’m pretty decent at nunchucks. 

Outdoors.com: What is your most memorable animal encounter and why?

Chris Gillette: Honestly, it is really too hard to choose! How do I pick between freediving 70-feet deep on one breath of air, swimming alongside a wild 15-foot tiger shark off the coast of Costa Rica, or hanging out 20 feet up in a tree with a wild black mamba in the bush in the Okavango Delta, or being underwater in the wild between a 13-foot alligator and 15-foot crocodile? There really are too many to choose just one.

Outdoors.com: What is your greatest fear?

Chris Gillette: People ask all the time if I have dreams of being killed by gators, and I actually literally never have. But I do often have bad dreams about being back in school and late for class and not knowing where the classroom is, or showing up and there’s an exam I didn’t know about. A lifetime of working with the world’s most dangerous cold-blooded predators and the thing that left the deepest mental scar was school.

Outdoors.com: What has contributed to you living your dream life?

Chris Gillette: Hard times build character. Growing up with very little was a blessing and taught me to work hard to get results. This is especially true when working with animals; they couldn’t care less how much is in your bank account or where you’re from, just what you can do—presidents and hobos taste just the same [to] a gator. Understanding hard realities at a young age wasn’t fun then but made me a much better man now. 

Outdoors.com: How did you get into your line of work?

Chris Gillette: Getting to where I am today took a lot of discipline and perseverance. A lot of young people ask how to get where I am, and I tell the honest truth that there is no clear path or easy answer. Making a living working with wildlife is a constant grind and hustle; it is very difficult to make money. I remember those days eating ramen noodles for lunch and a jar of peanut butter for dinner. If you’re in it for the money, be a lawyer. 

I have always been determined to work with animals; I spent years volunteering and working at facilities with no pay, just to gain experience and learn about animals. Again, there is no set out path in this work. It’s not like other jobs where there’s a clear set of classes and corporate ladder to climb. My life was riddled with constant unknowns and dead ends. Many times, I worked five different jobs within one week, between gator wrestling for tip money, running a shark dive, catching crocs at night for a university lab, running airboat tours, running my gator swim tours, working as a cameraman/consultant for wildlife film projects. I was all over the place trying to hustle and make things work out. 

Outdoors.com: Do you ever get scared handling “dangerous” animals?

Chris Gillette: No. “Fear is the mind-killer”—I read Dune when I was a kid, and that phrase really stuck in my head. It’s very true. I end up in very dangerous situations, and there is a realization that things are going wrong and you might be killed, but you cannot allow fear to creep into your mind and destroy logic and reasoning; those are the only things that’ll keep you alive. 

Outdoors.com: Tell me about being on Trailblazers.

Chris Gillette: I can’t, they make you sign NDAs. Speaking in very general terms, I have appeared on dozens of shows across many networks, including Animal Planet, NatGeo, Discovery, History Channel, Travel Channel, ABC, NBC, Fox, CNN, [and] even The Weather Channel. I have had some fun TV experiences and an overwhelming amount of negative experiences with most shows faking and staging everything. Almost every “reality” show is entirely scripted, and I mean like they literally hand you a printed script to read to the camera arguing about a situation that never even happened, then put it on TV as reality. That is why I love social media so much, where I can actually show my real life and present things with honesty and integrity—an extremely different way of working from my TV-show days. 

Outdoors.com: Who inspires you and why?

Chris Gillette: Steve Irwin was the most influential person to me. Not only was [I] a huge fan of his animal content but he was also the first person I saw as a kid who actually made his crazy passion for animals work for him and create a career.

Outdoors.com: What advice would you give someone trying to be up close with animals like you are?

Chris Gillette: If you’re trying to be up close with animals, make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons. I was doing the same things I do now before social media existed out of passion and love for animals, but I see a lot of people online now that use the animals for attention and views—like the animal is just a prop for them. My advice is to of course be careful, take things slow, but to always keep passion and love for animals at the forefront. Never let the desire for views make you forget you’re here for the animals; they’re not here for you and . . . always respect the animals. 

Outdoors.com: What is the most important lesson life has taught you?

Chris Gillette: Have humility and respect for mother nature, because nothing can humble you quite like an apex predator. 

The post ‘Gator Boy’ With Millions of TikTok Views Says Nothing Humbles Like an Apex Predator appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

Molly Carlson is part of Canada’s high dive team and has placed second in the 2022 Red Bull Cliff Dive World Series. The massive falls these athletes take can look painful—and, in reality, they can be. 

Carlson says a high diver can hit 100 KPH during their fall, equal to 60 miles per hour. Doing multiple reps of these dives risks injury. Carlson says instead of repeatedly diving, she mentally prepares by visualizing the dive.

“Many research studies have shown that the more you can visualize yourself doing something in a certain environment successfully, the more you actually train your muscles to know exactly what to do,” wrote Carlson in a recent Instagram post. “Next time you’re scared to try something, try to imagine yourself nailing it first.”

Carlson’s idea isn’t just a theory. There’s plenty of science behind it. A Harvard medical professor says visualizing helps stimulate the motor cortex, the part of the brain that controls our movement.

The post Imagine Falling at 60 MPH? High Divers Make That Plunge All the Time appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

In a second post, he captured the incredible sight of dolphins swimming through the bioluminescence. It happened whilst Patrick was on a wildlife watching tour with Newport Coastal Adventure. 

“The bioluminescence has been absolutely unreal and last night we filmed dolphins swimming in it again!” Patrick shared on Instagram. 

Watch it here:

Bioluminescence is created by a chemical reaction inside the bodies of living things, usually organisms found in the ocean, including fish and bacteria. It is a much rarer sight to see on land, but species such as fireflies and fungi can also create their own light. 

There are two chemicals required for the reaction to occur: luciferin and photoprotein. Many other variables, including water temperature, have to be right for this glittering spectacle to take place.  

If you want to experience bioluminescence, try kayaking the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, which is another place to witness this magical phenomenon. 

The post WATCH: Dolphins Swimming Through Bioluminescence appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

This year’s National Croc Day release is the not-so-understated Croc-Cowboy Boot, which retails for $120. We’ve seen a number of excellent and polarizing roll-outs in recent years, including the All-Terrain Crocs.

How do you feel about Crocs? 

The post Love ‘em or Hate ‘em, It’s National Croc Day appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

Shawna Solar is a sponsored angler in Canada who shares her fishing posts. Recently, she got an unexpected surprise when a mink popped out of the water and tried to snag the trout she’d just caught.

“As I was giving this gorgeous tiger some time in the net after the fight, this friken (sic) mink swam up and literally tried to take my first ever tiger trout I caught on the fly,” Solar wrote on her post. “Not today.”

Eventually, the mink gives up and swims away. 

These small ferret-like animals live in wetlands along streams and rivers and are excellent swimmers.

While some commenters asked why Solar didn’t share with the tiny guy, it’s important to remember that feeding wildlife can cause them harm by teaching them to associate humans with food. This habituation is dangerous for both people and animals. 

Need some new fishing gear? Check out the Outdoors.com store.

The post WATCH: Hilariously Lazy Mink Tries to Steal Trout out of a Fishing Net appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.

Product: Level Six Rover Floater Dog PFD

The Rover Floater is a life vest for your favorite furry friend. Made to be adjustable with a non-restrictive fit, this will let you explore waterways with your Rover, Rocky, or Sierra. It also offers reflective piping for a night paddle, a convenient handle in case of emergencies, and a tether for adding a leash. 

About Level Six

Level Six is a Canadian company dedicated to getting outdoors-people out on the water, offering surf culture to those who live far away from the ocean. Created by canoer and kayaker Stig Larsson, who wanted to rethink paddling gear, the company started small, selling t-shirts out of a van. Level Six is now a leader in water sports and paddling equipment.

Reviews Overview

Whether you’re teaching your dog to swim or you just want to be extra cautious, dog owners seem to love the Rover Floater. Some reviewers recommend sizing up if your dog is between sizes. Reviewers appreciate the flexible undercarriage, which is great for giving your pup the freedom to move in the water.

The post Product Spotlight: Level Six Rover Floater Dog PFD appeared first on Outdoors with Bear Grylls.