First long hike

[Brandon_0384]

Hello all,
I've been reading the forum for a good time now and finally decided to ask for some advice. I am planning a Collegiate Loop at the end of August. Just a little about myself, I'm 31, only done a few overnight trips or light camping. I am in the military so I work out 5 times a week, in good shape. I'm looking to do the loop in 12 days. I would like to post my gear list and ask for any advice on changes I should make or equipment I am missing. Also, is 12 day enough time to complete the loop?


Pack - Kelty 65 cu in
Tent - TNF stormbreak 1
Bag - REI lumen 25 deg
Pad - Thermarest trail lite
iPhone 6s with GPS app
Stove - Jetboil zip
Water filter - katadyn hiker
Guide books - Colorado trail foundation
Compass - Cammenga lensatic
Knife - Benchmade Sequel
Food - Mountain House Meals (4 a day)
Water - camelback bladder plus platypus
Komperdell tracking poles
First aid kit
Trowel
Thermarest pillow
MSR pack soap
Titanium spork
Luci emrg lantern
Black diamond revolt headlamp


Clothing
- Polyester shirts (short and long)
- Polyester boxer briefs
- Wool socks
- Marmot quaser
- REI rain jacket
- Columbia zip off pants
- Fleece cap
- Columbia hat
- Sun glasses
- Brooks running shoes
- Camp shoes


Bug spray
Sunscreen
Personal hygiene items


Thank you for your questions and comments.

[matthewkphx]

Hey Brandon,

There are plenty of places to save weight if you want to talk about that but the thing that really sticks out to me is 4 X Mountainhouse per day. In addition to being expensive and taking lots of time to prepare, MH meals are relatively low in calories for their weight and size.

I've not hiked in Colorado but I hiked the John Muir Trail last summer and carried 11 days worth of food in the southern half of the trip and that had to fit into an 11 liter bear can. In general, you cannot avoid the fact that carbs and protein have 4 calories/gram and fat has 9 calories/gram. On the JMT I ate:

Probars for breakfast
Sesame sticks, crushed Fritos, sunflower kernals, cashews as snacks
Larabars and Honey Stinger Waffles for snacks
Salami. Lots of salami.
Couscous, instant mashed potatoes, freeze dried ham and chicken, FD refried beans, FD hummus for dinner.
Lots of olive oil in the dinners
Tortillas
Shortbread

I was able to get about 3300 calories in 1.5-1.6 pounds per day.

I hope that helps and can direct you towards resources if you would like. Enjoy your hike!

[bearcreek]

Knorr Singles, on sale at grocery stores everywhere, provide similar calories to products such as Mountainhouse at a fraction of the cost. They cook a tiny bit slower, but there are at least 20 different meals available. I like them because they are cheap, easy, and give you many more choices so you don't get burned out eating the same thing night after night.

Your gear list seems ok, but it would be much better if you figured out what all this stuff weighs. That is the bottom line...

[Hikingjim]

Your gear is functional enough and your main components aren't terribly heavy (unless looked at by an UL enthusiast lol)
My cousin did the loop in 11 days and is fairly fit but certainly not hardcore and he had a enough time. 12 will be more than fine for anyone fit that doesn't have a ridiculous pack

I agree with the food recommendation. I usually bring one mountain house or something for dinner at most. It becomes more of a "hot meal treat" at the end of the day as well.

If you work your resupply well your pack won't be hard to handle.

[saltysack]

Looks good to me but I've never hiked the CT....yet. Did jmt last sept. Have fun. As others have said you have several areas where you could shed several lbs without buying new gear. Remember less is better!
Just my $.02
I'd ditch
MH meals 1 hot meal per day not 4.
Trowel..use trekking pole, stick or rock.
Soap unless it's very small amount...reuse a visene container
Lantern
One hiking shirt
Camp shoes
Bug spray needed late August?
Enjoy




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[Brandon_0384]

Thank you for the responses. I have not really looked into other food options. I was planning on a drop resupply half way through the loop. I would be looking at 7 days of food at a time to give me one extra day just in case. I am currently eating around 3500 calories a day. I am 6 ft 195 lbs. My base pack weight without food and water is 22 lbs. I also looked at some of the mountain house meals that I had. I use the two person meals. 4 meals, 1 breakfast and 3 dinner meals is right at 2500 calories and weight 1.44 lbs total. Are these worth it? I would be supplementing that with some snacks. I like the idea of olive oil and Fritos to add some calories and fat.


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[saltysack]

Looking around 40lbs w 7 days of food wt and water...id try to cut some wt if it were me. I'm planning on doing the loop in 9-10 days w drop boxes at MPHS and monarch pass store. Keeping pack under 25-28lbs.


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[MuddyWaters]

4 MH a day? You will not have room in pack for anything else. MH is bulky. Also low calories.

[TwoSpirits]

Don't forget some toilet paper.

Also, if you are taking the MH Granola for some of your breakfasts, you can save money, bulk, and maybe some weight by making your own -- put some granola (or any other cereal you like) along with a scoop of Nido into a ziplock.

[saltysack]

The though of attempting to eat MH 4x per day for 2 weeks is making me nauseous!! I gave away a unopened #10 can of MH lasagna @ MTR because I thought I could eat it for a week straight on JMT..after a few days I can't even look at the stuff! Do your self a favor check out other dinner options...I've found over the years that If rather only cook a hot meal for supper. Eating bars, gorp, pop tarts etc for bfast and lunch so much easier and quicker. Just my $.02....


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[lonehiker]

Thank you for the responses. I have not really looked into other food options. I was planning on a drop resupply half way through the loop. I would be looking at 7 days of food at a time to give me one extra day just in case. I am currently eating around 3500 calories a day. I am 6 ft 195 lbs. My base pack weight without food and water is 22 lbs. I also looked at some of the mountain house meals that I had. I use the two person meals. 4 meals, 1 breakfast and 3 dinner meals is right at 2500 calories and weight 1.44 lbs total. Are these worth it? I would be supplementing that with some snacks. I like the idea of olive oil and Fritos to add some calories and fat.


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Seven days of food will get you 8 days of hiking. Are you only going to average 10 miles per day? You might want to reduce your food to 6 days. So for seven days you would only have to average 11.5 miles a day. Still doable? If so, maybe you could reduce to 5 days of food and hike it in 6 days which is still less than 13.5 miles a day. Just food for thought. Another thought on excess food, it is simply excess weight.

As far as what food you take that is personal preference. Mountain House are bulky and expensive. You can go to any grocery store and do as well for a lot cheaper. My strategy with Fritos is that I use them as a break food. Every time I take a little break I will have a handful, or two, of them.

I've just reread your post reference the 4 meal deal. Guess I don't understand your intent. Are you going to eat 4 MH meals a day? You can do much better in Grocery store. Granola/cereal for breakfast, protein/energy bar for 1st snack, peanut butter/honey on tortilla for lunch, peanut m&ms for 2nd snack, Knorr side w/spam for dinner, add a couple of honey buns for dessert. Oh, and throw in the Fritos (olive oil if you want added to the sides) to supplement. Or whatever, use your imagination.

[Brandon_0384]

I've been looking around and have found a few people who posted their food menus. Looks like a lot of peanut butter, olive oil, and snacks to eat throughout the day and a hot meal at night. I guess a good benefit would be less stove fuel to carry. Being in the military, I have lived on MRE's for almost a year straight. I even lived on blueberry pop tarts (without the frosting) for a week straight when we ran out of food in Iraq!


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[Push Yourself]

The food advice you've received is all good. However, if your goal is to eat tasty, nutritious stuff, check out packitgourmet.com out of Austin, TX. Some of the best trail food I've eaten and it's easy to prepare. Not inexpensive, however.

[sheperd80]

Just wanted to add that 4 mh meals a day also equals lots of fuel and lots of time cooking, boiling water etc. In addition to the weight and space issues.

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[saltysack]

The food advice you've received is all good. However, if your goal is to eat tasty, nutritious stuff, check out packitgourmet.com out of Austin, TX. Some of the best trail food I've eaten and it's easy to prepare. Not inexpensive, however.

+1 & Hawk Vittles

[Brandon_0384]

Those hawk vittles look good. Any recommendations on what ones are good?


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[Miel]

Those hawk vittles look good. Any recommendations on what ones are good?


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I liked the Breakfast Casserole and the Country Quiche.

It was fun to camp out at his place and eat Hawk Vittles right there. :)

[Brandon_0384]

Would you all recommend a hot breakfast and dinner or just a hot dinner?


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[saltysack]

Those hawk vittles look good. Any recommendations on what ones are good?


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My favorite is the Sierra spaghetti then the lasagna but I've tried most all the pastas and enjoyed all...single serving is enough if you eat a good desert with it! Just use a piece of your gear i.e. Beenie to keep it warm while rehydrating and paper clip to keep closed. Only downfall is bag doesn't seal after opening so must keep upright.

[bearcreek]

I never, ever, try to eat as many calories as I expend. It is impossible, at least in my case. I always lose weight, but after about 9000 miles of hiking, I am still alive. When I am hiking, I consume fewer than 2000 calories per day and I can keep going at that level for months. I doubt that you will have the appetite to consume 3500 calories per day. Four meals a day is total overkill.

[Hikingjim]

Would you all recommend a hot breakfast and dinner or just a hot dinner?


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I just have coffee (something easy like nestle 3 in 1 packets) and quaker oatmeal as my hot breakfast. Then I add nuts, dried fruit if i'm hungry. I don't bother with mountain house, etc other than dinner

[Brandon_0384]

Do you all use a pillow or just stuff sack with some clothes or something in it?


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[rafe]

Four MH meals a day? Did I read that right? That would not work for me.

I like having one or two MH meals in my food bag for a 3-5 day section. They're filling and tasty but probably not the best nutrition. Can't see eating them every day. The MH meals are backup for when the weather's really rotten or I'm just feeling lazy. And they're pricey.

Much better eats for your dollar from standard supermarket fare. Even if it is mostly pasta, beans, cheese, nuts, tuna, chicken-in-foil-packets, sausage, etc. Plan it right and you can have relatively heavy, fresh, tasty food your first night or two out of town.

[Hikingjim]

Do you all use a pillow or just stuff sack with some clothes or something in it?


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If I bring a pillow, I use this one https://www.rei.com/product/830617/exped-air-pillow
there are other similar models that other people like. weighs about 3 oz and hardly takes any space

Skipping the pillow really depends what I think I'm going to have around to put in my stuff sack. On some hikes I have so few extra clothes, etc.... that a stuff sack pillow is a bad pillow. I think some use their pack to prop their head up a bit too, but I don't bring mine into my little tent

[Sandy of PA]

I carry a pillow. I tried the stuff sack pillow on my air pad on the bedroom floor, I just could not sleep. Easy to try before you buy a pillow. Testing does not have to be outdoors!

[lonehiker]

Would you all recommend a hot breakfast and dinner or just a hot dinner?


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I like to be hiking just as it is light enough to see the trail without a headlamp. So, I do not eat a hot breakfast. But, I do like a hot meal at the end of the day.

[Miel]

On my first long distance hike, I brought along powdered mustard and dehydrated miso. They worked well on just about everything I ate.

https://billievethat.wordpress.com/2009/11/23/miso-dust/

[Push Yourself]

A possible addition to your list: gaiters

[matthewkphx]

I just have coffee (something easy like nestle 3 in 1 packets) and quaker oatmeal as my hot breakfast. Then I add nuts, dried fruit if i'm hungry. I don't bother with mountain house, etc other than dinner

When I'm going really lightweight I put my puffy inside my buff which works fine. I've also carried a ZPacks pillow drybag with fleece on the inside which makes a luxurious pillow with a puffy inside for a couple ounces of weight. The best pillow I've used is an Exped inflatable pillow. They are all great options...

[Brandon_0384]

Are gaiters needed on the Colorado trail? It looks pretty groomed so I didn't know.


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[matthewkphx]

I hardly walk out to my mailbox without my dirty girl gaiters but I wear trail runners and hate rocks in my shoes. YMMV


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