Central Cascades Summer/3 Season-ish Gear List

[Justin Tremlin]

Here is my Summer/3 Season-ish Gear List. Look it over and let me know what could be improved on.

http://www.backpackinglight.com/backpackinglight/forums/gear_lists/30475e643b8aa197635f19b0da45672d.pdf

This list is for 2 days 1 night. For longer trips increase food. Everything else pretty much stays the same

[Andy F]

The only suggestion I have is that I find a Bic lighter + backup and 2 trick (hard to extinguish) birthday cake candles are more effective than matches. (in addition to the firesteel of course)

[Dirk Rabdau]

Hmmm. I guess you could just go with one shirt fro two days. But a fresh shirt is nice, especially if the weather gets a bit damp. Things don't dry out as quickly up here.

I like sleep socks. You can always wear them out on your last day. Keep your feet toasty at night.

And finally, if you don't plan to hike at night, small lights work. If you want/plan to hike at night, buy a headlamp that can throw a good beam. Otherwise, it will be rough going.

Have fun!

Dirk

[James Patsalides]

Wow… great list!

Just a couple of little things to think about…
1. You have several ditty/stuff bags – do you really need them for a 2 day trip?
2. Your water bottle are pretty heavy. I've gotten into using smartwater bottles (1L, 0.6L, 0.5L), super light and slide nicely into your pack pockets.
3. Ditch the spare undies & shirt for a 2-day trip, just keep the sleeping socks to keep your toes toasty at night.
4. +1 on the headlamp idea – you can get a tiny super-bright LED headlamp for about $20 at home depot, or more expensively from one of the camping stores.

Have fun, matey, and good luck!

Cheers, James.

[Justin Tremlin]

I will look into the ditty bags. I am kind of an organizing freak. Trick candles, awesome. The only problem is that I cannot find them anywhere. I do have a mini Bic I just thought that Hurricane Matches would be easier to use in the morning with cold hands. The head lamp, I almost never hike at night. I do have a Petzl Zipka Plus 2 that I could bring but a rarely ever even use a head lamp. As for the water bottle, the pre filter system I use requires a ridged bottle with a large mouth. I’ve tried it with a both 28mm and 42mm bottle opening and it is way too slow. I’ve also tried coffee filters and I would rather not use them. They are slow, fragile and don’t filter down to 1µm like my current set up does. Also my pack has no pockets just a large main chamber and a lid. The spare underwear has to stay. There are three things I must have no matter the length of the trip, clear water (off color water make me want to gag even if it tastes fine), clean clothes and a pillow. I will think about leaving the shirt. Let me know if you find anything else.

Thanx Guys

[Mike Clelland]

Nice list – a base weight under 7 pounds is awesome! some comments below.

But – I can't figure out your color code (???).

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Wow! 6 stuff sacks is too many!

Why all the hoses and water bottles? You are in the North Cascades, a place with a LOT Of water. Go with minimal vessels, and no hoses. Take a 1-liter water bottle, and nothing more (the lightest!)!

Nix the pre filter. The North Cascades (the NC's) has the best cleanest water in the world! What's to filter?

Nix the pack towel (it's listed twice)

What are the 4" x 4" Blue Shop Towels for? Are these for toilet paper? THis is easily nixed, The North Cascades has abundant foliage.

Trango Piranha Knife, you can go with a single edge razor blade in a cardboard sheath at 0.1 oz

Where are you hiking in the NC's? Usually a bug net head net isn't needed. If you DO take it, please nix a stuff sack and use it as multi use item.

Red Bull Shot Container – What is this for???

Question: How do you waterproof your gear?

[Justin Tremlin]

There are no hoses in my set-up. I have a 24floz water bottle on my shoulder strap and a 42fl oz canteen/bag in the pack. I hike in the Central Cascades not the North Cascades. Think Leavenworth (decent amount of water) to Wenatchee (no water). The last trip I did I was digging holes in creek beds to get to water. Also there are a lot of goats where I'm at (plenty a reason to treat my water). If you look you’ll notice my pre-filter with the bungee to keep it on the bottle weighs 0.4oz. My entire water treatment system weighs 1.4oz.

The pack towel has been cut in half. One is my “clean towel” used as a pot holder, drying off hands, ect. The other towel is my bandana. I use it the same way you would use a cotton bandana, wet wrapped around your neck, whipping off sweat, shooing away bugs, ect. It’s lighter, dries quicker and is more absorbent.

The Blue Shop towel is TP. What can I say I'm a princess.

Good call on the knife. I'll put that one in consideration.

In the Central Cascades the bugs are insane. Spend a day in the Lake Wenatchee area and you'll wish you were in Alaska the bugs are so bad. But good call the head net doing double duty as a stuff sack. I think that will be good.

The Red Bull container is for my Chili Flavored Olive Oil. I've tried using a bag but that’s messy. I marked the container so I can measure it out over four meals.

I seam sealed my pack. The material is pretty water proof and it's really, really dry over here.

[Justin Tremlin]

Oh and the color code is the color of the gear it's self. This list is off of a multi page gear inventory spread sheet I have. It helps me differentiate between the excess gear I have. I actually have multiple “experimental” set-ups on this spread sheet to calculate the “true weight” of things (i.e. bottle A weighs less that bottle B but you add different filter systems and set-up B can actually end up weighing less in the long run). It’s a little OCD but it work for me.

[Justin Tremlin]

The comment "Too Many Ditty Sacks" has popped up several times. What sacks you get rid of?

[Andy F]

Justin,

Removing the child safety from a Bic lighter helps with the cold fingers issue:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC2QfWF_XEs

Warming fingers under an armpit and drying them helps too.

I found re-lighting candles at the supermarket, but they're available at party stores and online.

[Justin Tremlin]

Removing the child safey, good call.

None of the stores in my area have them I checked, and no party stores (I live in a small tourist town. You can't even buy underwear here).

[Mike Clelland]

1) Take a mini-bic lighter in one hand, and a pair of needle noze plyers in the other.

2) Put the noze of the plyers in the little hole on top of the lighter

3) squeeeze

4) yank

5) push the tiny tabs down with the plyers so the top is level and won't scratch anything.

– all done –

[Author]

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