Lightweight Backpacking

“Hi. I'm brand new to this message board, I humbly apologize if this is a heavily and annoying talked about subject. I just wanted to know what people feel about lightweight backpacking. I am a new convert to lightweight. I am a 18 year old male (I started backpacking when I was 15 and going lightweight when I was 17). I now have my complete packweight down to about 12 pounds. With enough food and water for 3 days, 19 pounds. I have found that, even though I have a strong enough body (which I really do) to carry heavier loads, WHY? Sure, with that extra weight, I may be more comfortable at camp but give me a break, most people who carry 40 pound loads are miserable during the trail hike. I switched to lightweight because now I can enjoy the scenery, wildlife, and the pure rugged enjoyment of the hike a lot more. I went the expensive way and bought my way into lightweight instead of making my way (the Ray Way). This is what I have for gear (excluding food and water):

GoLite Gust Pack

Feathered Friends Rock Wren sleeping bag

Full length (my luxury) sleeping pad (a Thermarest Ridgerest)

Evernew titanium no-stick 1.3 liter cooking pot

Gigapower stove and fuel (The past two items are for when I cook food instead of eat cold)

Whatever small amounts of clothing depending on the weather
- No extra clothing if in warm weather
- Feathered Friends Helios Jacket if cold
-EMS Peformance Long Underwear if cold

Integral Designs Salathé Bivy Sack

Headlamp (it is a L.E.D headlamp that weighs, I think, 3 ounces with batteries).

And that's it!”

“I forgot one thing. I usually carry my Marmot Precip jacket if there is a possibily for rain.”

“Nice list. Do you hike in tennis shoes also? I can get my pack almost that light, but I've not been able to yet wean myself from the heavy leather boots.

The Salithe is kinda heavy, no? Ever look at the Pertex sacks?”

“Nice List jordanchap. I'm a moderately light weight backpacker. Solo for three days, I am at about 26 pounds with food and water.

There are a few things
I'd definitely want to add to your list, even if I felt happy in a bivy. What comes to mind right away are:

Bug Spray
First aid
Spoon
warmth base layer (long capilenes or equivalent)
1 change of socks and underwear

Or maybe you don't count those as gear (since I assume you take at least a spoon or a "spork").
Other than the things I listed above, the things that account for the difference are:

Walrus Zoid vs. Bivy
Liner sheet for bag (keeps the bag alive longer, and adds to warmth options)
Mountainsmith Auspex va. Golite bag
Extra clothes: ).
Pur Hiker (my luxury, I want to avoid the runs, but hate letting cold spring water get warm before I can drink it).
I also take poles with me sometimes.

The only thing I do for my lightweight solo tripping that is clearly lighter than yours is my 3/4 length Z-rest.”

“Speaking of pads, I bought the Mt. Washington on sale from Campmor. I think it was 7 oz before cutting down to 48". Prolly 5 oz now. Unbeliveably more comfortable than it looks.
I still like my 3/4 ultralight thermorest for most trips, though.”

“Call me a prude but I find it hard to leave the toilet paper at home. You must carry some light water.”

“Anyone seen Mountain Roamer lately?”

“I am one of those 40 pounders. The heavest I get is 48 lbs, but that is with the toys.

I can get down to 30lbs being serious (that's with 3 days food - 3 quarts water), but there still some things that I can't part with. A new/lighter pack would drop about 3 - 4 lbs off of the weight, but I haven't gone to the dark side yet on internal frames. I think that what ever makes you happy, do it. I have no worries about lugging a 45 lbs pack around, cause I know that on the last day, that baby is down to 30 -32 lbs. One day, I will try going super light, maybe when I gets a little more experiance.”

“Yer right Viol Man. I knew I'd forget to mention something. I always bring my "Port-O-Pot" in a large zip locked bag: a hand shovel, TP (with the cardboard removed), and a petzl.”

“I sometimes carry between 40 and 45 pounds if it's cold out and I don't feel miseable on the trail. I feel like I enjoy the the scenery and wildlife as much as someone carrying a lighter pack. It's no big deal really.”

“Is this the opposite of the I carry a zillion pounds thread?”

“Please let's not start the heavy vs. lite thing again. It's just a variation.”

“Oh come on le subtil, let’s have a heated discussion. I don’t think anyone would not concede that the trail is more enjoyable under a lighter load. If were not so, we non-pound-counters would carry that 40 pounds for day hikes too.

Now I am in Idaho and that alone may change the way I see this issue. In some of the areas I pack an injury that would not even warrant a doctor visit at home could be life threatening. SAR may be three days away if they can find you at all. This causes some concerns that often warrant some extra gear. I did not see crampons or ice axes on any of your lists either. I seldom use them (I have to borrow them) but there are times and places they are essential, even in July. Then there are the activities that one may want to participate in during the trip. For some walking, eating and sleep is all they have planed. But some of us like to paint, take photographs, climb rocks, fish, bird watch, wrestle bear, hang glide, have sex in a hammock or blow things up. All these take more gear.

If you can give me clear 80 degree weather, no physical hazards and no biting bugs for the pack trip, all I would need is food, water treatment, sunscreen and sandals. No sleeping bag, tent, bivy, pad or clothes. I do not have those conditions so my pack weighs more. If you are to brag about your pack weight you should also explain the conditions you are prepared for and the for how long.

Jordanchap – will this setup be good enough for a 20 degree night, horizontal rain or waiting four days for SAR when you twist an ankle?

I don’t know what my pack weighs, maybe I should find out.”

“Hey, mtn gal, can I go backpacking with you? I'll bring the hammock (you bring the explosives)!”

“Only one man gets in my hammock and goose in not in his name. But you can hold the explosives while I set them off. That would be almost as exciting as my hammock.”

“Woo Hoo! Hey, anybody out there got a fire extinguisher?!?!?!?!?! LOL”

“That's quite an impressive list of lightweight gear. Most would never have attained such a gear quiver in their first 3 years of hiking. Who was your counsel?”

“tha's fine for a day hike on well marked short trips maybe, but if SAR has to get you in most places, you'll get charged,, you'd better add some water supply, medical gear, and map/compass/gps,, no sense getting lost!,, plan for the worst and hope for the best( I once had to stitch my own knee after a bad slip in the whites,, how would jordanchap take car of that one?”

“The heck with the weight issue. If I want it or need it, I'm gonna pack it.”

“I suspect jordache is yet another of WayGayRay's (gde,tbp, name your least favorite troll) manifestatons. At least this one is civil. Shucks, let's all just wear jock straps and jap flaps, eat nuts, bugs and berries and sleep in the dirt, or pine straw when it's available. Yeah, right!”

“You now to make yourself a homemade alcohol stove to be a true ultralight hiker.

But what do I know, my summer packweight is always between 20-30lbs with food and water.”

“Evernew titanium no-stick 1.3 liter cooking pot

Why do you need a pot that big.
The .9 L size is perfect for me.

Use Esbit tabs for cooking instead of alcohol.”

“Yeah, y don't we bring MR in this conversation, i'm sure he'd have something to say about all this 'lightweight' crap ;), come on violin, i know you want to

is that legal, pestering the trolls, i'm gonna leave a sign

"do not feed the trolls"”

“only people with medium weight packs are cool. everyone else is stupid & obtuse.”

“Yo' mama plays a Gibson, LOL!”

“I have been trying to lighten my load lately for a few reasons:

1) To save my knees
2) A simpler approach to hiking appeals to me
3) If I ever do longer hikes a lighter load will help

Although I can spend hours talking about lightening my load I find that most people sort of tune out - even here. I think after you've been doing this for a while the desire for gear fades relative to the desire just to get out there.

That said here are some recent lightweight additions to my kit:

GVP G4 - Good so far
Esbit Stove - Good but smelly
Coleman Exponent Inyo II - Good, lots o' mesh but still heavy @ 4#
Silk Bag Liner - Good for Summer
Z-rest - Jury's still out
Campmor 8'x10' Tarp - Concerned about heavy rain and cold

I have a blast thinking about gear and testing new stuff out. It's all part of the fun for me.”

“big coop, i'm with you on teh z rest, just can't decide what i think about it. i bought the Ultralite 3/4 inflatable and it's not too bad. i, personally don't want to use the 3/4 on cold ground though.

jordanchap, put some damn first aid in that golite gust, please.
and some other suggestions:

-string to hang your food with so when you're waiting four days for someone to rescue you, at least you can eat even if you can't put a bandaid on.
-small blade, never know what you could need it for.
-water treatment(i'm hoping you just forgot to mention it.)
-map & compass(i have been guilty of leaving without it a few times, actually jsut last month prowler and i had to call a ranger to help get us unlost, so that one comes from the experience of not having it when i needed it, very embarrassing)

sounds like you got some nice stuff though, even if you add all the things i mentioned i don't think any of them weigh hardly anything. cept maybe the first aid kit might be like a pound if you make up a big one.

for the water treatment you should check out the safewater anywhere inline filter. i got it earlier in the spring and i love it. it weighs next to nothing and you just put it in your water tube and the water gets filtered as you suck. only thing it's not good for is if you like crystal light or soemthing, it will filter it out, i always bring a couple iodine tablets for that. alright that's all i have to say about that/”

“wow, i felt like i was on some kind of a rant but it wasn't even that long”

“Well, I think it's safe to say Mr.jordanchap won't ever visit this forum again.”

“im sorry, i didn't mean to diss mr. jordanchap but i couldn't hold it in about the first aid and then i kept going.”

“lmao father gee!”

“Those are some good reasons, Big Coop.

It's tough to give up that Thermarest for the Ridgerest or Zrest too. But, there's some savings there.

I also recently trimmed my first aid kit considerably. I was a walking health clinic.

Also having carried both a thermal bottom and 100 weight PT fleece pants, I now just carry one or the other.

There are other recent adjustments as well. Always thinking about the weight.”

“Great list! You are on your way young man! There is nothing better than skipping along with a 10-15 pound pack on enjoying Mother Earth. For me it’s all about independence. I love being self sufficient and the more gear I carry the less self sufficient I become. I don’t like depending on too much gear. Life is complicated enough and we are far more dependant upon the things we have in our lives and I certainly don’t want to extend this to my time in the woods. I used to carry all the requisite crap with me but it made me soft. It was far easier to go to the local gearhead store, plunk down a couple hundred bucks and have the latest greatest gear and forget about it. Once I shed the conceptions of modern backpacking and invested the time to learn the skills our ancestors used for surviving in the wilderness the gear naturally faded away.

Father Goose- How did you know I was gay?”

“Titanium is the way to go... I bought a Titan Spork and kettle from MSR and love them!

The TNF Thunderhead is a lightweight sleeping bag that is very functional.

Bivy sacks are good too... I have the OR standard Gtex!”

“It rhymed!

(F. Goose is interfused with Seuss)”

“I'm still here. Don't worry about offending me. It's all for a good laugh. I'll return some comments from you guys now:

le Subtil - I wear Merrell Shoreline stretch shoes in the summer and my goretex boots in the winter. No problems with ankle support at all.

Pedxing - I don't need bugspray. Just wear breathable clothing and a head net (sorry, it weighs 3 ounces and I didn't include it). Plus in the winter, NO BUGS!!! I will address the first aid later. The spoon, I do bring a lexan spoon that is basically weightless. A warm base layer? WHY? When I hike, I produce heat, so I'm fine then. When I get to camp and start to get cold (assuming cold weather here), I slip in my sleeping bag and I'm fine for the night. Extra Socks and underwear? nah, that's for babies!

Violin - Toilet paper? I have an uncanny ability to hold it for several days. It's amazing. I am a guy so I do have a few advantages.

Mtn gal - I don't have to be concerned about my ankle because I have nothing on my back. The shoes I wear give me the right amount of ankle support and so I won't twist my ankle if I'm careful.

Swamp Yankee - If the place I'm going to is rough, I will be a little first aid, but I have NEVER used any first aid before on ANY trip. I'm not totally crazy and I will still bring some on a rugged trip.

Father Goose - I am absolutely not a convert of the Rayway. I'm fully clothed when I hike (except the occasional lack of shirt), and I mentioned that I buy stuff, not make my own. That guy is nuts, don't worry. I did, however, learn about lightweight from him and it has helped me enjoy the environment more, but I will never go as far as the man who said that he invented waterproof bags (yes, I've read parts of the book).

Buddur - My stove is easier to use and probably lighter than an alcohol stove.

Stovestomper - I use a 1.3 liter pot because I usually go with friends. I have yet to go on a real solo trip.

Josh - String I will bring (hehe) if I'm going to a place with bears. I have never needed a blade before, ever! I will bring one if there are bears (not to attack the bears, but for the bear bag). I will bring my 6 ounce GPS unit if I'm going into a place that I can get lost (with a map and compass as backup).

Hey, now you're probably saying with all those additions, there is no way that my pack is that light. With my new additions, my pack still never tips 21 pounds, ever! The only case in which I will not go lightweight is if I go to an extreme wintery place. Oh, and I don't go mountain climbing. I'm telling you, lightweight (to a point) is awesome.”

“I agree with much of Josh's rant. Also, Mtn. Gal made a key common sense point: what you bring oughta be connected to what you are doing (including location, altitude, season, mileage per day, terrain, lenght of trip, route etc).

Jordanchap: Not bringing a warmth layer may be appropriate to where you hike. I hike in the Mountains of Northern New England and have encountered prolonged (several days) day time temperatures with a steady rain in the low 40s to high 30s. I tried going without a warming layer, but had to cut some of my days short in order to get into the sleeping bag and warm up.

People reminded me of other things I regularly carry (such as ,a whistle, a compass, toilet paper, a cord for hanging my food). Two other things: duct tape (either wrapped around my fuel bottle if I carry a stove, or around a water bottle) and plastic bags to put around everything.

Also: Backpacking in wet socks is murder on the feet after a few days. Underwear can chafe and get pretty funky too.”

“I wear a pair of coolmax boxers made by Duofold. I've hiked about 50 miles straight on one trip (3 days) and did not have a problem with chafing. Backpacking in wet socks is murder. That's why I don't wear them in the summer (my mesh shoes). I wear goretex boots in the winter.”

“While there has been some excellent advice here, it seems that the usual defensive and argumentative threads, which are so prevalent on TT, have also infected this topic. I suggest you go to the LW board for better advice.”

“Jordanchap – If it works for you that’s great. I don’t think anyone is trying to convert you into a heavy packer. Some are concerned for your safety think you are ill prepared. Not me, I will not be the one hauling you limp backside out of the mountains. I just like to argue. My guess is you hike to hike. I too sometimes hike just for the sake of hiking and being “there”. At other times I hike to get to a place I can participate is activities that can only be done in the wilderness. My ankle twisting comment was meant to cover any injury that would stop your ability to walk at a reasonable pace. You can’t be prepared for everything but being prepared for nothing is just as unreasonable. Best of luck to you. consider this, and he was well prepared.”

“Did you forget to list your weapons?

What do they weigh?”

“I think mtn gal would have you carry a large lever.”

“"You can’t be prepared for everything . . ." viol, my point is you are not immortal, you can get hurt. And remember the explosives?”

“If I was prepared for everything, I'd have so much stuff that I would be carrying more weight that my own weight! :) just joking. I seriously look at it this way. First of all, the chance that something like that happens is almost nil. If it happens, it happens, and I die. Big whoop. At least I enjoyed nature... hehe”

“Your bio says you live in Wisconsin. Do you do much winter hiking?”

“Yes, I prefer winter camping much more over summer. No bugs being the biggest reason. I also am a cold-blooded person. I love being cold and snuggling into a toasty down jacket and sleeping bag.”

“Doesn't it get below freezing in Wisconsin in the winter?”

“dang , gear slut, glad you not defensive or argumentative....



who gives a crap what you carry? if your out there and happy , thats all that counts. a bad day in the woods is better than a good day in the city. chill out and lets go hikin!”

“!”

“LOL! Well put Strat.”