What's your base weight?

[Spirit Bear]

My base weight for spring summer and fall is 14.4lbs.

Is this good bad or outstanding?

Im new to backpacking, old car camper, just started hiking last January. a year ago my baseweight was around 27lbs.

[bigcranky]

Outstanding. Well, pretty darn good for starting out. I assume this is *everything* except food and water, and not just the weight of your tent/pack/bag, right?

I'm always happy with a ~15 pound base weight for spring and fall hiking. Winter starts pushing 20, and summer closer to 12-13.

[Spirit Bear]

Outstanding. Well, pretty darn good for starting out. I assume this is *everything* except food and water, and not just the weight of your tent/pack/bag, right?

I'm always happy with a ~15 pound base weight for spring and fall hiking. Winter starts pushing 20, and summer closer to 12-13.

Yea, that's everything except my 2 liters of water and food. I am still trying to figure out what's the best food on the trial, calories per oz ratio. I don't like cooking, so I only eat a hot meal for dinner. Either pasta sides, ramin or Rice dishes. I add bacon bits, peporni to them or whatever else I find at the local grocery/gas stations in towns. Breakfast is poptarts or bars, penut butter for lunch with ritz crackers and then my own gorp formula (gummy bears, m&ms, hot peanuts, and raisens)

[SCRUB HIKER]

You can be fine with 25 or fine with 10, it really doesn't matter as long as you know how to use your stuff. Stop worrying about it; no one talks about these things in the woods anyway.

[garlic08]

Yes, it is good. It took me several seasons to drop that much weight.

I notice you automatically said "2 liters of water". One thing you'll notice as your pack gets lighter is the water weight. One liter of water is the heaviest thing in my pack, including the pack, so I'm pretty frugal with the water I carry. On much of the AT, at least in spring, I carried no water at all. The springs were flowing, it was cool, and I saw no need to burden myself with water until I planned to camp. I would stop to eat and rest at springs. It's nice to not schlep an extra kilogram of mass if you don't really need to.

[Spirit Bear]

You can be fine with 25 or fine with 10, it really doesn't matter as long as you know how to use your stuff. Stop worrying about it; no one talks about these things in the woods anyway.

Hence why I'm discussing it on a message board.

[bubonicplay]

6.29 and just a few cuben stuff sacks. Full inflatable air mattress.

[10-K]

I'm shooting for 6 lbs this spring/summer - everything but food and water.

[WingedMonkey]

I don't know. I don't bother to weigh any more. I know what I want to take with me depending on where I'm going and what conditions to expect.

And still every trip there is always a little something I wish I'd left at home, and a little something I wish I had brought with me.

:p

[Bear Cables]

17 sounds really good. Not too crazy UL but thoughtful about what you pack. Mine is anywhere from 16 to 19 depending on the season. Winter gear is heavier. I used to try to cut so much then I learned I really DO want that 4.1 oz double insulated cup instead of the .6 oz plastic one and I really DO want the 11 oz air mattress instead of the 7 oz zrest! It's about what works for you! BTW my first pack, 15 years ago, weighed 45 :eek:

[Old Boots]

I want to see all you bare naked hikers sleeping under a Cuban fiber sheet on pine boughs.

[jeffmeh]

Relative proximity to the equator is also relevant to one what includes in his 3-season base weight, lol.

[MuddyWaters]

Id say its darned good for starting out. It means you selected gear with weight in mind, and made effort to eliminate things that werent really needed.

My base runs between 6-9 lbs, depending on trip length, pack used, gear used, etc. Tailor it to the conditions.

Also dont worry about it much. I have gear list I bring, it changes very little. Maybe heavier long johns, maybe heavier bag, maybe heavier pack, maybe heavier pad, maybe synthetic insulation vs down, etc. But the gear list, is basically always the same, with very few exceptions, and none that are significant.

[Derf]

I don't know. I don't bother to weigh any more. I know what I want to take with me depending on where I'm going and what conditions to expect.

And still every trip there is always a little something I wish I'd left at home, and a little something I wish I had brought with me.

:p

I thought I was the only one that thought like this.

[Malto]

I don't know. I don't bother to weigh any more. I know what I want to take with me depending on where I'm going and what conditions to expect.

And still every trip there is always a little something I wish I'd left at home, and a little something I wish I had brought with me.

:p

Yeah, like taking micro spikes when there's no ice and not taking them when you have to slide down the trail on your butt.

[map man]

Fifteen to nineteen pounds depending on the season. I did a lot of research before I bought stuff for my first backpacking trip back in 2006 and my base weight for that first trip was between 15 and 16 pounds. Since then it's stayed about the same, as I add a little or take away a little as I gain experience.

[Almost There]

About 14lbs for everything but food and water. Depends on which electronic gadgets I bring, could get down to 13. My big 3 come in at just under 6lbs.

[T.S.Kobzol]

I'm at 20lbs with food but no water.

[kayak karl]

I want to see all you bare naked hikers sleeping under a Cuban fiber sheet on pine boughs.
You do, do ya :D

[barberino]

This is my list of base weight material. I haven't gotten my shorts yet and there are a few miscellaneous items not yet included such as maps, matches, but spray etc., but the remaining items shouldn't add up to more than a pound. My total is about 20lbs.



Item
Lb.
Oz.
Total


Z rest

15.7
0.98125


Sleeping Bag
3
8
3.5


Tent
2
11
2.6875


Steaks


0


Ground Tarp


0


Columbia Rain Jacket
1
0
1


Frog Togs Rain Pants
0
11.1
0.69375


Galyans Pack Cover
7.8
0.4875


Down Jacket
1
5
1.3125


Champion Shirt
5.1
0.31875


Button up shirt
5.1
0.31875


Flashlight

1.6
0.1


Leatherman

4.6
0.2875


Stove

14.5
0.90625


Gas

12

0.75



Pack
5
11
5.6875


Total


19.03125

[Another Kevin]

Rest of the kitchen? (Windscreen, pot, cup, spork, cozy, lighter, ...) ?

Water treatment and water containers?

Bearbag and line?

Spare socks? Also, are you counting your baselayer, hat and gloves among 'clothing worn?' Spring and fall, I may want that stuff to sleep in, even if they're too hot to hike in.

First-aid kit?

Gas-fired stove? (Do you mean propane/isobutane?) Unless you're melting snow, or going for more than a week between resupplies, a naphtha-fired stove and 12 oz of fuel is overkill. I carry a 1-oz alcohol stove, a 1.5-oz pot stand, and 2 fl oz of S-L-X per day, usually. That's nearly a pound lighter than your kit, and it's enough for me to have hot cereal and coffee in the morning, and a hot meal at night.

Your pack's a little on the heavy side, but if it carries well, that's what's important. Your sleeping bag is also heavier than mine (in three seasons). Your tent is lighter than mine, but that's because I have a 2-person tent. For quite a while, I was accustomed to sharing weight with my daughter. Now that she's away at school, a lightweight 1-person tent is something that I see in my future.

And always allow a pound for "mind your own business" when posting a gear list. :)

[Slo-go'en]

I'm getting ready to head to Springer. My pack base was 14.5 pounds with all the basics. Then I started adding all the little odds and ends which are nice to have and now it looks like I'll top out at just over 16.

It's amazing how much all that little crap adds up. Do I need all of it? Probably not, but it's not going to break my back and will make life more pleasent. The Kindle Fire is the bulk of the extra weight. Mostly for its wi-fi capability, since I don't do smart phones.

Oh well, I got until tomorrow night to decide what comes with me :)

[Likes2travel]

I am planning a section hike starting at Spivey Gap and heading north for as far as my legs will take me in 5 days in June. I have not had a pack on my back in 36 years. Bought a new pack and a few other new items (nothing too expensive or extravagant), my first weigh-in was 11 pounds for my base weight and 24 pounds with food.

So I tossed out my sleeping bag and went with a fleece bag with some DIY beefing up, tossed out my lunches (the heaviest item of my food) and decided to go with wraps and spam/peppironi/etc.. Tossed out my morning hot chocolate for coffee singles. Tossed out the Pop Tarts (That hurt). Cut my FAK in half.

I will weigh-in on Monday at work to see how much weight I have taken out. I am shooting for a fully loaded weight of 18 pounds or less, minus H2O.

[fredmugs]

This is my list of base weight material. I haven't gotten my shorts yet and there are a few miscellaneous items not yet included such as maps, matches, but spray etc., but the remaining items shouldn't add up to more than a pound. My total is about 20lbs.



Item

Lb.

Oz.

Total



Z rest


15.7

0.98125



Sleeping Bag

3

8

3.5



Tent

2

11

2.6875



Steaks






Ground Tarp






Columbia Rain Jacket

1


1



Frog Togs Rain Pants


11.1

0.69375



Galyans Pack Cover

7.8

0.4875



Down Jacket

1

5

1.3125



Champion Shirt

5.1

0.31875



Button up shirt

5.1

0.31875



Flashlight


1.6

0.1



Leatherman


4.6

0.2875



Stove


14.5

0.90625



Gas


12

0.75



Pack

5

11

5.6875



Total



19.03125





I'm no ultra light hiker by any stretch but I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone whose bag weighs so much more than their tent.

[BirdBrain]

25 lbs. But I am carrying 2 items most would not (a dslr camera and a fishing pole for the 100 mile wilderness only which is my starting point).

[jcheil]

21.1lb base cold. But I am carrying more "comfort" items (electronics and sleeping items) than most (so I am told). I'll let you know in a week if I am still carrying them :) Everyone else is prolly right, what I/you think you "need" turns out to be things that are only "nice" to have, but not "needed" in the end. We shall see.

[Chaco Taco]

14 pounds with no food or water. Typically carry 1-2 liters of water depending on where I am
2 pounds of clothing on my body

[aviator60]

17.6 lbs. This is disappointing as I've done a lot to try and save weight (though I wouldn't consider my efforts extreme...)

[Deacon]

My summertime base weight is 9 lbs. Lots of cuben, thank you Zpacks.

[The Dave]

If I'm not going to see temperatures below 40F, then my base weight is 6 lbs., 10.8 oz. Here's a link to my gear in the flesh:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=62524&skip_to_post=534637#534637

[coolness]

Lets see...... :cool:

Pack - 3 lb. 6 oz.

Tent - 4 lb. 11 oz.

Pad - 1 lb.

Bag - 2 lb. 12 oz.

Total - 11.8125

I haven't weighed my other gear but I'm much lighter than last year. I've bought a Boreas Lost Coast 60, Mountainsmith Morrison 2 tent, Big Agnes insulated Air Core 2.5" and a Kelty 20 degree long down bag. And I haven't even used any of them this year. Next weekend we're hiking a 17 miler and it's gonna be a bit chilly at night. Not like some of the weather in the Smokies this year.........:eek: In May we're hiking a 50 miler so I'll have a fair weight to report.

[Coosa]

\ I am still trying to figure out what's the best food on the trial, calories per oz ratio. I don't like cooking, so I only eat a hot meal for dinner.

I found this on the Internet, but I can't locate the URL to verify.... maybe you can:

Food - Calories per ounce (28.35 grams)

Lard - 253
Canola or Olive Oil - 240
Mayonnaise - 200
Brazil nuts - 185
French fried onions - 180
Fried pork rinds - 175
Mixed nuts - 170
Cashews (shelled) - 170
Cocktail peanuts - 170
Sunflower seeds (shelled) - 170
Pringles - 170
Peanut Butter - 166
Almond Roca - 163
Dry roasted peanuts - 160
Fritos Corn Chips - 160
Ruffles potato chips - 160
Ritz crackers - 158
Reese's PB Cup - 157
Hershey's Milk Chocolate - 152
Little Debbie Nutty Bars - 152
Hershey Kisses - 151
Lays potato chips - 150
Chips Ahoy cookies - 150
Peanut M&M's - 147
Coconut (dried, sweetened, shredded) - 143
Pork bacon - 140
Cheese & peanut butter crackers - 140
Nacho Flavored Doritos - 140
Wheat Thins - 140
Plain M&M's - 140
Semi-sweet chocolate chips - 140
Nondairy Creamer powder - 140
Snickers candy bar - 136
Oreo cookies - 136
Jiffy-Pop popcorn - 135
Goldfish crackers - 135
Triscuits - 135
Milky Way candy bar - 135
Chocolate covered donuts - 135
Baby Ruth candy bar - 132
Pepperoni - 130
Chex mix (prepared per instructions) - 130
Chow Mein Noodles - 130
Quaker 100% Natural Cereal - 129
Nabisco Aircrisp Cheese Nip Crackers - 125
Ramen noodles - 124
Little Debbie fudge brownies - 124
Saltine crackers - 120
Cracker Jack - 120
Powdered doughnuts - 120
Pop Tarts (Frosted Brown Sugar, etc.) - 117
Lipton Noodles & Sauce - 116
Hot Cocoa mix - 115
Trix Cereal - 115
Little Debbie cream filled cupcakes - 113
Cap'n Crunch - 112
Balance Bars - 112
Blue cheese - 110
Longhorn cheese - 110
Monterrey Jack cheese - 110
Sharp cheddar cheese - 110
Grated canned parmesan cheese - 110
Hard Candy - 110
Quaker Chewy Granola Bars - 110
Pop Tarts (All Other Flavors) - 108
Sugar-sweetened lemon drink mix - 107
Nutri-Grain Bars - 106
Spaghetti (100% Semolina) - 105
Egg Noodles - 105
Brown sugar - 105
Jelly Beans - 105
Fruitcake - 100 - 110
Kraft original Mac & Cheese - 104
Corn Chex - 103
Cheerios - 103
Fortune Cookies - 103
Stove Top Stuffing Mix - 103
Instant rice (e.g. Minute Rice) - 102
Lipton Rice & Sauce - 102
Wheat Chex - 101
Bulgur (uncooked) - 100
Rold Gold Fat Free pretzels - 100
Melba toast - 100
Fig Newtons - 100
Quick Cook Oats - 100
Grape Nuts cereal - 100
Corn Flakes - 100
Jello Instant Chocolate Pudding - 100
Fruit roll-ups (store bought) - 100
Gainers Fuel 1000 (Protein Powder) - 100
Power Bars - 100
Clif Bars - 100
Pasta Roni - 100
Cous Cous - 100
Coconut (raw) - 100
Cream cheese - 100
Sugar-sweetened Kool-Aid - 98
Nonfat Dry Milk - 98
Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal - 98
Quick Grits - 98
Instant potato flakes - 98
Instant Miso soup - 98
Summer sausage - 95
Polska Kielbasa (Pork) - 95
Rice A Roni - 95
Raisin Bran - 92
Raisins - 92
Craisins (Dried cranberries) - 91
Ballpark franks - 90
Bologna - 90
Velveeta - 90
Brie cheese - 90
Marshmallows - 90
Flour tortillas - 89
Spam - 85
Pitted Dates - 84
Cheese Whiz - 83
Deviled ham spread - 80
Beef Jerky (store bought) - 80
Turkey jerky (store bought) - 80
Honey - 80
Jams and jellies - 80
Sun Maid Dried Fruit Mix - 77
Bagels - 74
Pita bread (white) - 74
Turkey bacon - 70
Roman Meal bread - 70
Dried apricots - 70
Corn tortillas - 67
Smuckers Grape Jelly - 63
Sour dough English muffins - 61
Fresh avocado - 60
Canned Smoked Oysters in Oil - 55
Tuna (in oil) - 52
Cooked ham - 50
Corned beef hash - 49
Hummus (prepared) - 47
Turkey Kielbasa - 45
Canned Chicken in water - 40
Beef or Chicken bullion - 40
Tuna (in spring water) - 30
Ketchup - 30
Canadian bacon - 30
Bananas - 26
Tofu - 18
Fresh apples - 15
Raw carrots - 13
Fresh peaches - 12
Fresh strawberries - 9
Fresh oranges - 9
Asparagus - 5
Coffee or Tea - 0

[Rayo]

Hence why I'm discussing it on a message board.


+1

This IS the place to discuss the nitty gritty details and minute worries that people have prior to their hike. Good for you. Some people spend too much time on here and they get agitated with seeing the same questions asked year after year. My answer to them is to go out and hike a bit more. Others spend a lot of time on here, but like to discuss this kind of stuff. Good for them too.

BTW, My base weight is about 14 lbs.

You should try and keep it around 15 if possible so that when you are carrying lots of water/food your pack isn't too heavy which--especially on light-weight packs--can cause the shoulder straps to start to tear.

[Malto]

I found this on the Internet, but I can't locate the URL to verify.... maybe you can:

Food - Calories per ounce (28.35 grams)

Lard - 253
Canola or Olive Oil - 240
Mayonnaise - 200
Brazil nuts - 185
French fried onions - 180
Fried pork rinds - 175
Mixed nuts - 170
Cashews (shelled) - 170
Cocktail peanuts - 170
Sunflower seeds (shelled) - 170
Pringles - 170
Peanut Butter - 166
Almond Roca - 163
Dry roasted peanuts - 160
Fritos Corn Chips - 160
Ruffles potato chips - 160
Ritz crackers - 158
Reese's PB Cup - 157
Hershey's Milk Chocolate - 152
Little Debbie Nutty Bars - 152
Hershey Kisses - 151
Lays potato chips - 150
Chips Ahoy cookies - 150
Peanut M&M's - 147
Coconut (dried, sweetened, shredded) - 143
Pork bacon - 140
Cheese & peanut butter crackers - 140
Nacho Flavored Doritos - 140
Wheat Thins - 140
Plain M&M's - 140
Semi-sweet chocolate chips - 140
Nondairy Creamer powder - 140
Snickers candy bar - 136
Oreo cookies - 136
Jiffy-Pop popcorn - 135
Goldfish crackers - 135
Triscuits - 135
Milky Way candy bar - 135
Chocolate covered donuts - 135
Baby Ruth candy bar - 132
Pepperoni - 130
Chex mix (prepared per instructions) - 130
Chow Mein Noodles - 130
Quaker 100% Natural Cereal - 129
Nabisco Aircrisp Cheese Nip Crackers - 125
Ramen noodles - 124
Little Debbie fudge brownies - 124
Saltine crackers - 120
Cracker Jack - 120
Powdered doughnuts - 120
Pop Tarts (Frosted Brown Sugar, etc.) - 117
Lipton Noodles & Sauce - 116
Hot Cocoa mix - 115
Trix Cereal - 115
Little Debbie cream filled cupcakes - 113
Cap'n Crunch - 112
Balance Bars - 112
Blue cheese - 110
Longhorn cheese - 110
Monterrey Jack cheese - 110
Sharp cheddar cheese - 110
Grated canned parmesan cheese - 110
Hard Candy - 110
Quaker Chewy Granola Bars - 110
Pop Tarts (All Other Flavors) - 108
Sugar-sweetened lemon drink mix - 107
Nutri-Grain Bars - 106
Spaghetti (100% Semolina) - 105
Egg Noodles - 105
Brown sugar - 105
Jelly Beans - 105
Fruitcake - 100 - 110
Kraft original Mac & Cheese - 104
Corn Chex - 103
Cheerios - 103
Fortune Cookies - 103
Stove Top Stuffing Mix - 103
Instant rice (e.g. Minute Rice) - 102
Lipton Rice & Sauce - 102
Wheat Chex - 101
Bulgur (uncooked) - 100
Rold Gold Fat Free pretzels - 100
Melba toast - 100
Fig Newtons - 100
Quick Cook Oats - 100
Grape Nuts cereal - 100
Corn Flakes - 100
Jello Instant Chocolate Pudding - 100
Fruit roll-ups (store bought) - 100
Gainers Fuel 1000 (Protein Powder) - 100
Power Bars - 100
Clif Bars - 100
Pasta Roni - 100
Cous Cous - 100
Coconut (raw) - 100
Cream cheese - 100
Sugar-sweetened Kool-Aid - 98
Nonfat Dry Milk - 98
Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal - 98
Quick Grits - 98
Instant potato flakes - 98
Instant Miso soup - 98
Summer sausage - 95
Polska Kielbasa (Pork) - 95
Rice A Roni - 95
Raisin Bran - 92
Raisins - 92
Craisins (Dried cranberries) - 91
Ballpark franks - 90
Bologna - 90
Velveeta - 90
Brie cheese - 90
Marshmallows - 90
Flour tortillas - 89
Spam - 85
Pitted Dates - 84
Cheese Whiz - 83
Deviled ham spread - 80
Beef Jerky (store bought) - 80
Turkey jerky (store bought) - 80
Honey - 80
Jams and jellies - 80
Sun Maid Dried Fruit Mix - 77
Bagels - 74
Pita bread (white) - 74
Turkey bacon - 70
Roman Meal bread - 70
Dried apricots - 70
Corn tortillas - 67
Smuckers Grape Jelly - 63
Sour dough English muffins - 61
Fresh avocado - 60
Canned Smoked Oysters in Oil - 55
Tuna (in oil) - 52
Cooked ham - 50
Corned beef hash - 49
Hummus (prepared) - 47
Turkey Kielbasa - 45
Canned Chicken in water - 40
Beef or Chicken bullion - 40
Tuna (in spring water) - 30
Ketchup - 30
Canadian bacon - 30
Bananas - 26
Tofu - 18
Fresh apples - 15
Raw carrots - 13
Fresh peaches - 12
Fresh strawberries - 9
Fresh oranges - 9
Asparagus - 5
Coffee or Tea - 0

keep in mind that often the highest calorie per ounce foods are not the lightest food weight needed to maintain a consistent energy level. For example; I hiked 73 miles this weekend between Pearisburg and Catawba including 42 miles on Saturday. I only took 7500 calories and was able to maintain consistent energy the whole way. That food weighed between 4-4.5 lbs but was almost exclusively carbohydrates, 6000 calories being maltodextrin. By contrast, there is little chance that I would have been able to maintain the pace I did carrying 4 lbs of say cashews which actually contains 10,880 calories, 3300 more than my carry. I used to think that calorie dense foods were the best way to cut food weight on short duration hikes. After a couple years of doing that I discovered that approach is not nearly as effective as a heavier carb diet combined with deliberate burning of body fat. Of course this would not be effective for long on a thru hike due since most folks would quickly run out of fat stores to be used for energy.

[hoppy from GA]

Many folks will spend a fortune on the latest cuben fiber titanium thingie to save an ounce or two. After the big three, I don't worry too much because I can always lay off that extra piece of pie or cookie at the dinner table to drop a little weight. (might not apply to skinny folks, though). Also, be sure to leave the machete and expresso maker at home.