Member of Class of '17 thru hiker qs

[Lawnchair]

Ok, here are what I'd like to know now.
First, weight. I just packed my pack for the first time and the weight seems ... a lot but ok?. Would like some suggestions. It is going to be cold when I start (SOBO at HF WV 3/1/17). Thoughts? I am 6'3 and 235 so I will burn a lot of calories in the cold and with my weight and age (66). I am aiming for 3,000 cal/day. At just over 100 cal per 28g (1 oz), 15,000 cal should be about 150 oz or - da da - 9 pounds which is what it is.




Item
Wt in Oz





Pack (empty)




108





Food (5 days)
144





Water (2L)
36





Hammock & Straps
29





Air Mattress & Bivy
24





Rain fly
34





Sleeping Bag (0)
64





Extra clothes
73





Everything else
113






625






39 pounds
incl 14 lb food and water




2nd q: How can I best find out if anyone else will be planning this direction and time so that I can see if I am going to be completely alone or not?

[Sandy of PA]

That is a mighty heavy pack and rain fly in my opinion. If you could find lighter versions of those 2 things and sift carefully through the everything else category, you could save a lot of weight. Food sounds about right, going SOBO from Harpers, Front Royal would be the first town for resupply.

[MuddyWaters]

2L water weighs twice what you have shown
It will be cold
You wont encounter many others , if any

[bigcranky]

Did I see you mention in another thread that this would also be your first night ever backpacking when you start this hike? (If that's not you, please ignore this. :) )

I gotta be honest, I don't think starting a winter hike in a remote area with totally untested gear and no experience is all that great an idea. There won't be (m)any people around. It's possible to get very cold weather and plenty of snow in March in central VA.

If it were me, I'd want to nail down my pack and gear for a trip like this. You're pretty close to North Georgia and could do some easy overnight winter hikes around the southern end of the A.T. to figure out what works, what doesn't, and exactly what needs to be in your pack so you can be warm at night and comfortable during the day.

For example, you have a hammock and rain fly, plus a bivy (bivy sack?) and air mattress, but no underquilt. That's some duplication and possibly some missing gear: a 0-F sleeping bag can be used in a hammock but it can be hard to wiggle inside (ask me how I know this :) ) and you'll need to do some testing in cold weather to make sure your air mattress provides enough insulation under you, which many don't. (This is just as true on the ground, btw.) You'll only figure this out by spending the night in temps well below freezing -- not just an hour, but all night (or until you get so $%^ cold the test is over).

In my mind it's better to choose to hang in a hammock, or sleep on the ground - trying to bring gear for both can add a lot of extra weight.

Your food weight is pretty much average, though I think you'll end up wanting more than 3000 kcal per day, especially in the winter. There's not much you can do to test this in advance; you'll need to adapt during the hike when you resupply. You can get your kcal/oz average up a bit with lots of nuts like cashews, and olive oil to squirt in your dinners, that sort of thing. Eat peanut butter straight from the jar :)

Individual pieces of gear are less important than how the whole system works together. So many hikers might point out that a 6+ pound empty pack is pretty heavy (and it is!), but you're better served getting out there and using what you have before replacing anything.

Good luck and happy trails.

[Slo-go'en]

Ditch the hammock and bivy and get a decent tent. It's likely to still be full on winter and stormy in that area during early March this season. You'll be right where the cold and warm fronts clash.

Most people wait at least another 4 to 6 weeks (early to mid April) to start in HF, SOBO or NOBO. That makes a huge difference in the weather (for the better) and a subsequent reduction in the amount and weight of gear needed. The trail will still be pretty quiet until after Trail Days, at which point all of a sudden they are everywhere, as they get dropped off in bunches along the trail.

[Venchka]

Folks on this forum may suggest coconut oil as a tasty, nutritious way to bulk up on calories. Be prepared. The stuff turns into a brick at 34 degrees.
The Hammock Forums will give you a crash course in hanging. Something else you should do before you get on the trail.
There is no substitute for practice.
Cheers!
Wayne


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[One Half]

a 4lb sleeping bag?
6.75 lbs for a pack?!
nearly 2 lbs for a rainfly? in addition to your hammock and straps?
and 7lbs of EVERYTHING ELSE? I'm assuming that includes cook stove, fuel, pot, etc but still, that's a LOT of weight!

I can see where you could cut at least 7.5 lbs and that's without even touching UL. Wow.
I wish you well but with this being your first ever overnight, and a cold weather start, I would suggest you rethink and heed some of the advice that has been given previously.

[Fireplug]

39 lbs WOW. I'm at 13.6 and still want to cut weight. That's even with a battery pack and a tarp. I may send home some stuff. IDK yet but I think my pack is heavy at 13.6. That's BPW

[Engine]

As someone already pointed out, your actual weight will be north of 40 pounds when the real weight of water is factored in. I don't know what your budget is, but if your wallet can handle the impact, replacing some of these items would be wise.

Let's look at options:

Pack - Osprey Exos 58 is around 42 ounces and large enough to handle winter gear. It's $165 on Amazon and you'll save 66 ounces...
Sleeping bag - Western Mountaineering Versalite 10* bag is 34 ounces and costs...take a breath...$590.00. But, if you go for a quilt, the Enlightened equipment Revelation in long/wide with 950 goose down is under 26 ounces and costs $400, you'll save 38 ounces.

I would look hard at the Rain fly, something in cuben fiber would weigh a fraction of that. But, just those two items knocked 6.5 pounds off your overall weight.

Also, get that gear outside and test it over the next few months, you'll figure out what works and what doesn't.

[Hikingjim]

You have time to rethink some items.
A lighter (and not too bulky) shelter system would be a good start.
A better sleeping bag can be expensive, so you could get away with what you have if you lighten up elsewhere, and then you could swap out the bag for a 20f quilt or something ($250, 20 oz) when the weather warms up a bit
You could post your "everything else" to see what people suggest you cut
Once you get down to a less bulky load, you can then choose a suitable pack. Many packs that are around 2 or 2.5 lbs will do the trick
eg: osprey Exos, ULA circuit, ULA catalyst (bigger, if you have a lot of bulk)