PCT 2018 Thru List

[John Rowan]

https://lighterpack.com/r/d54qux

It dawned on me a few weeks ago that 2018 might actually be a pretty good time for me to make another go at a PCT thru hike, so I’ve been playing around with my gear/setup. Will be doing an early May stop and plan on moving along at a decently quick speed based on past experience.

This isn’t my first rodeo with the PCT by any stretch of the imagination, and I’ve gotten pretty dialed into what I want/like, but it never hurts to get feedback. I did the JMT in 2014, Campo-Ebbetts Pass on a thru attempt in 2015 (injury), and Chester-Cascade Locks (sans 87 miles of fire closure) this year, so I have a pretty sound idea of what I’m getting into. Most of this stuff is a tweak of what I used this past season, which was a new-ish setup for me, but was a pretty logical descendent of what I’ve been using for a few years.

General comments:

• The Mellie isn’t something I own yet, but it’s something I’ve been playing around with (conceptually) as my insulating layer for most (but not all) of the hike- they seemed relatively popular when I was out this year, and I’m really wondering if it’s a more useful garment for my style of hiking (up about 30min before dawn, hike, stop when it gets dark, sleep, repeat). Like most thru/distance hikers, I’ve used a puffy jacket as my insulating layer for the last few years, but haven’t really…used it. It goes on maybe for a few minutes in camp when I’m sitting and eating, and probably goes on for a little bit in the morning while I’m packing up (and maybe the first 10-20 minutes of my hike). I like the idea of having something that might work a bit better as an active layer for those cold parts of the day might be a bit more useful. For persistently cold sections, I might either sub for a puffy or augment with something like a down vest. If I didn’t take this, I’d carry my Ghost Whisperer, which works but is not beloved by me.
• Zpacks bag might get swapped for an EE Conundrum- the Zpacks worked in NorCal and OR for me this year, and I like a lot about it, but it’s definitely not the warmest bag and I remain convinced that their ratings are more optimistic than a lot of other manufacturers. Obviously, there’s nothing stopping me from just getting a Zpacks 10* bag, but I think I want to go back to treated/lower FP down, since I did feel like the loft of the Zpacks was more easily compromised compared to other quilts/bags I’ve used.
• Tyvek vs. Polycryo- Poly is too easy for me to move around when I toss/turn and I like being able to tell where the sheet ends and the ground begins. It will be a struggle, but I’ll find a way to bear that extra 1.8oz.
• Going no-cook- this is relatively new for me (and might not stick), but I’ve looooooved the simplicity thus far.
• Might pick up a bigger hanging bugnet for OR if warranted- bugs were basically nonexistent for me there this year, but I think I just got lucky wit the seasons (and probably the smoke, although there’s nothing “lucky” about that). I used a bivy under the tarp in 2017, so it’s a new concern.
• If there’s another heavy snow year, I’m probably going to switch to my Circuit for the Sierra to have the higher capacity and proper suspension for the bear can and snow gear (and probably augmented insulation).

[John Rowan]

*early May START

Jeez, I’m not showing a lot of confidence here.

[Arthur]

I’m curious why you don’t count your phone as weight on your list? What’s the difference between in my pocket and in my pack?

[John Rowan]

For me, it’s a more useful metric when planning out gear with frameless packs, since the actual load in the pack is much more significant (i.e. what’s going to have to be handled by the suspension/shoulders/etc.). I get the whole trend of people carrying a ton of stuff in their pockets to lower their “base weight” (which I expect is more prevalent for online lists than it is in real life), but not really why I’m doing that here. It’s become less of an issue, since I’m not really spending as much time as I used to at the upper end of what might be wise to load these packs with, but it’s just how I’ve always done it.

I’ll also sometimes zero out the weight of electronics and similar when comparing to other lists, not because it magically makes the weight disappear off of my pack, but because it allows for a more apples to apples comparison with what other people are carrying and makes it a little bit easier for me to look at what other people are doing and what I can learn from that. (I.e. if someone’s carrying a 7.5 base and I’m carrying 10, but with 2lbs of battery/camera gear, I’m much more interested in seeing where they’re saving that last .5.)

If I was dealing with FSO weight (not a metric I’ve ever bothered with, but still), it’d be a different story. I’m also not counting my clothes, shoes, poles, etc. in base weight, despite having to carry those things up the mountain as well. At the end of the day, I usually do up these lists in a way that’s conducive to my own planning/thinking, so I just go with what works for that mindset.

[Arthur]

If frameless, that makes sense.  Sorry to sidetrack the main topic.

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