gear list – advice?

[Mark Giambrone]

Hello. The above picture is my current ultra light backpacking list, which has taken me some time to really get to the place I want it to be. Looking for some good suggestions for changes. I am a distance backpacker. Included I have:

PACK: GoLite Pursuit
Sleeping bag: Western Mountaineering Highlite
Pad: Thermarest neo air xlite
Tent: Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2 (LOVE this tent)
Pillow: Sea-to-Summit ultra light pillow (amazing. packs into a film canister)

Clothing:
Mountain Hardware Ghost Whisperer Down Jacket
North Face synthetic t shirt
Under Armor synthetic shorts
North Face fleece
North face beanie
SHOES: New Balance minimus with Dr. Sholls insert (the PERFECT footwear in my opinion comfort of a sneaker with the weight of an ultra light shoe – NO BOOTS)

Cooking:
– I use a tin can with hole punches along the rim. Denatured alcohol sits in the can and the kettle sits on top pushing the flames through the holes punched along the rim. Super reliable, super ultra light.
– GSI kettle
– Aquamira drops for water purification
– absorbent cloth
– Sea to Summit fork, spoon, knife

Rain:
Frog toggs $20 jacket and pants. They are reliable, light and replaceable. I have gotten tired of dropping money on expensive "waterproof" gear.

General:
– Princeton Tech head lamp
– leatherman utility knife
– Platypus water container
– general stuff sack
– Emergency blanket
– fire paste
– duct tape
– tooth brush
– lighters, hand sanitizer, camp soap
– 1 waterproof bag

[Ken Thompson]

Well. You could repackage your Aqua Mira. Leave the knife and fork at home. Find a lighter substitute for the heavy leatherman, like a Victorinox Classic for .7 oz. You could lose the fire paste or substitute it with something lighter like PJ balls or an Esbit cube that you could also use as backup to your fuel. You have a bowl with a lid there, do you not? You could get something that you can heat your water up in, and eat out of. No navigation device? Skip the emergency blanket unless going on a day hike when you won't have a bag and a shelter. Do I see a magnesium fire starting block there? if so, leave that. No first aid?

[Mike M]

what advice are you looking for? wanting to get lighter?

it's a little easier to advise if you post weights, but I'll give it a go w/o

your sleep system doesn't have a lot of room to shave; if you really like your shelter- stick w/ it

there is room to shave weight w/ your pack if your inclined-you could pretty easily cut that weight (~ 48 oz) in half

is your fleece a lwt (100 wt) one? I carry a mid layer in shoulder seasons and winter, but forego it in "summer"; a down puffy more than sufficient at stops and camp

little things:
most find a spoon more than sufficient for utensils
a lot of folks repackage their drops into small vials
cut your toothbrush in half
toothpowder vs toothpaste
a full size leatherman? lots of lighter options
a carry a variety of emergency blankets/bivies when dayhiking, but leave them at home backpacking

missing in action:
first aid kit?
navigation?
spare socks?

[Link .]

Suggested GEAR LIST ETIQUETTE

[Mark Giambrone]

I share the utensils with my wife and carry the leatherman because it was my fathers – not to concerned about that weight. Also I use a bowl and a tea kettle, my wife uses the bowl. I forgot to mention my compass for the list. First aid, not so much! thanks for the advice – I def need to get something in the pack for first aid. I have a small pill container with various medicines but no bandages or anything like that. Thanks!

[Link .]

General info for you to look at if you haven't already
Mike Clelland(NOLs instructor and author, his books are very good),he has some great free videos on lightening up be sure to watch(his clothing system,the entire contents of his pack,water treatment and part 1 and 2 on the dinky stuff for ideas),this is an article he wrote The fastest way to backpack weight loss ,this is pmags Lightweight Backpacking 101 and The Frugal Backpacker – The $300 Gear Challenge .These are some other articles and videos for you to check out

Backpacking for Cheap: Gear for the Gearless

Backpacking Checklist (Gear List): 3-Season, 3-Day

Lightweight Backpacking 101: An Introductory Manual for Lightening Your Load Today (1st Edition – August 2001)

Cheap Ultralight Gear List

Oregon Field Guide: Ultralight Hiking

Lightweight Testimony: Lighter, Farther, Faster
Jamie Shortt talks about his progression and shows his gear list for each stage, Lightweight Testimony: My Journey into Lightweight Backpacking
CleverHiker Light weight Basics
CleverHiker Trail Skills

Andrew Skurka has a very good website with trips and gear lists for you to check out, here is a talk he gave at google
Ultimate Hiking Gear & Skills Clinic
His book is worth checking out also
The Ultimate Hiker’s Gear Guide: Tools & Techniques to Hit the Trail
You can get little repackaging containers(like the ones you see in Mike Clelland uses in his videos) many places including your local stores and pharmacy but here are some examples
USPLASTICS
USPLASTICS
Ultralight Designs
GossamerGear
MountainLaurelDesigns
You could make toothpaste dots like Mike C. shows or there are Archtek Toothpaste Tablets so only bring exactly what you need in a snack size bag for any given trip instead of a whole tube and THESE are good for little thing like pills, toothpaste tablets ect. so you are not packing a whole bottle(you can also get them very cheap at most pharmacies) .

[Mike M]

Ken- we must have been typing at the same time funny how close are posts are! something about great minds……… :)

Mike

[Ken Thompson]

Use the gear list etiquette link that Link provided. Should have said it was for more than one up front. Happy to help.

@ Mike :)

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