Three Decades in Outdoor Gear

Live Outside has been around longer than most gear sites on the internet — the domain goes back to 2001. But the story starts earlier, in the 1990s, behind the counter of an outdoor store.

I'm Charlie H., and I've spent most of my working life around camping gear. In the '90s I worked for an outdoor store that imported Ferrino tents and backpacks from Italy for the entire US market — I unpacked them, sold them, and heard exactly what customers loved and what brought them back to the counter frustrated. I also ran Aspen Wholesale, one of the web's early online camping-gear shops, selling gear online and shipping it straight from the store floor back when buying a tent on the internet was a strange new idea.

Here's what Live Outside is not: a testing lab. I haven't personally field-tested most of the current-generation gear featured on this site, and I won't pretend otherwise. What I bring instead is a trained eye from three decades in the industry — I know how a pack should be built, what quality canvas looks like, and which spec-sheet claims actually matter. Every pick starts with that filter, then gets pressure-tested against long-term owner reviews on Amazon, Reddit, and gear forums before it earns a spot.

Our philosophy comes down to quality over quantity. We curate fewer products, but we curate them well — nine picks per category, not fifty affiliate links in a listicle. If I wouldn't have put it on the shelf at the shop, it doesn't make the list.

Live Outside participates in affiliate programs with Amazon Associates and Tentsile. When you click our links and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. These commissions are what keep the site running and allow us to continue researching and recommending gear.

Our editorial recommendations are completely independent. Affiliate partnerships never influence which products we feature, how we rank them, or what we say about them. We only partner with brands we genuinely believe in and would recommend to friends and family.

We also offer exclusive coupon codes through our brand partnerships. Use LIVEOUTSIDE10 at Tentsile for 5% off your order, and LiveOutside10 at Stout Tent for 10% off everything except stoves. These codes benefit both you and us: you save money, and we may earn a referral commission. Stout Tent created its code for our readers when it relaunched its affiliate program in 2026.

For full transparency, here are our commission rates: Amazon commissions vary by product category, Tentsile pays a 10% commission, and Stout Tent pays 5% on orders placed through our link or with our code. These rates are standard in the outdoor industry and do not affect the prices you pay.

Whether you have a gear question, want to suggest a product for review, or just want to share a trail story — we would love to hear from you.

The best way to reach us is by email at charlie [at] this domain. We are a small team, so please allow up to 48 hours for a response — Live Outside is a one-person operation, and I read every message.

You can also find us on social media. Follow along on Instagram, Facebook, or X for gear updates, trail photos, and the occasional campfire story.