Paige Russell offers a perfect balance of crunchy/chewy and just the right amount of light ‘n sweet.

Bike to Work Day goes down on Thursday, May 9th! To raise awareness Alite will give away FIVE free backpacks!

Heron’s Head Park features 24 acres of salt marsh and bayside beach favored by over 100 bird species. It’s quite a remarkable transformation for an area that was once one of the most polluted in San Francisco. Tranquil trails here meander among rehabilitated and protected marshland that’s essential for bird nesting, resting, and feeding. Residents include double-crested cormorants, snowy egrets, and the great blue heron. Grassy areas are popular with the golden crowned sparrow, and even the harlequin duck has been sighted.

Alite Designs is incredibly excited to announce the release of the ALITE X Free People Tent!!  This new tent is a collaboration with the major fashion and apparel brand Free People.  Easy to set up and great for the warm weather, the ALITE X Free People tent sleeps two people and includes a waterproof rainfly to protect against the elements. It offers a higher ceiling for more headroom and two vestibules on each side of the tent for plenty of protected storage space for dirty flip flops and extra gear. Two aluminum poles and a PU coated flooring make this tent durable against the elements, yet lightweight for carrying the tent to the campsite.  Its black mesh canopy offers maximum ventilation and air flow when the rainfly is off.  Two large, circular doors zip down and stuff nicely into one of four inside pockets. AND, the door zippers are glow in the dark!!

San Bruno Mountain is like an island of nature among a sea of humanity. Surrounded by freeways, cities, an airport, even a sports arena, this San Francisco high-riser beckons exploration. The 8 miles (round-trip) it takes to reach the east peak and return the way you came sounds like a haul, but it’s a surprisingly moderate hike with tremendous unobstructed views almost the entire way.

Looking for a stairway to heaven? You’ll get close at San Francisco’s Grandview Park, also known as Turtle Hill. On clear days this one-acre gem tucked in Golden Gate Heights delivers big panoramas. The prime viewpoint is reached via a split-level stairway, the first of which comprises more than 150 mosaicked steps.

This month, the Alite crew wanted to post some great information on doing simple day hikes.  Call us inspired after the whole office decide to ditch the office one day and hike Steep Ravine in Muir Woods. (More on that later…)  So we decided to put together this Gear Check for folks who are interested in embarking on simple day hikes.  Now, to be clear, this Gear Check is written for the person who has NOT hiked the Appalachian Trail, who has NOT hiked the Continental Divide, and who has not even thought about hiking Machu Picchu.  In fact, if you considered walking from Friday’s happy hour spot to the late night BBQ food truck to be your last legit outdoor hike, then we are aiming at you.

May we present to you the Bike to the Beach bag, the first release in our Alite Designs Small Batch series. Every release from this series is made here in California and produced in a limited edition run.

When it comes to Valentine’s Day, food is often the chosen pre-cursor to the post-Valentine’s date hookup.  But in the age of 5-hour energy shots and easy-to-access Viagra, its ability to energize below the waist line is often overlooked!  Many edibles have long histories of lifting libidos for both men and women; whether they possess a provocative shape, sensual texture, or energy boosting vitamin content, there are a number of treats that have developed quite the reputation for their carnal qualities.  This Valentine’s Day, Alite has chosen to highlight a few OUTDOOR snacks that are great for munching on the trail AND lighting your sweetheart’s forest fornication fires!

Alite and Weekend Sherpa bring you a top five list of romantic outdoor hikes in the Bay Area!