Heavy gear that works

My go-to tent when I'm with my wife and there's bugs (most of my trips) is my Moss Stargazer. 7-ish pounds, but absolutely perfect…the best 7 pounds I've ever carried…

I also like my First Need XL…I even take it on solo trips sometimes. Water comes out tasting better than tap, even with stagnant puddle water.

For winter trips over a week long, I employ an Arcteryx Bora 95. 9lbs, trimmed, with lid. I've though about swapping it for an ULA Catalyst or 60L CiloGear Dyneema Worksack, but it's one of those things…I've had it for seven years now, and after countless miles it's got just one hole (an errant trekking pole tip), a few scuffs, and a lot of my respect.

My Dad's North Face 30*F sleeping bag that must be 15+ yrs. old still kicks butt. It has lost some loft over the years and weighs a darned heavy 3-1/2lb. and only stuffs to about the size of a 10lb. bag of taters… yet the bag has kept me warm many a scout outing nights, and is still going strong!

Black Diamond CF trekking poles. Heavier than the other poles by a considerable margin, but they don't collapse at a bad time, and they have held up to lots of abuse at high speeds.

i carry some "heavy gear" for the comfort of my old back :

an exos 58 M : 2lb 6 oz after mods ( both + and – )
a neoair regular: 14oz

…

BD carbon poles, I'll have to +1 that, they appear to be as close to bombroof as possible for trekking poles

they do double duty in the winter for snowshoeing as well- just swap out baskets

Neoair- my base weight for my solo hikes (it's more when my wife and I go :)

"I question though, the strength of polyester vs nylon. I thought it was nylon that was stronger in tensile strength, perhaps exactly because it can stretch."

Dunno – certainly the elastic nature of nylon can help dissipate forces much like a crumple zone in a car. The manufacturer of the tent I use employs shockcord on the guys exactly for that purpose. From memory, the polyester that hilleberg use has higher tensile strength than the nylon they use.

The point I meant to make was that one of the oft touted benfits of the wonder fabric (silnylon) is high tear strength. Hilelberg in particular bang on about it but I can imagine that any tent with a significant sized hole in the fly is going to have issues/require patching to avoid the tear spreading. What matters in the field is that the material doesn't pull apart to start with (because after a rip occurs you're going to have to do something about it no matter what the tear strength eg. just to keep out water if nothing else) and this simply requires "adequate tensile strength" (assuming you can keep sharp things away from your tent).

"Just out of curiosity, what are the compromises that you find with Tarptents?"

1. It's hard for me to see them before purchasing.

2. I like the Scarp and the Moment, but both have aspects of "canopy near or in your face" and in the case of the Moment I would like to wait until there's some kind of 2nd layer (drip deflector) I gather Henry is contemplating post his TGO Challenge "research".

3. The floors are silly – I don't want to have to add daubs of silicon to stop from sliding around

4. Re scarp in particular, there are reports of the optional pole attachments being fiddly.

5. A colour other than grey (yellow would be good for safety/visbility) would be nice

All these things are arguably niggles — those tents do look nice.

I just wanted to pop my head in and say nice thread. hunting, nylon vs. polyester, heavy vs light gear talk. all done in a respectful manner. And I learned some new stuff.
cool

You have illuminated one of the core principles of UL hiking: you have choices. You have complete control over the weight of the gear you take and a 50 pound pack is not a given. Being aware of the weight of each item, its performance and function, multiple use items, and taking only what is truly used, allows the freedom to add those leaden favorites. You can dial in your system to just about any weight you like.

The first thing that came to mind was photographic equipment. There were times, many years ago, when I had a "freighter" pack frame with 45 pounds of 4×5 view camera and accessories. I REALLY enjoy my pocket-sized digital image maker now.

I've known geologists and other researchers who carried nasty loads of equipment, samples or specimens. I'll bet that the scientific community were among the early adopters of UL principles and equipment.

"The first thing that came to mind was photographic equipment. There were times, many years ago, when I had a "freighter" pack frame with 45 pounds of 4×5 view camera and accessories."

For my next trip, I have my photographic equipment load down to 40 pounds, so I guess that is modern progress.

–B.G.–

I guess it does come down to priorities and choices… while my pack and tent aren't lightweight I do make a point of using food that is as light as possible (almost exclusively dehydrated even for short trips, despite the taste and expense).

"…of using food that is as light as possible (almost exclusively dehydrated even for short trips, despite the taste and expense)."

I find dehydrated food to be relatively cheap as well. If prepared properly, I find the taste good enough. Dehydrated food simply does not spoil in any short term.

Freeze dried food is fairly expensive, so I use very little or none.

I use a food dehydrator that is about 30 years old now, and it still works fine.

–B.G.–

"I've tried every (lighter) alternative that I can think of but the fleece just can't be topped "

Mike, sell me your down puffs if you aren't using them :)

Fleece is one of those items that work so well in certain conditions that it is "worth" the weight. Like any other UL gear, seeking the best performance for the weight still makes sense, eschewing heavier fabrics, pockets, heavier zippers, etc. IMHO, a fleece should be light and fluffy, made for a middle layer with Lycra bound cuffs, drawstring waist, and no pockets.

I think where fleece fails is when the manufacturers attempt to make an all-in-one garment, making it dense or windproof and adding all kinds of pockets and zippers. I think pit zips are a waste in a fleece as it should breath well anyway. A rain shell needs the venting as it can capture the moisture.

I have light high loft fleece garments that come close to some of the thinner down jackets for real warmth. They are much more breathable and usable in the wettest conditions when paired with my windshirt or shell. They are excellent for extending the range of my sleeping bag too.

My favorites: Patagonia Synchilla, vintage Russell (just like Synchilla), and Power Stretch. REI turns out a decent one once in a while. 200 weight is my choice; 300 weight stufftips the scale to more efficiency from fiber/down based garments.

The NeoAir is the big one for me. It is the first time in a long time that I've actually added to my base weight (I used to use closed cell foam). Of course, I could go lighter in other ways, but choose not to. I could use a tarp, but I like the bug protection of a tarptent. My pack could be lighter, but I'm not convinced that it would feel more comfortable. I could switch from a sleeping bag to a quilt, but I fear that I would open up some drafts (I roll around a lot).

Mostly though, I add to my weight by adding lots of little things. I really don't need a camera (even though it is really light). I don't need a monocular. These sorts of things probably add the most weight to my system.

I carry a heavy critter-resistant food bag. I could sleep with my food, but I've already had that fail on my earlier this year, and it could be a rather expensive experience with my new cuben fiber gear.

I also have a heavy and bulky sleeping pad that'll have to do until a superlight cuben fiber down air mat becomes a possibility for me.

I have a job that sometimes leads me into the backcountry and when working these have to come along

I've been using a Packa in recent months; I think the use of this will depend on anticipated conditions, but if I expect a fair bit of rain then even at about a pound I'm seeing this as worth it to have a good rain jacket and pack cover combo that sits outside my pack straps and vents well, goes on and off without taking off the pack. In other conditions I might be satisfied with the Gatewood Cape — it really has to be based on expected weather conditions.

Ditto for a trip next year I'm probably going to get one of those SPOT devices, something I've felt to be not needed on other trails I've been on. Again, anticipated conditions are the dominant factor for me in terms of considering relatively "heavy" gear.