New today..Granite Gear Vapor Trail

How are you planning your transition? The GG Vapor Trail is a good pack but personally, I wouldn’t use it for more than 25 lbs total weight. If you can plan for supply drops between towns you can probably get away with it… dunno, really depends on how much you are carrying.

Hey John,

If you’re using an 80L pack right now… you probably need more than just a new pack to shed the pounds. 80L is a LOT of gear. What are your “big three”? If you have the cash… I’d suggest a summer weight down sleeping bag (or quilt) of your choice… a TarpTent Virga… and a Gossamer Gear Mariposa Plus. Then get rid of any gear you don’t need. Then get your kitchen weight down… Esbit or Alcohol with an MSR Titan Kettle and BPL Esbit stand or some homemade stand would work. Then get yout first aid and toiletries down by repackaging everything and taking only what you need. You can ship boxes ahead to the next town with refills. And the final thing to scrutinize would be your clothes. Take a look at some of the gear lists here to get ideas. The thing with ultralight is… it’s a whole system. The new pack is a good start… and that’s a very good pack… but you will have to change more than just the pack… or get rid of a lot of stuff you’re carrying that you don’t need.

If necessary, I carry 30 pounds with ease in my Vapor Trail, and lugged even more last week for a few days at the Philmont Scout Ranch where they require you to take gear and food you don’t need. A great pack.

I’ve used the Vapor Trail a good bit, and really like it (though now that my load has shrunk to 15 pounds for a weekend and 25 pounds for a cool weather week, I find I pick up my Virga – frameless sibling of the VT – more often. The Vapor Trail carries 30 pounds comfortably.

But I’ve got to ask: how serious are you about going light? If you intend to get that 40 pound load down to 25 or 30 in warm weather, but may be carrying 35 sometimes, you might want to look at the Granite Gear Nimbus Ozone. It’s the bigger version of the same pack bag, carrying about 40 pounds (per Granite Gear) with a slightly beefier, adjustable suspension. I think Backcountry Gear and REI had some on sale a while back – you might check. It weighs about 3 pounds. If you intend to go lighter over a couple of years, this might be a good choice until you make all the changes you want to. By the way, low weight isn’t an end unto itself: you have to balance lighter weight with the level of function and comfort you want.

Here is my Big 3:

Marmont Bag 15 Degree Down weighing in at 2 Lbs. 12 Oz.

Arc’Teryx Bora 80 Pack weighing in at 7.2 lbs. with Lid

Mt. Hardwear Wear Hammerhead 2 SO tent weighing in at 7.78 lbs which we split in 2. I am looking at the Big Agnes Seedhouse SL for solo.

REI and Moosejaw over sold this neophyte.

At Neels gap our group of 4 sent back about 41 lbs. of excess.

Ouch! I need attention.

Thanks….. John

Hey John,

Wow… a 7 pound pack and an 8 pound tent eh?! Whoa!!! Crazy :) Even 4 pounds for half the tent is pretty heavy.

The way I look at it… there are probably three ways you can go… light, lighter and lightest :)

“Light” seems to be where you’re thinking right now. A 2 pound Granite Gear pack… a 2.5 pound Seedhouse shelter… etc. This is gear that is very much like what you’re used to… but in much lighter versions. When you can afford it… you might want to get a lighter bag too. There are lots of 1.5 pound 3 season bags out there. You’ll still probably end up with a 20+ pound pack when all is said and done (including food). This option should allow you to use some of your current gear.

“Lighter” would require some shift in thinking and technique. This would be something like a Gossamer Gear Mariposa or similar 12-14 oz pack… and maybe a Henry Shire’s Tarp Tent at around 24-30 oz. It would also mean cooking with Esbit or Alcohol and just one vessel for cooking, drinking, washing, water gathering, etc. For me… this is a jumbo beer can with the lid cut off… but the MSR Titan or Snow Peak cups are really nice. This option would also certainly mean no more full length air mattresses… if that’s what you’re using now. 3/4 length is plenty.

“Lightest” would mean an insanely light pack with no frame of any kind… say the 3.7 oz G6 Whipser from Gossamer Gear or the 5 oz Prophet 30 from Mountain Laurel Designs. Shelter would be a Tarp + Bivy or Poncho Tarp + Bivy… or a shaped tarp with doors for shoulder season + bug canopy for summer… like the SpinnShelter. There are LOTS of different combos you could use… but most of them will come in around 10-12 oz for full rain / bug protection… and Bivy’s can be REALLY expensive! I personally use a SpinnShelter + 3 oz homemade shaped bug canopy… when needed. Oh… and now is where you get to switch to beer can cooking too :) LOL. With this option… depending on the time of year… you should be able to get your base weight (before food and water) to 5 pounds. This is really a system though. You have to have all of the components and you probably won’t be able to use any of your current gear… it will just be too big to squeeze into (and too heavy to carry with) those tiny 4 oz frameless backpacks… which are little more than paper thin sacks with straps attached to them… really.

Dave

I made the transition to LW (although not yet UL) backpacking a couple of years ago, and I have a couple of thoughts on the process.

For me, the pack was the last major item I needed to change, since a smaller pack wouldn’t do me any good if I couldn’t fit my gear into it. I spent most of my money on the sleeping bag, getting a 1 lb 5 oz Mountainsmith Wisp (I’m not sure that they’re still made). That was about $300. I made up for that expense on the tent; an REI roadster, which, as I pack it, weighs 3 lbs 3 oz; I think it cost $129, and they may be on sale now. After that, I bought a GG Ozone pack – the weight varies somewhat depending on options; mine weighs 2 lbs 8 oz. IMO, the ozone is very much a traditional IF pack, only lighter and smaller.

While weight is important wrt what you are carrying, *bulk* is important for packing in smaller packs. The packing problem with the 3 lb sleeping bag and 5 1/2 lb tent I previously had wasn’t just the weight; it was that they physically wouldn’t fit in an Ozone with the other supplies I needed for weeklong hike. (Specifically, there was no room for food…).

So while I think you kind of have to have an idea what kind of pack you would like, it doesn’t make real sense to get it until you are prepared to reduce the weight (and bulk!) of your other gear, too.

I’ve been very happy with my ozone; it’s by far the most comfortable pack I’ve worn – and it seems like all GG products are very high quality.

Thanks guys for all the great ideas. Boy, I’ve taken a 180 degree turn since joining Backpacking Light. This is exactly what a needed to know. I’m now looking at the Gossamer Gear Mariposa Backpack, 1.5 lbs. sleeping bag, Any thoughts on the shelter? The only concern I have is mainly the bugs. How about the SixMoondesigns Lunar Solo @ 23 Ounces. I see it was BL Lightitude 2005 Best Solo Shelter it has No-see-um netting. I hate to say this…but I don’t mind spending the money but I want to make as good a choice as I can.
Thaks! John

Hey John,

The Lunar Solo is supposed to be quite nice… and has a lot of room… but I don’t own one and have never seen on in person… so I can’t speak to it. I do have a TarpTent though. You can’t go wrong with a TarpTent Virga. Very nice… and full bug protection… esp. if you opt for the floor.