View Full Version : Please critque my gear list :)
Here is my current gear list. Critique is welcome. Anything that should be added or left out for, say, a month-long hike, a thru hike, etc?...
* Large, nylon, multi-compartment frame pack with waist/chest straps.
* Small sewing kit
* Aluminum mess kit
* Lighters
* Magnesium bar
* Hunting knife
* Nylon rope
* Fishing hooks, line, sinkers, bobbers
* Portable, collapsible shovel
* Fleece sleeping bag rated at 42 degrees
* 4-season tent
* Lean-too, hammock or waterproof tarp
* First aid/snake bite kit
* Water bladder
* Water purification tablets or filter
* Hatchet
* Honing/sharpening stone
* Portable camp stove/sterno
* Handbook or field guide on survival
* Compass
* Flashlight (wind-up powered) or other light source
* Small mirror
* Insect, mosquito netting
* Shaving razors
* Waterproof jacket or poncho
* Bar of soap
* Zip-lock bags
* Jerky, granola bars, trail mix, nuts, instant oatmeal/grits/cream of wheat, potato flakes, instant coffee, sugar, salt, peanut butter, instant rice, dried soups, dates, raisens, vienna sausages, potted meat food, spam, tuna in pouch, etc.
* Black plastic trash bags
* Mat or bedroll
* Hooded jacket
* Sweaters
* Peppermint tums
* Unisom sleep tabs
* Nicotine gum
* Folding saw
* Sponges, towels, rags
* Hiking poles
* Mosquito repellant
* Gloves
* Boots
* Whistle
* Benadryl
Blue Mountain Edward
02-11-2013, 21:19
To much gear, did you try to carry that load. Dont need the magnesium bar, hunting knife, rope,fishing gear, shovel, hammock, tarp, hatchet, sharpening stone, survival book and folding saw. In late spring, summer or early fall a hooded jacket is not needed just wear a breathable rain jacket. A alcohol stove is way lighter than a Sterno stove and fuel is easier and cheaper to find. Get a AT guidebook.
Slo-go'en
02-11-2013, 21:36
Where exactly do you plan on going with all that stuff? Not very far I hope!
Your list has a lot of redunant items and a lot of useless items or poor choices. You need to do some serious research because there is just so much wrong here it would take hours to explain it all.
A good start is "How to hike the AT The nitty-gritty details of a long-distance trek by Michelle Ray. She covers everything you need to know. It is available from Amazon as an ebook. It was a free down load recently, but may have a nominal cost now, but would be money well spent.
TroutknuT
02-11-2013, 22:22
I would love to fly fish every day but on the AT but the weight of a rod,the price and need of a license ,and the access to fish just is not happening. Hiking ten plus miles with fishing gear thinking I could cut some weight if I dumped the old part of my AT Guide and only carried the section I need,and maybe cut some extra straps off my pack or lose weight by only carrying 32 oz. of water ,this will drive you nuts. For the AT walking on ridges high above rivers no time to fish. Pack the gear you have with 3 days of food half a gallon of water,step on the scale and hope all your gear is under 35#. Go simple go light!
I'll take a quick quick whack
* Large, nylon, multi-compartment frame pack with waist/chest straps. - Why? Already own it? Prefer external frames?
* Small sewing kit
* Aluminum mess kit - Don't need a full kit, just a litre pot. Unless your going to make multi-course meals
* Lighters - Lighter(S)? Just need one
* Magnesium bar - Why bring the lighters then?
* Hunting knife - Are we talking an 8" Bowie knife, or a 3" folding knife, or a 6" fillet knife?
* Nylon rope - How much? IMHO, you only need enough to hang something up a tree. And I'd pick either Amsteel or 550 cord.
* Fishing hooks, line, sinkers, bobbers
* Portable, collapsible shovel - Just a tiny plastic trowel
* Fleece sleeping bag rated at 42 degrees - Do you already own it? Otherwise, big, heavy and not great.
* 4-season tent - Why 4 seasons if your bag only goes to 40F? A 3 or 2.5 season tent would be better.
* Lean-too, hammock or waterproof tarp - Why? You already are bringing a tent
* First aid/snake bite kit
* Water bladder
* Water purification tablets or filter
* Hatchet - Planning on felling some trees?
* Honing/sharpening stone - Planning on felling ALOT of trees?
* Portable camp stove/sterno
* Handbook or field guide on survival
* Compass
* Flashlight (wind-up powered) or other light source
* Small mirror
* Insect, mosquito netting
* Shaving razors
* Waterproof jacket or poncho
* Bar of soap
* Zip-lock bags
* Jerky, granola bars, trail mix, nuts, instant oatmeal/grits/cream of wheat, potato flakes, instant coffee, sugar, salt, peanut butter, instant rice, dried soups, dates, raisens, vienna sausages, potted meat food, spam, tuna in pouch, etc.
* Black plastic trash bags
* Mat or bedroll
* Hooded jacket
* Sweaters
* Peppermint tums
* Unisom sleep tabs
* Nicotine gum
* Folding saw - Planning on felling a tonne of trees?
* Sponges, towels, rags - what for?
* Hiking poles
* Mosquito repellant
* Gloves
* Boots
* Whistle
* Benadryl
OMG, that list brings back memories. Nowadays, i strip the cook kit, use a butane stove, trade the hunting knife for a small lock blade multi-tool, fewer fire starters, just invested in a down bag, no hatchet or saw, smaller tent (I am now using a hammock), etc. the above replies have some excellent advice. I do still use my external frame pack. That will be my next investment. My base weight is still 20-25 lbs. That is heavy by some standards but I remember my first extended backpacking trip 30 years ago and i was happy to only have 45-50lb base weight. I do enjoy my comfort items. :-)
Way too much extraneous stuff; not much mention of clothes, besides jackets and sweaters. Clothes choices are a lot more critical than the extraneous stuff listed, IMO. It's hard to stay warm and dry in bad weather, but that's what you will need to do.
Look through other good gear lists to get a better idea of what to bring.
Slo-go'en
02-12-2013, 14:24
I finally realised that Todd simply made a list of everything he read or heard about and may not represent what he actually has.
This ties in to the recently closed thread where he explains his unique personal situation and the need to keep it inexpensive. Todd, the idea of a long distance hike, for a month or longer is probably not the best idea for you at this time. Short trips of a night or two will be much more practical and you can get away with less equipment of lower cost since weight isn't as big a factor on short trips as it is on long ones. The AT is only one trail. There are pleanty of other places to go in national forests and state parks, all within a few hours drive of you.
If for now you only go for camping trips in warm weather, late spring to early fall, you can get all the stuff you need at Walmart for a few 100 bucks. You might already have what you need to get started.
The minimum is: Pack, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, tent, some clothes, cooking stuff and food. A few odds and ends like a ligther, flashlight (headlamp is most useful) small knife and some pain killers. If you think you really need the tums, sleeping pills and what not, it wouldn't break your back to take them along too. For short trips a can of sterno and a single pot will work for now. In warm weather a lot of people don't bother to cook at all.
So, start with the short trips, get some experiance, build up some confidence, slowly improve the quality of your gear and then think about longer trips.
HikerMom58
02-12-2013, 14:36
Very impressive insight Slo-go'en..... WINNER!
Todd.. I hope you don't give up on us, on WB. I hope you can enjoy getting outside somewhere near where you live. Don't hesitate to ask more questions on what to take with you, while preparing to go out. A short trip would be great to start out. We would also like for you to give us a "trip report" on how everything worked out for you when you return. :) Have fun!
I just wanted to pop back in and say thank you for the really useful replies. Sorry the one topic got closed. I have some issues and one of them is that I tend to be a little overly-sensitve/self-conscious at times. I guess I can see how my other post could be seen as some sort of a crank (I mean, "tourette's", "bedwetting", "adult diapers", etc). Yeah, when I went back and read it again, I could see where it actually did sound pretty funny myself - even though it's not much fun to have to deal with these things. Anyway, it's all good :)
The gear list is actually my own. When I was much younger I used to have this "thing" with survival stuff and would make these lists, refine them a bit, make a "better" list, etc. It originally came from what I thought I might need and things I'd seen or read. A few things I've gotten recently from here or other places. Where there was something on the list like "tarp, tent, hammock, etc" it meant that I would be choosing from only one of these things rather than getting all of them. I've only gotten about 1/3 of the items on the list so far.
I'm glad to read that I don't need a lot of the things on the list - makes for a lighter load!. Also, I didn't think the trail was as developed as people are saying. I was imaging something out of a military survival documentary where your living in the jungle "off the land" or something.
Nope, not planning on chopping down any trees. I think it's illegal anyway and I respect nature. The axe/hatchet (which I don't have yet) was supposed to be for hacking up bits of dead wood for kindling and such.
I like the idea of just hiking a short distance to see how I do, what kind of gear I end up using vs not using, etc. Sounds like a good way to get my feet wet. I hadn't thought of the headlamp. Good one!.
Nope. Not giving up for now. Will definately check in here when/if I take a trip and post my progress, thanks!.
One concern I do have after doing some reading here, are people who let their dogs run free and the people who end up getting bit by them. Nothing at all against eitehr people or dogs - I just had the thought about about being out in the middle of nowhere and being accosted by a dog, getting a hiking pole out for defense and then having a couple of big strapping guys get pretty peeved at the fact that I've got a pole out and aimed toward their dog (could spell trouble ie; 2 big guys plus one dog out in the middle of nowhere against a little old man with no protection. Anyway, should probably ask about this in the anotehr section I guess.
Hope I've just about covered everything and thanks for the replies!.
Todd, dogs that bite on the AT are very few and far between. The average "out of control" dog on the AT is more likely to lick you to death than bite you. Then they will try to steal your trail mix :)
Do not worry about dogs, they are much more of an internet problem than a AT problem. You are much more likely to get bit in town than on the AT.
Todd,
The one thing I saw on your list that is a Must Have, IMO, is a whistle. Get a good, LOUD, survival type whistle. I think I found mine at Walmart. It is orange and has a neck cord. Keep it where you can use it quickly. Especially at night.
Keep it simple. Everything must more than one purpose. Buy quality once. Right tool for job. Hope for the best. Prepare for worst. Cheap is rarely economical. I'm out of cliches.
Get out there. Have fun.
While the AT may be the Superhighway of Trails, look for the Joyce Kilmer Wilderness.
Wayne
MuddyWaters
03-08-2013, 00:01
Posting a list, without the weights of what you intend to take, is not of much benefit.
For instance, a bar of soap, could be 1/4 of a hotel bar , the size of a quarter, or it could be a whole bar of soap in a plastic box.
A compass could be a 0.4 oz tiny compass, or a 5 oz surveyors compass.
etc.
There isn't much to be said that hasn't been said already. There is no "right" gear list. It is a highly variable thing, and the "right" gear list is only right for a certain set of priorities and for a certain set of conditions. Andrew Skurka wrote an excellent article that outlined the differences between camping-centric backpacking, and hiking-centric backpacking. You have to decide whether you'll fall mostly into one category, or hover in the middle, and then choose your equipment accordingly.
I think you'd benefit greatly from reading some of the articles on REI's website. If there are any items that absolutely HAVE to go on any list, then it's the proverbial "Ten Essentials."
http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/ten-essentials.html
Just be careful with some of their articles. They are a business, after all, and you might read something that makes you think "Wow I really need that item," when in reality it's about as useful to you as nipples on a breastplate.
Beyond a pack to put all of these 10 essentials in, you really don't need much else, and from those 10 essentials it's merely a matter of deciding how extensive you want to be.
I will definitely have to agree with something one of the other forum members said:
Buy quality so that you only have to buy it once, and this is especially true with equipment that's going to see the most use and abuse.
Todd,
...
While the AT may be the Superhighway of Trails, look for the Joyce Kilmer Wilderness.
Wayne
A place to hone skills. Find out what works. Find out what don't work. Find out if you work in the woods.
http://grahamchamber.com/maps_jk_slickrock.html
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Wayne