UL lighting - I'm packing my fears

[Connie]

I happen to think being prepared to bivouac is a better choice than hiking out at night.

I realise many AT hikers describe hiking the trail at night, even so, the AT isn't a smooth trail.

[NY HIKER 50]

I agree. There have been many times that I did just that since I didn't know what was ahead. Especially if you just came to a long downhill. Even with a good headlamp it might be foolish to keep going. Last year I realized that a portion was relocated so I did not keep going. I just went off to the side and put up the hammyy.

[colorado_rob]

???? Hiking at night is wonderful, even on rough trails. For some reason, for me at least, miles flow quickly by headlamp. It hot weather, it's of course more cool and comfortable.

For hiking at night on a rough trail it really helps to hold your "headlamp" in one hand at waist level, this casts much more distinct shadows on rocks/roots/etc than with the lamp on your head, which casts essentially no shadows on the trail (because the lamp is too near your eyes). Try it sometime. With this little trick, even relatively low-lumen lamps work for rough trail night hiking.

FWIW, even though I consider myself a "near UL" backpacker (not quite fully UL, 9-10 pound baseweight for most of 3-seasons), I always carry my 1.2 ounce Mammut Pika headlamp (single AA battery, discontinued, alas), I believe it's right around 30 lumens on full, plenty for night hiking held in hand or on head if trail is smooth.

[colorado_rob]

correction, it's the Mammut S-lite, and it's 20 lumens and 1.3 ounces....

[QiWiz]

I currently own a streamlight microstream single AAA flashlight. This thing is near and dear to me. It looks like it's been through hell. Cause it has. But it has proven to be a worthy companion and I don't question it's reliability in the woods. TBH, I trust it more than my plastic headlamp. It throws a decent light and lasts a long time on a single AAA. It weighs just over an ounce with a battery. I would also carry a backup lithium AAA for it. Any recommendations

If you make a thin elastic cord that can go around your head, and tape this to your beloved flashlight, you will find that you can wear the flashlight as a headlamp if it is positioned on the side of your head above one ear, pointing forward. This leaves both hands free when night hiking, which I prefer.

[Old Hiker]

As one of my lights, I have a Leatherman S2 AAA light. I just went out to find a link so people can look and decide, but it seems they are no longer made.

Bummer. I was going to buy another one: 35 grams with pocket clip and wrist lanyard, single AAA battery, very nice.

As for the Photons above, I've had fairly poor luck with mine. They seem to die quickly, plus don't seem to be water resistant. Maybe it was the older types I used.

[fastfoxengineering]

Anybody on here using the Pak-Light?

Joe from Zpacks uses it.

[sbhikes]

I have a two-LED headlamp that I found. It's not bright at all. I never night hike. I usually don't even turn it on to take a pee in the middle of the night because I feel I can get back to sleep faster if I don't see any light at night. I really only use it to read at night. In a pinch I could hike with it and have, but it is hard to see, I have to hold it in my hand to get decent depth perception and walk slowly.

[BirdBrain]

Petzl e+LITE for me. I only use a light to check what time it is. It is always around 3AM when I do this. The next time I open my eyes I see the predawn glow. At that point I do not care what time it is. I am getting up. The Petzl e+LITE, at 27 grams, serves that purpose and is bright enough for other purposes if needed in an emergency.

I am curious about MuddyWater's choice as well. Details please.

[Namtrag]

get a luci for camp. They have an even smaller, and lighter one now. I think it weighs about 2-3 oz

[Size12]

Im currently just looking at lightening up a bit. Id definitely still take some sort of light as Ive had a trip in dense bush on near moonless night where we pulled into camp an hour and a half after dark. Considering there were some pretty rough patches on that track, and we did actually have one member of our group fall into a 4foot deep hole... Its a good thing we did have torches.

That said, my current light is an 860 lumen beast, Not too big, or really even that heavy, but certianly not in the realm of lightness you guys require! (If anyone is intereseted its a nitecore EC25)

[ChrisJackson]

I splurge on a lot of gear, but for headlamps...I've been using the $14.00 Energizer headlamps from Home Depot for years...I just like how easy it is to swap out the batts...plus they have the red light I like for reading.

[gcobb1990]

I ditched the headband from my headlamp and use a buff instead. It helped me drop 2 ounces by replacing miscellaneous items in my pack. I wrote more about it here if that interests you: http://graysoncobb.com/2015/03/28/ho...-from-my-pack/

[rickb]

I ditched the headband from my headlamp and use a buff instead. It helped me drop 2 ounces by replacing miscellaneous items in my pack. I wrote more about it here if that interests you: http://graysoncobb.com/2015/03/28/ho...-from-my-pack/

Good tip about the light but-- I visited your blog and...

Your open water kayak journey to the Dry Tourtougas trip report was absolutely terrific!!!!!

Beyond cool.

I tried to imagine not turning around to look back for the first ten miles and how that must have felt. Glad that a tip about saving a couple ounces led me to your site.

[Colter]

Exactly my point. Where do you get the screwdriver for that?...

I use my Swiss Army Classic knife blade tip for the screws on my Photon. I carry two Photons so I don't have to change batteries or mess with tiny screws on the trail at all. The way I hike two Photons last me all summer.

[gcobb1990]

Good tip about the light but-- I visited your blog and...

Your open water kayak journey to the Dry Tourtougas trip report was absolutely terrific!!!!!

Beyond cool.

I tried to imagine not turning around to look back for the first ten miles and how that must have felt. Glad that a tip about saving a couple ounces led me to your site.

I'm glad you enjoyed it! I can't wait to get out there and do something like it again. Kayak is just sitting in the garage collecting dust

[Fredt4]

AT 2011 one Photon and cellphone for light. Hiked till dark, slept till daybreak, rarely used a light. A couple of tines I hiked about a mile or so, the photon was adequate.

[Buttercup01]

I have very little difficulty hiking without lighting most nights. Where it's easy to get into trouble is when the moon light creates shadows, picking through rock piles while traveling downhill, water traverses and crossing poorly marked roads. Boot lacing is a challenging skill to master in the dark. Once you get accustomed to low light conditions, it's not that difficult to travel in the dark. Give your eyes at least 15 minutes to adjust after looking at your GPS or when starting a trip.

[Casey & Gina]

BD has made 2 different versions of the Ion.

1st version: 1 oz. 1/2 watt, high and low setting. Uses a 6v battery

2nd version: 1.7 oz. uses 2 AAA batteries, dialable from 4 to 80 lumens.

I really liked the 1 oz version but the 6v battery puts people off because it's not something you're going to find at the corner gas station.

I'd carry one of these 2 lights if the weight was that big of a deal to me but I'd definitely have a headlamp.

I have a 1st version and it is wonderful. I really like it! But for the AT I am not going to take it, because of the odd 6v battery.

The 2nd version is just awful - I cannot stand the touch/swipe interface to control it. I just want a simple button like the 1st version had, but with 1 or 2 AAA or AA batteries.

Oh well, we bought BD Gizmos for the AT. A bit heavier and bulkier but I can deal with that. Nice and simple.

[Heliotrope]

I'm with Malto on this one. My headlamp is worth the 3 oz because if I really need to travel at night the e lite and photons just don't cut it. It's tempting to lighten the load. Maybe you can cut off 3 oz of hair instead ?


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