Originally Posted by
Rising3agle
my opinion, too much stuff you probably won't use, and probably in large quantities.
you can find travel size stuff of almost everything in wal-mart or whatever.
ditch the baby lotion, baby shampoo, deoderant, mouthwash. I would probably also ditch the anti-friction stick, but if it works for you - I would at least find a travel-size or something. Body-Glide (amazing stuff) makes a anti-friction stick that's .5 an ounce
A pretty decent hygiene kit should weigh not much more than 8oz or so (mine is currently 12oz but I have nice-to-haves)
here's mine -
- toothbrush / toothpaste - can get a travel-size for $1 pretty much any pharmacy store. the toothbrush is half-size, slips in the handle. I like it, because it keeps the brush clean. 1oz tube of paste will last you quite a while
- hand sanitizer - try to find a 1oz bottle of this. use it every time you finish with the bathroom. I also wash with soap and water before food time
- soap - 1oz bottle of Dr Bonners. just a couple drops of this stuff will do amazing things, from cleaning you to your dishes. biodegradable
- toilet paper - definitely don't need more than 1/3 - 1/2 of a roll, smooshed, with the cardboard tube out.
- baby wipes - try to find a travel pack of 12-16 wipes, that should last you a good week or two depending on what you use them for. warning - these are heavy.
- anti-itch powder - Gold Bond travel size, 1oz
- chapstick - small
- sunscreen - .5 ounce will last a week or so. just get a couple small travel containers, and squeeze .5-1oz of it out of the 3oz tube
- bug spray - cut this down to 1oz. can get a small bottle from travel sections also, with sprayer, around a buck. the small bottles of bug spray are around 3-4 oz
- fingernail clippers - I have a really small pair, luxury item, having toenails growing out really will screw up hiking. most don't carry these, and instead put them in a bounce-box
for a first aid kit, the key to this was to think through what you would actually fix out on the trail. you aren't going to do any surgery, so patching up scrapes and blisters is about what you focus on.
- bandaids - a couple of 2-3 sizes, including a knuckle bandage. ever try to put a regular bandage on a knuckle? these could be replaced with gorilla tape and some toilet paper
- mole skin - 1 sheet max, or you can just use gorilla tape
- medical tape - or use (you guessed it) gorilla tape
- sting stick - found in camping section. for when ants bite you, this will take the itch out
- tweezers - or a tick removal tool. but I use tweezers for lots of stuff (splinters)
- gauze - 1-2 4" squares. in case I cut something bigger than a bandaid size, but they are probably not really necessary
- superglue - really small bottle, I like it for repairs and for closing small scrapes
- ibuprofin - i take about a dozen ibuprofen / allergy pills, in case something acts up. some will also take anti-diarrhea pills
- asthma inhaler - for me, it's necessary. since Desert Shield/Desert Storm
For both of the above, they weight 12oz (hygiene kit) and 7.5oz (FAK). I imagine you could drop half of it if you wanted, and cut it lower weight-wise.
with the FAK for example, you could ditch the bandaids, mole skin, and medical tape, and just use gorilla tape to patch stuff up. drop the gauze, and you probably don't need an inhaler - your FAK would be about 3oz.
dropping the baby wipes from the toiletry kit alone would save about 3-4oz, but they're a convenience I really like. You're still going to smell like butt after a few days in the woods, but at least I'll be clean on one spot.
hope this helps ya! really it's just a matter of cutting down portions, and finding things that you don't "need", and using stuff that is multi-function. I've even heard of people brushing their teeth with Bonner soap, but I'm not that manly - I'll take colgate any day.