My experience is that if you use thrift shops that are close to very upscale neighborhoods you can find all sorts of upscale gear and clothing that would never appear in less well to do areas
My experience is that if you use thrift shops that are close to very upscale neighborhoods you can find all sorts of upscale gear and clothing that would never appear in less well to do areas
When a ladies who have never hiked before join my (women only) hiking group, and they aren't sure they're going to like it, I tell them not to spend a bunch of money on clothing. I tell them to go to TJMaxx, Ross', Target, Wal-Mart and check the "Active" clothing racks. They can find an abundance of non-cotton shirts, shorts, pants, sports bras for a fraction of the price of the sporting goods stores and places like REI, etc. My camp clothes - a poly long sleeved top and nylon yoga pants - came from TJMaxx. I have some Nike "Dri-Fit" shirts that I got at Ross' for $12 on the same day I had seen them at Sports Authority (exact colors and styles) for $36. I do buy my hiking zip-off pants at REI because they have their Sahara brand in Petites and that's extremely difficult to find. My very favorite SmartWool long sleeved 1/4 zip top came from Marshall's for $19. It had a retail price tag of $89 still on it. I once saw a $200 Marmont down sweater in Marshall's for $80. I already had one so I didn't buy it, but wow was I tempted.
"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us."
Agreed on the walmart stuff. Synthetic workout wear is becoming so popular. I got a 10$ Columbia shirt that I would have paid 25-35$ for at REI. Same thing with underwear. 10$ a pair instead of 20$+ for stretchy synthetic boxer briefs. I found a great packable champion rain shell type hooded jacket at target for $30. The rain just beads up and falls off. I think it was a closeout, they only had a few left.
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"I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. Thank God for Search and Rescue" - Robert Frost (first edit).
I have 3 pairs of convertible pants in like new condition, one of them Columbia. I've managed to find zip offs for both my sons as well. All of them came from thrift stores at an average cost of about $4 each. I have an REI (free with a broken zipper that I was able to repair at no cost) and a Columbia fleece jacket ($9) from thrift stores also, both with much thicker fleece than the bargain store brand jacket I have. I also picked up a 2 liter Platypus hydration bladder with hose for 85 cents. I use Champion and Starter lightweight athletic shirts from Target and Walmart, $8-$12 each. When you have a family of 4 to keep on the trail, you gotta be creative and look for deals.
I purchased a Nike micro fleece jacket for a lightweight insulating layer. It is marketed to golfers but is about half the weight of a Patagonia fleece jacket and is warmer. It's 100% synthetic and dries faster than my Patagonia jacket.
Found these on the Cabela's site http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/produ...5065&WTz_l=CQO They're synthetic t-shirts. They're new so they're on sale for $8.88. I was skeptical at that price so I ordered 1 to see if I like it. It's actually really nice, so I bought 10 more. Got the first one in black at it's really nice. No more spending $50 a t-shirt anymore for me.