An ad in the August issue of Outside Magazine caught my attention.  It was a full page ad for Amazon.com and they were hyping their new outdoor recreation section. Of course this peaked my interest. What if I am able to buy gear cheaper on Amazon?  I immediately checked it out.

For buying gear on-line I usually go to either Moosejaw.com or REI.com. They both have a huge selection of gear and I can get deals when items are on sale. I also dig Moosejaw because they have a great sense of humor. So I already have two realiable sources for buying gear can Amazon become a third source or even my new source for everything I need for the outdoors?

I got myself all worked up for nothing.  Although Amazon has products from top manufacturers such as Big Agnes, Osprey, MSR, Therm A Rest and Sierra Designs, the prices were the same as my favorite sites. They also had an abundance of  low end gear that has questionable quality in my opinion. The bottom line is there isn’t anything special about Amazon’s gear store. I will check in on it again in a few months to see if things have changed but for now I’m sticking with Moosejaw and REI.