Is every UL backpacker rich?

You came to the place of nerd-dom. We spend time and money on this stuff.

Go to a car forum and they all have sick 4x4s or hot rods.

Go to a weed forum and they all smoke from 400$ scientific pieces.

You just found a group of backpacking enthuiasts and we choose to buy the best. I like cars but mine are stock. I been smokin out of the same $30 spoon since like 2001 (when you could buy glass over the internet). I got no retirement

But i have 9 backpacks and i want more more more!!!

I make decent living and by world standards I am in the top 1% as are many of you.  To me, the “rich” ul’ers, are those that get out more than I do.  When I had more free time I was less wealthy but more “rich” in that regard.  I can’t even begin to discribe how much I value the little time I am able to spend outdoors.

While it helps to have some spare change to obtain the best stuff, it isn’t necessary.  When I got back into backpacking after a 20 year hiatus (work, family, etc.) I started with some old Army things and whatever looked like it would work from Walmart.  Obviously, we’re not talking ultralight.  I found though, that as I slowly, but surely, began to accumulate ultralight gear, that you can find perfectly suitable things on Ebay, etc. for a fraction of the original price.

Accumulating gear is the least of my worries.  Finding the time to get out there is a little tougher.

It’s about priorities as well.  Some people put money into houses, cars, fancy vacations, craft beer, tattoos, etc.  I’ve done that, with at least a few of the aforementioned things.  People of modest means can accumulate some pretty good ultralight gear if they make it a priority, have patience, shop around, and are willing to use perfectly good substitutes that often work just as well (or nearly as well) as the gold-plated stuff.

Be appreciative of those wealthy ultralighters who are continuously casting off their lightly used items for the next best thing. Take advantage of their profligacy.  You don’t have to be personally appreciative to appreciate the money savings.

UL packing need not be an expensive thing. It is about being comfortable in the woods and enjoying the sights. UL backpacking need not be for the rich. I have older stuff that is repaired as necessary. I keep my gear a long time, with lots of use. I am retired. This does not make me rich by any means. If you have money, it is easy to simply buy into UL. If you are short of cash, go slow…buy light, durable gear. One good sleeping bag/quilt will blow the budget for a year. Do it anyway and take care of it (a good down bag will last around 20-30 years.) Buy wisely for the long term. I worked out I pay about $1 for 24 hours out, on gear expenses. Cheap! I pay more for my internet connection.

I think Brian B hit the nail on the head.  There are a lot of us here.  Some can go on month long trips with primo gear to exotic places.  These reports stick out to us.

Others go on month-long trips with regular gear on the AT.  Still others go on a week-long trip with nice gear and have to hurry back to work.  Their reports either don’t stand out to you or they never even reported.

Agreed Katharina, reporting this topic shows a little too much defensiveness about our hobby. And that’s what this is, it’s a hobby, and going deep into any hobby can get pricey. People spend thousands on their model train sets if that is their main shindig. I would venture to say that most folks here make sacrifices financially in numerous other areas of their budget in order to get good gear. Its all a matter of priorities. For example, I’ve been eating toasted bagel sandwiches for a month so I can justify buying an Xlite pad.

Many people accidentally hit the “report” button. Too bad there isn’t a “rescind” button.

This thread has been better than expected. Reporting it was certainly not necessary. Those reply and report buttons are real close on a phone.

My $.02. I judge wealth like Kat. Backpacking is my primary hobby/interest. Quality, light gear is cheaper in the long run.  Make the most of Gear Swap here if dialing in your kit.

Lots of very cool responses. Yes, people spend money on the things that they enjoy. That is basicaly what is agreed upon after reading many responses here.  I suppose you have to be rich (in a glodal big picture way) to have a hobby of any sort at all. We are all very lucky.

^^^^ that’s exactly how I feel :)

Backpacking is the coolest sport or hobby and I do not mind spending $$ to save a OZ. or LBS.

The number of reported threads I’ve seen recently certainly suggests that there’s some kind of software issue (or just a button proximity issue), rather than someone being ever so offended at the topic.

On the topic, I do think that sometimes there’s an overblown perception of the cost of some things, especially considering that one of the absolute best ways of dropping weight is to simply take less stuff. Barring that, I’d actually argue that there’s not a massive difference in a lot of the gear, price-wise, and in many cases, the UL stuff can actually be argued to be cheaper. An 8×10 tarp, some Tyvek, and a headnet is gonna be cheaper than most mainstream tents (and, honestly, most reasonable budget offerings). Even pricier cottage packs (MLD, Zpacks, etc.) are often pretty comparable to their mainstream offerings (like, say Osprey, although I’ll freely acknowledge that this is not en entirely fair comparison). You can get a blue foam pad for $10. And so on.

This is actually an interesting thread for me, since I’ve been close to pulling the trigger on a few cuben tarps recently, only to sit back and really question why on earth I’m spending an extra $150+ in a lot of cases to save what often amounts to 3ish ounces over what I have. Power to the folks who are willing to spend that, since it drives innovation and increases options, but I think that’s where I’m drawing my personal line.

Katharina,

I saw the title and almost expected that kind of response from someone.  In the US, we have a mythology around being middle class.  So in addition to people who are actually middle class, we have “upper middle class” because no one wants to be called “upper class” or “rich”.  We also have “lower-middle class” because no one want to think of themselves as poor or as a failure.

I’ll say it:  I’m rich.  Not 1% rich, but 3% rich.  Some of that is through hard work and skills.  Some of it is being in the right place at the right time and/or seizing the chances that arose (majoring in Chemical Engineering predictably pays better than, say, Art History).  And lots of it is none of my doing.  It’s just easier to get ahead as a SWM.  I want to college back when public schools were publicly funded so my fees, books, and living expenses could be covered by working a 30-hour-a-week job.

And I’m “rich” in other ways than bank account or real estate holdings.  I’m fairly smart and, unlike language skills; numbers and technical concepts stick in my head.  I had some great teachers, especially in high school, and even as a senior engineer in a specialized field, much of value I add to a project is because I learned some important math and science concepts very early.  I’m glad our Scout troop went from great-white-hunter-style camping trips to including some backpacking trips when the WWII-era Scoutmaster was replaced with a Vietnam-era one.  Heck, just holding a US Passport (just got a new one) makes me incredibly rich.  I can hop on a plane to anywhere (except a few hellholes like N Korea) without a plan or a visa.  6/7 of the humans on the planet can’t do that.

But back to the OP:

One way in which UL backpacking does NOT require much money is that information is largely free.  I learned UL backpacking the hard way: buy gear, use it, buy more gear, get tired of carrying so much weight, and develop solutions on my own (tarps, no-cook, multi-use clothing which led to a lighter pack, higher miles, etc) before Jardine and others published their ideas.  Now, there’s this Internet thing.  Including BPL, hiker’s blogs, and YouTube tutorials.  More skills = less carried weight and learning skills is easier than ever.

For every $300 piece of kit, there’s a $100 or $50 solution that is close in weight.

If one is constrained by budget, that can be a good thing.  Gun aficionados say, “beware the man with one gun” because he’ll be really good at using that one gun.  The parallel I see is that if you only ever use the same tarp, you’ll get really good at pitching it in all conditions.  When all I had was a SVEA-123R, I was really good at using it in all temperatures, at different elevations, etc.  Now, thankfully, there are canister stoves, because I don’t use any one of my 6 WG stoves often enough to be totally dialed in using it the first meal of a trip.

Yes Katharina. I probably unknowingly jacked most of my last thought from reading your initial comment yesterday.  Thank u. You planted that in my head!:). Im willing to bet you are an amazing person!

Everyone had great things to say and I am enjoying reading everyone’s story. All very interesting.

The only expensive gear is the gear you don’t use.

I’m a testament to the fact that you don’t have to be rich in order to be an ultralight backpacker, however, I believe UL hikers on average are better educated and have higher incomes than the general public at large.

It’s all about priorities. Many low income people have no problem shelling out $1200 for the latest jam up TV, along with an $80 per month cable package.

I used to work in the show horse business where people spend $20,000 and up for a mount, and over $1000 a month for training. My $4000 worth of UL gear seems like mere pittance by comparison. I’ve always maintained that gas and wear and tear on my vehicle is by far my biggest backpacking expense.

.

Backpacking in general is a pretty cheap hobby. ATV’s are $5k, old cars $10k+, fashion I dont know. Is everybody with an ATV or a used jeep rich? Because they spend more than Ultralight backpackers on their hobby. Plus they have yearly costs for maintenance, licensing, insurance, gas, trailers or a truck to carry/tow it.

For $1,000 you can have a good ultralight kit. For $3,000 you can probably have top of the line stuff. If you buy used or wait for sales you can probably get that $3,000 of stuff for $1,500.

$1-$3k is a lot of money to invest in your first backpacking trip, though it is also less than most weeklong vacations. But once you spend it, if you do it right, you don’t really have to spend any more money beyond getting to your destination and the food you’ll eat once there.

@Chad thanks for the nice words :)

@ David you make good points. I just feel like a lot of people I interact with have lost the compass so to speak. There is nothing wrong with admitting one has enough and even extra. Like most I would like more too but that is just icing on the cake.

as i said it shouldnt be really expensive

big 5

• 20F bag/quilt … ~200-300$ on sale with ~800 fill
• pack that fits … ~200$
• tent … chinese 3F ones for ~100$, SMD also has one for just over that price as well … or use a poly tarp for like 5$
• sleeping pad … ~30$ for zlite/ridgerest, or ~80$ for prolite
• stove … BRS 3000T for 10$

clothes/shoes

• base layers … target/walmart
• mid layers … cheap fleece
• rain jacket/pants … whatever cheap OR/EB ones are on sale … you can pick one up for ~100$ and the warranty is forever
• poofay … whatever is on sale and fits, even 650 fill will work just fine and only weight like 2 oz more anyways … 50$ dept store brands on sale
• shoes … get the ones that fit, write down the models of the ones that do, pick em up on sale … i pick up shoes for 30-60$ on clearance

other

• headlamp … cheap petzl tikka with NiMH ikea bats and an ikea charger
• trekking poles … costco poles … 30$

theres really not too much more you need …

;)

I’m rich – if you count my collection of photos from our trips.

Cheers

If UL was only for the rich, Gear Swap wouldn’t be the most frequently posted in section on this forum.

Both my sleeping bags are used. Both my backpacks are used. My tent I got new but for a good price and it’s not an expensive tent to begin with (compared to a lot of UL tents, anyway). Same with my pad – an inflatable (I just don’t trust buying an inflatable pad used for some reason). I’ve sold a lot of the gear that didn’t work for me. I wear my shoes until my bunions wear a hole in the side of them. A lot of my gear came to me as gifts because I put stuff on my Amazon wish list and then wait with baited breath around my birthday and Christmas. My cook pot, my stove, my ti-spork, my knife- all gifts.

Buying used generally cuts your costs by at last 50%, if you’re patient and look for good deals. And you can re-sell what you don’t like at about what you bought it for.

And some of the earliest UL’ers- like Grandma Gatewood did a lot of MYOG or repurposing- such as using a shower curtain for a shelter.

PS- who on earth was offended by this or saw it as provocative? Thicker skin, people, seriously. UL gear is expensive. I can easily see why some people might jump to the conclusion that it’s only for the rich.

I’ve literally spent years amassing my UL kit by watching for bargains and adapting other gear.  Good gear is often expensive, but it works well and lasts a long time; thus making it a bargain in the long run.  Yes, for a one-off trip or thru-hike it can be spendy, but if you’re doing trips year in and year out, good gear pays for itself.

I am not rich at all and have a job and so does my wife.

I save like most other folks to buy gear and watch for sales or use gear swap.

Hear me out:

If you spend enough time in BPL’s most popular subs (Gear and Gear Swap), you’ll almost undoubtedly be influenced by the materialistic content.  GAS is definitely strong in these forums.  You’ll see certain members constantly buying and selling gear gear, most of which seems to only get “tested” in backyards and garages.

With that in mind, if you fall into the GAS pit, ULBPing is definitely not a cheap hobby, with respect to US/Eur income levels.

However, if you use your expensive gear as intended – in the spirit of thru-hiking, long distance hiking, “being outside is fun” – it’s not really an expensive hobby.  It’s a bit of a dichotomy isn’t it?

Here’s another… condtradiction: a ULBP enjoys being outside, away from creature comforts, but will also spend $450 on a quilt that just came out to replace the $400 quilt he has that is slightly too cold or too warm.

Winter = cabin fever = more time on BPL = GAS.

The more time you spend outside backpacking, the more use you get out of your expensive gear, and it effectively becomes inexpensive after all.  Is a $50,000 car for rich people?  I think it depends on whether the car is driven for 5,000 miles or 500,000.

Lastly, I think ULBP can be a hobby in which gear is a means to an end or a hobby in which being outside is a means to using the gear.  Find the balance between the two.

You came to the place of nerd-dom. We spend time and money on this stuff.

Go to a car forum and they all have sick 4x4s or hot rods.

Go to a weed forum and they all smoke from 400$ scientific pieces.

^ QFT