Sunday, June 11, 2017

Gear List & Pack Weight

So, I thought that before Nicholas and I left on our final Collegiate Peaks shake-down trip on the Lost Creek Loop, I should post our current gear list.

We very carefully selected each piece of gear over the course of six months, with a good balance of weight and comfort in mind. We are not out to break any ultra-light backpacking records on weight, we just wanted high quality, strong gear that we can trust, that feels good, and that allows for a good night's sleep, but also doesn't weigh 50 lbs. We often joke that we're somewhere between backpacking and glamping, and we're okay with that. For now. Our upcoming shake-down trip might change some of that, which is exactly why we're doing it.

Your base pack weight (BPW) is everything you carry excluding consumables - food, water, fuel, toiletries, etc. - because those greatly vary depending on the trip and how long you've been on the trail. I still count the weight of the empty bear canister and bottles in the BPW, as well as all the clothing I don't plan to wear regularly (down jacket, rain gear, thermals, extra socks).

We also calculated our full pack weights, with the amount of dehydrated food we'd each be carrying, plus full water bottles, fuel, and other consumables. Keep in mind, the full pack weights are based on five days of hiking, since we have a resupply about every five days on the Collegiate Peaks Loop. Our packs should never be heavier than our full pack weights, and never lighter than our base pack weights.

Many hikers calculate what is called their skin-out weight, which is literally everything you have with you and on you, including clothes and shoes you are wearing, trekking poles, etc. We have not calculated that weight, and we don't really plan to because I find it superfluous. We are used to walking around with clothing and shoes on, and to us that just seems like part of our general body weight. If my trekking poles weighed 2 lbs. I might reconsider, but they don't.

Before I dive into specifics, I'll give the overview:

Kaitlin
BPW: 18 lbs. 1.8 oz.
Full Pack Weight: 25 lbs.

Nicholas
BPW: 17 lbs. 12.8 oz. 
Full Pack Weight: 29 lbs.

So, we're not going ultra-light by any means, but not too shabby! A BPW of under 20 lbs is still considered "light-weight," so I consider it a win. The sleeping system is a little heavy, but that's one of the areas in which we prioritized comfort over cutting weight. In addition, a resupply every five days keeps our consumables fairly light, so our packs don't rise too much above the BPW. I had originally planned on carrying the entirety of the tent, including the fly and footprint, but those equaled several pounds that put my BPW far above Nicholas', so he will carry those parts of the tent. There are other pros for splitting the tent weight, such as us both being able to finagle shelter if we somehow get separated on the trail. I'd have the poles and mesh, and he'd have the protective outer tent parts that he could make a shelter out of using his trekking poles and other resources. Since Nicholas carries the larger bear canister, his full pack weight increases much more than mine with every resupply, making the pack weight to body weight ratio more even.

To break it down more, here is the list of everything I'm carrying in my BPW:
(I've included some links to certain items for easy reference)

Pack: Osprey Aura 50 AG, size small (47 liters) (color: Silver Streak) - 3 lbs. 12 oz.

Tent: REI Quarter Dome 2 - 3 lbs. 12 oz.

Sleeping Bag: REI Joule 30 Sleeping Bag - 1 lb. 9 oz.
Compression Sack (11 liters): 2.8 oz

Sleeping Pad: Big Agnes Insulated Air Core Ultra (Petite) - 1 lb. 4 oz.

Pillow: Sea to Summit Aeros Premium (regular) - 2.8 oz.

Head Lamp: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp (with batteries) - 3.2 oz.

Water Bottle: LifeStraw Bottle - 7.8 oz.

Bear Canister: BearVault BV450 - 2 lbs. 1 oz.

Microspikes: Yaktrax ICEtrekkers (small) - 12 oz.

Down Jacket: Mountain Hardware Nitrous Down Jacket (medium) - 11.3 oz.

Rain Jacket: Kuhl Jetstream Trench Rain Jacket (small) - 11 oz.

Thermal Pants: Patagonia Capilene Thermal Weight Bottoms - 4 oz.

Underwear: Patagonia Active Wear (small) - 1 oz.

Socks: SmartWool Hiking Socks (x3 pairs) - ~3.5 oz.
Sock Liners: REI Silk Sock Liners (x2 pairs) - ~1 oz.

Maps/Journal/Book: ~6 oz.

Tent Lamp: Coghlan's Tent Light - 3.5 oz.

Whistle/Compass: Coghlan's Four Function Whistle - ~1 oz.

Camera: Nikon Coolpix S33 13.2 Megapixel (Shockproof, Waterproof) - ~4.5 oz.

Charger: Tzumi PocketJuice 15,000 mAh Portable Charger - 12.8 oz.

Pack Cover: Osprey Ultralight Pack Raincover (30-50 liters) - 3 oz.



Now for Nicholas' BPW breakdown:

Pack: Osprey Atmos 50 AG, size large (53 liters) - 4 lbs. 1 oz.

Tent Fly/Footprint: 2 lbs. 4.8 oz.

Sleeping Bag: REI Igneo 25 Sleeping Bag - 1 lb. 12 oz.
Compression Sack (11 liters): 2.8 oz.

Sleeping Pad: Big Agnes Insulated Air Core Ultra (Petite) - 1 lb. 4 oz.

Pillow: Sea to Summit Aeros Premium (regular) - 2.8 oz.

Kitchen System: GSI Outdoors Bugaboo Backpacker Cookset - 1 lb. 12.8 oz.
Utensils: Light My Fire Spork (x2) - .4 oz.

Stove: MSR PocketRocket - 2.6 oz.

Hammock: Eno Double Deluxe - 1 lb. 12 oz.
Hammock Straps: Eno Atlas Hammock Suspension System - 11 oz.

Head Lamp: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp (with batteries) - 3.2 oz.

Water Filtration: Sawyer Squeeze - 3 oz.

Water Bottle: Nalgene - 3.5 oz.

Bear Canister: BearVault BV500 - 2 lbs. 9 oz.

Microspikes: Yaktrax Walker Traction System - 4 oz.

Down Jacket: REI Co-op Down Jacket Men's (large) - 10.5 oz.

Rain Jacket: REI Co-op Rain Jacket Men's (large) - 9.4 oz.

Thermal Pants: ClimateSmart Pro Extreme Performance Baselayer (XL) - 4 oz.

Underwear: Exofficio Give-N-Go Briefs - 1 oz.

Socks: SmartWool Hiking Socks (x3) - ~3.5 oz.

Journal: ~3oz.

Whistle/Compass: Coghlan's Four Function Whistle - ~1 oz.

Pack Cover: Osprey Ultralight Pack Raincover (30-50 liters) - 3 oz.



So there you have it! Right now, I'm very happy with our packs and gear, but I'm sure it will change either after our shake-down trip or the Collegiate Peaks. It will be interesting to find out how our trail needs change, and what we realize we needed that we didn't have vs. what we had but didn't need. It's all part of the learning process, and part of the fun!


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Gear List & Pack Weight

So, I thought that before Nicholas and I left on our final Collegiate Peaks shake-down trip on the Lost Creek Loop, I should post our curren...