My first trip with ultralight principles was great!

Yeah, UL is fun. However, once you get used to the UL weight a longer trip, say around two weeks, puts your pack right back where you started. It is annoyingly heavy!

Anyway, a small (around a 9×9 tarp) would have helped a lot. You can actually set it up over the fire pit and have a small/medium fire going in the evening and still keep you fairly dry. FOOD??? Ha, ha, yeah, extra food to make sure no one goes hungry! Snacks and variety are the big things.

35pounds for two on an overnight trip is somewhat heavy for two people. But as you first trip out that was a great start! I am glad to see you taking your son out. 5 years old is a good age to get them started. At 5 years old they are fully capable of 3-5 miles provided you don’t overload them. Keep it light…even 8 pounds is a lot of weight for a young kid. I always shot for <10% of their weight with my two kids.

Way back, my wife and I headed into a lake to do some photography. She was set up with 7 pounds, I was set up with 8 for camp. The camera gear weighed 20!

Put your gear list on https://lighterpack.com/ and then ask folks here for advice and you can probably get that weight down further while still having what you need.

I’m glad to hear you had a good time with your son and hope your next trip includes better weather.

Sounds great!  Where do you live?  I’m in the Lancaster area and have done some trips with my twin daughters (now almost 12, but we started backpacking together when they were just 4).  One of my favorite loops is the Pinchot Trail.  There isn’t a lot of vertical gain/loss so they don’t get too tired (you don’t either) and the trail is crossed by a lot of roads so you can tailor your trip to ensure success.

I’d also love to know what your Roaring Creek hike looked like.

Awesome! Yep, lightweight gear allows me to get my kids in a way that they actually enjoy (vs. a sufferfest). 35# is pretty great. First time with a kid I weighed in at 32# loaded.

Food is hard, but the the more you go out, the more you’ll fine tune that. Get him to help you with food decisions as much as possible. Last year I came back from our first long trip (4 nights) with 4#s of food leftover (ouch!) I also add some extra margins on clothing too, cause you know, kids trash their clothes. But luckily I’ve come to realize my son doesn’t care! I suppose I don’t bring the post-swimming packtowls anymore. Or the books. Or the stuffed animals. The main thing I need to lighten up further is a lighter load-hauler pack. I drag out the 6-7# Dana from 2000 when I need to carry for two. But now that my son carries my Ohm at least I have some UL credentials on the trail.

I have lots and lots of tips, that I should write up sometime. A big one: trekking poles. My kids love trekking poles. When I do see little kids, they rarely ever have poles, but it makes the uphills so much easier for them! We got the kid specific Black Diamond First Strikes, but really any reasonably light adjustable set should do.

NCC states: “Most importantly my son had a great time, never felt deprived, and wants to go out again. ”

Truly outstanding!