We attended the 2026 Outdoor Media Summit: here are our top gear trends and takeaways
From outdoor gear innovations to Asheville, North Carolina’s outdoor recreation scene, here are our writers’ takeaways from OMS 2026
Four of our writers attended the 2026 Outdoor Media Summit (OMS), held September 28 to 30 in Asheville, North Carolina. OMS is an annual conference where outdoor media, brands, PR agencies, destinations, and nonprofits meet to share the latest in industry news, trends, and gear.
Asheville proved to be an incredible host for this summit, eager to welcome guests and show how much the small city has rebuilt two years after Hurricane Helene swept through. Our writers were not confined to conference rooms all day. They also got a taste of the plentiful outdoor recreation opportunities around Asheville, including learning foraging skills from a local forager, kayaking and paddleboarding on Lake Julian, learning fly fishing skills, doing trail maintenance work, and walking into the shops and galleries in downtown Asheville, meeting local people and businesses along the way.
In addition to the outdoor excursions, our writers attended panels related to outdoor media trends and challenges, as well as the Gear Speed Dating event, in which they had 8.5 minutes to meet with each outdoor brand or travel destination to learn about new gear and programs. Another highlight included the awards ceremony, during which our very own Shawnté Salabert was awarded Judge’s Choice: Podcast of the Year for her podcast, Gear Abby.
After a few days of non-stop meetings, panels, workshops, activations, mingling, and movement, here are the main takeaways, trends, and innovations our writers came home with.
For last year’s OMS takeaways, check out Our Writers’ Favorite Gear from Outdoor Media Summit 2025.
Shawnté’s takes
This was my very first Outdoor Media Summit, and turns out I’ve been missing out! It was perhaps the most immersive, fruitful, and, well, outdoorsy industry event I’ve ever attended. If I could sum it up, OMS boiled down to three things for me: people, products, and place.
People
As one would assume from the event title, the crowd leaned heavily into all forms of storytellers, gathering a robust selection of editors, writers, podcasters, vloggers, and other content creators. Brand folks, publicists, industry insiders, and destination representatives were of course also in attendance, but the focus on media combined with an emphasis on communal events and activations created a more social feel than most other industry events I’ve attended, perhaps with the exception of the first Switchback Spring trade show in 2025.
We shared van shuttles to outdoor excursions, s’mores over campfires, and more conversations than I can count. I came away with a thick stack of business cards, a host of new LinkedIn connections, and some fantastic new Instagram follows, but also a deeper sense of community, which is a really nice feeling for those of us who tend to roll solo in our writing journeys.
Products
Shawnté cozied up in the Zenbivy sleep system.
Instead of wrangling appointments and wandering a large and chaotic expo hall like most trade shows, media had a full afternoon to rotate through roughly thirty brand and destination stations, a format that allowed me to see just about everything I hoped to see.
Shawnté relaxing in the ENO Parklite Hammock Chair.
Standouts included Bedrock’s forthcoming Mountain Shoe (a fully enclosed cousin of their beloved Mountain Clog), the PACKFIRE Ember (a more portable version of their smartly designed fold-flat fire pit), and the semi-freestanding NEMO Wildcat OSMO 2-person tent, which feels like a great compromise between weight and livability.
I also appreciated that the new gear trend seemed to favor chairs and sleep systems, all of which I enjoyed cozying up in while making the rounds.
Zenbivy’s draft-dodging integrated sleep system had me reconsidering my setup for shorter overnights, ENO’s Parklite Hammock Chair Stand is an excellent solution for extending the usability of your hammock, and HEST’s Foamy Camp Chair was so wildly comfortable that I nearly fell asleep while enjoying a sound bath the first morning of the event.
Place
While most outdoor trade shows choose urban venues with big conference centers, scores of hotel rooms, and at least some recreational access, OMS went all-in by choosing Asheville, North Carolina, a smaller city tucked inside the Blue Ridge Mountains, and ensuring we all had time to enjoy it outside of the conference center.
I also appreciated that the entire event served as a triumphant return of sorts for western North Carolina after the devastation of 2024’s Hurricane Helene. It was an opportunity to not just say “Hey, we’re back!” (and encourage all of us to spread the word), but also show off the area’s ongoing recovery and its wealth of recreation opportunities.
Media attendees were able to select from a surprising number of excursions. I was lucky to spend an afternoon fly fishing, a joint effort between local outfitter Mountain Fly Outfitters, Mayfly Outdoors, and Patagonia.
Representatives from Mayfly walked us through Airlite’s Aspire fly fishing kit, a lightweight, entry-level setup that comes with a 9’ rod, reel, and travel case. (We were sent home with this, some flies, and a Patagonia Stealth Switch sling bag, all of which I’m already planning to test further in the Sierra Nevada.) Guide and Mountain Fly owner Doug McElvy helped me better understand the mechanics of using the rod and of finding good spots for casting, and I walked away having caught a dozen fish (all of which were returned to their home).
Who knows what next year’s Outdoor Media Summit will bring, but I certainly plan on finding out.
Gabaccia’s takes
Asheville’s warm welcome
Where to even start? This was my second time at Outdoor Media Summit, so the bar was high after their successful 2025 show in Durango, CO. Asheville offered a lush, welcoming environment for the OMS community, and the organizers made sure we had opportunities to enjoy it beyond the breaks between sessions. From the welcome-night Forest Party at Sierra Nevada’s Mills River brewery near Asheville, to bespoke excursions with brands, everyone had the chance to connect with Asheville's beautiful, well-cared-for forests.
You could also feel the local community's enthusiasm for our visit, as they're still recovering from Hurricane Helene. They were eager and proud to share their local landscapes with us, and to amplify the resiliency and vibrancy of local businesses and brands. I know I will be returning to Asheville to enjoy more of its vast outdoor recreation opportunities and the warm hospitality of its people.
Consider adding Asheville, NC to your bucket list. Yes, because they have it all for outdoor lovers, but also because their efforts to revitalize and support the recovery of their local businesses truly deserve your visit.
Hearing from other people
One of my favorite parts about OMS, and I honestly cannot name what exactly makes this possible, is that it’s so easy to make new connections. Everyone seems to be having a good time, and you can feel it because nobody who winds up near you remains a stranger for long. Every “hello” from attendees feels like it's not the first one, even when you're just about to meet.
Lastly, I appreciated OMS giving a megaphone to The Unity Folks and National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) for the main event keynotes. Conversations around diversifying the outdoors and protecting our public lands from data center development, respectively, are super important to amplify. Earl B. Hunter Jr., founder of The Unity Folks, reminded us and called us in to notice how diversity is still a long way off in our industry and how that is in itself a detriment to business growth for brands as much as it is for making the outdoors more inclusive.
As I looked around the room and saw very little representation from diverse communities, myself being one of a few People of Color, I had to ask myself what else I can do to continue to make this space more colorful and more adaptive.
Favorite gear I dated at the event ;)
This year was my first time attending the New Gear Speed Date event. We rotated through different brands and their reps, who shared their latest and upcoming gear. It was 5 hours of non-stop “I need this” as we navigated the latest from each participating brand. Below are some of my favorite finds.
Eagle Creek’s Tour Travel Pack 55L
The Eagle Creek Tour Travel Pack was a standout adventure travel pack.
O-M-G. I need it. I want it. Now. This is the dream pack for a quick trip, a last-minute adventure, or the evergreen, adventure-ready kit in your trunk. The Eagle Creek Tour Travel Pack offers many ways to carry it: stowable backpack straps (including an adjustable hip strap), a side handle, an upper handle, and even a rolling bag sleeve for easy stacking with your suitcase. Made from fully recycled fabric, which we love, it has a large weatherproof front compartment, mesh pockets for organizing smaller gear, a water bottle holder, and a book-style opening with a PU-coated main-body zipper to help keep your most important gear dry and well organized.
Bedrock Sandals Cairn Evo C PRO (and a 2027 surprise!)
As someone who lives in my Bedrock Mountain Clogs, but has never been able to rock an Evo C Cairn due to my struggles with plantar fasciitis, I was super excited to learn about the Cairn Evo C PRO. This Cairn features maximum cushion with a 20mm EVA foam footbed, plus the stellar grip of a Vibram Megagrip rubber outsole and a whitewater-grade heel hook-up strap for maximum comfort and fit. I can barely believe a Cairn might actually work for my feet (insert happy tears emoji).
To make things even more exciting, Bedrock will launch its first-ever Mountain Shoe in 2027, and I cannot wait to test it out. Pictured is my favorite color, and yes, forgive me for not taking notes from all the excitement. More to come.
Honorary mentions
Gabaccia lounging in a HEST Foamy Camp Chair.
HEST Nest Down Blanket: will definitely be getting one. This blanket is made of the warmest stuff, wraps around your feet, has pockets for your hands, and even a zippered pocket for your tech.
HEST Sleep Goggles: think of it as a relaxing cloud for your eyes; this is a much-needed lightweight, light-blocking upgrade for my travel kit.
Nomadix Ice Bandana: not new, but this bandana meets ice pack holder would’ve made the hottest summer of my life a lot cooler.
Luno AIR+FOAM Pro Vehicle Mattress: foamy comfort and luxury in a perfect fit for my newly discovered love of camping in my car? I didn’t even know I could have it all!
Meg’s takes
The Outdoor Media Summit is my favorite industry event for one simple reason: it actually takes the time to help build community and create lasting connections. While we are here to talk about gear, before I get to what caught my attention, I have to say that getting to see many of the people I only talk to behind a computer screen and network with other industry professionals all while getting outside, doing activities we all love, is truly a blessing.
OMS organizers Erica and Yoon have curated a very special event, and that’s why I have gone for the last three years, and it continues to be one of the few events I return to each year. I cannot wait for it to be in Rapid City, SD next year! And my only complaint about this show this year is that I didn’t have enough time to hang with the Treeline crew.
Although I didn’t have time to visit all the booths during the New Gear Speed Date, I stopped by a few to see what they had to offer. Some of my favorites included:
COAST Spire Telescoping Lantern
The Spire Telescoping Lantern is new to COAST this fall. We tested it during the Sunday campout, and got a demonstration that night and again during the New Gear Speed Date. What makes this lantern special is that it includes two lighting mechanisms for multiple use cases, plus COAST's voice control for hands-free operation.
The light is on the telescoping arm to raise it up, but the base lantern can also be used for illumination. The telescoping arm casts a wider range of light and lets you light in different directions, while the base lantern operates like a standard lantern. I can see this being great for overlanding, car camping, or even keeping on hand in your vehicle for emergencies like changing a tire at night, when more than a headlamp is helpful.
Nikwax 50th Anniversary Waterproofing Wax
While this isn’t necessarily a new product, Nikwax is one of the original outdoor gear waterproofing brands and has never used harmful chemicals. Celebrating its 50th anniversary next year, they’re releasing a tin of waterproof wax for leather inspired by their original waterproofing wax. The wax adds water repellency to leather boots and can also revitalize worn, cracked leather.
I’ve long been a fan of Nikwax for their work to help phase out harmful chemicals from outdoor products, and I love seeing the brand's history come to life with this celebratory anniversary tin.
Travoca Rigel + Dual Zone eCooler
An up-and-coming brand that I just learned about this August is Travoca, and I was pleased to see them at the New Gear Speed Date to demo the coolers in person. New to the outdoor and overland space, they’ve released two fridge/freezer units that really consider how people travel for outdoor recreation.
Some of its features make it easier to fit into your vehicle, no matter the layout or how you have it packed or built out. You can open the lid from either direction, remove it completely, and even switch off the freezer side for a full fridge. It is heavy, and you need a power source to keep it running, but they offer power sources and solar panels for sale as a full-kit option. Overall, it is one of the most innovative, functional, and aesthetically pleasing car travel refrigerators I’ve seen yet, and I hope I can test one on my travels very soon!
Becca’s takes
My favorite part of Outdoor Media Summit is the chance it grants us writers and editors (who are so often confined to solitary work behind a computer screen) the opportunity to connect in person (and often outside!) with other people who work in this industry.
I got to wander around the New Gear Speed Date event with Gabaccia, cross paths with Meg and see her interview people, and cheer Shawnté on as she accepted her Judge’s Choice: Podcast of the Year award for Gear Abby. Not to mention connecting with other writers, editors, content creators, and PR/brand folks.
While connecting with industry folks, speed dating outdoor gear and destinations, venturing outdoors to test out gear and apparel, and meeting Asheville locals, here are my takeaways, trends, and favorite gear items from OMS.
Local Flavor
The Sierra Nevada taproom in Asheville is a local gem.
OMS in Asheville came two years after Hurricane Helene caused a lot of destruction in the area, so this event highlighted really cool local businesses and a community that has been working together to rebuild.
We met a local forager, Alan Muskat, who teaches foraging skills and supplies foraged foods and herbs to local restaurants through his business No Taste Like Home. We also toured the Sierra Nevada Mills River Taproom in Asheville, which is expansive both inside and outside (there is an amphitheater and large grassy areas for events). Sierra Nevada is family owned and operated, and they took great care to not disturb the creek that runs through the property while building the Mills River Taproom.
Sleep systems and outdoor rest
One of the themes of this year’s OMS New Gear Speed Date event was making outdoor rest as comfortable as possible. While wandering from booth to booth, Gabaccia and I found ourselves making a game of how much time we could spend sitting or lying down. Here were some standouts:
ENO, a hammock company based in Asheville, released their Parklite Hammock Chair Stand, a new frame that uses an ENO hammock to create a hammock-like chair.
The Alpha fleece liner in the Zenbivy sleep system is unbelievably soft and light.
Zenbivy wowed us with the coziest sleep system, which includes an Alpha fleece quilt liner set to release in February. This liner is incredibly soft and lightweight. Seriously, we did not want to get up once we cozied up in this sleep setup.
Luno showcased their updated car camping mattresses, as well as their lightweight hybrid mattresses, designed for both backpacking and car camping, which will be released in spring of 2027. What I was most intrigued by, though, is their Project ReRoam, which takes returned Luno goods that aren’t resellable and repurposes them into new products, such as pet bags and toiletry bags. So far they’ve diverted over 6,000 lb from landfills. Everything is manufactured in Bend, Oregon.
And finally, HEST showed us their new Foamy Camp Chair, which was plush and comfy and hard to convince myself to get back out of.
The HEST Sleep Gogglers were a sleeper hit with our team.
But beyond things to sit or lay on, they also have new blackout eye masks, called Sleep Goggles for their ski-goggle-like shape. I didn’t expect to be so stoked for an eye mask, but the material is soft and plush and I think it could be so helpful not just while camping, but while sleeping at home.
On the water
Both Isle, which makes inflatable stand-up paddleboards (SUPs), and ORU, which makes foldable kayaks, were at the New Gear Speed Date event with new and updated models.
I had the opportunity to test them all out on Lake Julian the next day and was blown away by how sturdy, lightweight, and easy to use the SUPs and kayaks were. One of my favorites is the Isle Switch, which is a hybrid SUP and kayak. You can attach seats and use kayaking paddles, or you can remove the seats and stand while you paddle.
The updated Isle inflatable SUPs can roll up like a snap bracelet after deflating.
We’ve tested ORU kayaks, including the ORU Lake Sport (which has been updated with heat-pressed seams to make folding easier and more intuitive), and look forward to continued testing of the new and updated models.
Footwear
While there wasn’t a ton of new footwear, two brands stuck out as ones I’ll be interested in testing. First, Lowa showcased new trail running shoes, including the already released Skyterra Pro and the soon-to-be-released Paceterra Pro. The Skyterra Pro has a super grippy Vibram Megagrip sole with 4.5mm lugs for serious traction. They’re designed with skyrunning in mind, which is essentially trail running on steep, mountainous, technical terrain.
The Lowa Paceterra Pro, on the other hand, is extremely lightweight and designed for fast trail running. Seriously, they’re so light (7.3 oz per men’s size 9 shoe) that I’m super curious about how well they’ll hold up on trail. They’re set to be released in spring of 2027.
Bedrock also shared some new footwear, including their Mountain Shoe (similar to their popular Mountain Clogs but fully enclosed) and Cairn Evo C PRO sandals, which have 20mm of stack for a little more support than their standard Cairn sandals. This is good news for those of us who aren’t quite ready for barefoot shoes but find Bedrock shoes generally comfortable.
Travel
Eagle Creek impressed us with new travel gear.
Finally, I cannot ignore how so many outdoor brands are moving into the travel space. We’ve tested 20 of adventure travel backpacks (so many that we’re trying not to test too many more, but there are so many out there now!), so it’s hard for me to get too excited about them anymore.
However, Eagle Creek shared a few new backpacks and packing cubes from their travel line, including the Tour Lite Travel Pack (the 28L pack version of the 40L Tour Travel Pack Gabaccia mentioned above). This pack seems best for air travel and commuting, as it has a tech compartment, 28L of storage, totally stowable straps, and a sleek look.
NEMO displayed their Vantage Endless Promise Overnight Travel Backpack, which we’ve already tested, reviewed, and continue to love.
Final thoughts on OMS
Since it was founded, Treeline Review has been about more than gear: we’ve been about community. Our annual attendance at Outdoor Media Summit helps us maintain and build that community, not just because our writers and editors can meet in person and mingle with others in the industry, but because we have the opportunity to come home and share what we’ve learned with you.
As we describe in our mission, the best gear is the gear that you love so much you will continue to use it year after year. That’s why, as we learn about gear trends each year, we focus on what’s sustainable, durable, versatile, useful, and enjoyable.
At the end of the day, though, OMS is not just about scouting the gear trends. We love having an opportunity to gather some of the Treeline team together. We're a fully remote company, which means our writers can live where they like playing outdoors. It also means we have fewer chances to hike together, high-five each other when someone wins an award, or take silly photos together.
Gathering together to celebrate the work we do, and who we do it for, is our favorite trend of OMS.
You can find more work by Shawnté, Gabaccia, Meg, and Becca on their Treeline Review author pages.
