Wonderland trail solo August 2013

[Timothy Farnsworth]

Mainly I'm undecided on my rain gear (how much, what type) and how light to really bother to go, now that I'm firmly in the "pretty light" category and this trip is not crazy extreme. Male, 6'1" 205 lb, 41 yrs. I've got a moderate schedule (8 nights, might cut to 7) to hike the 95 miles of the Wonderland trail. Starting Aug 3, clockwise from Sunrise.
This is pretty rough but it gives the general idea.

Big stuff:
Tarptent Rainbow, stock stakes (32?)
Marmot Arete men's long bag (240z)
Mountain Hardware Thruway 50 pack w/ sitlite pad for support (32oz)
Exped UL7 regular air mattress (16 oz)

Clothes:
(mainly wearing): REI zip-off hiking pants/shorts, REI long sleeve poly shirt, REI hat, injinji socks, Montrail shoes, cheap synthetic underwear.

(cold weather): cheapo down vest (8 oz), beanie, polartec midweight bottoms, extra socks
(rain): So far I have a Marmot Precip (13 oz) jacket and a cheap poncho (6oz?). Wondering if I need rain pants and if so which ones.
(hot weather, swimming): cheap and light running shorts + poly muscle tee (8 oz total).

Electronics:
Samsung Galaxy S2 w/ spare XL battery (GPS, kindle, communication)7 oz with spare battery
Sansa clip mp3 player w/ headphones (2 oz or less)
Sony NEX-5 with 16mm pancake lens and light case (12 oz)

Other stuff:
Micro rocket canister stove, 8 oz fuel canister, about 8 oz cooking kit (pot, bowl, spork, lighter, etc., 3 oz led headlamp, tiny little pocketknife, sawyer squeeze filter + iodine backup, etc. Of course I have DEET, sunscreen, first aid kit.

For food, mainly it's freeze dried prepared dinners, gorp-type snacks for lunch, breakfast of larabars + powdered full fat milk & chocolate whey protein. I estimate 2 lb / day for food.

The whole package is about 12 lb before food and water, definitely under 13. I have one resupply planned halfway, so my pack will almost never be over 20 lb carrying weight. I've already spent a fair amount on gear so I won't be buying a new bag or anything this year – the only purchases I might make are raingear or minor additions, at this point.
I welcome your thoughts and suggestions!
Tim

[michael levi]

You could get a hexamid ~10oz ($300), or a bearpaw lair 18oz ($200). This would save you over a pound.

Completley revise your cook kit, consider esbit, like the Litetrail kit 3oz ($60). At the very least get a 2-3oz titanium pot.

Use the galaxy S phone for a camera, consider upgrading to the S4.

[Timothy Farnsworth]

OK, thanks. Those are good ideas but require either spending lots more money or leaving home something I really want to bring (nice camera). Anyone have thoughts on rain gear? Whether I need rain pants or not? I've decided to bring an umbrella fwiw.

[Edward Jursek]

For rain gear I would ditch a jacket and rain pants and go with a poncho like Golite's poncho/tarp. A sil poncho can be picked up cheap and saves weight. I switched to a poncho 2 years ago and love it. I use a spare piece of shock cord and a cord lock as belt to help with wind.

[michael levi]

You are bringing a smartphone, yet you are also bringing a camera, mp3 player.

If you sell off your old gear and buy used gear its basically free.

[Timothy Farnsworth]

Well, the mp3 player is lighter than a third spare battery, plus I already own it. The camera is a prosumer level product that completely outclasses any smartphone camera, with a wide angle lens and polarizing filter. I intend to spend a lot of time taking pics on this trip as I'm averaging just 10 miles / day.

Do you think a poncho alone is enough raingear? I'm told to prep for multi-day driving rain as a distinct possibility on the wonderland. I would rather carry a pound of raingear that never gets used than spend days soaking and freezing. I was also thinking of getting a piece of tyvek and sewing grommets in the corners, to be used as a pack cover / additional rain shelter.

[a]

I've done the Wonderland in mid-late August and had rain 7 out of 10 days. Driving, flooding rain. I ended up being hypothermic at Mystic Lake on the worst day of rain because it was also pretty cold. The second time I did it in early-mid August (12 days, including side trips) and I had one day of rain, one drizzly day and the rest were hot. I live in Washington and take full rain gear on every trip. IMHO, Washington is not a place to go without some sort of rain gear on longer trips, especially at a place like Mt. Rainier, which can create its own weather. I'd take something — jacket and pants or poncho. I prefer mobility and usually head off-trail at some point, so I go with a lightweight rain jacket and pants.

BTW — if you can swing two food caches — say dropping a box off at Longmire before heading to Sunrise and mailing a box to Mowich — it's pretty nice and makes your pack even lighter. Although your itinerary is shorter than mine have been so not as important.

[Timothy Farnsworth]

Thank you Andrea. Yes I was thinking about a second resupply to Mowich lake. Saves maybe 4 lb off my back for the west side which will be my hardest days. I also have a res at the National Park Inn at Longmire, so if it is really wet I'll at least have one day to dry out and warm up at the lodge. I decided on Marmot Precip, driducks poncho, and lightweight umbrella for my rain gear. I never really cared for rain pants because of the sweat factor, and I sweat a lot. Just took my new Montrail Mountain Masochist II shoes out for a trial run / hike yesterday and really enjoyed the feel.

[Author]

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