PCT – 2018 Shakedown

[Trey F]

It’s early and who knows what type of winter we’ll have, but I’m an eager beaver. One of my specific areas of uncertainty is the layering system.

https://lighterpack.com/r/ad80cd

 

[bjc]

For me I would add an insulating top layer even in the south. It can get pretty cool at night and after a long day in hot weather it doesn’t take much to feel cold.

[Ken Thompson]

Not much pad

BV450 big enough?

[Trey F]

I’m on the fence about the puffy. I’ll definitely have it with me through the sierras. Thanks for your input on that.

I sleep poorly on inflatables. The 1/8″ is fine for comfort, but I’m not sure about the warmth factor. We’ll see how good I am at campsite selection. Otherwise, I have a gg nightlight, but the thing takes up a lot of space. I’ll be supplementing the 1/8 in the sierra in any case.

The snow levels will determine how confident I am about bringing the bv450. Whether or not I feel like I can make the miles to get by with a bv450. Don’t want to feed the bears.

[Lester Moore]

Looks like a great list Trey – that GX9 ii is an excellent camera for the price and weight. A few considerations:

BV450 – How many miles can you typically hike daily back-to-back in mountains at altitude when in good shape? Can you make it from Kennedy Meadows to MTR in 5 or 6 days, or do you plan to resupply over Kearsarge Pass before reaching MTR? Either way, the 450 should be big enough with careful packing at 2.2 lbs food per day.

You might consider omitting the hand sanitizing and use soap only. YMMV, but you could also skip the toothpaste and use the brush by itself (most of the benefit is from the brushing action, not the paste). Ship a little toothpaste in your resupply boxes for use while in town instead if you like (that’s where it’s most useful when you’re around non-smelly people).

For WA state, if you plan to go through in late September or early October, consider also adding UL rain mitts, an UL bivy sack for splash protection and warmth under your tarp (MLD or EE, etc) and a synthetic insulated balaclava (EE Hoodlum) for sleeping – an insulated balaclava will give you a warmer night’s sleep than the fleece hat on your list.

In addition to special items for the Sierras and WA state, have you considered a smaller list of items for NoCal and for OR? Warm, dry mid-summer weather you could go even lighter with the quilt and your layering/clothing system.

[Trey F]

I’ve been pleased with the GX9 II. Found out about it through Andrew Skurka.

It’s tough for me to estimate my mileage at altitude. My JMT trip didn’t go as planned this year, and that was supposed to give me an idea about how to navigate the sierra on a PCT thru. A few days in, I succumbed to some serious AMS, and when I got down off the mountains, a 2 week flu like virus followed. During a regular snow year, I’m going to go ahead and say 25 miles / day coming 700 miles in. If I needed to go farther, I can push it for a few days. That said, I was thinking I would resupply after Kennedy Meadows coming off Kearsarge, and then hit VVR > Tuolumne Meadows.

Soap / toothpaste: I find the germ x to be convenient for using before eating and before dealing with contacts. Soap is good for bathroom breaks. What I may do is ditch the toothpaste like you said, and use the dr bronner’s for a toothpaste sub. All well away from water sources of course.

I’m planning a May 10th start, late August / very early September finish, so I’m thinking that I’ll avoid the harsh Washington rain and cold. I’ll file those suggestions away if it comes to it though. For Nor Cal and Oregon, I haven’t thought about changes. Too caught up with the sierra, ha. The quilt will remain the same, for $$$ reasons. The puffy can go home though. I can only imagine how good it feels after walking so far either carrying a bunch of water or a bunch of food in a bear can with cold weather gear to shed so much in Nor Cal. What would a mid summer clothing system for Nor Cal / OR look like for you, Lester?

[Lester Moore]

Talk with folks who have done the PCT (I have not), but how about adding an UL down vest (Borah Gear) for insulation in dry, summer OR for less than $100. If you sleep normal to warm and had the budget, then a 40F quilt would also be tempting in mid summer, especially with the vest on too.

Given what I currently own, this is what I would bring for OR in july, assuming lots of hiking each day and minimal time spent in camp:

• Lightweight long pants (good for bugs). Alternatively, shorts plus UL wind pants if you don’t mind chemical repellants.
• Long sleeve woven shirt, for bug and sun protection. Pretty cool and airy with buttons opened and arms rolled up. Adds some warmth at night or on chilly mornings hiking. Looks good in town.
• UL down vest – 5 oz.
• Wind shirt with hood – 3 oz.
• UL rain jacket (DriDucks) – 5.5 oz. A Zpacks poncho-groundsheet combo is a compelling alternative. The poncho-groundsheet would work well for rain wear on a groomed trail like the PCT. It would fit well under your hexamid as groundsheet too and would block cool night surface winds under the tarp, aiding in warmth retention if using a 40F quilt.

[HkNewman]

This was a “dry summer” according to a a Northwesterner) with some heatwaves and record breaking “no-rain” days just north in OR, … so if ’18 is a wet summer my observations may not be helpful.

I found NorCal hot during the day on the PCT, but it mostly got pretty cool at night; occasional breezy and even rarer rains. Layering follows the whole puffy vs fleece argument. Namely is the insulation for camp or hiking, respectively? I still have some sections left to hike so over my synthetic shirt, maybe layer my Haglöfs LIM 8 oz hoody, shell, and/or a superlight down vest in the 3-ish oz range (Borah, Montbell, or if Lukes gets up and running .. ).

Will likely go with running shorts again. Many men/women went with shorts, though there were pants. Many women wore wool legging-type garments. Bugs usually weren’t bad.

[Ken Thompson]

Already snowing

[John Rowan]

Couple of general clothing/insulation comments- I’d echo some of the folks above in saying that you’ll almost certainly want to have some kind of insulation for SoCal- it can get plenty cold at night there. Unscientifically, I actually had generally colder nights in the desert than I did in the Sierra. Obviously, this is atypical and was the result of me hitting an odd weather pattern, but I think the point is there. (This was in 2015, FWIW.)

Ditto Oregon- I’m not sure what changes so much about the temperature, but I went from barely needing a sleeping bag at night to having it be in the low 40s in the span of a day, and most morning were cold enough that I (and the people I was with) would usually start off the day hiking in a puffy to warm up a bit.

Honestly, if I was doing it again (and I think I actually am going to be doing it again), I’d just take a decent light puffy and carry it with me the whole  time. There’s definitely times when you won’t need it for a while, but it’s generally useful and I’m not sure that it’s worth the effort to bounce it from, say, Chester to Ashland for the sake of saving 9oz for a few weeks.

[Dale Wambaugh]

I like your list.

I would want a base/mid/puffy layering system for any of the higher altitudes and Washington. A fleece vest might be a good compromise. After seeing the Nano-Air Light Vest (7oz for a large), I think that would be a great layering option. You could add light base layer long johns and long sleeve shirt as options for the colder parts too. I find that a long sleeve top, vest and windshirt works great. Get a light color and it doubles for sun and bug protection.

Weather variability may be an ongoing issue. Global Warming theory calls for unstable weather patterns vs plain temperature increases. In Washington we had a very wet spring and the dryest summer I can ever remember. It was odd to see puffy clouds in the last couple weeks and I’m a lifer mossback! We bailed on a trip to Mt Rainier last week due to the forest fires and to add to it the temps dropped into the 30’s and there was snow (we went to the San Juans instead). Northern California nearly washed into the sea this winter (we were there) and Mammoth shut down because the snow was too deep for the lifs. Of course the year before was a drought. The bottom line is that I would have the options ready in the bounce box, a good sleeping pad and maybe a warmer bag/quilt.

[Trey F]

Thanks Dale. I’m really considering going with a vest puffy. I just really like my Superior. Regarding weather, I’ve learned that I’ll need to pay close attention to the weather daily once past Nor Cal, but as long as the wide weather variability doesn’t set in for more than a day or two at an extreme, I think I’ll just push through it. I’ll likely sub my windshirt out for a fleece in Washington if I end up there later than I expect, so that I have a little insulation under a rain jacket for sleeping in the case that my puffy gets saturated. Or perhaps I’ll end up purchasing a synthetic for this.

For a pad, I can keep my neoair in a bounce box, or find a way to attach a nightlight that I have (and prefer) to the outside of my pack if it comes to it. I find the nightlight sooo comfortable, but it’s really bulky. This reminds of a time a few years ago when I had no idea what I was doing: I spent a night in the low 30s just above freezing on hard packed soil, exposed, on a ridge-rest foam pad with an old synthetic Eureka “32” degree bag. It was a rough night.

[Dale Wambaugh]

I don’t get subbing a windshirt for a fleece at all. Those are my favorite items for PNW hiking. Take both!

[Eric Blumensaadt]

I would definitely get a better sleep pad or pad(s) combo. 1/8″ of CFC pad is mighty d@mn thin for any kind of comfort or even warmth.

Ryan Jordan, who has done a few hikes, says that often comfort makes up for a bit of extra weight. i.e. The pack comfort of an internal frame and good padded hip belt and the all-night comfort of a decent  mattress or pad can keep you far more comfortable on the trail or ready for the trail after a good night’s sleep.

I have said as much on this site over the many years I’ve been a member. There are some places to cut weight and some places where it just does not make good sense to go absolute minimalist.

[Trey F]

In this case I’ve found that I sleep well on a thin pad. I’ve tried a few different inflatables, and can’t get comfortable on them. If warmth becomes an issue, I’ll upgrade to a 1/4″ or try and get used to a torso neo-air. Hip belts are nice sometimes, but 90% of the time, I’d rather it not be there.

[Paul S]

Nice list! My 2 cents would be use a thicker pad (TR Z-lite cut down) and bring the MLD rain mitts into the Sierras. Nothing worse that having fingers so cold (even with gloves) you can’t use them after that afternoon T-storm has rolled thru.

[Eli Zabielski]

This is a very similar style kit to what I used for California in 2017, which was an evolution of what I used for the whole trail in 2015. My list: https://lighterpack.com/r/4enk7y

If you’re going this light, I would ditch the bivy. If you hike long days bugs are not really a problem most of the night. I would very rarely wear a bug net + hat while I fell asleep if the bugs were still bad when I was trying to go to sleep. For the colder parts of the trail, they disappear when it gets dark, which is when I stop hiking

I used the 1/4th” GG pad for Socal this year. I found it to just be slightly inadequate comfort wise. I started very late so the insulation wasn’t a problem, but I had to be careful about picking a very comfortable campsite. I switched to the Nightlight torso pad as planned before the Sierras. I also found that the Nightlight pad sits much better as a frame in my MLD Burn. The 1/4th tends to bunch up at the top since it’s less rigid when folded. A bit annoying, and probably not worth the weight savings over the Nightlight IMO.

Probably no need for gloves in Socal if you start at a normal time or late. Just put your hands in your shorts if you get cold for a bit.

You can keep your MLD tarp for the whole trail IMO.

[Trey F]

I haven’t put any consideration into ditching the bivy. I’m bringing it more for warmth, and to deal with the wind, but maybe it’s not merited. I’ll start with it but keep an open mind about sending it home.

I use a 1/8″ pad successfully in New England / east coast, but I’m thinking that there’s more soft ground there than on the PCT, which is why I sized up to the 1/4″, and for a bit more warmth, though it may make no difference. I have a nightlight, and it’s comfy, but takes up a lot of pack space. How’d you manage a bear can with the nightlight, and in general?

I’ve never had the need for large Platypus bottles until this trip. Did you store yours inside your pack?

I don’t know when you started, but May 10th for me.

[Erica R]

Nice list. I have a Hexamid, and find the headroom is an issue. So, I carry long lengths (50′) of Z line (1 oz?) to pull out the ends and increase the headroom.

[Erica R]

My hands take a beating when using poles in the dry California air. I like using the valley gloves the fruit pickers use. Or (and), you will likely find some hand cream a necessity.

[Erica R]

I carry 1 lb of food per day, but I have a stove, pot and fuel. Still, I suspect I save weight by being able to cook freeze dried food in camp rather than carry reconstituting food in my pack. The stove is also a safety item in the event my hands or other parts of my body get cold.

I find  a 2 L Platypus bottle invaluable around camp. I like getting fully hydrated without having to get more water.

[Erica R]

I love my icebreaker merino long johns. I use a patagonia synthetic base layer with them for sleeping. Keeps me warm at night. Keeps the sleeping bag clean. I use them around camp. If it gets cold or wet I can wear them during the day (though that means I won’t have them at night if they are wet).

I see you have an extra pair of socks, probably can be used as sleep socks. If my feet are warm at night, then I am warm at night.

[Eli Zabielski]

For wind, I’ve found you can totally eliminate it with good campsite selection. I cowboy camp nearly 100% of the time, and even a tiny bush to sleep next to can block all the wind. I got one of the best nights of sleep in my life on a very windy night around mile 60, totally shielded by some tall grass!

In 2015 (whole trail) I started on May 10th, and in 2017 (first 1500 miles) I started on May 28th. I also did the first 500 miles of Socal in 2014 starting on May 7th. The weather is very good in May. The only places it’s likely to be cold overnight in May are high on San Jacinto (180) and around Wrightwood/Mt. Baden Powell (370). After mile 400, you don’t get super high again till the Sierra.

The Nightlight gets quite a bit flatter/better shaped after you use it for a while, which is a good thing for your pack volume. It’s fine with a bear can for me, but I don’t have a Palante pack to know for sure.

[John Rowan]

I recently switched from a tarp/bivy to just using Tyvek and I’ll echo what Eli said. It wasn’t that hard to block the wind, and on the few occasions where I couldn’t (honestly mostly due to cool ridgeline views I couldn’t bring myself to pass up), the bivy didn’t really make a difference.

The bivy blocked the wind a bit, but, for me, the annoyance factor of the wind (i.e. feeling it hit me, hearing it, etc., did more to interfere with my sleep than any temperature-related factor did.

[Erica R]

When you’re walking through the Inyo NF you don’t need a cannister, a Ursack is allowed. You are required to have a hard sided cannister in Kings Canyon and Yosemite.

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