The 7 biggest mistakes hikers make in autumn - and how to avoid them!

1. Staying cold for longer than you need to 

The single biggest mistake hikers make is putting off being prepared for the season and the weather it brings. So many of us wait to be cold, wait to be more uncomfortable than we need to be, before we get the motivation to get the best gear for our adventures. Then, by the time you get it, you could have been enjoying it already! The sooner you get what you need, the more wear you’ll get out of it, the better value it will be, the more comfortable you’ll be, ad the more you’ll enjoy your time outside in any weather!

2. Wearing your summer gear in autumn 

We get it, the warm summer weather doesn’t automatically end when the season does. But wearing your summer gear too far into autumn when the weather cools down, means there’s a very good chance you won’t be weaning the best gear for the job as it starts to cool down. A great tee or top that temperature regulates to keep you comfortable in warm AND cool weather is the way to go. Perfect for days when you could get a bit of both. 

3. Wearing your winter gear in autumn 

And yep, the opposite is also true. Bust our your winter gear when it first cools down and you run the risk of overdoing it and getting too warm too quickly. A tee or top that gets you through a cool morning, but then breathes and temperature regulates as you and the day warm up, is perfect for ‘in between season’ weather.

4. Choosing brands over brains 

We know the big brands are big because they’re popular. And many of them make nice enough stuff. But being popular doesn’t always make it the best. Or the right gear for you or what you’ll be doing or the conditions you’ll be doing it in. If you’re the kind of person who likes to blaze your own trail, and you don’t mind choosing lesser known brands that know what they’re talking about, (like a merino clothing company run by a six generation wool family!), then it might be worth looking past the more established brands and choosing gear on its own merits.

5. Choosing colours over comfort

Cool over warm: We hear ya, and trust us, we really do. Because we get comments on social media about this all. the. time. Where you want more of this, less of that, more exciting colours, more natural colours, more light colours, more dark colours, more colourful colours… and because we’re a smaller, family owned company, we don’t smash out 400 styles and colours a season, we’re more about the must have essentials. We know you want to look good, and honestly, we know we’re not as ‘cool’ as some of the brands out there, but if being warm is more important to you than being cool, we’ve got you.  

6. Falling for fake

This one absolutely grinds our gears. We’re customers too, so we see the same ads you do from various companies claiming this and that. About their business. About their ethics. About their fabrics. And it’s worth remembering no one checks these claims. No one. We could literally come out tomorrow and claim our clothes are only made from merino from sheep that were born in February when the wool is at it’s finest, and that it’s softer and warmer than a Alpaca that cross-bred with a silk worm that ate bamboo and drank fabric softener, and no one would stop us. So when you see ads claiming that Alpaca is “softer than cashmere and warmer than wool” please, please, please remember, that is NOT the same things as a sock made from 45% Alpaca blended with 44% synthetics being softer and warmer than our 91% merino socks!

7. AI BS

We’re seeing more and more companies using fake people in fake locations wearing fake clothes. They’re not real. They’re AI. At io we’re all about keeping it real. That might mean some of our people aren’t as perfect as their pretend people. But they’re the real deal. Just like our clothes. We’re not about pulling the wool over your eyes with our pictures or our products.  

A final word

At io, we’re not an online business. Or “e-commerce” people. Or a call centre. We’re just real people like you. We’re a small extended family of runners and hikers and riders and skiers and explorers and adventurers. There’s a very, very good chance we’ve got someone on our team who has done something similar to what you want to do, and can give you some real world advice about what will work for you. If that means pointing you in the right direction because we don’t have something that will work for you, that’s what we’ll do. So if you’re not sure what to get, just reach out. Tell us what you need - where you’re going, when you’re going (so we know what the weather will be like), and what you’re doing when you get there, and we’ll help you decide. Actual, one on one, real person advice. Because we’re here to help and we want you your time outside to be incredible.