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The 10 Essentials Urban Hiker SF Style: Gear Picks to Keep you Safe on Your Urban Adventures

I’ve now written three books for Mountaineers Books (two are published and one’s coming out in February 2026), and in each one, we include The Mountaineers Ten Essentials. The Ten Essentials are categories of items you should have on hand on your outdoor adventures in case of an emergency.

I do a lot of hiking in urban areas with mild weather, so in reality, I regularly only have seven of these on me at any given time. As someone who’s done thousands of miles of hiking in the Bay over the past number of years, here are my gear picks for each these essential categories. As a heads up, some of these items have affiliate associated with them, so I do make a commission on them, but I actually use these items and endorse them.

My Take on the Ten Essentials 

1. Navigation. Always make sure you have a map with you or that you can pick one up at the trailhead. 
Picking up a map on the fly isn't my style, so I always look at maps ahead of time so there are no surprises. Once I know my intended route, I recreate it as a GPX route in Strava, and then I follow it during the hike to ensure I don't get lost (instrux for how to do this here). 


 

I use this portable charger from Belkin to keep my phone charged on long routes. Once charged, it can recharge your phone two full times. It's small enough to fit in your hand, and has a USB-C cable and Lightning cable, which plug into the charger's design. I need a USB-C cable for my phone, but it's nice to have the Lightning cable if a friend has a different device. 

In case you end up in an area with low or no cell service, it’s a good idea to download Google Maps areas to use offline. And for emergencies, the InReach Mini can help you contact the outside world and get help (subscription required). (I bring this with me whenever I hike alone!)




2. Headlamp While all of our cell phones have flashlights these days, a phone flashlight just isn’t going to cut it if you unexpectedly find yourself out on trails at night. For well-marked trails on even terrain, 300 lumens will get you where you need to go. This is a top-rated headlamp pick from REI. Like many headlamps, the strap here is adjustable, and I like the wide band as it doesn't get caught in my hair. Before heading out, make sure your headlamp has power. You may also want to carry extra batteries with you.

 3. Sun protection As someone with fair skin and whose parents both have had skin cancer on their faces, I take sun protection seriously. I don’t like thick lotions, so I opt for sprays. In my current rotation are Supergoop! and Blue Lizard spray sunscreens. Both offer SPF 50 protection. I don’t have a particular hat or sunglasses to recommend, but I do recommend bringing both on your hikes.

 

4. First aid I use the American Red Cross kit, as it’s a name that I know and trust. At 9.25 x 7 x 2.9", it’s not tiny, but it has a whopping 99 items in it, including face masks, a rain poncho, an emergency blanket, hand warmers, drinking water, light stick, whistle, bandages, gauze pads, alcohol cleansing pads, antibiotic ointment, and more.


I skip the next three essentials and haven't needed them for my hikes around urban areas, but these become more essential as you get farther away from civilization.

5. Knife I don’t really ever carry a knife with me. 

6. Fire If you want to pack something here, throw a lighter into your backpack. If you bring matches instead, just make sure you put them in a waterproof bag. 

7. Shelter Again, I skip this one. I’m usually relatively close to civilization and other people on my hikes.

8. Extra food Ok — back to the essentials, I actually prepare for, food! I bring more food than I need for every hike. It’s good to bring extra in case your hiking companions have underpacked.


9. Extra water I always used Platypus water bladders, but this one by Gregory is cheaper and gets much better reviews on REI. Win-win. If I think I’ll need more than 3 liters, I just add extra water bottles to the pockets on the side of my backpack. I’m moving away from plastic more and more, so I’ve purchased these metal water bottles by Bivo. The bottle itself is metal, but the top cover is still plastic. For hiking more out in the wilderness, you can use purification tablets to clean your water before you drink. 

Gregory water bladder 

Bivo water bottle

10. Extra clothes 

Icebreaker wool short-sleeved teeI’ve lived in the Bay Area for 18 years now, so I’ve come to embrace layers by necessity. For extra clothing to include in my pack, I like to get a wool base layer like this one from Icebreaker. I pair this with thermal arm warmers for a modular approach. I find it much easier to put arm warmers on and take them off than to put on or take off a whole shirt. We don’t have to think about rain for half the year in the Bay Area, but when it might rain, I like to pack something basic like this raincoat. Rain pants are awesome too and can help make a day in the rain — dare I say it – fun!

Pearl Izumi thermal arm warmers 

 


 



 

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Location: San Francisco, CA 94110, USA

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