splitting gear between two people

[sails2trails]

My girlfriend and I will be thru hiking in 2012,I have been thru most of the "gear list" threads and got alot of good info but I was curiious as to how you would change the gear list if two people are sharing the load...i.e. we only need one camp stove and one tent(imho) what else is there that you wouldn't really need two of and how would you switch up the load to make it better for both people.....thanks for reading and any input is greatly appreciated:-?

[Rocket Jones]

Put some thought into what happens if you become separated or one leaves the trail. You should both carry some sort of shelter, even if just for an emergency. You should both have the ability to feed yourself, either a second stove (maybe an alcohol stove) or food that can be eaten without cooking.

It's easy to take heavier items as a pair because you're splitting the load. That might become an issue if one leaves the trail and the other continues on. Can one person carry everything needed by him/herself?

[Enic]

I'm in the middle of planning a duo thru aswell. The best advise I have is buy an acurrate scale, split shared gear evenly, then, go on a shake down. See how both of you handle your half, and adjust if needed. I carry about 65% of shared gear when out with my girlfriend, but she tried to haul more than she should have for several trips until I convinced her to share some more wieght. (I'm also 6'1'' and she's 5'2'') Decide now if one or both of you could continue if the other leaves the trail. Be prepared to change everything you have after using it and deciding it's not for one or both of you... it's easy to ignore annoying gear solo, but it really becomes a sore subject when shared. Don't forget that you enjoy each others' company, that's why you wanted to do this together.

[Bati]

When hiking with a partner, I always make sure one person has the water filter and the other one has iodine drops or a similar lightweight backup method (which I'd prefer not to use, but work well on occasion).

Sometimes partners are unable to hike alone and other times they simply prefer to be together. Figure out the answer to this and it helps with the other decisions. For example, if I go out backpacking with a friend and a twenty-pound baby then we simply cannot split up and must stay together every night, unless someone is going for help (in cases like this, the person with the child probably has no sleeping bag, or tent since the baby and stuff is best kept together in one pack). But if it's just two adults, and we think it would be fun to hike together on the AT, then we need to recognize ahead of time time that we might wish to part ways a few hundred miles up the trail.

The big question is: are you worried about splitting gear because you're not together for one night or for the rest of the trip? When a partner drops off, plan on making some serious changes. For example, with two people, I carry a four-pound tent, but when I'm solo, I can only handle a bivy so that swap is made. Decisions like this are best made as adults; as in, "let's hike our own hikes once we get to Erwin. I'll order by own stove and have my tent sent to a maildrop there." If the two of you are not mature enough to make it to the next town, hopefully you've figured this out ahead of time and have not decided to share a tent.

If the issue is more that you planned on getting to shelter 19 miles away, and it's dark and your slower partner had implied that might not make it more than 15 miles that day, then is the agreement to worry or to assume that they're OK and they'll meet you in town tomorrow? Make sure you know the answer before you split up that morning! If it's one night alone, each person needs to have enough to deal with it (make sure you each carry your own sleeping bag and at least a tarp.)

I've never worried about losing a stove as we generally split the food and things like ramen can be eaten dry (though again, I'd prefer not to do so for dinner, but it works well for a lunch or midday snack.) But since I consider my stove a vital part of my first aid kit, I would want to buy another stove if my partner left the trail.

[bigcranky]

My wife and I have done some longer hikes, and we share gear pretty well. We have a Lunar Duo tent, which is 2.5 pounds of awesomeness. We carry one stove, but two mugs, a 900ml and a 700mm, so we can share a hot drink in one while cooking dinner in the other. Except on quick weekend hikes, we each carry a food bag, and make sure that there is no-cook food in each bag in case we get separated. We use a water filter instead of chemicals, because it's much faster for two people, but I carry a dozen Aqua Mira tablets in my pack just in case.

Other than that, we carry our own personal gear and clothing.

Finally, you might find this essay helpful:

http://www.spiriteaglehome.com/THP_couples.html

Happy trails.

[Spirit Walker]

It really does depend on whether you will be hiking together all day or hiking apart but meeting at the end of the day.

My husband and I hike together since our paces are very similar and we often hike in places where seperation is not a good idea. Shared gear includes stove, pot and fuel (him), first aid kit (me), filter (me), camera (him), and tent (him), guidebook and maps (usually me). It would include a cell phone if we carried one. If we were not hiking together all day, we would be more self-sufficient and the only shared gear would be the tent. We each carry food, but he carries the heavier stuff (lunch and snacks) while I carry the lighter breakfast and dinner. That way we each lose some weight each day.

[Blissful]

We carried only one first aid kit and one cell phone. I'd suggest carrying your own first aid kit though. One pot and lid, but we did take an extra orikasi bowl. One carried maps the other the guidebook.

[Nutbrown]

About to go for a week with the husband. I'm carrying the food, he gets the tent. That's really all we will share.

[Papa D]

I suggest having mostly your own gear - you could share a stove and food - I'd even suggest solo sleeping arrangements - two single Hubba tents or two single Rainbow Tarps, Hennessey Hammocks, etc. because if someone has to get off the trail and plans on catching up, yellow blazing, running into town for a mail drop and a beer and meeting you in the morning (or whatever) it's soo much easier just to have your own stuff.

[gumball]

I suggest having mostly your own gear - you could share a stove and food - I'd even suggest solo sleeping arrangements - two single Hubba tents or two single Rainbow Tarps, Hennessey Hammocks, etc. because if someone has to get off the trail and plans on catching up, yellow blazing, running into town for a mail drop and a beer and meeting you in the morning (or whatever) it's soo much easier just to have your own stuff. This. Its just better to be prepared. You can get separated even if that is not the intention. We both carry the gear necessary to live and sleep overnight without the other one overnight if we had to. Its very nice to be able to hike with an extra light pack. Not very nice not to have what you need if you need it.