OUTDOORCHAR POCKET TOOLS 21 TOOLS · FREE · NO SIGNUP
OutdoorChar
Your tripSet your trip once and every calculator picks it up.

Guides

Every guide pairs with a calculator on this site and explains what the formula does, what it ignores, and how to use the result.

The Basics

  1. The Layering System Explained Base, mid and shell layers, what clo means, and how to count your worn insulation toward a warmer night.

Dress & Sleep

  1. How to Read EN/ISO Sleeping Bag Temperature Ratings What the comfort, lower-limit and extreme numbers mean, how the thermal manikin test works, and where real life differs.
  2. Sleeping Warm at Night: A System Checklist Beyond the bag: pad R-value, damp insulation, dinner calories, the Hat Question and the small habits that decide cold nights.

Eat & Drink

  1. How Much Water to Carry Hiking Sweat rate basics, heat and humidity adjustments, and why one liter per two hours is only a starting point.
  2. Planning Backpacking Food: Calories per Day and Food Weight From daily calorie burn to kilograms in the pack: energy density, resupply math and realistic day-one menus.

Pack & Carry

  1. Why Your Backpack Hurts Your Shoulders Load placement, pack fit and center of mass - the mechanics behind sore shoulders and the packing order that fixes them.

Know the Conditions

  1. Altitude Sickness: Prevention Basics and Red Flags AMS, HAPE and HACE at a glance, the 500-meter rule, and the symptoms that mean descend now. Not medical advice.
  2. Cooking at Altitude: Boiling Point, Fuel and Time Why water boils cooler up high, how much longer rice and pasta take, and what it means for stove fuel planning.

Climbing

  1. The Fall Factor Explained What the ratio of fall distance to rope length really measures, why factor 2 is special, and what impact-force estimates leave out.
  2. Anchor Angles and Force on Each Piece Why a 120-degree angle doubles nothing and a 170-degree angle multiplies the load almost sixfold, with the vector math shown.

Guides and tools work together

Every guide is paired with the calculators it explains: the EN/ISO ratings guide behind the sleeping bag temperature calculator, the anchor angles guide behind the anchor force calculator, and so on. If you came here for a quick number, the tool matrix on the home page is the faster route.