Every year manufacturers debut new and exciting guns, optics, backpacks, clothing, footwear and a plethora of other fun gear during the January Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Tradeshow (SHOT) in Las Vegas, Nev. This year I cruised the floors in search of awesome new gear suitable to my favorite kind of hunting: wilderness, backcountry-type adventures in wild and remote places. Here’s what I found:
Benchmade Trackpoint
This new little clip-point fixed-blade hunting knife captured my affection the moment I took it in my hand. Graceful and balanced, the Benchmade Trackpoint features a 3.7-inch Stainless powder steel blade (59-61HRC), a nice red-brown stabilized wood handle, and is housed in a tough, well-fitted boltaron sheath. The handle design is comfortable and feels like it would remain securely in hand during a big processing chore, even when mixed with slippery blood and fats. The blade is just the right size for disassembling a big mule deer or an elk, with a good point for making rip cuts and a nice curve to facilitate skinning. Overall length of the Trackpoint is 8.1 inches, and overall weight has not yet been published. The knife and sheath are available standalone or in a kit with a little gut hook attached to the front of the sheath. MSRP on the knife is $275 and on the kit is $350. benchmade.com
Leupold BX-6 HD Rangefinding Binocular
Several years in development, this unit provides capability heretofore unknown in Leupold’s bino/rangefinding combo units. It’s the first and currently only one of its kind to incorporate the Hornady 4DOF (Four Degrees Of Freedom) ballistic app, one of the most capable solvers on earth. The BX-6 Range HD comes in 10x42mm magnification and will pair seamlessly with your smartphone or device via Bluetooth. It’s capable of marvelous gymnastics all by itself, but when paired with your phone it becomes the stuff of Sci Fi. You can project waypoints to your OnX hunt app, measure yardage hands-free (place the unit on a tripod or similar and unleash the laser tremor-free via your phone), and a lot more really cool stuff. It’s rated to consistently read distance out to 3,000 yards on trees and 2,000 on deer. Maximum ranging distance is 6,000 yards.
In a move serious hunters around the globe will applaud, Leupold has incorporated the best European glass into the new BX-6. In fact, they encouraged me to compare it to Swarovski’s legendary optics; a bold level of confidence indeed. I haven’t had the opportunity to test the unit in real-world conditions, but while glassing inside the massive Sands Convention Center I was very impressed with the optical clarity of the new Leupold BX-6 HD. MSRP on the 10x42mm comes in around $4,000. leupold.com
Eberlestock Mod Frame and Brooks Pack System
Hunting packs are becoming more and more scarce on the SHOT show floor as tactical stuff becomes more prevalent, but I was thrilled to find Eberlestock displaying an awesome selection of new as well as proven equipment. The company has a strong reputation for creating comfortable, durable, and capable packs, and I was excited to check out their new Mod (modular) Frame. The suspension system felt really good as I wore the setup around for a few minutes; well padded, shaped right and fully adjustable. The cool thing about this system is that—as the name suggests—it’s completely modular. You can use the frame alone to pack meat quarters or large gear items. Add a Brooks pack bag (available in 3,500 or 7,000 cubic inches), a pair of batwing bags (700 to 1017 C.I. each), a bucket lid, gun scabbard, hip belt pockets and so on to customize your system to perfection.
While at the Eberlestock booth I ran into my friend Casey Keefer, of “Dropped” fame. He used the Mod Frame and Brooks 3500 pack last fall on a month-long drop-camp/float hunt for caribou and moose in Alaska, along with a pair of Large Batwings, the Emod Lid and a Bolt Action Scabbard. He was super happy with the system, and plans to continue using it. Considering the hard-core backcountry-style abuse he puts his gear through, that’s high commendation. MSRP and weight are going to vary depending on how you build your setup (you can find that info online at Eberlestock’s website), but rest assured it’ll be worth the money and carry its weight in the backcountry. eberlestock.com
Sea To Summit Ether Light XR Pro Sleeping Pad
One very important backcountry hunting gear item that will contribute to energy and vigor levels is your sleeping pad. Rest well and you will hunt well. I was hopeful of finding an insulated, compact, lightweight inflatable pad while cruising the floor, and just happened to spot this one from Sea To Summit. They had a lot of other gear that caught my eye as well, but this item is new on the scene and fit my needs perfectly.
The size regular Ether Light XR Insulated Pro pad sports an R-Value (insulation rating) of 7.4, packs into a compact roll less than 5 by 9 inches, and weighs under 22 ounces complete with stuff/inflation sack and repair kit. The pad features ThermalCore Insulation and Air Sprung Cell construction, measures 21.7 by 72 inches, and provides almost four inches of padding. That’s everything you’ll need in a serious backcountry hunting pad. MSRP comes in right around $229. seatosummit.com
Caribou Gear Hunter’s Tarp
This is a cool little item that can serve a multitude of backcountry purposes, making your life just a little easier during that hardcore wilderness adventure. Caribou Gear makes the best game bags available, so I was immediately interested when Ted (the proprietor) showed me their Hunter’s Tarp. Its primary purpose is for wrapping a quarter of meat before stowing the meat in your pack, thus preventing blood, fluids and debris from soiling your backpack.
Above is a photo of the instruction sheet showing how this works—it’s pretty ingenious. The Hunter’s Tarp is pretty good at multitasking too, and serves well as a shelter from sun, rain and storm for your meat, or for you during a day of glassing. It’s great used as a tarp upon which to lay your meat as you field-process your animal, keeping it clean and protected from dirt and bacteria. The tarp measures 4 by 5 feet when pitched or spread out, packs down into a compact four-and-a-half-inch package, and weighs just 5.6 ounces complete with stuff sack and four durable aluminum ground stakes, all of which are included. MSRP comes in at $77. caribougear.com
Silva Seek 450 Recharge From Liberty Mountain
When I was a kid my family gave me a Silva compass for Christmas and informed me of Silva’s reputation for quality. Some three decades later I still have that compass. I was excited to see that Silva has just announced a new 450-lumen compact rechargeable headlamp, and as I studied the specs I realized that it checks all the boxes necessary to make an ideal headlamp for backcountry hunting.
The little lamp features “intelligent light”, which combines a long-reach spot beam with close-range flood light. This renders it well-suited for almost any wilderness task from reading maps to watching for bears as you hike in the dark. Three brightness levels allow the user to conserve battery as needed, with maximum beam reaching 295 feet on high-beam setting and maximum battery life reaching 90 hours per charge on the min/reading setting. Two color options allow the user to choose between white light (normal use) or red (to preserve night vision). The headband is handily designed and—in a feature new to me—the lamp detaches from the band and can fasten to your jacket or tent via alternative attachment options. The Seek 450 is available in four color options, and comes with a 5-year warranty. Charging is done via a USB-C cable. Weight comes in at 2.5 ounces and street price is $49. silva-usa.com
Weatherby Mark V Backcountry Capra Rifle
This new release was making some of the biggest waves I noticed at the 2026 SHOT show. The main reason is weight, or rather the lack thereof. Chambered in .308 Winchester it tips the scale at exactly 4 pounds, making it the lightest-weight production hunting rifle currently on the market. The new rifle features Weatherby’s legendary 6-lug Mark V action in titanium, and double spiral fluting that forms a double helix on the thin-contour barrel (which helps with cooling and rigidity). A blind magazine (no floorplate) helps reduce weight. The new stock was created with the help of Peak 44, and sports a slightly-shortened forearm. A TriggerTech trigger completes the arrangement. Metal parts are finished with Cerakote, and each Capra stock is hand-painted. Barrels are threaded 1/2x28 TPI in case you want to install a suppressor, and come from the factory complete with a sleek removable muzzle brake.
I was impressed while hefting and handling the new Capra at the show. Undoubtedly well-balanced and unbelievably lightweight, the rifle will be an ideal tool for hunting steep, rugged, high-altitude territory.
The Backcountry Capra comes in short or standard action, with short action chamberings including .308 Win. and 22 CM, 25 CM, and 6.5 Creedmoor. Available standard-length action chamberings are 240 WBY Mag, .270 Win., 280 Ackley Improved, 6.5 WBY RPM and 22 WBY RPM. Barrel length and overall weight depend on caliber. MSRP is $3,499. weatherby.com
W.T.F. Silencer Titanium Jackalope
2026 was undoubtedly the Year Of The Suppressor at the SHOT show—in particular 3-D printed suppressors. I was on the hunt for a good unit to add to this roundup, but I kinda wanted something uniquely American. I found it in Wyoming Tactical Firearms’ titanium “Jackalope” can, which is built in Cody, Wyoming of materials sourced only from the good old US of A. Their suppressors are meticulously assembled and welded with a high level of hand craftsmanship and precise tolerances. Sound-taming properties are above average according to third-party testing, and I’ll have to admit I was simply impressed by the good American spirit exhibited by Wyoming Tactical Firearms.
The Jackalope can in titanium weighs less than 10 ounces, measures 7.6 inches long, and is 1.48 inches in diameter. It’s available in .280 caliber for use with 7mm and smaller caliber rifles, and in .30 caliber for use with—you guessed it—rifles in that caliber and smaller. The Jackalope is available in a couple different color options and with different thread adaptors, and it’s also available in stainless steel (more weight and less money). Price for the titanium model is $1049. wtfsilencers.com
Caribou Gear Rifle Shield
When you’re backpacking in wet rainforest-type terrain or loading your gear into a lightweight bush plane, you need a cover to protect your rifle and scope. Conventional soft cases are far too bulky and heavy for those purposes, and of course a hard case won’t work at all.
This rifle/scope/suppressor cover from Caribou Gear is super lightweight, features tough, waterproof fabric, and sports an ingenious system of hook-n-loop straps and internal bungees that make the cover adjust to fit your shootin’-iron like a glove. The barrel end will expand to fit over a suppressor up to 1.75 inches in diameter, and is lined with heat-resistant material in case you need to stow your rifle away hot. The cover weighs only 9.2 ounces, fits rifles from 36 to 56 inches long, stows into its own compact pocket, and costs just under a hundred bucks. caribougear.com
Swarovski ST Balance 14-35x50 Spotting Scope
I’ll just say it up front; this could be a game-changer in the world of hunting optics. Initially I was skeptical, finding it hard to believe that stabilizing a spotting scope could render it much better – because I always use my spotter mounted on a tripod, so it’s steady anyway. But everyone I spoke with who had looked through the new Balance spotters was starry-eyed, so I decided I’d better investigate.
Swarovski’s Tom Hogan welcomed me into their booth and placed a ST (straight eyepiece) Ballance 14-35x50mm spotter in my hands along with some simple instructions. Just point the spotter at whatever you wish to see, press the on/off button for two seconds, and turn the focus ring. Despite being prepared to experience something extraordinary I heard a surprised “Wow!” escape my mouth. It was amazing how the image held despite my arms shaking out there. Tom explained that the sensors take measurements more than one thousand times per second, adjusting the motors and lenses inside the Balance spotter to provide a perfectly stable image.
The Balance spotters come in two iterations; the ST 14-35x50mm and the AT 18-45x65mm (angled eyepiece). They weigh 45.9 and 51.9 ounces respectively, with price tags of $3,849 and $3,999. Personally, I liked the smaller scope with the straight eyepiece the best, though both were remarkable. So the question begs answering; why do you need a stabilized spotter? Because they provide a very fast, very precise image when you need it. And, of course, you’ll have the coolest optic on the mountain. swarovskioptik.com/us/en/hunting
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