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Cairn Subscription Box Review – July 2015

Anna Rodriguez
ByAnna RodriguezAug 11, 2015 | 12 comments

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - Box

Outside Discovery Collection
3.9 overall rating
10 Ratings | 6 Reviews

Cairn is a subscription service that delivers outdoor gear every month. They bill their service as "Your Monthly Box of Outdoor Discovery." Fall is our big outdoors adventure season, so I am ready to gear up for hiking, camping, and backpacking!

My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -inside

The Subscription: Cairn

The Cost: $25 per month with discounts for 3-, 6-, and 12- month subscriptions

The Products: "A recurring delivery of outdoor related products sent to your doorstep! Get introduced to new brands and products, including gear, apparel, nutrition/energy, skincare, and more."

Ships to: US for free, internationally for an additional price

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -quote

This quote is on the paper that lined the box. I love John Muir so much - this quote is excellent! And so true!

This was my first package from Cairn. When I signed up they asked me to do a huge questionnaire for customization purposes. It asked questions about the types of outdoor activities I like, and I chose hiking, camping (car), backpacking, and yoga. They had loads of options, though, like rock climbing, moutain biking, fishing -- just about everything I could think of! They also asked a few lifestyle questions (kids? dogs?) plus basics like t-shirt size.

All this leads me to believe that contents may vary from subscriber to subscriber, so if you subscribe but get different things, please let me know!

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -info

This is the info card that came in the package, listing out all the contents.

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -pillow

Klymit Pillow X - Value $30 ($25.16 on Amazon)

This is an inflatable pillow for camping and backpacking.

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -pillow-packed

This is a picture of the pillow packed in its little bag. It's tiny! Which is great for backpacking! Packed up it's about the size of a mini-can of juice, but only weighs 2.25 ounces. It's supposed to also be very comfortable - I can't wait to try it.

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -green-goo

Sierra Sage Bugs Be Gone - Value $8

This is the 1 oz bottle, but the link is for the 4.5 oz. bottle. I have heard great things about this bug repellant! It's herbal and chemical-free, which will be great for the family. I also love that this is travel size! It will be perfect for our upcoming adventures.

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -snacks

Munk Pack Blueberry Acai Flax Oatmeal - Value $2.50

Mountain House Neapolitan Ice Cream - Value $3

The last two items in the box were both snacks. I think both are great inclusions in this box and very well suited to the type of outdoor activities we like. I haven't tried either yet, but they are both portable and lightweight, so I hope they are tasty! The ice cream is kind of big but it's freeze dried so it's very lightweight.

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -envelope

Actually the last item in the box was this envelope...

Cairn Subscription Box Review - July 2015 - -extras

... full of extras! There's a 40% off coupon for Green Goo first aid products (Sierra Sage), a 25% off coupon for Klymit outdoor gear, and a voucher for a free Adventure Meal from Mountain House! They also sent a 10% coupon from Munk Pack which is not pictured. I really like the extras and the opportunity to save on items that work for us!

The Verdict: This was a great first box (for us) from Cairn! It is Making us really excited about getting into the Great Outdoors once it cools off a little. The items they sent are perfect for me based on my answers to the questionnaire: super lightweight stuff for backpacking with one fun thing for the kids backpacking with me (ice cream). I really appreciate that! The value comes to $43.50 using their values, and maybe $5 less with Amazon's values, so I am happy with that.

Do you subscribe to Cairn? What are your outdoor activities? What did they send you?

Starting at $34.99
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Outside Discovery Collection is a monthly subscription box that sends members outdoor, adventure, and fitness gear. Outside Discovery Collection’s goal is to enrich your outdoor adventures by connecting you with best-in-class products. It was chosen as one... read more.

Anna Rodriguez
Anna Rodriguez
Anna has been a fan of subscription boxes since joining Birchbox in 2013, but didn't become a true addict until discovering subscriptions she could share with her children. Her favorites include Kiwi Crate and Fab Kids.

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12 comments

The Munk Pack Team

We were psyched to be a part of the July Cairn box, hope you enjoy your Munk Pack!

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Rachel

I’m pretty sure your prices are off. For example, look at the bug spray link.

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Ragan

Amazon prices change a lot, depending on any number of factors. Considering the size of the bottle versus the full size on Amazon, and the different vendors offering the product (some of which had additional shipping charges on top of the product price), it’s probably fairly close. The other prices I checked were all right.

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anne

I just started cairn after eyeing it for awhile. I love this box. They also have a points system too which is a nice perk.

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chillybeans

this would be awesome for my son who is in Boy Scouts….they do A LOT of camping!!!

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samantha

Told the boyfriend I would try camping again next year just the other day, so I had to sign up for this in hopes of cool supplies.

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kris

Thank you for reviewing Cairn!! I have been eyeing these boxes for MONTHS. might have to finally bite the bullet! I’m curious to see if the customize it 🙂

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:)

ok- I really hate camping, but love your box! I bet that pillow would work really well for air travel, too. I have a 20hr (!) flight coming up- will look into purchasing.

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:)

If anyone is interested in this–

I looked back at their past boxes and saw that there were some meat snacks included. Since I’m a vegetarian, I emailed them to ask if it could be customized to exclude the meat. I received a very nice email response a short time later confirming that it’s one of the questions they ask when signing up, and they will exclude the meat if you indicate vegetarian.

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Janet

What a great box! Makes me miss camping… I’m looking forward to seeing more reviews.

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Serena

I’m so excited to see Cairn on the site finally! I love this box. I was going on a big backpacking trip right after I got this one, which was awesome. I LOVED the pillow!

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Anna

Awesome! I can’t wait to try it out! Thanks Serena!

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