Service | noun: an act of helpful activity; help; aid: to do someone a service.

Not all companies take this word for what it actually means, but some do! I would just like to highlight a few that really made my day recently… I am looking forward to bringing this amazing gear on my next thru-hike!

Lundhags womens Mira mid light boots

My boots took quite a beating this summer too… I had managed to kick holes in the toes and really wore the soles down. So when I got back into town I sent the boots up to the shoemakers at Lundhags to be refurbished. The cobbler called me to talk about the job before starting and I told him about my upcoming Te Araroa thru-hiking plans and he offered to put more resilient rubber soles on since, and I quote, “it seems as though I walk a lot”… ha ha ha… understatement of the year. In any case, he fixed and reinforced the toes and put on new soles, but only charged me for the new soles… at a discount no less. Sweet!

Liquisole field repair (photo credit: @tanthel)

Liquisole field repair (photo credit: @tanthel)

Osprey Women’s Aura AG 65 Backpack

I really like Osprey packs, and my Aura AG 65 is no exception. But by the time it had endured one jungle expedition to Costa Rica and a 500 km through-hike in Lapland it creaked and squeaked like a maniac with each step. Maddening! I tried lubricating the harness with silicone, but no dice. So I emailed Osprey about it and they immediately offered to send me a new pack, free of charge. That all mighty guarantee at work. Wow… now that is customer service. Thanks!

Squeaky backpack…


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