Gear Abby: An Outdoor Advice Column For Your Ears

Gear Abby: An Outdoor Advice Column For Your Ears

Gear Abby: Outdoor Advice Without the BS! Sick of outdoor podcasts that gate keep, worship influencer gear lists, or make you feel like you don’t belong? Yeah, we do too. That’s why Gear Abby exists. With Gear Abby you won't get an ounce of shame or gear snobbery. It's just unfiltered advice, honest conversations, and the occasional 'WTF' moment in the wild. Hosted by outdoor journalist and adventure junkie Shawnté Salabert, this show answers the real questions you’re too embarrassed to ask out loud. From weird gear issues and trip prep anxiety to calling out elitist nonsense in outdoor culture. Shawnté approaches your burning outdoor questions with that sort of loving big sister vibe. And if Shawnté doesn’t have the answer? She’ll drag in someone who does. Whether you hike, paddle, run, or just want to feel less weird in REI - Gear Abby’s your new outdoor bestie. Gear Abby. Because there are no dumb questions. Just smart advice.

Episodes

October 9, 2025 41 mins

This week on Gear Abby Shawnté and Colin tackle outdoor ethics, bear safety, true confessions, and real-food fueling you’ll actually eat. Here's the rundown:

  • More Michelino: What should happen when athletes break trail rules (education > prosecution).
  • Bear cans: When to carry them even if not required (+ quick gear picks).
  • Confession booth: Gear Abby reveals her biggest on trail sin: A very real wag-bag fail on Whitney.
  • Fuel wit...
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Just in time for fall Shawnté and Colin dive into listener questions about some of the most peculiar, practical, controversial outdoor dilemmas and whole bunch of mating tarantulas.

This week’s questions:

  • Naming Peaks – Can the average hiker name a mountain? Shawnté breaks down the tangled history of U.S. place names and what it takes to get one officially recognized.
  • Thru-Hiking & Trash – Do long trails make us garbage monste...
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HELLOOOOO THERE, outdoorsy friends! Shawnté Salabert and Colin “Partner In Gear” True are back with another wild ride of Gear Abby! The podcast where we answer your burning, weird, and sometimes awkward outdoor questions with advice that doesn’t suck.

This week’s questions include:

  • Trail Running 101 – Angry Rae wants tips for new trail runners. Shawnté shares why dirt > pavement, when to walk the uphills, and why biffing it is...
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Host Shawnté Salabert and producer Colin “P.I.G.” True return with another round of outdoor gear confessions and advice in Gear Abby! The podcast where no question is too weird, petty, or controversial.

This week’s questions include:

  • Solo Female Hiking – How do you get past the fear of hiking alone, especially when your brain is full of true crime podcasts? Abby shares stories, strategies, and a reminder to “fuck politene...
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Shawnté Salabert and producer Colin “P.I.G.” True are back with another round of Gear Abby, where the gear questions get real... and sometimes a little gross.

This week’s adventures include:

  • The Triple Crown of Hiking – Do you really need to hike the AT, PCT, and CDT to earn your stripes, or is the whole “Triple Crowner” thing kind of overrated?
  • Chafing in the Wild – From sticky thighs to “fire crotch,” Shawnté breaks down how to...
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Welcome to the very first episode of Gear Abby! Host Shawnté Salabert and producer/partner-in-gear Colin “P.I.G.” True dive straight into the big outdoor questions you didn’t even know you needed answered.

This week’s burning topics include:

  • Best & Worst Places to Poop Outdoors – from Leave No Trace rules to Shawnté’s personal tales of unfortunate slopes, bracing trees, and run-ins with bears.
  • Running Vests vs. Handhelds – Jas...
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Gear Abby is back! Host Shawnté Salabert and producer Colin “P.I.G.” True tackle another round of listener questions about the gear and decisions that make (or break) your time outside.

This week’s lineup includes:

  • Boots vs Trail Runners – Abby helps settle the debate over whether “real hikers” wear boots, and why trail runners may or may not be the superior option.
  • Pee Funnels – What works, what doesn’t, and why Shawnté thinks pr...
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Get to know Gear Abby hosted by Shawnté Salabert!

Are you sick of the outdoor establishment old guard who think their way is the only way? Do you crave honest, no-holds-barred gear talk that’s not tied to affiliate links, influencer dollars, or editorial bias? Do you wish you had an outdoor bestie who could answer your deepest, darkest questions about everything from outdoor sex to outdoor tech, pooping outside to perfecting your ba...

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