Bushwalk Australia

Like everyone else I often get annoyed at the apparent price gouging we invariably experience in Australia. This afternoon my wife and I decided to visit the Paddy Pallin store at Ringwood in Melbourne's east, as we do every so often, and left very satisfied with both the service we received and the prices we paid.

I walked out with a Rab 'Photon' primaloft jacket, and a Rab 'Bergen' eVent jacket, for a grand total of $400 spent. Well done 'PP'.

All the best.

Yes I agree- when I bought my WM sleeping bag it was competitively priced with buying from the US

Spartan wrote: I walked out with a Rab 'Photon' primaloft jacket, and a Rab 'Bergen' eVent jacket, for a grand total of $400 spent.

You did well there, enjoy them.

Paddy Pallin are one of very few stores I've encountered that has good knowledgeable staff that know there stuff. Wether is Sydney, Katoomba or Brisbane, very experienced staff. I can't say a lot for most of the others.

I went into Snowgum on the weekend to get a new shirt for my Wife for our upcoming trip. Only hiking store nearby for us.

They were fairly understaffed with the phone ringing and about 5 people lining up at the counter. The staff member that was there was nice but not sure about her knowledge.

Anyway long story short I thought I was looking at $90 for the shirt (Expencive) and $30 for some Bushamans insect repellant * 2.

Calculated a cost of $110

Anyway turns out we were members, had a $15 voucher against our account and everything was 50% off so it only ended up costing $45 for the lot. Was pretty happy about that in the end

yeah probably inflated RRP's in the first place

wayno wrote:yeah probably inflated RRP's in the first place

Yeah I have to agree with that but still we were going to pay the inflated price because we have a few time constraints so was quite happy

PP wouldn't have made much money on that combo for $400! You got very lucky I would say.

possibly "last seasons colours" ? you can make a killing buying that way if you're not a fashionista...
needless to say you'll never catch me in this seasons colours..

True. My guess is that the Photon jacket was a special order that was not bought and that they let go at a clearance price, since I can't see it on their website nor have I seen it in their stores. Pure speculation

just shows you gotta be in to win..... you never can be totally sure what you will find when you walk into some shops.... there can be bargains to be had

Exactly! My local PP store always has a bunch of clearance stuff that never appears on the website.

i've noticed mountain designs stocks a fair bit of stuff not on their website either...

Makes it difficult for us folks that live in the Country and don't have such stores within a three hour drive.

It won't be an impulse buy then, not with 3 hrs to think it over : )
I like the Bergen Jackets. Arm pit zips would be nice but not necessary. The RAB have definitely held up well compared to other event shells used.

I was in Melbourne this week and was pleasantly surprised by the number of outdoor shops and the variety and range of brands and products available. I do a lot of online research before making any purchases (in contrast to when we first bought any bushwalking gear) and was pleased to see there is a lot of 'good' gear available in retail shops in Aust (as well as the 'rest'). I may have been lucky, but the staff members who seved me in Backpacking Light (with whom I have done mail order business with in the past), Mountain Designs and Paddy Pallin seemed to be knowledgeable and honest, and not just after a quick sale. Thumbs up.

Lol, still not sure if I needed them ( I walk in low cut shoes normally), but bought my first pair of ankle height boots - nubuck Zamberlans - in preparation for a few weeks walking in Patagonia in 6 months. Now to wear them all the time doing housework.....

Joomy wrote:PP wouldn't have made much money on that combo for $400! You got very lucky I would say.

Everything we bought was severely marked down to clear (and the clearance racks were both many and full). Dammit, but I had to constantly pull myself up: "'no', you don't really need that fantastic-looking Arc'teryx softshell. 'Stop', you already have two pairs of perfectly serviceable Scarpa boots, etc."
The Richmond store is well-known for being Melbourne's PP clearance outlet, and as we like to say in my profession: "time spent in reconnaissance is seldom wasted." A couple of hours of leisurely browsing often turns up that bargain you never knew you needed but simply can't live without!
In common with young Wayno, I really don't care that I might be wearing last season's (or the season before) colours, or that the various colours violently clash; a personal failing I love to exploit to the chagrin of my two 'fashonista' daughters

All the best.

Onestepmore wrote:I was in Melbourne this week and was pleasantly surprised by the number of outdoor shops and the variety and range of brands and products available. I do a lot of online research before making any purchases (in contrast to when we first bought any bushwalking gear) and was pleased to see there is a lot of 'good' gear available in retail shops in Aust (as well as the 'rest'). I may have been lucky, but the staff members who seved me in Backpacking Light (with whom I have done mail order business with in the past), Mountain Designs and Paddy Pallin seemed to be knowledgeable and honest, and not just after a quick sale. Thumbs up.

Lol, still not sure if I needed them ( I walk in low cut shoes normally), but bought my first pair of ankle height boots - nubuck Zamberlans - in preparation for a few weeks walking in Patagonia in 6 months. Now to wear them all the time doing housework.....

I think I saw you at one of the stores in Sydney, can't remember which, might have been Paddy Pallin. Was not sure if it was you but looked like you from your avator, Was going to say hello, but I had a bus to catch for Canberra. I was trying on some shoes myself, when you walked in as I was leaving.

I was very disappointed with the sales in Sydney. There was hardly any sales on while I was in Sydney. Paddy Pallin at Katoomba was the pick, they where selling Icebreaker Socks from 45.00 down to 15.00. The same Paddy Pallin in Sydney the following day did not have any on sale, including Canberra store. Paddy Pallin in Katoomba has a great range. Worth checking out if your in the area.

Phillipsart wrote:I think I saw you at one of the stores in Sydney, can't remember which, might have been Paddy Pallin. Was not sure if it was you but looked like you from your avator, Was going to say hello, but I had a bus to catch for Canberra. I was trying on some shoes myself, when you walked in as I was leaving.

No, wasn't me Phil.... I was in Melbourne for the past week, and haven't been to Sydney shopping for ...yonks
Must have been some svelte blonde sexy looking bushwalker you were going to chat up, not me!
/wink

Onestepmore wrote:

Phillipsart wrote:I think I saw you at one of the stores in Sydney, can't remember which, might have been Paddy Pallin. Was not sure if it was you but looked like you from your avator, Was going to say hello, but I had a bus to catch for Canberra. I was trying on some shoes myself, when you walked in as I was leaving.

No, wasn't me Phil.... I was in Melbourne for the past week, and haven't been to Sydney shopping for ...yonks
Must have been some svelte blonde sexy looking bushwalker you were going to chat up, not me!
/wink

She looked at me for a while. I had the impression she recognized me. Most likely Looked over because I had a bit of a debate with the salesman that was trying to sell me waterproof boots, I told him I don't want waterproof boots, don't believe in them and I don't want these heavy boots, I do all my hiking in Sand shoes. He than said, I have nothing that fit's you. He was a real smart *&%$#!.

Spartan wrote:Everything we bought was severely marked down to clear (and the clearance racks were both many and full). Dammit, but I had to constantly pull myself up: "'no', you don't really need that fantastic-looking Arc'teryx softshell. 'Stop', you already have two pairs of perfectly serviceable Scarpa boots, etc."
The Richmond store is well-known for being Melbourne's PP clearance outlet, and as we like to say in my profession: "time spent in reconnaissance is seldom wasted." A couple of hours of leisurely browsing often turns up that bargain you never knew you needed but simply can't live without!

Canberra is PP's "other" clearance store. They usually have a lot of TNF samples. Arc'teryx! I can't remember the last time I saw one of those in PP. Do you remember what it was?

Joomy wrote:Arc'teryx! I can't remember the last time I saw one of those in PP. Do you remember what it was?

G'day, Joomy.

'Yes' I do, indeed. It was a 'Gamma' MX in a nice vibrant blue. And it was my size. And it was only $200. And I should've bought it

All the best.