Hey everyone,

I am interested in doing the Appalachian Trail in 2006, but next spring I want to do a week hike. So I thought that I would start buying my gear now. I have looked everywhere on the internet (my city doesn't have any good outdoors stores:( ) and I have come up with a bag, a tent, and a sleeping bag. I don't know if they are good or bad or indifferent. I would really appreciate people's suggestions or comments on my gear. Here it is:

BAG
Jansport Rockies II 100 Internal Frame Pack
Weight: 7 lbs. 3 oz.
Capacity: 6200 cu. in.
Pockets: 9
Price: $149.97 from campmor.com

SLEEPING BAG
Kelty Light Year 3D +30-Long
Weight: 2 lbs. 5 oz.
Stuff Sack Size: 7 x 17 in.
Comfort Rating: 30* F
Price: $110.00 from rei.com

TENT
Eureka Backcountry 2 Tent
Weight: 5 lbs. 4 oz.
Area: 38 sq. ft.
Capacity: 2
Price: $129.99 from campmor.com

I am totally lost at what to get. Please help me out.

Thanks,
Kev

With two years before your hike suggest you get some good books on preparation for your trip. One that comes to mind is " Long-Distance Hiking" by Roland Mueser. Roland covers every aspect from preparation i.e. equipment, conditioning, weather, to serious environmental problems that you may encounter. After checking your list of items you already have I think your pack at 7 lbs 3 oz 6200 sq in is a little bit to heavy and big. The sleeping bag is not rated low enough if you start at Springer Mtn around 1 March 06. The tent is 5 lbs 4 oz, seems like it may be to heavy also. Right now you have 16 lbs with just three items, this is half the weight of what you should carry after the cold weather has passed. Anyway way by the time you get to Neel's Gap you will know what you can and cannot use on you thru-hike.

The Eureka Backcountry is a heavy pig of a tent. You want t svelt little non-freestander. Keep your tent weight under 4 pounds if at all possible. The Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight is about the heaviest tent I would recommend you consider. THe SD Lightyear is probably a better choice. The North Face Canyondlands is also a decent choice for a solo hiker. I carry a Walrus Swift (discontinued) but MSR (which bought Walrus, offers the Zoid 1.5 (or whatever) which looks like a nice little tent at a bit over 3 pounds.

The pack is too heavy for thru-hiking. You want to aim at about 4000-4500 cubic inches for your pack this gives you enough space to pack conservatively, but not so much that you are able to overload with useless luxuries.

A 30 degree bag is good for three season stuff, but you should be prepared to have to bundle up in colder weather. A 15 to 20 degree bag is a warmer option for early and late season hiking, but too warm for midsummer hiking.

Before you buy a backpack, buy all your other gear first. Then take all the gear, full water bottles, and enough food for the 100 miles of Maine to your local outfitter. Spend several hours loading all of the above into different packs and see what fits your gear and your budget.

Buy the backpack last.

Its my experience that most solo hikers carry about 30 pounds max by the end of the trail. Think lightweight. Try out what you have and if that is what you are comfortable with then go with it. That being said, there are many attractive packs under 4lb and many hikers are switching to a sil-nylon tarp which can weigh in under a pound. If you went with something like a Mountainsmith Ghost and a tarp you have already shaved over 7 lbs. off your packweight. This is something your body will thank you for after weeks of hiking.

Backpack - too large and too heavy

Sleeping Bag - Okay especially if your thru hike start date is later, could go lighter, but it will cost you $$$,

Tent - too heavy, I bought a similar weight tent and will only use it if I've got somebody to share the weight with or car camping.


I'm in the process of a transition to ultralight backpacking and have found these companies to offer products to really bring your base weight down, particularly in regards to the Big 3, pack, bag, tent:

www.ula-equipment.com
www.granitegear.com
www.marmot.com
www.westernmountaineering.com
www.osperypacks.com
www.gvpgear.com
www.golite.com
www.tarptent.com

and others...

Of course you may not be interested in ultralight, but in case you are ....

I currently have an Arc'Teryx Bora 80 Long pack which weighs over 7lbs!!! It rides nice, but is just too big and heavy for me, especially when contemplating an extended hike. I'm looking to get my total Big 3 weight less than my current pack, maybe even a few pounds less.


Stuart

I have come to understand that my participation in this forum is counter productive. In an attempt to ammend this I am deleting my posts and have requested to have my account deleted

I have the backcountry 2 tent,and it has served me very well. Very little condensation if any,plenty of room,and not a bad price.
However I would agree that it may be a little to heavy for a thru hike.u may want to look at the backcountry solo,It only weigh's in at about three and a half pounds if I remember correctly, I am planning on buying me one very soon for my solo hike's. For a simple,easy set up, hasle free tent . the backcountry is hard to beat. oh one more thing, I had a mountain hardware skyveiw 2 before I got my little backcountry.although the skyveiw was a great tent. I found that you dont have to spend $ 400 bucks for a good shelter.

Another addition to the light and reasonably priced vendor list...

www.sixmoondesigns.com (nice tent and nice pack)
GoLite (www.golite.com) (nice packs once you lighten your load and learn how to pack it correctly. Their bags don't impress me.)
MSR (http://www.msrcorp.com/home.asp) (some of their tents and tarps are quite reasonable if you want to buy from a "big name")

And if you don't trust our opinon, read what others have to say at www.backpackgeartest.org.

And check out Back Country Gear's (http://www.backcountrygear.com/catalog/lightweightzone.cfm) Lightweight Zone. Sometimes they have good prices. They seem to have sales/closeouts quite often. But you have to check the site often and/or subscribe to their email list.


Good Luck

Boy!
Great replies!

The only thing that I could ad is you will need a better bag. If you're starting April 1st you can expect to get snowed on a few times before you get out of GA-NC-TN. Night time temps can run in the low 20's and high teen's at elevation, not to even mention the very big winds that we typically get during that time of the year.

Your backpack is heavy, but it will work. Your tent is heavy but it will work. Be safe and invest in a good sleeping bag. It would be great if we could all afford a sub 2 lb. down sleeping bag that runs $300-$400 but we don't have to. I would look for a sub 3 lb. 20 or 10 deg. bag for around $150 to $200 if money is tight.

One more word on light weight stuff. This is a once in a life time trip for most of us, don't wreck it before you start be being cheap or uneducated. You've got great resources here on the net. Use them before you buy. I've taken many a "attempted" thru hiker to the bus station in Gainesville, GA on there way back home because they simply were caring too much weight and hurt themselves.

Take care.

forget the tent and get a hammock,
like Hennessey or Clark hammock.
under 3 lbs and it saves your back.