Pack Weight?

[cyclocrosser]

I will be tru Hiking NOBO starting June 1. I have done some major backpacking in the past with a 60 lbs pack, but I would like to know what the average pack weight of thru hikers is and how to achieve it?

[SGT Rock]

As to average weight, well it is probably under 30 pounds with food and water, but lots of people go heavier and some go a lot lighter. Just figure out what is most comfortable and acceptable for you.

There are a lot of sites out there these days to help you lighten up, you just gotta be able to let loose of some of your old beloved gear. You might try posting your current packing plan with weights and let some of the hikers here give you some ideas.

[aaronthebugbuffet]

Go with what works for you, but 30-40lbs with food & water is a comfortable weight for most with a decent pack. I only weighed my pack fully loaded one time, but I would guess I never carried more than 30lbs, but 25 was probably the norm.

[Footslogger]

I will be tru Hiking NOBO starting June 1. I have done some major backpacking in the past with a 60 lbs pack, but I would like to know what the average pack weight of thru hikers is and how to achieve it?================================
I agree with Rock on this one. A lot depends on what you consider your absolute minimum gear/clothing list. Another factor is your personal strength and tolerance for heavy shoulder loads over a long period of time. Sixty pounds is at the high end of what I've ever seen on the trail (well ...except for Rick the Lone Wolf in 2003). If I had to take a shot at the average I'd probably call it around the 32 - 35 range. One thing that tends to happen to thru-hikers is that they start out at one point and continue to lighten their load as they go. I started at Springer in March of 2003 with 43 lbs (in a Gregory Reality pack). That included 4 days of food and my starting water supply (2 Liters). By the time I got to Pearisburg, VA I had dropped so much gear/clothing that I had excess capacity in my pack. It seemed silly carrying a pack that weighed 5lbs (empty) when I didn't need the space. I switched to a pack weighing 2lbs empty (Granite Gear Vapor Trail) and hiked out of Pearisburg toting 26lbs. Somewhere along the way I managed to lose another 2 lbs of stuff and ended up at Katahdin carrying a 24 lb pack.

I'm 5'10" and weighed about 178 lbs when I left Springer. By Harpers I had lost about 38 lbs. The reason for telling you this is that most hikers do lose weight and even with the conditioning you get on the trail those extra ounces/pounds in your pack really do make a difference in your overall comfort.

Anyhew ...that's my experience.

'Slogger
AT 2003

[chris]

My estimate would be around 30 lbs, _with_out food or water. Some even heavier. None of this is really necessary, though. Without much work, you can get down to 20 lbs without food or water. With a little more thought and skill, you can get down to the 12-14 lb range.

By the way, toughness can make up for carring a big load. In 2004, Wild Horse (his real name, actually) was hauling around 50 lbs (his sleeping bag alone weighed 5.5 lbs). I was hauling about 13 lbs. He usually outpaced me, even when I would put in 25 or 30 miles in a day.

[orangebug]

I'd wonder what you would carry in June in Georgia that would make a 30 pound pack. Leaving in June gives you only 4.5 months to finish, assuming Mt K doesn't close until Oct 15. You won't need cold weather gear until Vermont.

I'd be real keen for you to post your gear list with weights and get advice regarding how to make these miles possible. You have put yourself into about 16 miles per day, assuming no zero days, injuries or town stops.

[Happy]

I hike every March 1st with aspiring thru hikers and watch them weigh their packs and see anywhere from 23-75 pounds. The 23 pounds was last year from a fellow Whiteblazer!

You will only need 1 liter of water to carry the first 2 days and 3 1/2 days of food if you do the approach trail. Try and keep your total weight under 30 pounds and you will save a lot of shipping charges starting at Neal's Gap!

A great approach is to keep your base weight (without food, fuel & water) at 15 lbs.-17lbs. or even less. A June 1st hike would dictate even less weight.
If not sure, just pay the shipping when you reach Neal's Gap!

[UCONNMike]

i made a post with my essential gear weight it was 9.6 pounds
(http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=6594), i carryed an 20 pound base weight pack during a section hike this past summer, it got up to about 28 with food and water (food for about 3-4 days). im looking to keep it as light as possible, cause lighter means faster. oh and btw me and RITBlake are leaving on June 1st going north too, so we'll see you down there!

[Ridge]

Your pack weight should be heavier during winter hiking, due to extra clothing/gear and maybe a little extra food. Although summer should be lighter, extra water carried during shortages can add on weight. The answer to the question should not be in pounds as it is by how much (or how little) you are willing to carry in order to achieve a comfort(and safety) level you want or need. My comfort zone weight runs between 25-32 lbs, which includes 4lbs of water. Does not include food which you must add 1.3lbs per day between resupply. So, for 5 days out I'll add 1.3lbs x 5days= 6.5 lbs making a grand total pack wt of between 31.5 and 38.5 lbs. These are my starting maximum wts and will vary. I do try to keep the weight down as much as possible. I plan on replacing s/s with titanium and also shaving as many ounce's as I can from other items. I do carry a tooth brush with a sawed off handle with holes drilled in the rest of the handle in order to lighten it up. My heaviest item is my tent, a one man walrus swift.

[Mountain Dew]

Wait...did you say June 1st ? Well considering you will need to be doing very big days with few zero days you had better have a light pack. I'd say the average A.T. hikers pack attempting a thru-hike weighs between 30-35 lbs. I started at 73 lbs. in 2003 and very quickly got it down to a weight that was very comfortable for me....50-58 lbs depending on my food being carried. Seldom have I met a person with a pack under 25 lbs that didn't end up needing to borrow something from another hiker. i.e. data book, food, medical kit, duct tape, head lamp, maps, shirt, etc. Key word in that last sentence was "seldom". Best wishes to you on your superlight super fast attempted thru-hike. Goodtimes...

[hikerdude]

That's about right, if I was a judge. 30 pounds out of town in March, they all say, give or take a pound. Read what chris say's to.
It matters not what others may say but light isn't right. Getting in shape is more important. " The Right Stuff ".:-?

Like I don't really think getting in shape is more important, just maybe just as important. Thanks for not putting an objectionable spin on everything I say.:bse

[rocket04]

I met lots of people with packs over 30 pounds, I myself was between 30-35, carrying luxury items like book, heavy journal, pillow, heavy camera. I'm not strong at all, very skinny, and the weight was OK for me. I'd venture to say that most people would be OK at anything under 40. If you can get it down to under 25 like some people and stay safe, even better for you!

[Haiku]

I may have been that 23lb. March 1 hiker last year, but as I hiked north I actually added weight, so that when I finished I was carrying between 20-30lbs with food and water. I switched from an ultralight GoLite Breeze to the Vapor Trail in Front Royal, which has an awesome suspension and helped my shoulders take a break. Even then, though, I never fully loaded the pack (large size; there were other hikers with medium size Vapor Trails who were able to use the space), certainly never going into the suspension collar. I changed a few other things around so I was carrying some more weight as well, but again, never went above 30lbs, even while carrying about 10lbs. of food for a day and a half in Maine (hey, I was hungry!).

Haiku.

[neo]

my 1st section hike 2001 was from amicola falls,ga to deep gap,nc with a 60 lb alice combat pack,it kicked my butt,i never let my pack get over 30 lbs since then,my pack wieght is average between 20 to 22 lbs,food,fuel,gear.30 lbs not a problem,i dont recommend carrying 60 lbs any were hiking:sun :jump :) :clap :bse

[cyclocrosser]

Thanks for all the feed back. I will post a pack list and weight soon.

[mdjeeper]

i havent thru-hiked yet, but my normal 3 season pack weight is between 28-35lbs fully loaded with 4 ltrs of water/juice onboard and in the winter it jumps to 4right at 42lbs

[SalParadise]

It's tougher as a newer hiker just to know what to throw away or how to get by with a lot of the extras. I carried 50 lbs into the Smokies and about 42 lbs the rest of the way. You're obviously more exhausted carrying that sort of weight, but it was even harder mentally. I really wanted to quit because there was nothing fun about hiking when I was so tired all the time. Probably took me until the VA border to really be strong enough for that weight.
This next time I'll be around 32 lbs fully loaded. I won't make the same weight mistake again. I'm looking forward to actually enjoying hiking.

[Haiku]

I'd say, pack what you'd like when you begin your hike. Unless you've done long-distance backpacking before you really have no idea what you need and what you don't (unless you do a lot of research, but it's still hard to convince yourself you don't need things). So load up your pack and start on Springer. By the time you get to Neels Gap you'll have a list in your head of things you want to send home. Then keep on hiking. By the time you get to the N.O.C. (Wesser) you'll have another list of more things to send home. Send them home and keep hiking. By the time you get to Hot Springs you'll have another list, and you can buy new, lighter, gear at the outfitter there. By the time you get to Damascus you'll be a lean, mean, hiking machine. Keep sending things home, or replacing them with lighter things as you go. You'll see immediately what you need and what you don't, and you'll see what other hikers have and learn from them.

I'll give you a huge weight-saver for free, that many new hikers don't know: replace any Nalgene water bottles you have with Gatorade or Coke bottles. If you've convinced yourself that Nalgenes are unbreakable, let me tell you that so are Coke bottles: my fuel bottle (an empty 20 oz. Coke bottle) has lasted 2400 miles with no leaks. The only reason I replaced my water bottles was to get clean ones so I didn't have to scrub the old ones. The best thing to convince you to leave the Nalgenes at home is to take a Coke bottle, fill it a third of the way with water, and then hold it in one hand and an empty Nalgene in the other hand. They weigh about the same - and you've got 8 oz. of water in one hand. Which would you rather have?

Haiku.

[jackiebolen]

Read Ray Jardine's Book: "Beyond Backpacking" Don't necessarily follow all his advice because he is a bit crazy but it will get you thinking in the right mindset about packweight. Reading the book was definitely the single-most valuable thing I did before hiking.

I found that on the trail, especially in Georgia I could pick out the people who'd read the book based simply on the type of gear they had and their packweight.