Simplifying a kit by taking as few things as possible

[Nick Gatel]

I didn’t mean to sound critical in my previous post. It was, as @jscott pointed out, in the spirit of the OP:

a kit that contains as few items as possible is very satisfying because there’s fewer things to keep track of…

Not taking certain things, doesn’t mean there is no contingency for the unexpected. For example, as mentioned, I don’t take a pack liner. But my rain gear is a small Cuben poncho that will keep the pack dry in a downpour. Point being that fewer things works better when things can be multi-purpose. Plus the Poncho weighs less than a rain jacket.

Unlike Ryan, I take a small first kit that weighs around 1 ounce. I hike mostly in deserts with Catclaw, cacti thorns/spines, yuccas and the like are things to deal with.

I hike for solitude and enjoyment of the land I am walking through. So reading material (paper or digital), music, or any other type of entertainment are not a consideration. The hike is my entertainment. For other folks, these items are apparently standard fare, which is really up to each individual. I couldn’t care less about what is in someone’s pack.

What does matter is staying warm, dry, and safe — plus enjoying the trip. Doesn’t take much gear for me to hit all four of these objectives.

Here’s a trip report I wrote for my kids over a decade ago with a minimal kit. It is on my blog. It is a longish article that my kids enjoyed, but it contains details on all the gear I used.  I think it meets the spirit of Ryan’s OP.

This kit was pretty much my go-to for several years in 3-season weather, except I usually brought along a Patagonia Houdini too.

Anza Borrego Trip (2011)

I pretty much operate the same today with different gear. The pack and quilt I wore out a long time ago. The beer can pot and Caldera Cone have been replaced with a Ti-Tri Caldera System for most trips. The Hexamid replaced with a Six Moons Designs Deschutes CF shelter for a little more coverage. Still using the zPacks poncho. Polycro for a floor. Getting old has forced me to use a NeoAir. My luxury is a GSI Infinity Cup at 3.5 oz. that allows me to enjoy a large cup of coffee or hot chocolate while my water is boiling for my meals.

 

[Murali C]

Everyone should hike their own hike of course. The problem I have with such lists are – they don’t seem to be very accurate or meant for 1 or 2 days utmost or makes too many assumptions that will not hold on a trip.

I would call the poncho a pack cover….a 1 oz pack liner is doing the same thing…but both serve the purpose of protecting contents from rain. I didn’t see any such thing in Ryan’s list as other things which I mentioned.

But not taking a phone or Inreach seems silly. I don’t take my phone on my training hike because I know the route extremely well and I know I will be back in couple of hours and there are tons of other folks around. Though I keep telling myself I should take it as trees keep falling on our trail all the time – and we have copperhead and rattlers and have come close to stepping on them a few times.

I think the number of people who don’t take a phone or inreach is a small minority.  You don’t have to use it at all. It is there for an emergency like car insurance and health insurance. Saying somehow it enhances your backpacking by not carrying these is inexplicable to me.

Not using your phone for navigation to me is like taking Rand Mcnally maps for road trips. Sure, it will work. But why? And I am sure you use Garmin/phone for road trip navigation – but, hey, when it comes to backpacking, you will not use phone for navigation for some higher purpose….oh well!

[Terran Terran]

FAK: Uncle Bill’s Silver Gripper. Small roll of medical tape. Paper towel. Ibuprofen. B complex. Electrolytes . Sport top on water bottle. Saltine crackers.
When I hiked with a dog , in the desert, I’d bring pliers in case they got into the cholla.

“If you build it, they (he) will come” as I often misquote Ray Kinsella AKA Kevin Costner.
The phone apps are commercializing what once were protected places. There’s fewer and few paths to be discovered or rediscovered . Trash accumulates and artifacts disappear.

Why would I follow my phone down a trail when I could drive on the freeway and see the same sights?

[Bill Budney]

B complex

That’s an excellent suggestion that I have never seen mentioned. +1

[John S.]

Putting Ryan’s gear into an essentials list.

medical- ?

shelter- tarp, rain jacket

fire- stove piezo ignition

hydration- water bottle, filter

communication- ?

navigation- ?

nutrition- covered

insulation- jacket, sleeping bag/pad

sun protection- hoody, long pants

tools- ? (could cut with trowel)

[Nick Gatel]

But not taking a phone or Inreach seems silly.

 

I think the number of people who don’t take a phone or inreach is a small minority.  You don’t have to use it at all. It is there for an emergency like car insurance and health insurance. Saying somehow it enhances your backpacking by not carrying these is inexplicable to me.

I’m not advocating that smart phones or other location devices should be left at home. That is a personal decision. I realize that smart phones can be very versatile. I have tinkered with an iPhone on a few trips.

What I am advocating, in the theme of the OP, is a term I call “what-ifisms” that can complicate gear choices. If we worry about all kinds of “what-ifs” we might infect our mindset. If someone thinks they need a piece of equipment to stay safe and they don’t bring it on a trip, they might cloud their trip by thinking “what if ” something happens and I didn’t bring <gear item>.

Most of my trips are in areas that do not have cell phone coverage. This is by design. Not that I want to avoid cell towers — I want to avoid other people — cell coverage often means more people.

Not using your phone for navigation to me is like taking Rand Mcnally maps for road trips. Sure, it will work. But why?

Because phones have itty-bitty screens. A USGS Topo map is around 20 inches by 28 inches. I mostly hike off-trail (again no people) and the large maps make it easier to view a large area to see what is ahead, and I can view small details that might be important in determining whether I should go forward or around, etc.

A lot of people who use phones for navigation also bring map & compass as a backup. Backups are redundant and contrary to Ryan’s theme of “Simplifying a kit by taking as few things as possible.” Yes, a phone can quickly tell you exactly where you are within a few feet — most of the time — but the purpose of navigating with a map and compass is not get lost in the first place.

[Glen L]

“Because phones have itty-bitty screens. A USGS Topo map is around 20 inches by 28 inches. I mostly hike off-trail (again no people) and the large maps make it easier to view a large area to see what is ahead, and I can view small details that might be important in determining whether I should go forward or around, etc.”

 

I hear you. That was my thinking back when I had good eyesight. I did pinpoint nav off of USGS quads every day of a thirty year career, countless missions, except for the 119 mapping missions in Mexico with their 1:50000 topo, not as good as USGS. Now is different, legally blind but have okay peripheral vision. I’m an off trail junkie. The larger size phone I’m using has the same USGS quads and they really are no different on an OLED screen than paper though I can zoom in or out depending on whether a wide view or detail is needed. The backlighting really helps me see what I need. Cross country travel in the mountain/canyon terrain is possible and exciting.

I’m not advocating that everyone needs to take a phone but they don’t turn me into a zombie where I follow it anywhere. Most of the day I’m not looking at it or using it and am able to have complete focus on the here and now. It does in fact bring me into the natural world with its intimate macro views of worlds within worlds that very few even know exist. They have very good camera systems now.  I like to know every plant and animal in my wilderness. The phone system makes this possible.

 

“but the purpose of navigating with a map and compass is not get lost in the first place.”

 

True and that is why nav is #1 on the 10 Essentials, very important, but a wise man once said “sometimes you have to get lost to find anything at all.”

[David Gardner]

I know I’m a dinosaur, but I always take a compass and waterproof paper USGS topo map of my overall route even when I’m taking a phone and a rescue beacon (just upgraded my iPhone, so probably not even rescue beacon anymore). It can’t break if I take fall, or run out of juice, and it can show me various bail-out routes even miles away in case of wildfire, which is pretty much a risk anywhere you go these days, unless it was a place that recently burned. I was amazed when both coastal and Sierra redwood forests burned. Dumbfounded when the desert did recently. Anywhere.

To me, taking a phone or inreach but not a paper map is sort of like “I have air bags in my car, so I don’t need a seat belt.”

[jscott]

“iphones have itty bitty screens”. No kidding! Seriously folks, try a paper map sometime. no need to pack a separate battery to charge it either.

A mere twenty years ago, and for all of human history before that, people went into the wilderness without their phones, and survived.

[Murali C]

Well, I admire you folks who don’t take phones or inreach. Good for you! Nick/Jscott – clearly you guys are unique and think differently – not necessarily good/bad or correct/incorrect – but different :-)

Here is a lighter pack for Jupiterhikes on his PCT thru – he is minimalist (uses a 1/8th torso foam pad) and PCT as you know it is 2650 miles!

https://lighterpack.com/r/ub8e5c

This is a 6.5 lbs base.

I just think the 5lb base listed here works for very very specific trips – not for a majority of trips. The 6.5 lbs base weight works well for a majority of trips. You can look at gear lists for others like Darwin or Homemade Wanderlust and you will find their base weights in the 7.5 lb to 10 lb range – both triple crowners. Obviously these folks are hiking large distances and would want to minimize their base weights and they are all much more than the 5 lb base.

[Matthew / BPL]

I like to take a digital camera with me. I have one that weighs about six ounces, takes great photos, and it’s waterproof. Tons of storage and great battery life. I can store some reference books and even maps and GPS on it! Great backup in case I lose my paper map or want a second opinion on my location because I’m feeling uncertain regarding my location.

That is just how I do it.

[John S.]

Matthew, what camera do you use? Sounds interesting.

[Matthew / BPL]

iPhone 14 Pro

[Murali C]

ha ha…..I see what you are doing Mathew…instead of getting flak from jscott and Nick for taking a phone – you are just calling it a camera….sneaky :-) What should we call the inreach? :-)

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