NOT backpacking light

I have a friend named Yoshihiro. He’s from Japan and we hiked together through Glacier National Park. I bestowed on him the trail name “Low Gear”, which he really liked a lot. He was a self-proclaimed “heavy trucker” and grinded up the passes in low gear, never very far behind. His pack weighed on various trips between 60 and 90lbs, depending on whether his wife was with him. On this trip, his wife wasn’t there so was in the 60-something range. He modified his pack for optimum comfort, welding and bolting on aluminum reinforcements and things. I tried it on and it really was comfortable. He made us coffee every day. He believed you should stop now and then to have coffee and enjoy the scenery. It was a tug of war between our leader who had just completed the CDT a year before and still was in thru-hiking “make the miles” mode, and Low Gear who wanted to enjoy his time in America. “Americans hike too fast!” he would say. At night he would cook a multi-course Japanese meal: A vegetable soup sometimes with chicken in it (it was a poor man’s soup if there was no meat for it), natto (ew gross) and usually mashed potatoes with chives and mayonnaise. Of course he shared it all with us. When we went into town he relished American food. If there is one thing he loves about America, aside from its wilderness, it’s the All-you-can-eat buffet.

He impressed on me the value of just enjoying yourself. The man is strong. If you are strong and your pack is comfortable, you can still have a great time in the wilderness. I wouldn’t trade my light stuff for all that weight, but I learned to enjoy myself more and just go with the flow hiking with Low Gear.

Wow! That guy’s pack (Uhaul’s not Yoshiro’s) weighs more than me!!

I consider myself a true ULer—Ultraloader.  It’s hard to go light when carrying 21 days worth of food with no resupply.

Expert backpacker Chris Townsend has some pertinent quotes here—

LONG TRIPS WITHOUT RESUPPLY
“The next challenge came as I approached the High Sierra. Late snow meant it was completely snowbound.”

“Together we made it through the snow, talking 3 weeks on the longest section. My pack was so heavy at the start that I couldn’t actually lift it. I had to sit down, put it on then gingerly stand up . . .”

“I can’t now remember the weight or the pain . . . but I can remember the joy of spending so many days without leaving the wilderness.”

POSTSCRIPT
“The weight was ridiculous and I’ve never carried such a stupid load since but the rewards made the effort worthwhile.” ALL QUOTES CHRIS TOWNSEND (from his blog).

My response??  Okay, we know it’s a stupid load and unrepeatable but when is the last time you stayed out for 3 weeks with one food load???

And Chris Townsend has this interesting quote about Colin Fletcher—

CURE FOR THE FAST AND LIGHT HYSTERIA
You know how it is—modern backpackers wanting to carry 10 lb packs, pull 25 mile days and resupply every 4 days. Well, backpacking guru Colin Fletcher wasn’t about that. Read this quote by Chris Townsend—

“Colin Fletcher wasn’t bothered about distance . . . or speed. His concern was with experience. Camping was just as important to him as walking . . .”

Oh, and olde Colin was a curmudgeon which makes him a hero in my book.

And regarding hiking w/o resupply, Townsend says—

CHRIS TOWNSEND AND FOOD
“At around 2 lbs a day a week’s food weighs 14 lbs and when you start adding those weights to a pack it ceases to be ultralight.”

“Much more than a week’s food and however ultralight your basic gear your total load will not be ultralight . . .”

“The answer to the problem of food weight is to resupply more often. This is fine if you’re happy . . . to leave the wilds every few days. However staying out for long periods of time with no contact with civilization is appealing and can make for a deeper contact with nature and a more satisfying experience.”

I agree. My base weight including pack itself (which is not an UL) is probably 14- 16 lbs or so, maybe less. But if the weather is colder (starting now), it will go up. This includes a 1p tent, full first aid, cord, knife, fire starter, tenacious tape, meds, contacts, toothpaste/toothbrush, insect stuff, sunscreen, etc. two water filters (an emergency backup) Full kit. My food is usually 1.5lbs a day.

When I went to the Winds recently, 8 days of food plus a 450BV, before water I was 31lbs. I took a different tent, plus some scotch.

I say, take what makes you happy and comfortable both camping and hiking.

Scott Harriet(Squatch) interviews UHaul and shows him leaving a shelter with his pack in his first AT video Flip Flop Flippin’

Great read about U-Haul. Reminds me a bit of Humans of New York, which this might qualify for since they’re both from NY.  Maybe someone can start a Humans of the AT?

Off topic: It’s funny how people can get so defensive of their own hiking when the topic of “heavy backpackers” comes up, as if their conscience is weighed on for not being SUL or everyone will shame them out of BPL for a -*gasp*- 15 lbs. base weight.  HYOH.

Last weekend I did a 2-night trip and discovered upon unpacking for camp the first night that I had accidentally brought along an OR Seattle Sombrero and a few miscellaneous repair and MYOG items in a plastic grocery bag. Weighing them at home after the trip, the total was a tick over 11 oz.

And I was a bit ticked at myself for carrying around 11 extra ounces all weekend, but after reading these posts I don’t feel so bad about it. :-)

However, I should’ve listened to my instincts when I picked up the pack and thought it felt a little heavier than usual.

Completely agree with HYOH, and it’s no concern of mine if you wanna carry all that weight, but most people will start feeling the effects of that later in life. I carried some pretty heavy packs in my 30s and 40s, and now into my 6th decade I am noticing it in my knees and hips. I’m certain that, for me, carrying a UL load makes things better in that regard. I don’t want to think about how my knees would feel like now after carrying 80 lbs all day.

Bob – If you start checking your backpack for things you didn’t pack then MY packweight is going to go way up on our next trip together!

You know what they say:  The lightest thing is whatever you’re not carrying…

I’m going to have to carry a padlock now?!

Or teach Cyrus to be a vicious guard dog… :^)

I consider myself to be a weight conscious hiker but not a true light weight back packer. My base weight is usually in the ~16 lb range. Backpacking is not my life, or even my absolute favorite hobby like some here, but as an outsider I noticed a lot of people here seem to get caught up in the numbers.

It seems a number of hikers try to measure their success in ounces and miles. I’d rather judge my trips by the amount of enjoyment I had, and sights I got to see. So that means I travel with an extra cup for coffee, and a tent that is more comfortable to me but weighs 8 oz more than the next guy’s micro cuban fiber tent. But I’m okay with that.

I was a UL noob not all that long ago and it makes sense that, at first, one simply must get caught up in the numbers somewhat in order to become familiar with what is ‘lightweight’ and what is ‘really lightweight’, and then perhaps to have some disappointing experiences with ‘stupid ultralight’.

Ultimately we arrive at our own individual comfort level with a reasonably UL kit and then stop worrying about the weight; I put my stuff in my pack and know that it is light enough.

But one should expect some interest in the weights of things at “Backpacking Light“, which is, after all, a government-designated ‘safe space’ for gram weenies. :^)

My base weight for the big three is less than six pounds, with a tarp tent, Golite 50 and a sub-kilo bag.

But add in a neo-air mattress, augmented with a Z-rest for extra comfort, plus a bear can for the national parks…and my fishing gear.

The weight isn’t the only thing that matters.  The only thing that matters is that you have a great trip.

Like many on here, I think UL is a mindset, not a certain number.

Look at what Luc and company accomplished on there Mt. Logan traverse. (thingstolucat.com) 30 days, unsupported, in winter conditions.  I think they each started with something like 130lbs.  Were their weights low?  not by some definitions.

Peace

I agree that the whole thing is supposed to be a mindset. The journey is made via spreadsheets, but only  because that’s how it forces you to analyze what you really need vs want vs just-bring-because-I-thought-I-was-supposed-to.

It’s like budgeting.  You Write. Every. Thing. Down.  Only then can you really analyze things.

Then, when you have the mindset of just bringing what you need and what you want, and you up your skillset to make up for redundant gear, that’s when you realize that it isn’t about the weight at all, really.

But the whole point, IMHO, is the journey. The realization that you don’t actually need a 4 pound first aid kit for a weekend in a national park. Or that you really aren’t going to stitch anyone’s forehead gash. Or that you don’t need 7 different fire starters, or rain pants in a desert for a short weekend. Or an entire roll of duct tape hanging off the back of your pack….or a change of clothes for every day, etc etc.

Look at what Luc and company accomplished on there Mt. Logan traverse. (thingstolucat.com) 30 days, unsupported, in winter conditions.  I think they each started with something like 130lbs.  Were their weights low?  not by some definitions.

Quote by Garrett McLarty.

I could do a 30 day winter trip w/o resupply with a 100 lbs of gear and food and fuel—so I suppose their extra 30 lbs was climbing equipment and other stuff.

You ask “Were their weights low?  Not by some definitions.”  I challenge any ULer to carry a 30 day load in their 1 lb packs etc.  The whole ultralight movement in my opinion hinges on short trips with a minimal food load or with long trips with frequent resupply.

Even if you pack SUL, a 50 or 60 lb food load changes everything.

Funny thing, I think people NOT in a UL range are the ones talking more about their pack weight.  I think most of the UL packers are talking less about the weight they carry, maybe because the weight is not a burden and is not especially worthy of discussion in their trips.  Their trip reports become more about the trip.

Carrying 130 pounds so I can eat the same food for 30 days doesn’t sound like it meet the first test of a hobby for me.  It has to be more enjoyable than what I get paid to do.

“It’s like budgeting.  You Write. Every. Thing. Down.  Only then can you really analyze things.”

the corollary: tracking the budget is much less adversive when you convince yourself “OK, this is just like planning for a backpacking trip!”

Ha Katherine!!!  exactly!  what’s funny is that my nemesis is my budget..and I work on that weakness by that exact same philosophy – as a matter of fact…I actually converted my gear spreadsheet into my budget spreadsheet so I would look at it!

What does it matter what a piece of gear weighs if:

A. it’s the only piece I’ve got

B. I’m not spending money on a new one

C. It doesn’t prevent me from doing what I want to do

D. I have to carry it on a given trip.

Weighing and comparing gear is always based on the presupposition you can do something about it; i.e. buy new stuff.  But if you’re not on the consumer merry-go-round, it quickly becomes somewhat irrelevant.

Makes sense that BPL forums are dominated by Gear Swap and consumer talk.  Getting caught up in shaving ounces SELLS and keeps people on the constant hunt for something “better”.

Well, sometimes people are in the market for ultralight shelters, for instance, and want to compare weights, specs and prices.

Did I say anywhere in the above post that I didn’t shop for new gear or wasn’t part of the same culture I describe?  Simply making a point Bob, one that applies to many people here, including myself.

No offense, but that is what I thought you were implying, and obviously what I inferred.

Apologies for my misunderstanding.

Actually, since my kit is ‘dialed’ now for almost any weather and almost any locale, I have not needed to purchase a whole bunch of stuff for quite some time. Luckily, the Arc Blast and the Duplex were a couple of my first UL gear purchases and I still remain totally satisfied with them… a rare instance of buying the right things the first time.

to a large degree the very low weights we see are a product of moderate conditions, somewhat less durable gear, and not too rugged environments …

and also specialization …. owning multiple bags, clothes, shelters and packs (which most folks here including me do) for “optimization”

in reality the guy/gal who owns a single pack/bag/tent/etc … may well be getting out more as they spend time and money actually getting out and doing it …

hell theres plenty of folks who borrow the gear off friends out here or buy used stuff at consignment stores who get out MUCH more than most people … they cant afford diddly squat but theyre out every day

young folks have been doing that for decades …

;)