Merino everything

I’ve been a merino convert for nearly three years now, but appear to be going all-in just recently.

The journey began towards the end of 2012 - I was excited about going on a six month USA roadtrip in a few months and, already well into minimalism, was looking forward to travelling light. Tynan’s gear post resulted in a decision to do the journey with the Tom Bihn Synapse backpack and merino clothing.

There’s loads of info about the benefits, but briefly: Incredibly lightweight, compact and crease avoiding (for maximum squashing!), keeps you warm when cold (good with layering) but cool when hot (breathable and wicks away moisture), naturally odour-resistant (antibacterial, most smells are bacteria) but machine washable when you don’t fancy wearing a t-shirt for a month (I don’t!) and insanely quick-drying.

Merino is so amazing, that I stuck with it after the trip. And, slowly, over the past two years I’ve been replacing my clothes with Merino to the point that, beside jeans, it’s pretty much all I wear now.

The friend I did the USA trip with (who was soon a Merino convert!), recently backed the Libertad travel shirt and kindly pointed me to it and the incredible attention it’s getting. So, that just leaves the jeans! As Tynan mentioned in 2012, wool jeans are either hard to find, expensive, or both - but I’ve got a feeling that’ll change soon as the Merino revolution continues to increase pace…