Backcountry Essentials (BCE) is an outdoor specialty shop. We cater to the outdoor community, specifically: climbers, backcountry skiers, hikers, campers, kayakers, and people who enjoy the culture of the Northwest and Bellingham. We started Backcountry Essentials with the intention of being a gathering place for the local outdoor community. Our business philosophy, recognizes that, while we have to sell a certain amount of gear to remain open, we ideally want to be a resource and meeting place where people can find out the latest information on trails, routes, and conditions; swap stories about where they have been; or learn about the pros and cons of the "latest and greatest" in gear. Since we love to test gear, we can give you the real dirt on everything we sell - how functional it is, how well it holds up, and how it compares to other products in its category.