What's On My Back

Gear is quite the subject among hikers. There's a culture built up around finding that perfect kit. Especially among thru-hikers, many of whom fall under the ultralight category, reducing your base pack weight can seem almost as strenuous as the hiking itself. And it doesn't help that for every piece of gear you find, there are most likely twenty off brand slightly different alternatives you could buy, each with their own zealous supporters. Screw having a guide for the trail, I've spent the last few months wishing I could just have a guide for my gear.

The worst part is that living in the woods is an incredibly expensive affair. The true scope of the money you have to spend is not immediately apparent. Your pack, shelter, and sleeping bag are all going to be multi-hundred dollar items, sure, but it stops there, right? Browsing through REI or its ilk you find your cook sets, bear bags, gadgets, ponchos, water filtration, and what have you reasonably priced. I quickly sat down with a piece of paper and a blue marker and started writing down everything I needed, then the brand I wanted to buy and how much it would cost me. At the end I tallied up the expense. Sure the "big 3" would knock me out a few hundred, but the rest were all below 30 dollars a piece! I hit enter, and my jaw hit the floor. I don't like calculating total expenses anymore (and that was before I started buying clothes).

As much as a set out to be an ultralight hiker, I don't really fall under that category anymore. My disgust for ultralight pricing (sleeping bags shouldn't be $500, come on), and my desire to bring entertainment with me has been steadily increasing my base weight. So what I've listed here is by no means an ideal, but just what I've cobbled together these past few months. Chances are high I discard and replace some in disgust within the first week.

Backpack

Here I think I hit the jackpot though. I'm rocking the GoLite Jam 50, an amazingly light, amazingly cheap pack that's garish blue color should stand out from miles away. Seriously, that picture in no way does it justice. This pack is blue. At just under 2 pounds and just over 100 dollars this is by far the best deal I've seen on an ultralight bag, and was immediately added to my list. Having worn it around town for the past few weeks I've found it comfy, and equipped with lots of easy to reach pockets for snacks, which is obviously the most important quality in a bag.

Weight: 1 lbs 14 oz

Shelter

This was actually the first piece of gear I selected, way back around November. My lab partner camped, and told me how much he loved the Hennessy Hammock. I cannot agree more. This thing is like sleeping on a...well...a hammock. Which I think is high praise. It's light, quick and easy to set up, and did I mention comfortable? Drawbacks include "cold butt syndrome," where due to the fact that it's off the ground it lacks the insulating warmth you get from a tent, and in lower temperatures your backside gets chilly. This I can attest to, having taken it out in sub freezing temperatures, something I hope not to have to do again (but I will be coming prepared with foot warmers). Once you get used to lashing this thing up it works like a dream.

Weight: 2 lbs 4 oz

Sleeping Bag

Picking a bag was a nightmare. There's too many, and they're all the gosh darn same. And the lightest ones are so expensive it's aggressive. Add to the list of problems the variable temperature on the trail and it can be hard to pin point a temperature rating you want. Some people switch out their bags as they go north, but I'll be aiming not to do that. I ended up with the Marmot Cloudbreak 30. It's cozy, pretty warm, and it packs up alarmingly small. The only issue is that the outside material and my jacket feel exactly the same, which is very confusing when trying to pull the hood up over your head while wearing the jacket. I spent a few awkward minutes tugging at my back and not understanding the problem.

Weight: 2 lbs

Water

Drinking, it turns out, is important. I'll be using a Sawyer Mini filter for the trip. It's essentially a large straw that filters water drawn through it, or squeezed through it via a supplied bag. Because I'm a worrywart, I also have a little bottle of pills in case the filter goes to hell. I then also have a bladder to store said water.

Weight: 9 oz



Cooking

I love to eat. I especially love to eat after a long day of hiking. See, I'm not the best cook. But after a day of strenuous hiking literally everything tastes good. So on the trail, I am my own master chef. I'm packing a Trangia Mini Stove Kit. It's a basic alcohol stove, windscreen, and pot, but a feature I like is that the pot lid doubles as a frying pan. Most light weight cooking kits forgo the ability to fry, and if I go four months without bacon I will without a doubt snap and do something dangerous. Stuffed in there I also have a lighter and a box of matches, and my fuel is carried in a blue Powerade bottle. Very high tech, I know.

Weight: 12 oz

Clothes

This is the real kicker. Just when you thought you had it all, you realize that your wardrobe is woefully prepared. Thru-hikers make do with a very small amount of clothes. I'll be bringing a t-shirt, long sleeved Under Armor shirt, some zip off pants, two pairs of Smartwool socks, and two pairs of underwear for my normal clothes. On top of that I have my favorite hoody (which I was tempted not to bring but I'm a sucker for nostalgia), a lightweight jacket, a hat, fingerless gloves, and a poncho. I'm really skimping when it comes to clothing. High tech light weight rain gear is very cool, very useful, and costs a fortune. I'll be making due with what I have, and my sunny disposition.

Weight: 2 lbs 10 oz (of course a good deal of that is worn per day)

Gadgets

Some people go hike the AT to get away from the modern world. To leave their phones behind. I am not one of those people. I intend to jam my way to Katahdin to the tunes coming out of my earbuds. To this end I am taking a pair of MP3 players that run off of a single AAA battery. One for music, the other for podcasts and audiobooks. To keep my phone charged I have a Bear Grylls Solar Wrap. People call the AT the "green tunnel," but at the very least it's a nice external battery. I also have a SPOT Locator. Every night I hit a button and it sends my location to friends and family so they know I'm alive. And if I'm in danger of not being alive for much longer, I can call for SOS. Finally I have my Kindle, which my friend Paul graciously let me borrow. I intend to have it loaded with 50 books by the time I leave, as I read voraciously when hiking.

Weight: 1 lbs 2 oz (including cables and extra batteries)

Everything Else

I've also got first aid, a pack cover, my AT guide book, a headlamp, rope, a bag for food, toiletries, and a small towel that dries very quickly. As well as a whole bunch of plastic bags that everything goes in. And of course, my knock off Aviators I bought for a dollar.

Weight: 13 oz (...ish)

So all told I'm carrying about 12 pounds, give what I've forgotten and take what I'm wearing or carrying. This is 3 or 4 pounds above what I wanted when I set out, but most of this extra weight is from me being stingy, and from the non essentials that I want to carry, like my electronics. Although sometimes stressful, it's been a fun exercise fitting the next few months of my life into a 50 liter pack.

My next post should be on Sunday night, my first from the trail. Thanks to everyone who has given me their support so far, it's meant a lot to me. Starting on Sunday I'll be doing my best to make daily posts, reception allowing. Until then, thanks for reading!