Advice needed on stuff sacks

[Tprunty8]

I'm just starting out here, looking to section hike the AT the next couple of summers, aiming to thru hike when I retire in 4 years. I have been slowly accumulating my gear and now need bags to store stuff. Not sure what sizes I need, a food bag, couple of clothing/gear bags? Suggestions appreciated.

[fadedsun]

You'll get a lot of different opinions on stuffsacks and how many you should carry.

My best advice is that one sold be a mesh bag of the sort that the ladies use to machine-wash their delicates. It's lightweight, inexpensive, works well as a stuffsack and works well in town when sharing a washing machine.

Good luck with your hikes.

[About_Time]

My stuff bag for extra clothes doubled as a pillow, so you may want to consider that possibility as you research number and sizes.

[HooKooDooKu]

Rather than a stuff sack for my cloths, I use a scentless trash compactor bag as a pack liner and keep everything that needs to stay dry in the liner.

Otherwise, I use:

1. Stuff sack for general gear (flashlight, batteries, pocket knife, extra cordage, etc).
2. Stuff sack for toilet use (TP, trowel, hand sanitizer).
3. Stuff sack for other toiletries (tooth brush, contact solution, comb, extra glasses, toothpaste, insect repellant, sun screen).
4. Stuff sack for my 1st Aid Kit.
5. Mesh bag for kitchen stuff (spoon, wash rag, soap).

[The Ace]

Here is what I use:
1) Food: Zpacks cuben fiber roll top “Blast” food bag
2) Clothes: Zpacks cuben fiber medium dry bag
3) Cooking: Zpacks MSR .85 Titan Pot cooking pot stuff sack
4) Tent stakes: Zpacks Cuben Fiber Stake Sack
5) Ditty bag for personal stuff: Zpacks small stuff sack
Total weight on all of the above is 2.1 ounces.
I use a Zpacks cuben fiber medium backpack cover – mine weighs 0.9 ounces.
I choose to compress my sleeping bag, and I use a Granite Gear eVent Sil Compression DrySack XS 10L – weighs 2.9 ounces. If you decide to pack your sleeping bag loosely, you might substitute an 18-gallon disposal bag – weighs about 2.3 ounces – and line your pack and place moisture sensitive items in the bag and roll it down tightly

[Tprunty8]

Thank you everyone. Good advice and it gives me aplace to start.

[DLP]

I use Reynolds nylon turkey roasting bags.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HFN70B2/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3UANFD5DE8CT4&coliid=I1ZQVJU6UU3VJH&psc=1

2 Large turkey size:
Sleeping bag
sleeping pad

2 Smaller Roast beef size:
clothing bag
first aid bag and small stuff like flashlight and electronics
I like that it is see thru and I can find stuff

1 Old turkey size one that popped:
Torso sized tent footprint and sit pad or taking a nap or sorting food on the ground

[Odd Man Out]

Things that have to stay dry go in the trash compactor bag (sleeping bag, pad, clothes). I put the clothes in a plastic grocery sack. This is mainly for organization. Those bags are free and weigh next to nothing. On a summer hike, I had very few extra clothes anyway. I had another plastic grocery bag for water filter and associated stuff (again, just to keep it organized).
I had a zip lock bag for toilet items used every day (toothbrush/paste, soap sliver, TP), and another with all those small essential things you need, but not every day (medicine, first aid stuff, spare book of matches, repair tape, needle and thread etc...). The tent was stuffed inside the stuff sack that came with it. Another small shopping bag for the tent pegs was also tucked in with the tent. For food I bought a Zpack Blast Food Bag (loved that).

[bigcranky]

I like stuff sacks. Some hikers think they are a waste of weight, but if you get light ones it's not a big deal.

I have a stuff sack for my sleeping bag or quilt, a stuff sack for my clothing, a little one for my "ditty bag" which holds all my little junk, and a large one for my food. If you have some bucks, the cuben fiber stuff sacks from Zpacks are good -- they have roll-top drybag style sacks that are seam taped and waterproof, ideal for a down sleeping bag and clothing. They make one version with some light fleecey material on the inside, so you can turn it inside out and use it for a pillow with some clothing stuffed inside. The Blast food bag is the perfect size for me for food, and fits perfectly inside my pack. You can also get less expensive silnylon sacks from various places including Walmart.

I can't tell you what size to get beyond "whatever fits your stuff." I like slightly larger stuff sacks so they remain pliable rather than rock-hard when filled with stuff.

[ChuckT]

One comment - stuff sacks are usually deeper than wide. Wish I could find some wider than tall.

[garlic08]

I'm a stuff sack minimalist. One for food, one for clothing. They came with a sleeping bag and a tent I bought, and I have no idea what size they are, just that they're large enough for the job.

I once met the opposite guy, a self-confessed organization freak. He had at least 30 stuff sacks, sometimes nested three deep. We took apart his pack and just his stuff sacks weighed something like four pounds and filled a large stuff sack by themselves.

[colorado_rob]

I'm a stuff sack minimalist. One for food, one for clothing. They came with a sleeping bag and a tent I bought, and I have no idea what size they are, just that they're large enough for the job.

I once met the opposite guy, a self-confessed organization freak. He had at least 30 stuff sacks, sometimes nested three deep. We took apart his pack and just his stuff sacks weighed something like four pounds and filled a large stuff sack by themselves. Stuff sacks are a perfect example of a lot of extra weight carried if not careful... folks say and think "these don't weight anything", but alas, they do, and it does add up. A buddy I met on the AT last year had to have a pound of stuff sacks, or more, including a couple of compression sacks even though his pack was not nearly full (compression sacks are even heavier; the lightest ones over 3 ounces each).

I do carry a few, pretty much what garlic here carries, 5 total: sleeping bag; basically another layer of keeping it bone dry, a tent sack, basically because the tent is often soaked to keep other things dry, a food sack for hanging, a ditty sack to keep all small stuff in and a small clothing sack, mesh. Total weight of all of these is 3.0 ounces (3 of them are cuben).

Organization of stuff is important to me, but I try to still minimize weight and 3 oz is a price I'll pay for this convenience. Don't pay a pound-penalty or even half that if you can help it.

[The Ace]

(compression sacks are even heavier; the lightest ones over 3 ounces each).





Granite Gear eVent Sil Compression DrySack XS 10L – weighs 2.9 ounces.

Or you can get a 9.5L dry bag from Zpacks -- weighs 27 grams

[Nooga]

I like stuff sacks. Some hikers think they are a waste of weight, but if you get light ones it's not a big deal.

I have a stuff sack for my sleeping bag or quilt, a stuff sack for my clothing, a little one for my "ditty bag" which holds all my little junk, and a large one for my food. If you have some bucks, the cuben fiber stuff sacks from Zpacks are good -- they have roll-top drybag style sacks that are seam taped and waterproof, ideal for a down sleeping bag and clothing. They make one version with some light fleecey material on the inside, so you can turn it inside out and use it for a pillow with some clothing stuffed inside. The Blast food bag is the perfect size for me for food, and fits perfectly inside my pack. You can also get less expensive silnylon sacks from various places including Walmart.

I can't tell you what size to get beyond "whatever fits your stuff." I like slightly larger stuff sacks so they remain pliable rather than rock-hard when filled with stuff.

Good advice. Almost the same as I use.

[illabelle]

I have a large Outdoor Research rolltop bag for food. I have a stuff sack for clothes, but I use grocery bags inside it to separate between dirty and really dirty, between dry and kinda dry. I should augment this with a waterproof trash bag because I usually strap my clothes bag onto the outside of my pack, and sometimes they get damp.
I have a couple of zippered pouches that originally held Walmart rain pants and a rain jacket from somewhere. They are very helpful in keeping small stuff organized (first aid, fire starter, compass, pen, headlamp, etc). I keep my sleeping bag in the stuff sack it came in, but I should improve that to a waterproof setup.

[Country Roads]

I carry as few as possible. They mostly just add weight and actually make it harder to pack. I put a heavy duty garbage back in the pack and then just stuff all the things I need to keep dry in it. I layer the stuff I have to keep dry as first in last out. The bag allows all the corners of the pack to fill up, and also works like a compression stuff sack. Just push down and get all the air out and then twist the top around several times and then fold it over. Keeps your stuff dry. This way, I can get all my gear into a small pack with room to spare. The heavy duty bag weighs around 1 1/4 ounces and, with care, will last the entire backpacking season. All the stuff I don't need to keep dry just goes on top of the bag.

[garlic08]

... I put a heavy duty garbage back in the pack and then just stuff all the things I need to keep dry in it...Keeps your stuff dry... The heavy duty bag weighs around 1 1/4 ounces and, with care, will last the entire backpacking season. All the stuff I don't need to keep dry just goes on top of the bag.

This is a good way to pack (probably because it's the way I do it :)). One more use for the large bag (I use a white trash compactor bag) is to keep my feet dry if I have to sleep on saturated ground, or in a dewy tent. My 3/4 CCF pad does a great job for the torso, and the bag goes under my feet.

I pack my shelter around the rolled-up top of the plastic bag for yet more protection against really heavy all-day rain, which can soak into almost everything.

This can even work for momentary submersion, like when hiking the Gila River in May.

Every few days, or every day if it's like a monsoon out there (or another day in the Gila), I blow up the bag and check it for air leaks. Tent stakes or eating utensils, even when packed carefully, could eventually do some damage. Small duct tape patches work well and will last a season.

[Another Kevin]

Let's see, how many bags do I have in my bag?

1. Pack liner: Trash compactor bag.
2. Sleeping bag goes in the stuff sack that came with the bag. I'm nervous about just stuffing it in the pack liner. It mustn't get wet.
3. Tent goes in the stuff sack that came with the tent. If it's wet, it goes OUTSIDE the pack liner. My tent is trekking pole supported, so I don't have to stow tent poles. I also have a tiny silnylon sleeve for my tent stakes, mostly to keep them from getting clay on everything else.
4. Therm-a-rest goes in the stuff sack that came with the pad, because it gets unmanageable otherwise. It expands into a messy coil rather than staying neatly rolled.
5. Food goes in a Cuben bag from jimmyjam. (Before I had the Cuben bag, I used a Sea to Summit dry sack. The Cuben bag is lighter.
6. First aid supplies, medications, repair items, nail clippers, toothbrush, and dental floss go into a little Cuben bag from jimmyjam. (There are probably some small things that I've forgotten to mention, in that bag.) Before I had the Cuben bag, I used doubled freezer bags.
7. PU-nylon bucket goes in its own little stuff sack, because it's always wet and I don't want it wetting anything else.
8. Camera case attaches to one of the ladder straps of my pack. The camera case holds spare batteries for camera and headlamp.

If plastic bags count, well, first, I have each meal bagged individually. Then:

Toilet tissue goes in a quart-size freezer bag. Plastic garden trowel goes in doubled newspaper bags. Guidebook (if I'm bringing one), notebook, pencil and map (if I have a non-waterproof one) go in a freezer bag. A waterproof map can simply go in a cargo pocket in my pants.
Bear bag rope goes in a newspaper bag so that the coil doesn't foul on anything. The bear bag 'biner also is used to attach my camera case to my pack's ladder strap.
I usually have a plastic grocery bag with little sandwich bags containing the day's snacks.

Stuff that doesn't require bagging:

My puffy jacket can turn inside out and stuff into its own pocket. Other clothing goes loose in the trash compactor bag, so that it can pack around everything else. The pack turns into a bag of lumps otherwise. Wet clothing goes outside the compactor bag. Likewise my towel. If the brush isn't bad and the weather has improved, I may try hanging my socks and towel to dry on the pack with a loop of my bearbag rope laced around it.
Stove, (including windscreen, pot stand and some small parts for steaming and simmering), lighter, mug and coffee filter all go in the cookpot, which then goes in the bear bag. My freezer bag cozy goes between my water bladder and my back, with my spork tucked in it. It can go in the bear bag for hanging.
Extra water bottles ride in the water bottle pockets (what a concept).
Camera tripod lives in one of the ice axe loops.
In summer, the snow shovel pocket of my pack is where all noxious fluids reside. This includes stove alcohol, DEET, sunscreen, bug spray, and Dr Bronner's soap. My water shoes also go in there.
My pack has a tiny dedicated stuff compartment in its base where the pack cover goes.
Compass, phone, tinderbox, bandana, knife, hand sanitizer, and tiny Cuben bag with my driver's license, health insurance card, credit card, prescription card, and some cash, all go in my pockets.

The lid of the pack has the day's snacks, the map case, my headlamp and my PLB. If I move the ditty bag, a space blanket and a water bottle into it, I can stash my main pack and use the lid as a summit pack when peak-bagging, and still have all the essentials with me. I've only done this a couple of times, because it makes my really nervous to walk away from my gear. But it's at least an option.

And my usual disclaimer: On any given trip, there may or may not be other things in my pack that are none of your business.

Winter changes the load-out significantly, but I've already rambled too long.

[garlic08]

...If plastic bags count, well, first, I have each meal bagged individually....

That's an interesting point, and in my mind they count. After a particularly difficult ten-day hike with no chance of disposing trash, I was surprised at the amount of food trash I had carried for nearly 200 miles. So I began minimizing it. The next similar hike, 160 miles through the South San Juans and Weminuche Wildernesses, all my trash fit in the empty peanut butter jar. I shifted my food mentality to bulk packaging and saved weight and pack space. It requires discipline in portion control, but it's not that hard.

[Another Kevin]

That's an interesting point, and in my mind they count. After a particularly difficult ten-day hike with no chance of disposing trash, I was surprised at the amount of food trash I had carried for nearly 200 miles. So I began minimizing it. The next similar hike, 160 miles through the South San Juans and Weminuche Wildernesses, all my trash fit in the empty peanut butter jar. I shifted my food mentality to bulk packaging and saved weight and pack space. It requires discipline in portion control, but it's not that hard.

I'll likely be trying that for a hike I've got coming up, where I've got a 65-mile section planned (and absolutely zero resupply options for about 50 miles of it, even if I wanted to). At an 8-12 mpd pace, that's a lot of food to carry, and I won't really know until I'm on trail whether I can crank out more miles than that. It's unfamiliar terrain to me, and I'm told that it's easier than anything I'm accustomed to lately.