What I’m Taking on my JMT Hike (this is how you do it)

I don't disagree with those who say you can stay warm while moving fast. Problems arise when you get hurt doing so, especially if the weather is bad when you hurt yourself or turns on you while you are immobile unable to quickly escape to a trailhead or lower elevation. All of a sudden you can no longer maintain that speed with a severely sprained ankle. You get soaked, cold, hypothermic etc… It's easy to think that being fast and in good shape equals safe and indestructible. It's just as easy to slip and f-up.

That's when you want enough gear to shelter yourself and stay warm with. I hope you have enough.

In your shoes I would consider a cuben poncho tarp and an additional warm synthetic layer to wear underneath. It will be hard to keep record setting pace in a poncho but If the weather goes poop you'll probably bail anyways and a poncho tarp would allow you to do so more safely.

Other questions on the gear list:

1. Besides foot tape, no other first aid items? Pain killers?
2. Water treatment?
3. Soap or sanitizer to wash hands, would suck to get diaorrhea from poor trail hygiene
4. Wouldn't an extra pair of socks be nice to change into at some point?

Not sure when you are planning your hike. I'll be on the southern part of the JMT in the second half of September. Hope to see you see on the trail. And I also hope it doesn't rain (but snow would be fantastic).

MG

Oh, just found the map at.

http://www.sierrawild.gov/bears/food-storage-map

I can easily get through those areas as long as I get sleep before going into Vidette and at Reds.
The canister gets to be taken off the list.
Not sure what the weight of the bag and hanging items will be yet.

1. Besides foot tape, no other first aid items? Pain killers?
2. Water treatment?
3. Soap or sanitizer to wash hands, would suck to get diaorrhea from poor trail hygiene
4. Wouldn't an extra pair of socks be nice to change into at some point?

1. No
2. No
3. No
4. No

If I hurt myself which is just packing an insecurity with extra gear that then makes you hurt yourself.

I'll be starting Sept 7th.

It seems everyone see's it that it is a must to bring a rain jacket.
I guess I wil just bring my 9 ounce synthetic jacket. It will stay warmer when wet and is much more water resistant.

You only need a canister in YNP, Pinchot to Forester, and on the east side of Whitney, IF you are "camping" in those areas. If you are just "passing through", no canister is required.

Inyo requires "storage designed to protect food from bears", or some phrase like that…
Inyo was fine with Ursacks last year. Don't know what has changed for this year.

Per "Sierra Hikes –

Happy Isles to Donohue Pass is 37
Pinchot to Forester is 28

..although I thought Pinchot to Foresters was closer to 32.

I've done it both ways.(From Whitney to TM.)
Personally I found a canister to be conducive to "stop and sleep anywhere" with minimal fuss.

Obviously "Your Mileage Will Vary".

Good Luck.
Have Fun. (Type III, I believe)

Aaron will be fine. He is going to have almost 13 hours of sunlight per day. If he is in good shape he can average around 3 mph, most of us can't on that trail. He can hike during poor weather at night to stay warm — most of us would retire to a shelter. He relishes these kinds of challenges, most others don't.

Aaron, since I know you're capable of getting yourself out of trouble, I'll reply to your points with the intention of perhaps informing others.

"A down vest doesn't keep you warm in rain. This is what the 19 ounce quilt does."

I also have a homemade 19oz down quilt built from the TH kit, including an M90 shell. While Paul makes some strong claims about M90, I wouldn't trust it as a bivy. That's why I take along a silnylon tarp – an extra 10oz. Last year, I was between Langley & Whitney under perfect skies @ around 11.5k, but decided to stay in a clump of (stunted) trees, rather than push on 400 yards to exposed granite. I still put up my tarp, even though I like to sleep out. In the middle of the night, some monsoon flow hit with all the works. Lesson: always have the tarp at least ready.

However, my quilt is typically wrapped up tight in my (homemade) compression sack & shoved into the bottom of my pack, with my BV450 sitting on top, and then the rest of my clothes wrapped in a turkey bag at the top of the pack for quick access. I can't think of a situation where I'd want to be digging through all that to get my quilt to keep my warm if I was holed up for an hour or so waiting out a T-storm. My layering system would then be: vest, windshirt (I have a Houdini), then poncho/garbage bag.

It might be me, but I'm getting colder these days as well, so even though my quilt is good down to 30, the vest helps had another 5 degrees or so. My down vest weighs 10oz, extra weight I don't mind carrying. So, now I'm up to 20oz extra, but I'm pretty confident I can comfortably hold out against wet & cold, night or day.

"If you get in this situation, (south of Forester), you don't stay put anyway.
How is setting up a tent and getting in supposed to help you in lightning? You keep moving."

Maybe I'm just sensitive to lightning. If you can stay warm & keep moving, then go for it. But the chance of getting hit doesn't leave any margin – it's pretty binary, yes/no. So, the idea is to find some cover, pull out your pad, put on your poncho/garbage bag, and wait it out.

As for the comment, "stupid light", it really is apropos in the big scheme of things. Here's a for instance: as everyone knows, we had another low snow winter in the Sierra this year, so a lot of water sources are either dried up or highly suspicious. Typically, I've just drank straight up without filtering, but sometimes used tablets.

A few weeks ago, I was using full tablets between two 20oz gatorade bottles just to make sure each bottle had enough time to do its thing. So, instead of carrying 1 container of 16-20oz of water, I was now carrying another 20oz at all times. There's my tarp+quilt weight. Even worse, I took along an empty 1L platypus that I actually ended up using through some sections where there weren't any (good) water sources. So, know I'm carrying 2-4 lbs of extra water, which is blowing out all my SUL attempts.

Last, but not least, even though I'm extremely careful planning my food, I still had at least 16oz *too much* food. Add all this up, and I'm carrying somewhere between 4-5lbs of extra weight – in this context, trying to save a few ounces on important weather gear seems futile. But the funny thing is, I really didn't notice carrying the extra weight. It's not like it's question between 45lbs+; rather, it's the difference between 15 and 20lbs, 4lbs of which is nothing I can control due to the water issue.

Stupid light: skimping on stuff that has a very high utility to weight relationship.

just finished my second JMT this summer.
I feel strongly that a tarp should be taken. You should count on rain/hail/sleet and snow. If you don't get ANY then be stoked you were smart enough to be properly prepared for that.

I'm ok with no rain jacket although the weight savings at this point is negligible. It seems more conceptual than practical.

I'm happy your cooking with esbit because the fire they start in a protracted cold rain might save you some real suffering.

Lose the inflatable in exchange for closed cell for sure. Multi-use and safe.

Down vest? I would never go without at least that level of insulation in that country (brought FF Hyperion) but you could if you had a tarp to keep your bag dry.

A Must have for a fast packer is a thin warm (microfleece/marino to go under a wind-shirt
Again I'd take a 50z rain jacket (mine is sil-nylon) mostly because the vapor barrier warmth factor is so much greater that in a wet wind-shirt.
I've found that I can maintain warmth moving in wet down to 40's (ie 50 and windy) if there is a vapor barrier.
If I warm up I strip to wind-shirt.
My down insulation does me no good hiking in rain because it's in a compactor bag waiting save my butt

BTW, your assessment about sleeping under a tree is probably/often correct.
However the scenario (in my experience) is often as follows:

You are just below a pass and the sky opens. Your forced to wait for hours (I spent 12 below Muir) where I was cozy under my tarp in my bag. You would be unhappy and wet. Then if the storm goes from bad to worse instead of clearing (which it will do in the Sierra)you get to build an illegal fire dry things. Dangerous and not particularly effective.

All this points back to a tarp, any tarp from $10 blue to Cuban. Sil for me.

nm

My main reason to ditch the tarp in favor of the drop cloth was in favor of not bringing hiking poles.
I like hiking poles but the pack weight doesn't justify bringing them. They then just get in the way, even when fastened to the outside of the pack. When I'm tiered I also seem to leave them behind about once a day and have to go back to pick them up. The JMT is also technical enough that they get in the way while using them at times. My brain is crap when I'm tired.

I don't see how honkering down with a tarp and staying dry is any different than having my drop cloth over me and staying dry?
Again, I've been up in the sierras many times and even in rain, this is not an issue. If I do have to stop, I would just go to sleep anyway.
If it calls for some rain, I'll just bring the large size 8×6 ground cloth.

I changed my top to a synthetic jacket, so being cold is no longer an issue. This jacket has a dual 5 oz layer in the front and single on the rest, (it is warm).

Funny, everybody is telling me that I need a rain jacket then when a 1st timer posts his JMT list, he gets tis reply:

"Clothing: You really don't need your Cap 4 pants. Not that cold in Aug. The Houdini pants are also unnecessary as is the rain gear. Rain storms are short and warm in the Sierras. The Houdini jacket should provide plenty of rain protection and wet legs probably won't kill you. I'd also leave the Polar Puff at home. The down vest is also overkill but a fleece probably weighs about the same. Either will be plenty when layered with the Houdini."

I would not even tell a first timer that.

I took the Klymit Airbeam on my recent JMT thru-hike and it lasted exactly 3days before it punctured. I used it with a Borah Stealth pack. I'm not sure what punctured it but I think it may have been my bearikade weekender. I also found the location of the inflation bulb to be a hassle. It was great while it lasted but I was extremely disappointed by its performance. You may have a few uncomfortable nights sleeping if your ha e a similar experience.

Overall, I love your gear list. You definitely have a good feel for what it will do for you and the safety margin that it provides. Enjoy the time.

"I took the Klymit Airbeam on my recent JMT thru-hike and it lasted exactly 3days before it punctured."

How did you recover?

–B.G.–

I used my puffy to create some padding in my pack. A Bearikade on the spine is not a lot of fun. For those wondering, I did not carry a patch kit. Making due without the Klymit made me realize that it wasn't necessary to begin with. Unfortunately, I still had to carry it for the next 10 days with zero value. I was jealous of the PCT hikers with their GG sit pads. Not for the extra padding but for the ability to have an easily access pad to sit on during extended breaks.

I should note that GG offered to exchange the pad as they said that neither they nor Klymit had seen a failure. I'm more than a little suspect as the Airbeam pad uses fairly fragile material for something that is stuffed into a pack. I have not bothered to return it however as I don't see spending more money to ship it back when I now consider it to be an an unnecessary luxury item.

List looks fine to me.

I just want to know what fastpacking is. Sounds like a lame attempting at making backpacking less fred-like than it always will be.

David,
Just in case you missed it –

Dennis Ahern on the JMT

Thanks for that link Greg. Loved the Bach, and especially the pole cam. :-)

To be a fastpacker do you have to wear a pack a size too small?

In all seriousness, very nice backpacking trip.

I'm no expert, but can you really tell his pack is too small unless you (1) see him naked while wearing the pack or (2) feel under his pack hip belt while he's wearing it? I don't really know what I'm talking about, but I've ben told the hip belt should go OVER the pelvis bone, not above it and not below it. How can you tell where it is?

His shoulder straps seem to go up and over his shoulders, forming an upside-down "U" shape, which they tell me means the pack is not too long.

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Hmmm… I am sure his TOTAL pack weight was pretty light. Probably doesn't matter.

"Hmmm… I am sure his TOTAL pack weight was pretty light. Probably doesn't matter."

+1

Plus I think it is unworthy to be snippy about a guy who can do that many miles per day! The East German judge deducts 0.5 points for bad style.

Dennis Ahern JMT 2012 Fastpack Gear

Starting weight was stated as 30#, including clothes worn, but not water.

When he pulled out the bear canister with food his pack came in at 19.5#

And I noticed that between the weigh-in and the hike the pack changed.

So, +/- on the weights, but still, surprisingly heavy.

While hiking in sierras this year I came across the very first PCT hiker and the very last PCT hiker.

The last was by a guy named Oxen.
He was consuming over 5000 calories a day and had two full canisters and was carrying over 100 pounds for up to 8 days oh hiking.
Since everyone says hike your own hike; Well you can have that hike.

I think you can cut more weight and Items out of your system.

– T/P – you don't give a wait to it but 5 days of Toilet paper is at least 3 oz and can easily be left behind by bring a 1/2 ounce of soap.

– MP3 Player – 1oz – this is a pure luxury item
– Water – there are lighter but less durable options for water. You could probably save 1/2 oz
– Phone and Charger — Luxury Items

Air beam and pump. Even at max weight of 15lbs on your back I don't thing you need a pack frame so adding the pump seems like dead weight. Would a 1/8 pad provide better padding for sleeping and stiffnes for the weight?

I like your no rain jacket, no extra insulation philosophy. If there is no around the camp time that extra insulation isn't needed and your ground sheet works as an emergency tarp / Poncho.

The only item I might add is a big black garbage bag as if you did get injured this item would allow you to hike slowly out in the rain at the cost of less than an ounce. Although your Polycro ground sheet might allow you to do the same.

Have fun, I have only ever done overnighters with an SUL kit

Greg,

Thanks for the insight.
I always wipe with nature first and depending on how bad, 1 TP wipe usually works, so should be less than an ounce of TP.

Yes the MP3 is a lux item.
The phone is for both pictures and just in case something happens and my car is at Whitney Portal (hence the charger).

I will change the poly to a large sheet, 3.65 ounces as a just in case item and can also take the place of the trash bag.
Trying to get a 40" width poly sheet to cover you isn't that fun.

Lighter options on water yes, but none with a wide mouth.
Have no idea why they can't make soft bottles with a wide mouth.
Sure there are zip-top ones but they weigh a lot more than a gatorade bottle.

I have heard of someone doing the JMT with just a straw. Hmmm…

I totally get your fast-pack philosophy and what you're going for. It's not meant to be "comfortable". I wish you good weather and good times. I'll be in the region (slow-packing) a few weeks before you.

Someone previously quoted the regulations for the area, and I'd like to add an opposing opinion on their conclusion:

Code of Federal Regulations
Title 36 – Parks, Forests, and Public Property Volume: 1
Date: 2007-07-01Original Date: 2007-07-01
Title: CHAPTER I – NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Context: Title 36 – Parks, Forests, and Public Property.

"Camping means the erecting of a tent or shelter of natural or synthetic material, preparing a sleeping bag or other bedding material for use, parking of a motor vehicle, motor home or trailer, or mooring of a vessel for the apparent purpose of overnight occupancy."
They concluded that, "If you walk thru the night and nap during the day, you are not camping.
If you are not camping, a bear canister is not required."

I think that's a slight misunderstanding of the language of the reg. — in law, commas used in a law/reg. are generally interpreted as an "or", rather than an "and" — which means that is you erect a shelter OR prepare bedding material — you are "camping" in the sense of the reg., regardless of whether it's day or night. A NAP would mean that you're just lying down temporarily (without bedding or shelter).

> If you walk thru the night and nap during the day, you are not camping.
If you are not camping, a bear canister is not required.

"…preparing a sleeping bag or other bedding material for use… for the apparent purpose of overnight occupancy."

I'd say if you head into the backcountry overnight and plan on sleeping at some point, I think you are camping. Definitely don't agree with the interpretation that if you walk at night and sleep during the day for several days, somehow you aren't camping.