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Ultralight solo back packing for comfort minded middle aged woman?


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  • #3429782
    Anne W
    BPL Member

    @queenkitty

    So a year ago I took my first back packing trip in about 20 years.  Researched a little, but didn’t think my 5’5′ built like bull frame required ultralight.  Got a pack big enough for a much longer haul (embarrassed to admit this, 70 L Gregory Deva – lovely pack starting at 5.5 lbs) a cook kit at 16 oz, my classic Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight…. All in probably a good 30lbs or more.  Felt like a rock star carrying that monster 30 miles (2 nights, not that masochistic) but 2 weeks later shoulder and neck jacked up.  So now I’m trying to get down to a base weight of 10 pounds.  Live in AZ c. hot days, cold nights and critters that are not going to sleep in a tarp with me.  Looking at Z packs arc blast (would prefer the Dyneema fabric), a 20 deg rated down quilt, and a tent like Nemo Hornet or Big Agnes UL 1…  Any thoughts for a humbled UL novice?

    #3429807
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Welcome to the Enlightenment.

    Cheers

    #3429809
    Justin Baker
    BPL Member

    @justin_baker

    Locale: Santa Rosa, CA

    I would say a good rule is buy once, cry once. Instead of buying budget items only to upgrade later, focus on buying the best you can afford which will save you money overall.

    Focus on the big items – your pack, your shelter, sleeping bag, and sleeping pad. For your environment, a big puffy down jacket lets you stay warm in the evenings and mornings around camp with minimal weight (down has a very high warm to weight ratio). Get a very ultralight rain jacket. It won’t be as durable as heavier options, but in a desert climate it won’t be used much. Minimize the amount of extra clothing you bring. I do one set of hiking clothes and one set of comfy clothes for camp and sleeping. Get a lightwieght water treatment system, the pump filters you see most backpackers using are very heavy. Look at the sawyer mini or steripen. For cook gear you can really downsize, a 800 ml pot is sufficient for most people and the tiniest stoves are sufficient for that pot size. You can get a comfy sleeping pad that is very light, just be prepared to spend extra.

    Ultralight adventure equipment makes some super popular packs that are worth looking at. The circuit is a popular all around choice.

    #3429819
    James Marco
    BPL Member

    @jamesdmarco

    Locale: Finger Lakes

    Well, you must have some idea of what you need out there. There are many ULers on this list. Usually, they are SULers that got distracted by comfort or Comfort Packers.

    1) Pack: Get no more than a 40L pack that weighs no more than 16oz. Your options will limit themselves. But, be aware that such a pack will require yearly maintenance. “Bomber” packs usually start at around 24oz, and go up in weight from there, and will commensurately require less fixing. Balance between overload capacity, weight and comfort…always a personal decision.
    2) Sleeping Gear: A Quilt weighs less, but requires a good pad. An example would be a 20 degree Revalation quilt and a Neoair Xlite. Again, UL gear will require more delicate handling, but weighs less. I usually stick to a set of long johns, a down jacket (for sleeping comfort & around camp,) a good thick, but loose, set of wool socks for sleeping gear. A 40F down bag with a NightLite pad and sleeping gear used to be my standard. This weighs in at just over three pounds. A quilt with sleeping gear might save about 7oz overall.
    3) Shelter: Get a good tent with a “silnylon” fly. You cannot recoat polyvinyl flies after a couple uses! Around 32-40oz weight. Of course, you will be limited in options. Try TarpTent.

    OK, soo much for the “Big Three” and we are at around 7 pounds. This leaves 3 pounds for additional comforts: water (bottles and treatment,) cooking gear (stove, fuel bottle, windscreen, pot&top and spoon,) lighting, duct tape, bear line, ditty bag(rock sack,) waterproof bag(for sleep gear,) knife, compass, map, bug dope, misc stuff.

    Note that I usually figure around 1.1 pounds of food per day. Water weighs in at 1 pound per pint (around half liter.) So, I usually carry about 20 pounds leaving for a week out. But, food, fuel and water is not counted in base weight. Generally, you should be less than 15pounds for two nights out and Comfortable!

    #3429821
    JCH
    BPL Member

    @pastyj-2-2

    …a good rule is buy once, cry once.

    Ahhhh…if it were only that simple :)

    The most valuable, and expensive, thing you will ever own is experience.  You will purchase that experience with many different currencies…time, energy, pain, dollars…and you may purchase it more than once.  Many times I have wondered how much money I would still have if I could go back and un-buy all the gear I have tried, rejected and sold.  But that journey is the very thing that informed my current gear, methods and attitude.

    I’m convinced that much of the joy in the transition from Traditional to UL backpacking lies in the journey…learning and improving is a noble and intoxicating goal.  The happiness and sense of accomplishment realized when your new gear, methods and attitude actually work is indescribable.

    #3429824
    Bob Moulder
    BPL Member

    @bobmny10562

    Locale: Westchester County, NY

    For desert hiking, water weight is always a huge consideration…

    If you must frequently carry 6 or 7 liters of water — 14-16 lb right there, minimum, when containers are included — all your pack calculations for suspension, volume and pockets are going to be strongly influenced by that factor.

    #3429831
    Catherine Harley
    BPL Member

    @cathyjc

    Locale: Scotland

    Hi, another middle aged female here :-)  I have been on the journey you have just embarked on, over the last 10 years. I live in Scotland so my particular gear choices will be different from what will suit you, however a few pointers:-

    I agree buy once, buy wise……….but knowing your own ‘comfort limits’ are personal and a matter of experience.  With a body which is not young anymore comfort is important. SUL might be a bit too much ‘endurance’.

    I use a 50liter pack. Leaves space for extra food (longer trips) and for bulkier/extra kit when the weather isn’t so nice (read winter). Comfort is paramount.

    Sleeping mat. I tied a 3/4 size and switched back to a full length …..a good nights sleep is invaluable. I’m not the only  ‘oldie’ I know who has made this decision. Inflatables are nice :-0.

    Sleeping bag/Quilt.  Women generally sleep 10c cooler than men so adjust the ratings of sleep gear accordingly. This is one area where the guys always underate what women will need.

    Clothes – as few as you can get away with……….hikers end up smelly anyways.

    Other stuff. Lots of places to “minimize” at relatively low cost.

    Cathy

     

    #3429833
    Matthew / BPL
    Moderator

    @matthewkphx

    Anne, I’m live in Phoenix and hike in Arizona (mostly up on the rim, also the Supes) and California (Sierra Nevada).

    I’ve got my pack down to a 8.5ish pound base weight and that includes a large first aid kit and shelter that protects me from the creepy crawlies. I’d be happy to get together with you some time and show you what gear I carry.

    Bob is 1000% correct about water. You need to decide if you are going to do hikes that require large water carries or not. I’ve got two packs, a GG Kumo for when I’m carrying 15 or 18# total pack weight and a ULA Catalyst for when I’m carrying a lot of water or a larger bear can with a week’s worth of food. If I *had to* have only one pack it would be the ULA…

    other gear that works well for me:

    • SMD Deshutes tarp
    • MLD bivy (bug or superlight)
    • NeoAir pad
    • Toaks Esbit cookset

    I strongly recommend you watch all of Mike Clelland’s videos and buy his Ultralight Backpacking book. This is a good video to start with: https://youtu.be/fnv9ZrfdX8Y

    #3429836
    Bri W
    BPL Member

    @bwrightback

    If you’re leaning toward the Arc Blast, it might be the easiest to transition to, coming from a heavier framed pack.  It’s technically an UL framed pack, afterall. Either that or a Hyperlite Mountain Gear pack, from what I hear.  I’m also a 5’5″ woman, my torso is 16″. I’m 28 but I have the back of an 80-year-old. I had to completely transition to UL after a back surgery in order to keep backpacking, so I didn’t get the option of slowly dropping my pack weight. Had I been able to, I would’ve done what others are advising you: change your Big 3 first. My only additional advice there is to buy your pack last and make sure you’ve reduced your base weight first (and as others have mentioned, take into account your water weight). If your total weight exceeds the pack’s limits, you’re not going to be any more comfortable with an UL pack than you were with your original set up. I had an Arc Blast and loved it, but the frame didn’t sit right on my surgery scar, so I transitioned to a Vargo CF Ti-Arc for bear cannister hikes and a Zpacks Zero (basically a frameless Arc Blast) for most everything else. The Ti-Arc is definitely the most comfortable of all packs I’ve tried, but it’s on the heavier side for UL, and it just barely fits my torso  Definitely make sure you measure your torso and waist accurately! Fortunately, ZPacks offers custom torso lengths for us shorter folks. :)

    Welcome to the world of UL! It’s fun!

    #3429837
    Link .
    BPL Member

    @annapurna

    Here is a LINK to a post I put out for new comers to look through, it has lots of links to articles, free videos and how to’s for people wanting to lighten up

    #3429844
    Greg Deitrick
    BPL Member

    @gld123

    Anne, I’m only months further along than you.  It has taken me a lot of time and effort to get down to/near a 10 lb. base pack weight.  It seems like it should have been easier – I’m not doing anything new or different.  Getting down to 15 or even 12 lbs base weight was relatively easy.  Getting from there to below 10 was hard for me.

    One frustration is that your gear needs to work for you and for your camping conditions.  Just copying someone else’s gear list just didn’t work for me.  I needed to figure out exactly how I was going to use the gear on the trail, judge whether it was likely to work in the conditions I was going to face, and compare the weight/performance of that option to other suggested options.

    I started by carrying a lot of water and using a hydration bladder.  If you can collect and treat water along the trail that is way lighter.  My current system is a 1 quart soda bottle for dirty water, a 1/2 quart soda bottle for clean water to drink while walking, a Sawyer Squeeze, and a backflush coupling so I can do that with the clean water bottle.  Cheap and light.  You can do the same thing with the Mini except with a bit different adapter for backflushing.  I top off the dirty water bottle at every opportunity; that takes only seconds.  I tried lots of ways to get a hydration system to work, but all of those options were more parts, more weight, more time, more complicated to use.  If water sources are few and far between, or you are doing a day hike and taking all the water you need from the trailhead, the relative disadvantages with using a hydration system are much less significant.  It did take me a bit to get comfortable with the idea of carrying dirty water, but after thinking things through and trying a couple of different setups it makes a lot of sense.  Many others prefer chemical treatment, but that doesn’t make much sense to me personally.  The filter weighs only a few ounces and easily removes the common stuff that is hardest to kill chemically.  It doesn’t remove viruses, but in developed countries those don’t seem to be much of a risk.

    Shelter options have also been a challenge to me.  I suggest two “reference” systems:  Six Moons Design Gatewood Cape, possibly with the SMD Serenity net tent, and the Zpacks Solplex.  The first consideration is whether poncho-type rain gear is appropriate for your trips.  If so, the Gatewood Cape or conventional poncho tarp will likely be the least weight (shelter + rain gear); add net tent or bivy for additional bug or rain protection if appropriate.  I’m going the poncho-tarp route and find that I am needing practice in the back yard to figure out exactly how to make it work.  If a poncho is not appropriate rain gear then the Solplex or competitive alternative will likely be a good choice.  This are light/minimalist reference points.  If you need more performance (space, robustness to nasty weather, convenience, etc.,) to be happy on the trail you will want to consider somewhat heavier options.  In the end you can compare your choice with the reference systems to evaluate what you are getting vs. what you are paying in cost and weight.

    I like the idea of having dedicated sleeping clothes in case its bedtime and my hiking outfit is wet and/or dirty so I still have something between my gunky skin and my down quilt.  But I found my “thin” clothes still weighed in at 1 lb.  I ordered very thin Thermasilk top & bottom to reduce that to under 8 oz.

    OK, that is my data dump FWIW.  Good luck.

    #3429892
    JCH
    BPL Member

    @pastyj-2-2

    FWIW, my current load hauler is a Granite Gear Blaze AC 60 size regular w/large hip belt. It weighs 47oz/2.9lbs and does really well carrying loads into the upper 40 lb range.  It’s affordable (~$200 if you shop around), durable and the fit can be dialed in via different sized belts and shoulder straps.

    All in all, I’m completely happy with it and considering bang-for-buck should it be lost or damaged would likely replace it with another.

    #3429895
    Katherine .
    BPL Member

    @katherine

    Locale: pdx

    I’m a solo middle-aged woman hiker, albeit from the PNW.

    I have a ULA pack and like it. I’m coveting an Seek Outside pack for trips when I need to carry more. For me this means some of my son’s stuff, for you it prolly means water. Another pack maker on my “curious” list, that folks here seem to like is Elemental Horizons.

    For shelters. If you’re on a silnylon budget Tarptent. I have not yet tried a Zpacks “plex” tent, but when my cuben fiber fund replenishes that’s at the top of the list.

    I’m an Enlightened Equipment fan-girl. A *Large* Neo-Air Xlite is my only big-ticket mainstream item – i need the width to side-sleep comfortably. For a stove if you want to go w/alcohol get a Trail Designs Caldera Cone, specifically Sidewinder Ti-Tri, w the starlyte stove option and an Evernew 900 or a Toaks pot. (Desert folk, not sure of alky v canister in that setting)

    Footwear – do you have something you love? It’s a highly personal one. I say a good fitting pack and good fitting footwear are my foundation for everything else.

    And a fun suggestion: As a woman you are socially allowed to wear dresses! Just got one and am LOVING it for hiking and backpacking. have the Columbia Freezer (marketed to fisherwomen) and want to try a Montbell.

     

    #3429904
    Kattt
    BPL Member

    @kattt

    Comfort minded here too and for me a hammock is as comfy as it gets. Having worked in the dirt for 20 + years I know about back pain and when I get the lay just right I can stretch out that compression enough overnight to help me for days.

    #3429910
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    I agree with the idea that you should buy the best gear you can afford.

    My problem lies in defining ‘best’ for me.

    I suspect the answer is ‘experience.’.

    Cheers

     

    #3429912
    Greg Deitrick
    BPL Member

    @gld123

    Comfort minded here too and for me a hammock is as comfy as it gets.

    As a reference point, I have an 11 ft hammock with bug screen out of 1.0 oz/sq yard Robic that is around 13 oz.  Dream Hammock used to offer this product but not anymore – too many customers weren’t understanding that the hammock needed to be handled with some care.  Mine is a DIY unit; they are not very difficult to make.

    #3429992
    victoria maki
    BPL Member

    @energizer

    Locale: Northern Minnesota

    Hi Anne.  I too am an older hiker.  Have been hiking for 20 years.   Over the years, I have lightened up by upgrading.  As one person said, get the best you can afford.  I don’t purchase jewelry, I spend my money on gear…;-) Anyway, Zpack has excellent quality and very good service.  The  front opening Dyneema  pack is, so far, my favorite pack.  My tent is a Big Agnes UL fly creek which is semi-free standing, which I think you would need in the desert.  Very light weight and roomy enough to keep your pack inside.  Unless you will be hiking in very cold weather, I would think a quilt would be just fine.  I live in northern Minnesota, so need a very warm down bag (also Zpack).  My stove is a beer can with a caldera cone set up.  I love my esbit tablets.  I only do freezer bag cooking so, if that works for you, can pair down to under 7 oz. including, a “big” Fold-A-Cup, titanium spoon, lighter (use your hat for a cozy).  As far as everything else goes, try to have things that will do double duty. Weigh everything.  As they say,  every ounce counts.  You’d be surprised how much you can get rid of or replace with lighter items.  Your knees will thank you…..Vicky

    #3429994
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    I’ll let you into a ‘secret’ about UL gear. While buying very light gear does matter, a lot of the time it is not what you take with you, but what you leave behind. All that ‘just in case’ gear and so on is the real damage. Gain confidence and learn to leave it behind.

    Cheers

     

    #3430006
    JCH
    BPL Member

    @pastyj-2-2

    …learn to leave it behind.

    +100

    And for those things you choose to take, make certain they are fit for the job…there are lot’s of “stupid light” options out there and often they are hard to identify until you actually try to use them in anger.

    • Tiny/thin stakes for a freestanding tent.
    • Too small/thin sleeping pad – cold and/or uncomfortable.
    • UL raingear for a trip you know will be very wet
    • Saving food weight by going all bars (yuk)…great way to not eat (and carry it back to the car).
    • Skimping on warm clothes on winter hikes.
      • related: taking a not-warm-enough bag to save a couple oz.

    After getting my base weight down to around 9 lbs, I added another 2 back because…you know…comfort!

     

    #3430033
    Diane Pinkers
    BPL Member

    @dipink

    Locale: Western Washington

    Hi, Anne, I’m also an older female hiker, now solo since my boyfriend has given up backpacking. I love the Zpacks Arc Blast, I think their new hip belt with the double pull closure from the side is excellent weight transfer for those of us that have hips.  They can carry water weight well, which I would think would be important for your area. Don’t skimp on weight when it comes to sleeping gear, pay attention to R value in your sleeping pad. And Purple Rain hiking skirts are the best!

    #3430036
    James holden
    BPL Member

    @bearbreeder-2

    for the pack (and shoes) the most important thing is FIT …

    all these recommendations that i or others on here make for you are absolutely and utterly useless unless the pack FITS

    it doesnt matter how light it is, how many features it has, or what cottage company it comes from if it doesnt fit you properly and carry the load you want

    theres many things on fit that one tends not to see on reviews or recommendations online … as everyone has a different fit and has their own biases
    a quick example is the seek outside packs have very wide shoulder strap spacing that may not work well with smaller folks …. and the osprey exos frame either fits you or it doesnt (you really need to try it in the store) … etc …

    this is why youre unlikely to simply “buy once” unless youre lucky enough (or try everything on exhaustively enough) to get it right the first time

    as others have said above …. following what fellow BPLers use doesnt mean you will get it “right” … you can to go out and try on everything in the store or from nice folks you meet as much as possible

    ;)

     

    #3430063
    James Marco
    BPL Member

    @jamesdmarco

    Locale: Finger Lakes

    “How to Choose Lightweight Backpacking Gear: A Process Model Based on Core Needs, Functional Systems, and Equipment Components” has a lot of good advice. It often helps to think of subsystems as units, but with most dual purpose gear, these lines are not as clear cut.

    Anyway, I use a 36L Murmur for short 1 week trips. I have used many different varieties of Murmurs from Gossamer Gear, From spinnaker to robic, but like the older 2012 version the best. With a 2 layer nightlite bad as a sit pad it is quite comfortable up to around 20 pounds. It has wide shoulder straps and a minimal hip belt. So, I never carry more than 10 pounds on my shoulders and hips.
    Start with three main bags packed horizontally in my pack:
    1 small Sea to Summit waterproof/compressable bag for my sleeping system components that need to stay dry. Basically all except my NeoAir.Tighten to 10″ long. (Long johns, sleeping socks, down jacket, 20F quilt.)
    1 waterproof food bag at about 13L for up to 10 nights out, and, bear/critter bag. Again set to about 10″ long.
    1 small ditty bag to hold odds and ends and also works as a rock sack for tossing a bear line. (4 ft out from all trunks, 3 ft down from a limb and 15 ft high from the ground.)
    I roll up my fleece around my glasses and pack this next to my ditty bag.
    I roll up a 17oz tarp into my grease pot and put this next to the ditty bag, too.
    I often pack a 14oz, 21in Sven saw packed diagonally next to my back.
    I then put fuel in my left hand pocket along with my wind screen.
    I put two 500ml water bottles in my right hand pocket.
    The steripen, map&compass, and misc junk(often fishing gear) go in the front pouch.
    Pack weight goes about 18-23 pounds, depending on my exact gear selections for a week to ten days out. A full tent at 32oz will add a bit more, but there is usually plenty of room in the pack. 36L is a LOT of space carrying only necessary gear.

    I don’t like fiddling with things, so this stuff is highly durable and highly reliable. And yes, it is all highly comfortable in the middle of the woods. The two pads keep me quite warm and comfortable. Yup, it could all be lighter. But I am too old to worry about the finer details.

    #3430131
    David Thomas
    BPL Member

    @davidinkenai

    Locale: North Woods. Far North.

    You’ve gotten lots of thoughts on the “the Big Three”.  And the “don’t pack your fears” is a free way to save 5 or more pounds.  Here are a bunch of low-hanging fruit on small items (which add up):

    The bottom 2″ of a gallon milk jug makes a lighter bowl/plate than anything else, is machine washable and free.

    The BRS-3000T at $14 from Gear Best is so small, so light (25 grams) and cheap, you might as well order one.  Even if you don’t go with canister stoves most of the time, everyone should have that option for emergency preparedness around the house if nothing else.

    If you haven’t gotten a UL cooking pot yet, you can use tin cans in the mean time.  They’re free at the recycling center.  See how small you can go and still prepare all the meals you want to do.  Then maybe you’d get a lighter, cheaper, smaller 750-ml aluminum or titanium pot instead of assuming you need 1.2 liters.  An old-style pot grabber will make that temporary tin can usable as you experiment with sizes.

    Travel-sized toiletries are still too big.  Repackaging in smaller continuers and finding professional samples of drugs and lotions can save many ounces.  Refill them between trips (get a syringe for injecting marinades into meats in the kitchenware aisle).

    Experiment with no-cook.  Not on a week-long, but on a weekend trip first.  It’s not for everyone, but if you want more time in your day and less weight on your back, that’s a free way to get there.

    #3430135
    Kelly G
    BPL Member

    @kellydt

    Middle aged woman here. As mentioned, experience with what works for you, is important. I’ll give you my current basic gear list: A Gossamer Gear The One tent (spinnaker). Gossamer Gear is offering this model for sale again. When I want a palace, I use the Big Agnes Fly Creek UL3. I love it so yes, I’d recommend the UL1. A friend has used the UL1 successfully for a few years now. I use a G4 Gossamer Gear pack. It has been extremely durable with careful use, and only needed small mends after 5 years of use. Packs small enough for short trips, and big enough for longer trips, considering all the insulation I need. I run cold, so use a 25* Zpacks bag, which is something like 21 ozs. (Had previously used an REI Sub Kilo, which was too cold for me). I bought the Zpacks a longer size than needed, with the idea of pulling the extra over my head, but found i didn’t like that idea much. I do however, use the extra space at my feet for storing my Sawyer filter and fuel canister, when there is a possibility of freezing at night. As cold as I run at night, I should have bought a 15* bag and maybe I wouldn’t have to carry extra insulation (Montbell puffy pants, sometimes with polartec synth pants, and I frequently wear my puffy coat to bed.) Exped UL7 pad. Wish I’d bought a warmer pad but I was trying to balance warmth and weight. Should have bought a higher r value. A 1/8th inch CF pad on top of it, however, generally kills the cold from beneath. If that’s not enough, my 4-section Z-rest pad, usually a sit-pad, works well underneath the torso.

    Experience and evolution of my comfort needs, has taken time, and money, over about 5 years now. However, my extra gear has proved useful as loaners and encouraging friends, neices, to give backpacking a try. Worth it, to have “good” spare gear.

    Kelly

    #3430210
    Anne W
    BPL Member

    @queenkitty

    Wow!  Lots of great advice!  Having fun researching gear and am restraining my self on making purchases.  I attended a class at REI – very cool as presenters were NOT trying to sell strictly REI gear.  Most of you don’t seem to be going with free standing tents, but I really like that option for AZ and am looking at Big Sky International, liking the Soul.  Not much recent reviews on that one, but like the free standing design while still just about 2 pounds.  Nice to hear some female feedback on the Z-packs – I think I need to go beefy enough to carry water weight.  See advice about not carrying too high capacity pack, but I think I can discipline myself not to add extra gear.  Thoughts on Arc Haul for short trips as well as long?

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