Why go light? You can hiker further and faster, go more places,
and enjoy those places more because you’ll be in less pain.
What about the Scout motto “be prepared?” Doesn’t that mean I
can’t go light? No. Being prepared does not mean carrying
every conceivable bit of backpacking gear. Being prepared
also means being prepared for the fact that if you carry a pack over 25
pounds you will hate life and will hurt your knees and get blisters and
will be more likely to trip and break yourself on a rock. I
believe in being prepared--be in good shape, know first-aid, map &
compass skills, and leave an itinerary.
Steps to Going Light:
1. Boots are for sucks.
Wear running shoes.
Seriously. Boots are for when you’re around
heavy equipment and don’t want to lose a toe.
2. The pack itself.
If your pack weighs over 2.75 pounds, you’re doing
something wrong.
3. Extra Clothing. Don’t
bring any.
One, possibly two extra pairs of socks is
acceptable, but other than that, Sierra summer hiking requires the
shorts and t-shirt on your body, a lightweight rain shell and a warm
hat. Cold? Start walking or get in your sleeping bag.
4. Fancy hydration weighs a
lot.
Water filters can weigh a pound. The water in
the High Sierras is probably fine to drink anyway, but if you insist on
treating, do it with bleach (2-4 drops a liter) or Aqua Mira.
Everyone thinks Camelbaks are great, but I disagree. They weigh
too much, and anything that doesn’t weigh too much (Platypus) will
eventually leak. Just bring two Gatorade (NOT Nalgene)
bottles. Cheap. Easy. Light.
5. Do you like to cook? If no, don’t bring a stove and eat Snickers
instead. If yes, bring the lightest one you can find (or make out
of a couple of soda cans), one tiny titanium pot, and a lexan or
titanium spoon.
6. You’ll probably need shelter.
Tarp, tent,
or tarp-tent are all acceptable. Nobody likes bivy-sacs. If
you bring a tent, make sure it’s light (5 pounds for a two-man, 3 for a
one), don’t bring any of the stuff sacks, and skimp on stakes,
7. The 2-pound sleeping bag.
Get one.
If you can take good care of your bag, get
down. It’s lighter, more compressible, and more comfortable in
summer heat.
8. The toothbrush thing.
It can’t save more than a few grams to shorten your
toothbrush, but you have to do it consider yourself a lightweight hiker.
Don’t bring a poop shovel; turn over a big rock instead. 3/4
length sleeping pads are about one-third the weight of an air mattress,
and if you’re lucky you’ll sleep through the night. If you didn’t
already know it, cotton kills. Don’t bring ANY cotton other than
maybe a bandana. (That means underwear and socks too.)
My gear:
Mountainsmith Ghost pack (2 lb, 2 oz. 2800 cu.in.)
Take off the torso strap!
Sierra Designs Lightyear Tent (sub 3 pounds) Cut out
those pockets, ditch the stuff sacks, 3 stakes max
Montrail Masai trail runners
REI Sub-kilo short length 20F sleeping bag (2 lbs)
Thermarest Z-lite Small (11 oz)
Patagonia Dragonfly Full-zip Jacket (3.5 oz)
Compass, Leatherman Micra, a couple days worth of TP, a few bandaids,
duct tape, chlorox, sunblock, DEET, Mosquitoe head net, sewing needle,
half a toothbrush, hand sanitizer, some floss (that doubles as thread),
tiny notebook and pen for journal/leaving notes, sun hat, shades
Pentax Optio digital camera (4 oz plus batteries)
Petzl Tikka (3 oz)
REI Desert gaiters
RESOURCES:
Beyond Backpacking: Ray Jardine’s Guide to Lightweight Hiking
Backpackinglight.com
Packs:
Anything by Go-Lite (golite.com), Mountainsmith Ghost, Gregory’s
G-pack, Advent Pro, Granite Gear Virga, Vapor Trail. ULA P1, Fusion
Sleeping Bags: REI Sub-Kilo is easy. You can get a Kelty Light
Year cheaper, but I don’t really love Kelty. Anything 700-fill or
higher and 2 lbs or less.
Stove: Make one. http://www.pcthiker.com/pages/gear.shtml
or get an MSR Pocket Rocket, Primus Alpine Micro or any other 4 oz.
Canister-top stove with a piezo.
Shelter: One-Mans: REI Roadster, Sierra Designs Light Year.
One-walled tents get too much condensation. Two-Man: REI
Half-Dome. Tarps: Go-Lite or Harvey Shires (tarptent.com)
Socks: Wright DoubleSock, Wigwam Ultimax, or $1 nylon dress socks from
Target. You can also get cheap polyester/coolmax shirts/shorts
there.
Don’t buy PrincetonTec headlamps, Merrell or Hi-Tec shoes, or
anything by Coleman.