Summer Desert Gear List

Rationale for Selected Gear

Backpack. In very hot weather, less gear is needed to support a backpacking trip. Carrying lots of water along with this minimal gear creates a low volume, dense load. A frameless pack with a compression strap system that can reduce the pack’s diameter from top to bottom could possibly be configured to carry this type of load comfortably. A ¾ or full-length sleeping pad would be required to form a virtual frame in conjunction with the compression straps. A medium to low volume, internal framed pack can carry a low volume, dense load comfortably and allows more creativity in sleeping pad selection.

My backpack choice: the Gossamer Gear Mariposa. The Mariposa that I used was a prototype weighing 16.8 ounces (476 g) including a pair of removable carbon fiber stays (0.8 oz/23 g). It had a silnylon body and 210 denier nylon ripstop bottom. I used the optional closed cell foam pads in the shoulder straps and hipbelt which, along with the stays, formed a very comfortable suspension system at loads up to 28 pounds (12.7 kg).

Trail accessible water. I prefer a hard sided bottle with a twist open sport top for my ready access, on-the-trail water source. A twist open top lets me drink without danger of dropping the bottle cap, and it’s quicker to use than taking off a cap. A bottle that needs to be removed from a pocket in order to drink is not as convenient as a bladder and hydration hose on the trail, but the off-trail advantages make up for it, including easier clean up at home. I find hard sided bottles easier to fill in creeks or standing water sources, because they don’t collapse when held under water. A screw top is easier to close and less failure prone than a zip top and there is no bite valve to drag in the untreated water. The ground in the desert is often dry and dusty and the bite valve on the end of the hydration hose can get caked with dust when the pack or hydration bladder is on the ground.

My choice: a 1-liter Aquafina water bottle. It has a wide mouth for easy filling and is rounded for easy removal from and return to a mesh side pocket while on the move. A Gatorade sport top threads perfectly onto the top of the Aquafina bottle.

Water storage. I calculated I’d need 2 gallons (8 L) of water capacity for my Grand Canyon trip. Multiple containers, rather than a single bladder, allow for load shifting as water volume decreases, and create a margin of safety in case a water container leaks or is damaged. Prior to my trip, Tonto Trail backpackers reported water bladder damage from ravens and small animals.

Hard sided water bottles and stiff bladders, such as Platypus or Nalgene (as opposed to a soft bladder such as a water sack), will hold their shape even if partially empty (top off half empty bladders with air) so pack volume can be maintained. Also, weight can be more evenly distributed UP along the pack’s backpanel, rather than sagging to the bottom of the pack.

Wide mouth bottles are easier to fill. Round bottles enter and exit mesh side pockets easier than Platypus bladders or Nalgene canteens with their sharp bottoms which can catch on the mesh. A rectangular gallon jug can be loaded long side against the pack’s backpanel, keeping the load closer to the back than can be done with a square or round bottle.

My choice for the remaining 7 liters of water storage: a Martinelli’s Apple Juice 1-gallon jug (5.9 oz/167 g), and two, 1.5-liter Aquafina water bottles (2.1 oz/60 g each). The gallon jug and one 1.5-liter bottle side by side were about the same width as the pack and fit nicely in the bottom of the pack.

The second 1.5-liter bottle went in the pack’s long left side pocket and the 1-liter bottle with sport top in the right hand, short pocket for easy access. I shifted water as I emptied bottles. When the first 1.5-liter bottle was empty, I brought the full 1.5-liter bottle out of the pack. I used my clothing and shelter filled stuff sack to maintain the shape of the pack by stuffing it next to the gallon jug where I’d removed the 1.5-liter bottle. Digging into the bottom of the pack to pull out the water bottle was a painless process because there was so little else in the pack. When I eventually emptied the gallon jug, it went back on top of the rest of the pack contents.

Sun protection clothing. I stay cooler and maintain my energy better if I’m covered in lightweight sun protection clothing rather than wearing shorts and a tank top. My favorite sun protection fabric is used in Solumbra (www.sunprecautions.com) clothing. It is very lightweight, feels soft, and is so finely woven that it offers some protection from mosquitoes and does not snag on thorny brush. Other sun protection fabrics I’ve used have a stiffer, less soft feel.

My choice for pants: Solumbra Active Pants (6.3 oz/179 g). A very simple design of elastic waistband and two side slant pockets with a baggy, non-binding fit.

My choice for shirt: Rail Riders Adventure shirt (6.1 oz/173 g). It has a very simple pullover design and weighs less than other sun shirts I’ve tried (including the Solumbra shirts). I chose it over a Rail Riders Eco-mesh shirt because the button cuffs add enough length so that the sleeves cover my wrists when I’m using hiking poles.

I’ve sun burned the backs of my hands hiking with poles, so I use Solumbra Hand Guards (0.7 oz/20 g) to protect them. The Hand Guards are semi-rectangular pieces of sun protection fabric with a hook and loop wristband and elastic loops for the thumb and fingers (two loops for the four fingers). I don’t use the thumb loop with hiking poles.

I chose the Outdoor Research Sahara Cap (2.7 oz/77 g) for its full coverage cape. The cape and hat covered most of my face and neck while still allowing me plenty of peripheral vision. It is vented to allow even a slight breeze in to cool you off. I also wore a bandana around my neck to soak up a little sweat and to cover any areas of my neck that could be exposed when the cape on my hat was blown around. See my review of the hat here.

Sunscreen. I use sunscreen on the backs of my hands, even with the Hand Guards since they don’t cover my thumbs when I’m using hiking poles, and on my face, lips, and ears. A stick that can be used on skin and lips is convenient and less messy than hand applied sunscreen.

My choice: Banana Boat Faces Plus, SPF 30 sunscreen in a stick.

Shoes. Shoes need to provide foot support and protection from rocky trails. Lightweight footwear will not drag you down on long uphills. Ventilated footwear will help your feet stay a little cooler than full fabric shoes. Trails in the desert are often covered with gravel and when going downhill, the shoes will slip on the gravel. Because of this, shoe soles need treads that will provide traction. A defined edge at the heel interface helps to halt slides on gravel.

My choice: Salomon Tech Amphibians. They provide enough support and protection from stones while being very lightweight, 24.2 ounces (686 g) for the pair. The sides are mesh and I can actually feel the breeze against my instep when hiking in them. They have a nice lugged sole and there is a defined heel edge. I considered hiking in sandals so the tips of my toes had nothing to bump against on the downhill portion of the trek but I decided to go with the Tech Amphibians because of their soft insole, which the sandals I was considering did not have. I find that my feet get less sore if there is some cushioning under them.

Socks. I chose ankle height socks with mesh tops, SmartWool Ultra Light RBX, 1.1 ounces (31 g) per pair. Ankle height because I’d be on trails and didn’t expect to be pushing through prickly brush, and mesh tops for some natural cooling. Also, I’d save a few grams of weight over my normal crew height socks. These socks are not slippery like some wool socks I’ve used, so they helped to keep my toes from jamming against the fronts of my shoes on the descent into the Canyon.

Poles. I chose the Gossamer Gear Lightrek poles (4.4 oz/125 g for the pair) since they are the lightest poles I know of and I’d have to be swinging them at the end of the trip when coming up out of the Canyon. They supported my weight hiking down into the Grand Canyon flawlessly.

Sleep system. The desert can be breezy at night and grit blows everywhere. Evening temperatures can be so warm it is difficult to sleep, yet a 30 degree (17 C) drop in temperature overnight is common. A desert sleep system should allow cooling breezes in when it’s warm, protect from blowing grit, and block the wind and provide warmth when it cools down. Of course it needs to be very lightweight too.

My choice: A Design Salt silk mummy liner (4.3 oz/122 g) and a Quantum Vapr Bivy without bug netting from Bozeman Mountain Works (7 oz/198 g). The silk liner provided a bit of warmth, kept some of the grit off, and allowed breezes in. When it cooled down, I used the silk liner inside the bivy. Another bivy choice would have been the Equinox Ultralite Mummy Bivi, however, I appreciated the hood on the Vapr Bivy for a bit of added warmth and more protection from blowing grit.

Pad. Desert ground is usually packed down hard in areas where there are established camps. I’m a side sleeper prone to sore hips and hike better the next day if I have a little more cushion than a closed cell foam pad provides. A sleeping pad also provides insulation from the hot ground.

My choice: the lightest self-inflating sleeping pad available, the TorsoLite (10.6 oz/301 g), and a 1.4 ounce sheet of 1/16″ (40 g, 1.6 mm) closed-cell foam to put under my legs (18″ x 32″/46 x 81 cm). The foam provided some ground insulation for my legs and enough padding so I didn’t notice the gravel under them. I also used the foam in the pack’s pad pocket to keep my back from feeling the stays and to insulate me from hot rocks during short rest breaks from hiking. I used the TorsoLite inside the pack to maintain volume (by inflating it) as the food bag got smaller.

Shelter. Although, the chances of rain were extremely low, I wanted a shelter that could also provide some shade in an emergency. I chose the Bozeman Mountain Works SpinPoncho “T” since it is very light (6.2 oz/176 g) and could serve double duty as a poncho in the rare event of needing to hike in the rain. An even lighter shelter option would have been the Spin Tarp X at 4.75 ounces (135 g).

Tent Stakes. I don’t normally take along tent stakes in the desert because: (1) the ground is often rock hard about an inch below the surface, or conversely, so sandy that stakes won’t hold, and (2) the chances of needing to erect a shelter are slim. I depend on the plentiful rocks to stake out my tarp.

Guylines. When using rocks to stake out a tarp, an adjustable knot such as the tautline hitch at the guyline ends is handy to accommodate different sized rocks. Guylines that hold knots easily are required.

My choice: Kelty Triptease (1.0 oz for 50’/28 g for 15 m)

Stove. Hot food is not needed or desired for hot weather desert hiking. However, I prefer the consistency of cooked food for dinner after eating uncooked food all day. I wanted the lightest stove and fuel set up that could heat water for rehydrating home dried food. Esbit solid fuel tablets are very light – 0.5 ounces (14 g) of fuel and container (one tablet) is enough to easily boil 2 cups (0.5 L) of water in hot weather.

My choice: the bottom 1/4 inch (0.64 cm) of a V-8 juice can to hold the fuel tablet and reflect some heat towards the pot, pot support/wind screen made from the top 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) of a Vienna sausage can, and Snowpeak 600 titanium cup with foil lid. Stove and windscreen weighed 0.5 ounces (14 g), cup and lid 2.9 ounces (82 g), fuel for two dinners, 1.0 ounce (28 g).

Food storage. There are not many trees in the desert. Those you do find are often small and thorny and hard to hang a food sack from. For most desert hiking, I take an odor proof sack (Watchful Eye Designs O.P. Sak) and leave my food on the ground inside the sealed sack at night. However, since there were reports of ravens and small animals chewing into anything that was plastic whether or not it had food in it, I decided to still use an O.P. Sak and hang it if there were trees available. I used a 0.1-ounce (3 g) plastic grocery sack over the O.P. Sak as the hanging bag to save some wear and tear on the O.P. Sak which is designed to be used as a liner within another sack. I did not have any incidents of animals chewing through my food sack using this method, although one small animal (squirrel?) woke me up leaning on my leg to look inside my, luckily, empty pack.

Light source. Hiking in the dark is a common strategy used in desert hiking to take advantage of the cooler temperatures at night. A light that leaves both hands free to break camp and use trekking poles is needed.

My choice: a Princeton Tec Scout headlamp (1.0 oz/28 g) with headband removed. I clipped it to my hat to break camp and to my waistband for night hiking.

Chair. A chair is definitely a personal preference of mine. I don’t normally take one along, but figured if I was going to have to sit out the hottest part of the day, it would be nice to do so leaning back in a chair. I chose the Therm-a-Rest Lite 20 Chair Kit (10.3 oz/292 g).

A complete gear list follows. Some examples of brands and models/styles are listed below for reference only. They neither represent an endorsement of that particular product nor a suggestion that the product listed is the best choice in the context of any particular situation.