In this video I’m busting 7 backpacking myths that I keep seeing in comments—and yeah, I even correct myself on one of them. The big one: “Don’t inflate your sleeping pad with your mouth or it’ll mold inside.” I went digging for actual evidence (cut-open pads, photos, videos), and I couldn’t find a single legit example of mold growing inside a pad from mouth inflation. What I did find was mold on the outside from storing pads damp, plus people mistaking flaking reflective coating for mold. I also break down why sleeping naked (or only in base layers) isn’t magically warmer, why those cheap Amazon emergency shelters are basically condensation tubes, and why trail runners don’t automatically mean you’re “waiting to sprain your ankle.” Then I get into microplastics in water bottles (including what the studies suggest about disposable vs reusable), why bear bells aren’t the force field people think they are, and the truth about storing down compressed. The takeaway is pretty simple: a lot of hiking “rules” get repeated forever, but when you look for real-world testing and evidence, the story changes fast.