Backpacking
Backpacking is a craft of carrying what matters, leaving what does not, and learning how to move well in the backcountry. Backpacking Light helps hikers go lighter without giving up competence, safety, or depth.
If you are learning how to backpack, start here. If you already have miles on your legs, this page is still a useful map to our gear analysis, skills education, field-tested articles, and community discussion.
Start With the Right Path
Questions Backpackers Ask
How do I start backpacking?
Start with short trips, a conservative gear list, simple food and water systems, and a willingness to learn. Backpacking Light is strongest when it helps hikers build judgment, not just buy gear.
What gear matters most for backpacking?
Shelter, sleep insulation, a pack that fits the rest of your system, footwear that matches the trip, and the judgment to choose layers and safety gear for the actual conditions.
What is ultralight backpacking?
Ultralight backpacking is not just buying lighter gear. It is a systems approach to reducing pack weight through skill, restraint, efficiency, and better decision-making in the field.
Where can I find trustworthy backpacking advice?
Look for experience, methodology, context, and transparent reasoning. Backpacking Light combines field-tested gear analysis, instruction, and community conversation to help hikers make better decisions.
Latest From Backpacking Light
A Multifactorial Case of Acute Mountain Sickness, Carbohydrate Depletion, and Dehydration
After a recent strenuous approach to an alpine area, headache, nausea, fatigue, and dizziness produced a Lake Louise AMS score consistent with moderate acute mountain sickness. Garmin data and a detailed reconstruction of food, fluid, workload, and sleep revealed a more complex event. This case study examines how altitude exposure interacted with carbohydrate depletion, dehydration, and accumulated fatigue - and why backcountry illness is often better understood as a convergence of physiological stressors.
By the Numbers: The New Breathability Gap in WPB Jackets and What the Breathability Tests Get Wrong
Testing 21 current waterproof-breathable jackets and fabrics reveals a widening performance gap between membrane types. Stephen Seeber compares new measurements with earlier results, explains how humidity and temperature influence moisture transport, and examines why common breathability tests can overstate hydrophilic membrane performance under the conditions backpackers encounter on the trail.
2026 Cottage Gear Innovation Awards
Explore the 2026 Cottage Gear Innovation Award winners with Backpacking Light and Garage Grown Gear. Six innovative products demonstrate practical advances in backpacking equipment, from shelter stakes to bear canisters. Learn why each earned recognition and celebrate one maker's lasting contributions to ultralight gear with this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Episode 149 | Durability
This is Part 1 (of 4) in a new series called Principles of Outdoor Gear Design and focuses on the topic of outdoor gear durability. Ryan Jordan examines durability through the relationship between product, use case, and user behavior. Backpack examples connect materials, manufacturing, and engineering to wear, damage, repair, and continued function. Learn how to interpret durability claims and evaluate the weight, cost, and maintenance tradeoffs involved in choosing gear. (This series is made possible by support from Vaer Watches as part of the Built by Vaer initiative, a partnership collaboration between Backpacking Light and Vaer to bring in-depth educational resources about product design to the Backpacking Light community.)
