Gear Weight

[Oventoasted]

Other posters have covered most of it. Weight priorities, for me, would be as follows:

Save 2 pounds on your pack.
Save 1 pound on your shelter. You are coming in over a 2P ultralight tent with your system.
Save .5 pound on your med kit. Pare it down.
Save 1 pound on this "butt pack" thing....unless that's code for your sanitary items....
Save .75 pound on you bear spray, unless you are in bear country.
Save .5 pound on the kindle. Get the kindle app for your phone.
Save .75 pound on the cotton shirt and board shorts
Save 1.25 pounds on the thermal top and bottom.

That's almost 8 pounds, right there. However, you will need to add the following weights:

Light weight synthetic hiking short sleeve T
Light weight synthetic hiking long sleeve zip T
Possibly a light weight synthetic bottoms....but likely you won't need these hiking...

You are also underestimating the weight of your water. 1L of water weighs 2.25 pounds....
You also haven't factored in water purification, water storage, food storage(bag and rope for hanging) and waste disposal(how much of your food/paper waste stays with you...)

Don't count your poles....

It should not be terribly difficult to come in under 30 pounds, dry, including food. I've spent plenty of 1 week hikes on the AT in Georgia and NC with my dry pack weight at 25 pounds, food included.

You shouldn't need more than 5-7 days of food at any one time on a thru-hike, if you plan your re-supply carefully...

Good luck and have fun!

great feedback, thanks Scarebear!

[Oventoasted]

Made a nice little spread sheet that i can update as i go.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B-...nZEUzA0ZjMweWs

[RockDoc]

My friend, you shouldn't get the idea from the Internet that it's necessary or even preferred to go ultralight on the AT. You will sacrifice a lot of comfort (and safety) to carry a 20 lb pack vs a 35 lb pack. I started north from Springer on April 4, 2009 and watched very carefully what successful hikers were carrying as I went through GA and NC. Sure, I saw a few ultralight rigs, but everyone else had ~35 lb packs and still hiked 15-20 mile days without any problems.

As a veteran hiker who started in the 1960's with Army surplus packs and tents (pack weight 50 lbs+) I can say that the available ~35 lb lightweight equipment is already a huge improvement over what we carried a generation ago. Trimming everything drastically to the bone is possible, but why are you doing this? Are you physically weak? Is it really important to do big miles? Do you like being uncomfortable?

[Oventoasted]

My friend, you shouldn't get the idea from the Internet that it's necessary or even preferred to go ultralight on the AT. You will sacrifice a lot of comfort (and safety) to carry a 20 lb pack vs a 35 lb pack. I started north from Springer on April 4, 2009 and watched very carefully what successful hikers were carrying as I went through GA and NC. Sure, I saw a few ultralight rigs, but everyone else had ~35 lb packs and still hiked 15-20 mile days without any problems.

As a veteran hiker who started in the 1960's with Army surplus packs and tents (pack weight 50 lbs+) I can say that the available ~35 lb lightweight equipment is already a huge improvement over what we carried a generation ago. Trimming everything drastically to the bone is possible, but why are you doing this? Are you physically weak? Is it really important to do big miles? Do you like being uncomfortable?

Im not trying to sacrifice everything but, from what i've been reading more weight equals less miles you could achieved. Not trying to set any records but im not trying to go too slow. Plus if i have a lighter pack i like to think ill be more skipping up the trail than walking with all the spare energy.

[Puddlefish]

I got a lot of the same advice. Kept the down jacket, used it to stuff my pillow and in the evenings. Left my beloved lightweight fleece at home. It was a good decision. I rarely got cold hiking the AT, starting in the south in mid April. The fleece didn't compact all that well either. Wouldn't have used it much. You're starting much earlier, so you should have more cold weather layers than me. I sent home a lot of weight after finishing the big southern mountains. Even then I kept the down puffy and used it in combination with my summer quilt on some nights, and some nights still as a pillow.

I ended up keeping my Kindle, emailed Amazon a copy of the guide and stored that on the Kindle, in addition to the few books I read on my hike. Might be a way to send the AT Guide to a phone, but I'm not sure it would be readable. I didn't want to carry the weight of the entire guide, and mailing it piecemeal turned out to be kind of a pain. Never regretted the Kindle weight.

[Gritty]

I just looked at your spreadsheet. Even with changing your Blackbird, your "big 3" is just over 10 pounds. Because you never mentioned in your OP what you would be willing to change, or how much you would be willing to spend, I will just say this and leave it at that. My "big 3" comes in at 5 lbs 6 ozs. and will be under 5 lbs when I switch out my sleeping pad. My backpack (24 oz) is a ZPacks Arc Haul, my tent (21 oz) is a ZPacks Duplex and my sleeping bag (20 oz) is a Zpacks 20 degree bag. I will be switching my Expeed pad out for a lighter weight Therma rest. In no way do I feel I am sacrificing comfort or safety in using these Cuben Fiber and Dyneema products.

The only other thing I might add is try not to pack your fears, ( first aid kit, bear spray, etc), but, you also have hike your own hike, so take these responses like you would any other advise, keep what works for you and disregard the rest. Bottom line, get out there and hike. everything will fall into place, if you let it.

Thanks for serving.

"gritty" USAF 1974 - 1995

[Oventoasted]

I just looked at your spreadsheet. Even with changing your Blackbird, your "big 3" is just over 10 pounds. Because you never mentioned in your OP what you would be willing to change, or how much you would be willing to spend, I will just say this and leave it at that. My "big 3" comes in at 5 lbs 6 ozs. and will be under 5 lbs when I switch out my sleeping pad. My backpack (24 oz) is a ZPacks Arc Haul, my tent (21 oz) is a ZPacks Duplex and my sleeping bag (20 oz) is a Zpacks 20 degree bag. I will be switching my Expeed pad out for a lighter weight Therma rest. In no way do I feel I am sacrificing comfort or safety in using these Cuben Fiber and Dyneema products.

The only other thing I might add is try not to pack your fears, ( first aid kit, bear spray, etc), but, you also have hike your own hike, so take these responses like you would any other advise, keep what works for you and disregard the rest. Bottom line, get out there and hike. everything will fall into place, if you let it.

Thanks for serving.

"gritty" USAF 1974 - 1995

Made a new digital spread sheet in the link. have the weight down to 6 lbs 7 oz. Decided to ditch the pad too and if i have to sleep in a shelter ill just sleep on the floor. read that a lot of the hammock guys hanged the whole AT. If i end up being wrong then i guess ill have my buddy mail out some of the gear i left behind. im not too worried im sure ill end up changing my mind 10 more times before i head out, haha. got great advice from everyone but in the end ill see if it works out and if not i can always tweak.

that's a lot of Air Forcing btw!

[capehiker]

I strongly advise against an Ohm 2.0 until you can get your base weight below 15 pounds (closer to 10 is better). It's not really good past 25 pounds and with so many framed 2lb and change packs out there these days, the Ohm is obsolete.

[Oventoasted]

I strongly advise against an Ohm 2.0 until you can get your base weight below 15 pounds (closer to 10 is better). It's not really good past 25 pounds and with so many framed 2lb and change packs out there these days, the Ohm is obsolete.

really? it is rated up to 30 and my weight should be below 25 lbs when loaded. not sure if i can get my base weight down to 10 lbs though. i would need to cut out a lot of items i would like to bring. Would you suggest another type pack i can compare with? already looked at GG and ZPack.

[ObLX]

I don't get the whole "base weight" thing. Never did. You are not going to hike with your "base weight", are you? You are going to hike with complete gear, possibly even with food. Or water. Or poles. Or pegs. Maybe even with fuel to cook with you mad swine.


I'm 44 lbs all in.

I know that i'm wrong. I know that everybody else is right.
Be offended.

[Venchka]

I don't get the whole "base weight" thing. Never did. You are not going to hike with your "base weight", are you? You are going to hike with complete gear, possibly even with food. Or water. Or poles. Or pegs. Maybe even with fuel to cook with you mad swine.


I'm 44 lbs all in.

I know that i'm wrong. I know that everybody else is right.
Be offended.

Welcome to the club! There is no "Big 4" weight. There is no "Base weight."
There is only total on the trail and hiking weight. Including the hiker's weight.
Once upon a time, a few years ago, I weighed 185+ pounds. In September I parked at a trailhead in Colorado. I hoisted my pack with 3 liters of water and food for a week and off I went. Total on the trail moving weight: 185 pounds. Maybe a bit less. Trailhead elevation was 10,400'. Roughly 4,000' above the high point of the AT.
Wayne


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ggreaves]

You could shave a bit off the air pad by going with a smaller one. Or cutting down a CCf pad. Other then the smokies you won't really need one with the hammock is my understanding.

not true... you will be cold from underneath below 70F. keep the pad. you'll need it for shelters if you want to partake, anyway. Having an underquilt is the best setup but I use a pad also. Remember to under-inflate it a bit so it conforms to the hammock shape a little better. Also, a wider pad is nice too. I think the perfect pad for a hammock is the Klymit Static V-Lite insulated pad. Comfortable in a hammock, pretty compact and light for the insulation it provides.

[Puddlefish]

Base weight is kind of useful-ish to me, for my own purposes and use. My base weight isn't overly useful to you. Your baseweight isn't overly useful to me.

Baseweight minus pack weight, is useful if I want to buy a new pack. I might have an idea of how comfortable it will be before it starts sagging, and I add in the amount of food and water specific to a trip.

Weight is important, usefulness is important. We have to balance what works for us. We can use different of frames of references for different purposes. It's not the most important stat, it's not the least important.

[ggreaves]

1. For a medical kit I bring leukotape, toilet paper and polysporin. That's enough to treat any scrapes / cuts / blisters you might encounter and it weighs basically nothing. Anything more serious and I'd probably get off the trail and get medical attention.
2. Hammock setups are generally heavier / bulkier than UL tents for 1P shelters... BUT... you will be high and dry every night and sleep way more comfortably than on the ground (you probably already know this). Getting restorative sleep is huge when you're trying to string together multiple days of miles in a row. That extra weight is worth every ounce in my opinion. Keep your shelter.
3. Ace the bear spray (for the AT anyway). Bears are looking for your pic-a-nic basket, not you. So hang your food and don't eat in your hammock and you'll be fine. There will be plenty of other hikers not following this rule that will attract the bears to their tents, anyway. You won't have to worry.
4. If you want to spend a bit of money, you can easily drop 2.5 lbs off your pack. I have a 2013 GG Mariposa that only weighs 24oz. Zpacks arc-hauls or arc-blasts are great packs too. Keep your eyes open for a used one.

[Another Kevin]

Sounds like you've got your priorities straight then!

Given that you posted this on Veterans day I can't help bur say thank you for your service! Just curious, what branch are you? If and when you get up to CT myself and several others can help you out should you need anything.

Let me also mention that most of us don't attempt serious mileage on the Harriman trip, so can afford the weight penalty of reserve gear. We've rescued n00bs before. It's about the safest winter shakedown you'll find.

[ScareBear]

My friend, you shouldn't get the idea from the Internet that it's necessary or even preferred to go ultralight on the AT. You will sacrifice a lot of comfort (and safety) to carry a 20 lb pack vs a 35 lb pack. I started north from Springer on April 4, 2009 and watched very carefully what successful hikers were carrying as I went through GA and NC. Sure, I saw a few ultralight rigs, but everyone else had ~35 lb packs and still hiked 15-20 mile days without any problems.

As a veteran hiker who started in the 1960's with Army surplus packs and tents (pack weight 50 lbs+) I can say that the available ~35 lb lightweight equipment is already a huge improvement over what we carried a generation ago. Trimming everything drastically to the bone is possible, but why are you doing this? Are you physically weak? Is it really important to do big miles? Do you like being uncomfortable?

I don't know what thru-hikers you've been starting with in Georgia, but the one's with back weights over 40 never seem to make it to....North Carolina. The amount of gear left at Neels Gap is staggering and Mountain Crossings make the $$$$ on selling the right gear to the.....ill-prepared/ill-informed. Safety is a weird excuse for coming in 10 pounds over ideal dry weight. What kind of safety gear is in that pack? Anyone who is not adhering to the adage "wear one, pack one" is simply fooling themselves. Its comfort, not safety that is being sacrificed. Do you know how many times I've heard "I have to use a synthetic bag because down is worthless when its wet!" as the safety excuse for carrying 2 pounds more in sleep system than is necessary? What, you couldn't pack the down bag in the dry bag lining your pack? What, your tent leaks? ***? Synthetic bag on a thru hike....SMH.....Its examples like this that make me laugh and shake my head at the 35 pound dry weight packs....add 3 liters of water and....presto....43 freaking pounds to hump up and down the Georgia and NC mountains....

Hike your own hike, for sure. But, you don't need a 35 pound pack to be "safe". That's just absurd. And to say that humping an extra 10 or 15 pounds doesn't matter is a fool's errand. Here's a quick offer of proof. Go run your fastest 1/4 mile. Now, go put a pack on with 15 pounds in it and run another 1/4 mile. Get back to me after you get done...and tell me that 10 or 15 pounds has no effect on you, physiologically.....and for comfort....what is more important, being comfortable during extended periods of intense physical activity or being comfortable while unconscious from the periods of intense physical activity? Besides, I am giving up NOTHING on comfort at night, except for maybe electronics, a book, a sat phone, a TENS unit....you get the drift....

[QiWiz]

You have some decent pieces. Easy savings:
- bear mace as mentioned
- take kindle app on phone instead of kindle. Sometimes I bring my kindle if I'm going with a slow hiker and my pack is already summer light, but I wouldn't on a thru
- there are battery packs less than half that weight that will give you multiple charges. your phone lasts forever on airplane mode for photos, reading, etc, with GPS/apps only turned on as necessary
- lighter pack will help a lot
- your sleep/shelter system is a bit heavy, so that's one of the reasons you'll be higher than some people. But if you like it, it's manageable

I don't count my hiking poles in base weight usually. Not sure if others do

So with a few adjustments you'll get closer to 15. You can also possibly send home some stuff when you get through early cold weather (depending on your start date)

+1

You can go lighter on quite a few items without losing function or safety. Leave the bear spray and cutting down on the medical kit are examples of things that cost nothing. Other things like a lighter pack and lighter sleep system will have a cost - a lot depends on your budget. I would not take cotton shirts or shorts, but not because of weight.

[cmoulder]

I don't get the whole "base weight" thing. Never did. You are not going to hike with your "base weight", are you? You are going to hike with complete gear, possibly even with food. Or water. Or poles. Or pegs. Maybe even with fuel to cook with you mad swine.


I'm 44 lbs all in.

I know that i'm wrong. I know that everybody else is right.
Be offended.

Not offended because I've always felt that if you're willing to carry all that excessively heavy gear it's fine by me because I'm not carrying it.

But I truly marvel at the fact that we now have all this wonderfully light gear available and yet there are people who know about it but choose to carry much heavier gear. I used to schlep the heavy stuff because that's all we had, but after developing a good understanding of UL concepts and practices I found that I could be safe, comfortable and light. For my typical summer trip I'm carrying a tick over 20 lbs (TPW) for a 5-night trip, and totally prepared for weather, well-fed, sheltered and comfortable.

I did a little overnight trip Sun-Mon with some friends (fellow ULers) and the temps got down to upper 20s F and my total pack weight (including food, water, fuel) was 12 lb and also included a 2-person tent (room for my pooch!), 20°F quilt, air mat and pillow. So when people make the claim that UL is somehow unsafe or uncomfortable, it's just simply not so. We did a hike Sunday of 11.5 miles with about 3000 feet of vertical and arrived at our camp with plenty of energy to spare, pitched our shelters, put on warm clothes, had hot dinners and watched the Super Moon rise. How would it have been better had we humped 35 lbs of gear for the same trip???


The issue IMO is this HEAVY= SAFE, COMFORTABLE meme is so thoroughly rooted that people think they need all this burly, bomber gear and all sorts of gadgets to keep themselves entertained. But it just isn't so.

[ScareBear]

Not offended because I've always felt that if you're willing to carry all that excessively heavy gear it's fine by me because I'm not carrying it.

But I truly marvel at the fact that we now have all this wonderfully light gear available and yet there are people who know about it but choose to carry much heavier gear. I used to schlep the heavy stuff because that's all we had, but after developing a good understanding of UL concepts and practices I found that I could be safe, comfortable and light. For my typical summer trip I'm carrying a tick over 20 lbs (TPW) for a 5-night trip, and totally prepared for weather, well-fed, sheltered and comfortable.

I did a little overnight trip Sun-Mon with some friends (fellow ULers) and the temps got down to upper 20s F and my total pack weight (including food, water, fuel) was 12 lb and also included a 2-person tent (room for my pooch!), 20°F quilt, air mat and pillow. So when people make the claim that UL is somehow unsafe or uncomfortable, it's just simply not so. We did a hike Sunday of 11.5 miles with about 3000 feet of vertical and arrived at our camp with plenty of energy to spare, pitched our shelters, put on warm clothes, had hot dinners and watched the Super Moon rise. How would it have been better had we humped 35 lbs of gear for the same trip???


The issue IMO is this HEAVY= SAFE, COMFORTABLE meme is so thoroughly rooted that people think they need all this burly, bomber gear and all sorts of gadgets to keep themselves entertained. But it just isn't so.

Exactly. Old school is silly school. If you can't afford light gear, then you go with what you've got. But to hump a 80 ounce pack when you can get one that weighs 21 ounces seems......foolish. Same with sleep gear. Even when I am camping for 20 degrees, I come in under 30 ounces. I suppose you could hump a 20 degree SlumberJack that weighs....3 times as much....but why? Honestly, unless its a $$$ thing, its a fool's errand not to go ultralight. Think skiing. Are you using 25 year old technology? Are you really out there ripping it up on your Rossi 7SK Carbon 200cm's? Rear-entry Salomons? Cable-knit sweaters? No helmet? As the sport advances, you can advance with it. Or you can be a dino.

[Hikingjim]

Why is base weight a bad term? It just allows you to know what type of gear someone is talking about. No reason for me to tell you my pack is 24 lbs with 4.4 days worth of food and 2.7 litres of water... because those figures change constantly.

The OP isn't even talking about ultralight gear, and they just don't want to bring useless or needlessly heavy stuff, so it's funny that people come in with anti-UL talk.

I would disagree with the idea that a good portion of finishing thru hikers finish with a big ol' pack. Maybe start with one. Hiking safely with a pretty low pack weight is pretty damn easy on the AT. Makes me spoiled for when I have to carry a 2+ lb bear canister and multiple days worth of food