The Backpacking Light Podcast
The Backpacking Light Podcast explores the technology, gear, skills, and philosophy of backcountry wilderness travel through stories, interviews, and investigative reports.
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Latest Podcast Episodes
Episode 138 | Plan-Focus-Trust
Learn the Plan–Focus–Trust framework and discover how preparation removes fear, presence builds clarity, and trust turns small wins into lasting confidence – a mindset for wilderness travel and life goals.
Episode 137 | The Risk Control Continuum
Learn how to manage backcountry risk using the Risk Control Continuum framework: use hazard triggers, control layers, and field tools like the HEAT and ECG checklists to detect drift, make better decisions, and stay safe in the backcountry.
Episode 136 | Fringe Season Layering
Debunk wicking myths, optimize thermoregulation with hydrophobic base layers & utilize shell layers effectively to help with fringe season layering in the backcountry.
Episode 135 | Field Notes – The Metabolic Cost of Bushwhacking
Understand how brush work, impedance work, and hazard work explains the true metabolic cost of bushwhacking and how resistance, rhythm, and stability impact energy.
Episode 134 | Sleep Quality in the Backcountry
Disrupted backcountry sleep affects recovery, judgment, and safety. Learn how altitude, stress, and gear impact rest, and discover strategies for better sleep.
Episode 133 | Human Waste Management
In episode 133 of the Backpacking Light podcast, we challenge traditional cathole practices, advocating for pack-out systems in alpine, desert, and high-use areas based on science and LNT ethics.
Episode 132 | Satellite Messenger Weather Forecasts
In Episode 132 of the Backpacking Light Podcast we talk about satellite messenger weather forecasts.
Episode 131 – Ultralight First Aid Kit Strategies
Learn to design ultralight first aid kits for backcountry travel, matching modular kits (Overnight, Weekend, Expedition) to trip demands. Avoid errors, maintain your kit, and understand the medical rationale for each.
Episode 130 | Bivy Sack Camping
Discover Ryan’s discreet bivy sack camping methodology for alpine environments, encompassing essential gear, requisite skills, and a critical analysis of tent practicality. Embrace the experience of open-air slumber.
Episode 129 | Field Notes – The Limits of Wilderness Minimalism
Ryan Jordan examines wilderness minimalism under stress, using physiology, psychology, and Stoic philosophy to analyze five high-risk scenarios.
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