My base gear list for next year. Can you help me find something lighter?

[MyNameisChickenJoe]

I'm not asking for critique or advice, I just want to find the absolute lightest base gear setup possible, and this is the rig I've come up with so far.


Exodus 58 liter 1lb - $215.00 or murmur 36 hyperlight - 8.5oz

UGQ outdoor bandit quilt 14 oz - $360.00 or Enigma custom 40 degree 950 down for $305.00 or Enigma 50 degree

Zpack Hexamid pocket tarp - 3.4 oz - $200.00

Gossamer Gear thin light foam pad 3 oz

Total base gear weight: 1.13 lbs

Can you help me bring this down to a pound? Less than a pound, even?

[Venchka]

Total base weight has a typo error.
Where and what time of year are you hiking?
Wayne

[cmoulder]

Have you ever backpacked with a frameless pack? Slept on a 1/8" pad? Under a tiny tarp when it's raining?

Hey, I'm a dyed-in-the-wool ULer but you seriously had better do some test hikes with this kit.

Suggested upgrades: Arc Blast (21 oz, has frame), Klymit xlite (6.1 oz, at least some cushioning), Solplex tarp with bug bivy (weather and bug protection, about 12 oz total)

Reality is a ruthless instructor.

[MyNameisChickenJoe]

I've done 460 miles of the AT already, and have figured out everything I need/don't need, and want/don't want, and I realized that I definitely wanna go insanely ultralight. I got to see the Zlite in action and did the AT during tropical storm Alberto and eas impressed. I currently have a Volt 60, z lite foam sleeping pad, REI quarter dome and Igneo 20 sleeping bag, and with my big 4, there was still enough room for a big sack of food, odds and ends and a book, so I'll be shelving the Igneo, z lite foam pad, volt, and quarter dome, plus about 4/5ths of my odds and ends.

Also, I'm only using the pad for annoying stuff like roots and pebbles. Ill be starting where I left off last year in Damascus, VA.

[cmoulder]

Not being contentious, but none of this negates my first questions. You'll find that there is a world of difference between your current kit and proposed kit.

It is possible to go sanely ultralight and keep total load quite manageable. Don't let frustration with a heavy trad load let the pendulum swing too far the other way.

IMVHO, of course.

[Thedude18e]

I highly recommend you at least add the bathtub ground sheet or just go for the plexamid. Those bugs are no joke and will ruin an otherwise good night's sleep.

[DownYonder]

With the gear you intend to carry, why would you use a 58L bag.....go with the smaller/lighter one. Gather leaves to use under the 1/8" pad. Will make a huge difference. I agree with the plexamid suggestion, but I HATE bugs.

[JC13]

You mentioned carrying fur in the title but I don't see any fur in your list.

[theoilman]

You mentioned carrying fur in the title but I don't see any fur in your list.

+1 -- fur????

[Dogwood]

I'm still working on the layer change without taking the Burn off. Watching females take their bras off(with their shirts still on) without removing their packs is a feat I still have to master without tying myself into a ball or falling.

[cmoulder]

+1 -- fur????

OK, typos can be fun but haven't you guys beaten this one to death already?

[Two Tents]

Good luck getting it lower. You could ball it up in a garbage bag or ground sheet and sling it over one shoulder with a single strap. Granny Gatewood style. A ground sheet or plastic trash compactor bag would weigh less than your pack choice. Just a suggestion.

[George]

I'm not asking for critique or advice, I just want to find the absolute lightest base gear setup possible, and this is the rig I've come up with so far.


Exodus 58 liter 1lb - $215.00 or murmur 36 hyperlight - 8.5oz

UGQ outdoor bandit quilt 14 oz - $360.00 or Enigma custom 40 degree 950 down for $305.00 or Enigma 50 degree

Zpack Hexamid pocket tarp - 3.4 oz - $200.00

Gossamer Gear thin light foam pad 3 oz

Total base gear weight: 1.13 lbs

Can you help me bring this down to a pound? Less than a pound, even?

early april 1st post

[Ethesis]

early april 1st post

You are going to be cold.

Now. A warm October SOBO in Georgia I got passed by someone with gear that looked like yours.

Guy was tall tall and lanky and must have been going 7 mph without breaking a sweat (ok, 5 mph is more likely but it looked faster).

But April 1?

Unless George was being sarcastic. For late May to warm October you could well be ok. Even the windhard quilts work for that weather.

Wish you luck.

[Slo-go'en]

early april 1st post

George was being sarcastic.

[HooKooDooKu]

early april 1st post

I believe George was saying something to the effect that this is a post we would expect to see April 1 (April Fools) seeing as a poster with a base weight below 2lbs is trying to lighten their load by another 10%.

[TNhiker]

I believe George was saying something to the effect that this is a post we would expect to see April 1 (April Fools) seeing as a poster with a base weight below 2lbs is trying to lighten their load by another 10%.

thats how i read it as well.........

also thought it was funny that OP in first line says---"I'm not asking for critique or advice"


and then ends with---"Can you help me bring this down to a pound? Less than a pound, even?"




that gave me a good chuckle...

[Slo-go'en]

Well, if you only hike in the summer and only sleep in shelters, you could get away with that set up. $350 for a 50 degree quilt? That's insane. My 40 degree bag cost 1/3d that and doesn't weigh much over a pound.

[fastfoxengineering]

I believe Terra Nova makes 1 gram titanium skewer stakes.

They are useless though. But you wanted the lightest.



Sent from my SM-J737V using Tapatalk

[Jayne]

My .02$ is that this is getting into the SUL (Stupid Ultralight Light) category. It's your hike and I wish you nothing but the best if you try with that set up but I couldn't imagine keeping sane with that load out. A 10 lb base weight would be exceptionally light and not something that most hikers would want to hike with and you're shooting for what, 5 lbs total? That's a big jump.

Also, if you're seriously going hardcore on pack weight I would plan on a later start. You should be making good daily miles with that set up and if you start May 1st or later you don't need as much cold weather gear and will miss a lot of the earl bubble. Being light and fast solves a lot of problems (but it creates some too.)