Ultralight Clothing/Gear for the very tall person

[Devin Karch]

I am 6'6'' and around 230 lbs, fit and stuff from college basketball, wide shouldered.

To those who are like me, where do you get your ultralight gear and clothing? I.E. What have you bought in size xl or xxl that were exceptionally light in your opinion. in regards to base layers, wind layers, anything really! Packs?? What is a good ultralight backpack (with a frame of some sorts) that fits a 22+ inch back? How about that extra long sleeping pad? I know it will always be heavier than the medium or small sizes, but out of those, what were the lightest. Comfort wanted, but also under a pound and wide enough for my shoulders.

Sleeping bags or top quilts in the long? What are yours?

Size 15 trail runners?

[Nancy Twilley]

Well I'm coming at this from the opposite viewpoint (too short instead of too tall) but I'd encourage you to go with cottage gear whenever possible. Mountain Laurel Designs will do custom pack torso lengths for you, as will (I believe) ULA packs. I don't believe Gossamer Gear will, but they do make some of their backpacks in an XL size (22-25 in' torso length). I have the framed Mariposa in a small and love love love it, even though my torso is right on the lower edge of its range. I think all cottage quilt manufacturers will make a quilt to the length you want, as will Nunatak, since they make everything to order anyway.

Get it to fit right the first time, and avoid buying it twice — Good luck!

[Max Dilthey]

Good luck with the shoes. If you have wide feet, it's not going to be easy. My brother has been sacrificing looks and comfort to find functional Size 15's for a long time.

New Balance is probably your best bet for 15's in a Wide, if you're a wide.

[Nelson Sherry]

I have a pair of Inov8 trail running shoes in 15 and they are really great. Inov8 only makes about 3 or 4 models in size 15, but all it takes is one good one. Other companies will often make one or two models in 15 even though the other 60 models only go to 13 or 14. I spend lots of time looking at web pages of shoe models and the looking at the sizes offered for each model. It's kinda like a treasure hunt.

Good luck. You have me beat by two inches and 30 lbs and I thought I had it tough!

[Todd T]

I'm 6'5", not as big as you–205 now, usually finish the summer below 200 :-)

The very best clothing options I've found have been from Eddie Bauer (First Ascent line). I have down jackets, fleece shirts, wind shirts, and baselayers from them. Large/Tall fits me well for everything but the baselayers, where I have to do XL/Tall and they're still a bit short.

For long torso packs, check out ULA Equipment. Their Catalyst and Circuit both accommodate up to 24" torsos. I have the Catalyst in Large and love it (though I'd probably get XL if I bought again, just to get a little more use out of the load lifters).

My tent is a Tarptent Rainbow, which has plenty of length even with a 2.5-in air mattress and 15-degree down bag. EDIT: I meant to mention that I use a standard-length (72") air mattress. I put my sit pad–a rump-sized piece of blue Wally World CCF–under my feet to keep them off the cold ground. I'm a side sleeper, though, so my feet rarely go over the end.

Shoes are the hardest. I've done best through the years with Vasque, but every year they seem to have fewer models in size 15. :-(

Good luck.

[Bradley Attaway]

Jolly Green Giant's ultralight blog covers many options you might look into, he's bigger than either of us and constantly trying new products from the cutting edge.

Luckily for you (and I), you're at the top range of what manufacturers actually make.

You shouldn't have trouble fitting into any long size sleeping bag: 6'6" is exactly what they're sized for. I have wide shoulders as well (46L jacket size) and have managed to fit in bags reputedly on the narrower side like the Mountain Hardwear Mtn Speed 32. I've also been very happy with my Stoic 15F bag and Jacks 'R' Better long sized Stealth quilt. For value, I recommend checking out GoLite's new bags. If you've got NBA dollars, check out zPacks sleeping bags because they're awesome (really, every damn thing zPacks makes is killer in my opinion).

For shoes, look to New Balance for traditional padded trail runners. Personally, I'm very fond of Merrell's Trail Glove zero-drop shoes. They've got just the right amount of sole for the trail while drying extremely quickly and weighing very very little. I wear a size 15 US and I'm on my third pair. I've put in 40+ mile days tromping through dozens of streams with them without blisters or bruising.

Tents are the only area you might have some trouble. I use a hexamid twin from zPacks and absolutely love it. I've found its length adequate, and they recently released a 'long' version. GoLite's Shangri-La 2 shelter is quite long, I use that for ground sleeping in winter. I've hear good things about the length of some TarpTents and LightHeart Gear shelters (The LHG Solong 6 is advertised for those over 6'8"). For traditional options: REI's "plus" versions of their tents are as long as anything out there. I had a Quarter Dome T2 Plus from them several years ago that I would use for base camping and I had a 6'10" friend fit comfortably.

For general insulated clothing I've had luck with climbing and alpine brands like Mountain Hardwear and Arc'teryx. Climbers tend to be lanky and require longer sleeves and legs so they don't hike up when they're fully extended. Sometimes the sleeves are a bit shorter than I'd like. Oh well, First-world tall-guy problems.

[Devin Karch]

haha oh yea, wide feet.

[Devin Karch]

a wealth of info. thanks

[Devin Karch]

thanks. i've been looking at ULA. how long does it take them to send an extra large pack? weeks?

[Ken Thompson]

ULA usually has things in stock. A couple of days.

I'm 6'3" size 15.

It does make shopping for shoes a little easier perhaps. Not an overwhelming amount of choice. I have not wide feet and like the fit of the Terroc 330 from Innov-8 . Though New Balance on sale is hard to pass up.

[Ozzy McKinney]

Customer service at ULA is top notch. Give them a call, tell them your situation, and they will get ya fitted.

I'm 6'5", and wanted to throw out there that (of all things!), Cabelas makes some nice clothing, like their Cap4 stuff, in tall sizes, and they are usually cheap. I have a couple pieces from them that I really like.

[Todd T]

"thanks. i've been looking at ULA. how long does it take them to send an extra large pack? weeks?"

My experience was nothing but pleasant. I don't recall how long it took–it was about 4 years ago–but they were helpful, pleasant, a joy to work with.

[David Ure]

ULA Packs are actually a bit short in the torso if comparing to actual torso measurements (most people do it wrong). The Granite Gear Crown in Large is almost overly long but definitely worth a try for you.

Or Mchale for a custom fit to your size.

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