PDA

View Full Version : Heaviest pack weight?



hikerboy57
01-21-2011, 19:12
with everyone going light and ultralight, I'm curious to know the heaviest pack weight someone actually finished with

wrongway_08
01-21-2011, 19:50
2008, 61.7 pound pack - on a scale! He was also one of the fastest hikers in our class, that I knew. He was a cool kid and did a good amount of miles every day. Kid had 2 stoves and a lot of extra cook ware, he liked to cook and ate a lot also.

Different Socks
01-21-2011, 20:30
On average I'd say my pack on the AT thru in 92 was about 50 pounds with everything in it, on it and over it.

Harrison Bergeron
01-21-2011, 21:15
I was just at the doctor today. First thing the nurse did was weigh me in my street clothes. Wow, did I put on some weight over the holidays! So later, after the doc left me alone to get dressed, I stepped on the same scale in my birthday suit. Whew, what a relief!

Interesting factoid I learned today: My STREET CLOTHES weigh two pounds less than the ten pounds the average ultralighter claims he carries to start a 2000 mile hike in the woods in the dead of winter and/or the rainy season on the AT.

I can't wait to get on the trail and actually see for myself how many ultralighters I'm really sharing the experience with. Personally, I'm stuck at 40 pounds and suspect the vast majority of my fellow travelers will be right there with me.

garlic08
01-21-2011, 22:39
You will not see very many UL hikers at all on the AT. I didn't in '08. After hiking a few long trails in the Western states, I was kind of surprised at the sizes of packs I saw on the AT. Forty pounds was pretty normal, I think.

Praha4
01-21-2011, 22:45
You will not see very many UL hikers at all on the AT. I didn't in '08. After hiking a few long trails in the Western states, I was kind of surprised at the sizes of packs I saw on the AT. Forty pounds was pretty normal, I think.

last year there was a guy who started in early April, trail name Buck-Twenty, carryied 120 lbs. I have no idea why he had that much weight, there were all kinds of stories about the guy. I never saw him, but I must have heard about him at least a dozen times on the trail

flyer
01-21-2011, 22:59
i knew buck 20 we hiked togather for a good while. He got his pack down to 45lb with food and water. He could really put down some miles if he wanted to so starting with a heave pack is like putting on ankle weight. It trains you faster. if you can walk at all. Buck told me he could do no more than 5 mi a day till Neel where he got a shake down with the pros there. it took him 7 days and he didn't give up.


SkyHi

couscous
01-21-2011, 23:55
Still trying to comprehend the strength needed to carry a 120# pack for 30 miles. I've had two 40# salt bags in the Gregory I bought last millennium, but didn't go 30 yards before deciding that was a bit extreme for my knees. Interesting thread. I was checking if Sir-Packs-Alot posted as there must have been a heavy pack behind a trail name like that.

gipcgirl
01-22-2011, 01:07
last year there was a guy who started in early April, trail name Buck-Twenty, carryied 120 lbs. I have no idea why he had that much weight, there were all kinds of stories about the guy. I never saw him, but I must have heard about him at least a dozen times on the trail

I also met buck 20 and hiked with him and around him for some time. He is not a small man. He snored as loud as a freight train. Did he finish the AT does anyone know?

Trailbender
01-22-2011, 01:25
I summited with a guy named Sonic, was 6'6" and carried a 70 lb pack. He had a 5lb jar of peanut butter. He is the tall blond kid in my summit pic.

Trailbender
01-22-2011, 01:26
Nevermind, I don't have that pic up.

takethisbread
01-23-2011, 07:20
I am
Not sure how people do it. If I go over 30lbs I freak out. I've gone as high as 40lbs in Maine, but if I have a town within a few days, which is most of the trail, I stay at 25lbs. I did meet a guy, Cherokee, who looked to be carrying 75 lbs and wearing all denim.

Kerosene
01-23-2011, 10:53
Personally, I'm stuck at 40 pounds and suspect the vast majority of my fellow travelers will be right there with me.I think you'll find that most hikers will range between 30 and 35 pounds after Neel Gap. Once the heat hits, a lot of hikers will only be carrying 20-25 pounds until they get to Hanover.

If your body is comfortable carrying 40 pounds then don't worry about what others are carrying. However, the more weight you carry the more susceptible you are to various types of injuries. I'm strong enough to carry 40 pounds for 15 miles a day, but my feet (and now knees) feel much better carrying 25 for 20 miles.

Jim Adams
01-23-2011, 10:59
1990 Mule had 100lbs on Springer. He pared it down to about 50 by the end of the trail.

geek

leaftye
01-23-2011, 11:02
i knew buck 20 we hiked togather for a good while. He got his pack down to 45lb with food and water. He could really put down some miles if he wanted to so starting with a heave pack is like putting on ankle weight. It trains you faster. if you can walk at all.

Sure, your muscles quickly adapt, but the other parts do not. Reducing wear and tear on those other parts is a big part of getting all the way down the trail.

Ox97GaMe
01-23-2011, 12:57
I think the most I ever hiked with was about 85 out of Fontana in 98.

I met the Go-Lite founder at Springer when he was attempting his 700 mile unsupported/no resupply hike. His pack was 127 pounds. He made it as far as Neels Gap.