May Backbone Trail UL List– critiques welcomed!

[Kenneth Cowan]

WILL ROGERS–> PT MUGU–> WILL ROGERS

This trail runs east-west along the length of most of the Santa Monica Mountains. About 134 miles round trip. Municipal water is plentiful aside from a 25 miles stretch at the west end, hence the extra platy. I'll be giving myself 4 days, but would like to eventually shave it down to 3. Highs ~80, lows ~50. Units in ounces.

PACK:
Zpacks Zero 5.65

SLEEPING: 33.48
JRB No Sniveller 21 (listed)
Neoair 20×66 12.48

SHELTER: 8.32
Zpacks Hexamid solo w/ beak, guylines 3.86
Polycryo sheet 2.6
8x Mountainfitter ti-eye stakes 1.86

PACKED CLOTHING: 12.08
Montbell Tachyon shell 2.42
i/o bio merino long sleeve zip 6.35
merino buff 2
Ibex merino glove liners 1.31

ESSENTIALS: 4.25
Photon x-light micro + shockcord .29
Dermasafe blade .27
Bodyglide/neosporin mix in balm jar .66
Bronner's unscented soap in dropper .15
Lightload Towel .27
Bug repellent in dropper .15
Baking soda .35
Toothbrush .37
Matches in ziplock .1
2 safety pins .04
Bandaids, Advil, Benadryl, Immodium .3
CA drivers license .12
Food ziplock .1

ELECTRONICS: 10.44
Canon s95 w/ card + battery + stickpic 7.15
Samsung gusto cellphone 3.29

HYDRATION: 4.01
Aquamira (repackaged) .29
2.65liter platy 1.38
2X .75 liter smartwater bottles 2.34

NO COOKING

pack weight: 78.23oz = 4.89lbs

Worn/Carried –
New Balance MT101 9
simblissity levagaiters 1.8
smartwool phd ankle socks
nike compression shorts
Ibex Indie merino hoodie 8.93
Kavu Chillba Hat (modified) 3.4
MYOG golf shaft poles w/ duct tape 9
eyeglasses + cord .63

possible additions:
spot2 (w/ mods) 4.04
zpacks cuben groundsheet/poncho ~3
nano puff ~9

possible weight savings:
nix neoair (12.48oz) for trimmed blue foam pad (3.75oz)

[Morgan Strauss]

Great list. Sub 5 with a neoair, camera and phone, pretty impressive. That said, what about a map(set)? I know the trails are pretty well marked, and perhaps you're very familiar with route—there are a few forks however that I've had to stop and consider.

I've been wanting to plan a similar (one way, west to east) Backbone trip. I hope you post a trip report. Will you be stealth camping or are you going to try to make it to a campground each night?

Looking forward to reading more about UL in the Santa Monica mountains.

[Kenneth Cowan]

Thanks Morgan.

Howard's trip report on his gravityh.com website was a big help to me figuring this trail out:
http://gravityh.com/santamonicamountainsbackbone.htm

I've done the entire route in sections many times over, but there definitely are a few spots where a wrong turn could waste an hour or two. I do believe Tom Harrison makes a couple of maps that cover the whole trail. Those, in combination with the NPS info, should put everyone on the right path.

http://www.nps.gov/samo/planyourvisit/backbonetrail.htm

I've always just stealth camped along this trail but I do have some favorite spots that I'd be willing to divulge if anyone wants to PM me.

I'll definitely be doing a thorough trip report with the most recently completed sections of trail and all water sources. I am a big fan of this trail and highly suggest it to anyone in the LA area. It really is a great respite from the LA rat race, and full of amazing wildlife and varied ecosystems!

Cheers,
Kenneth

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