Steps toward lightening the load

Just my opinion, HYOH, YMMV, etc, etc.

If it was me, I'd start with the shelter. If you're not comfortable moving to a tarp yet, then I think a Tarp Tent is a good option. With a minimal investment of time to learn how to pitch an 8×11 tarp (~$90), you could take almost three lbs off of your back for not much money. Borah Gear has a new shelter called the Borahgami which looks interesting too. Depending on which way you go, you could lose 1-3 lbs here.

You could easily cut the weight of your pack in 1/2 with a ULA. Even more if you're willing to go frameless or with a Cuben Fiber option. Often times there's a negative relationship between weight and price but you can find some deals out there if you're willing to look.

I'm 6'3", built like Shrek, and a side sleeper. The best I've found so far is the Montbell UL SS #3 for three season backpacking. It has room to spare, has a DWR coating, and in the six short months (not long enough for a thorough review) I've owned it, I have no complaints. But you're looking at least $225 if you find a deal on one used. This would save you ~1.5 lbs off of your back. Edit to add: I believe Tim will release an XXL Enigma quilt before too long. If you think this is the way to go, he's really responsive to emails; I'd tell him what your dimensions/sleeping style to see what would work best for you.

If you're pad is 1lb and you're happy with it, that'd be the last item I'd replace. If you can stand sleeping on a foam pad, you could save 1/2 lb for less than $30.

Ian,

The tarp would be a really hard sell to my wife, but the tarp tent is definitely going to be purchased at some point!

I do like the idea of the ULA, but would have no room in it if I buy it first as my sleeping bag is a monster, even compressed (think 5 nalgene bottles with a big rubber band around them to form a circle!)

I wish we had a Montbell dealer close by so I could try it on. I have heard so many good things about it.

I think your choices of shelter and quilt will certainly help accomplish your goal of going lighter and both of your choices are top notch equipment. I love my EE quilts. My only suggestion would be to purchase the pack last after you have figured out the weight and volume of what you plan to carry in it. You can also lighten your load pretty cheaply by examining the other items you carry as well as the big four. It might not have as big an impact but it all adds up! Good luck.

Before you spend (a wise purchase though) $ on a quilt from EE, if you're on a budget, try modifying your existing bag into a quilt. It doesn't have to be pretty. But you could make it work and it'll only cost you a few bucks vs $200+. You can make it as easy as removing the zippers and hood (and moving that down into the rest of the bag/quilt, maybe take in the edges a bit, or removing all of the down, getting some cheap 2nds ripstop, and making a quilt (can also try to salvage the original sleeping bag fabric).

As for packs, the new golite Jams are a great bargain and I find the 50 to be very comfortable.

But for tent, yes, go with Tarptent. Fiance and I use the double rainbow and it is great.

You'll catch the lightening bug real quick. Before I joined here, our first trip, I carried 40lbs + for a two night trip to the Olympic coast. Got a lot of knowledge real quick from BPL and dropped the weight real quick. Fastest/cheapest way is to leave behind what you don't need. I used to carry a collapsing steel shovel and hatchet. Now they are just hanging on the wall, but that shaved off 4#.

Do you already have an electronic postal scale or kitchen scale that can measure down to grams?

When I got started down the road to lightweight, I found just by measuring the weights of gear I already owned, choosing the lightest item, and looking for double use gear, I was able to get to under 20 lbs.

I think to switch to a tarp big enough to shelter two people, and go with a sleeping quilt would be good as a starting point. If you want to stick with a tent, there are some that are half the weight or even less than what you have now. See Tarptents, Zpacks for examples.

Keepin’ it light at: QiWiz.net

I would wait until you figure out the rest of your gear before getting a new pack. no sense in getting something that is too big or too small for what you end up with.

i have the exos 58 and exos 34 and work great for me. they don't seem to fit some people (as with any pack) so try before you buy and load it up at the store.

I find quilts too drafty below about 40-50F. You might consider looking at the other side of the problem: why you can't sleep in a mummy bag. Maybe you can if you do something differently?

You don't have to tackle only one thing at a time due to budget reasons. although "the big three" might have to wait.

Be ruthless in leaving things at home. That's a free way to save weight.

Until you get your super-light cooking set up, go no-cook for a few trips. That saves weight and space that eventually will come from sleep bag and tent savings. It means you can get into a lighter pack (that doesn't carry as much weight or volume) sooner.

To repeat some suggestions from above:

Get a gram scale. search "1000×0.1" or "2000×0.1" on ebay to see $7 options (free S&H). No single item weighs over 4.4 pounds, so 2 kg is plenty.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2000g-x-0-1g-Pocket-Digital-Weigh-scale-Balance-Jewelry-Electronic-scales-ESY1-/141149828581?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item20dd2f75e5

Make a spreadsheet of EVERYthing you carry. Just like everyone says to lose weight off your body, "log your food" and it works, the path to UL starts with a bit of OCD record keeping. Eventually, you can skip that, but initially, it forces you to make a lot of decisions.

Consider MYOGing your sleeping bag into a quilt. That costs nothing. And since you don't like mummy bags, you might like quilts even better than a big sleeping bag. You can even do that MYOGing iteratively (in a series of small steps). Cut, seal with duct tape, go on a trip. If it was more than big enough, cut a little more. Repeat. When you don't want to cut anymore, stitch it up.

Is it possible you could MYOG your roomy bag into TWO quilts, one each for you and your wife? Hint (from experience): do NOT have one large quilt without two separate neck holes. Maybe get a thrift-store down jacket for materials and MYOG a collar into your newly fabricated quilt. Some couples can spoon all night and they can save another half pound by doing so (less quilt, more shared warmth), most couples would do better with separate quilts, though.

Go for the free stuff (e.g. you can't find a lighter cup or bowl than cutting the bottom 3 inches off of an HDPE milky-white plastic milk carton. Taco Bell spork. Aluminum-foil pot lid. Etc.

But in summary, I'd convert from bag to quilt first for the reasons you state. Then address the pack (perhaps going no-cook for a while until the other gear (especially the shelter) catches up with the lighter pack). You may always want the option of carrying the tent for known rainy or buggy conditions but usually use a tarp in the future.

Edited to add a mind-set thing (good for international travel as well): "No one we see today saw that we were wearing these same clothes yesterday, except you. And you're stuck with me." Beyond a pair of socks and UW to be in rotation for cleaning and drying, NO duplicate clothes. At the coldest temperature you plan for, you should be wearing all the clothes you brought, except for that extra pair of socks and underwear (and the extra pair of socks can double as pot holder and mittens in a pinch).

Here's my big takeaway after going from 35lbs to 7lbs… the lighter you go, the lighter you CAN go.

So once you shed say ten lbs… that pack you have starts to look massive. Then you shave even more gear, and other gear looks lighter too.

This can be a dangerous iteration process in that you could buy gear twice.

I have a number of packs for example…

So one suggestion is to try to do everything in one pass. Figure out what gear you want to replace and do a bulk purchase.

A lot of us post our gear lists and you can use these as a template.

A big burly pack will carry 5lbs of gear just as much as 50lbs…so save it for last if you don't want to double spend.

If you may move to a tarp, spend the $10 on a cheap blue poly 8×10 tarp. You won't get an amazing tight pitch and it won't be fancy, but it's a VERY cheap and easy way to test out if you and the wife can accept it. IF, and only if, you can't, then buy a tarp-tent structure. For the money and weight they aren't the greatest way to lighten up.

BUY A SCALE, in case you haven't yet. Single greatest way to lighten up. Pair it with a spreadsheet program or gram counting website and you'll be astonished and horrified by just how much needless weight you bring! As others said, being ruthless with just leaving crap at home can drop a easy 10lbs often. Remember, if you're in a true emergency situation the best course of action is to always bail on the trip and seek shelter or help as necessary. Most superfluous "emergency" gear only gives you a false sense of security which can actually make you less safe (fire making and bandages will take a you long way if needed, and light).

So with that advice, you're left with the sleep system. Your pad is light enough for now so not in immediate need of upgrading. So I'd vote on the sleep system. Invest in a quality down bag or quilt and you'll never regret it. Given your sleeping constraints I think an EE quilt is a brilliant choice. I used a $20 REI garage sale bag for my first few hikes but once I got my WM Ultralite bag I was in love. Nothing beats a nice cozy sleep system at the end of a day in my opinion, and a high quality down one is luxurious and very light. It is probably the single best item for overall enjoyment of a trip. They also maintain pretty decent resale value so if for whatever reason you need to get rid of it you'll be able to recoup much of the expense (consider it a cheap rental).

Once you have your sleeping bag down, left junk out of your pack, lightened your insulation and hashed out what type of shelter you can live with…then consider getting a lighter pack. Ok your pack is pretty massive so maybe lighten it before the clothes.

Mike Clelland(NOLs instructor and author),he has some great free videos on lightening up be sure to watch(his clothing system,the entire contents of his pack,water treatment and part 1 and 2 on the dinky stuff for ideas),this is an article he wrote The fastest way to backpack weight loss ,this is pmags Lightweight Backpacking 101 and The Frugal Backpacker – The $300 Gear Challenge .These are some other articles and videos for you to check out

Backpacking for Cheap: Gear for the Gearless

Backpacking Checklist (Gear List): 3-Season, 3-Day

Lightweight Backpacking 101: An Introductory Manual for Lightening Your Load Today (1st Edition – August 2001)

Cheap Ultralight Gear List

Ultimate Hiking Gear & Skills Clinic

Lightweight Testimony: Lighter, Farther, Faster

Oregon Field Guide: Ultralight Hiking

Jamie Shortt talks about his progression and shows his gear list for each stage, Lightweight Testimony: My Journey into Lightweight Backpacking
I am not sure but you may need a yearly membership to view a couple of my links

Thanks to everyone who posted advice to me. I will be incorporating many of these ideas, and will keep researching. Since I won't be doing any backpacking until tax season is over ( I am an accountant), I have plenty of time to figure it out and save a few bucks for gear!