Thru Hike Gear List

[hopper]

I'm leaving april 2nd
I'd love to hear your opinions!

Edited version

Shelter: Henry Shires Tarptent (vigra)25 oz

Sleeping pad: Therm-a-rest, UltraLite 3/4, 1 lb.

Sleeping bag: Feathered friends Hummingbird, 1 lb. 14 oz.

Pack: Osprey Aether 75 (a little heavy, but rides sooo nice)

Shoes: Garmont Otero trail shoe.

Hiking Poles: Leki Super Makulu.

Rain Gear: Frogg Toggs Pro Action Suit top and Frogg Toggs Pro Action Suit bottom

Insulation (top):Snowcreek synthetic jacket

Convertible Pants: EMS

Shorts: Columbia

Long Underwear Top: Patagonia Capilene

Long Underwear Bottoms: Patagonia Capilene

Balaclava:Patagonia fleece balaclava

Hand warmth: OR Basic Mitt shells

T-Shirts, 2: One Capilene

Underwear bottoms: 1

Socks: 3 pair. 2 smartwool light hiker, one pair hiker.

Ball Cap: any

Bandana: 2 Cotton. Washcloth, etc.

Wristwatch: Wenger Swiss army watch.

Flashlight: Black Diamond super nova

Parachute Cord: 50 ft

Swiss Army Knife: one with can opener and a couple blades.

Pen and Pencil: Ballpoint pen

Duct tape: 10 feet wrapped around water bottle.

Needle: 1-2. use floss for thread

Ziplock Bags: as needed

Mirror/Compass: Combo of the two.

Credit/ATM Cards: check card

Driver's License: For ID

Toothbrush/Paste: A small tube of paste, brush.

Floss: Works good for thread, too.

Blister Fixer: Compeed/Band-Aid Blister Block Bandages are good.

Toilet Paper

Stove: Optimus nova, 14 oz bottle not filled. (may go alcohol).

Fuel: 1 optimus fuel bottle

Lexan Spoon

Pot Gripper

Cooking Pot: Snow Peak 3 piece ti set at 7 oz (just one pot from this set?)

Water Bag: 3l platypus with hose (water filter inline)

Lighter

Water Purification: inline "safe water anywhere" filter

Extra Water Bottle: Soda bottle.

Garbage bags: 1 garbage compacter liner for bag

Sunblock: 30 w/ aloe

Small medkit: Ibu, superglue, couple bandaids, etc.

Thru hikers companion/databook and maps: Got em.. will take in pieces and mail to myself.

Journal: Something light

Stuff Sacks/ Food bags: Intergral designs silnylon

Phone card

Pack cover?

I realize I'm probably forgetting a couple small things, I'll add more as I pack.

[Trail Yeti]

Hopper,
not a bad gear list. With that said, here I go.....
COTTON KILLS! besides, what do you need two shirts for?
Underwear? personally, don't wear it. If you carry it because you chafe, use Body Glide....works better and you can ditch the underwear.
I say ditch the shorts and get a kilt....but I love my kilt!
Make sure you have some extra inline filters already bought. They get hard to find up North.
As for your pack...at least it and Aether 75, Moonshine (my partner) used a Crescent 75!!
hope this helps.
LIFE IS GOOD, WEAR A KILT!
Trail Yeti

[rickb]

My guess is that you have been thinking about what to take for a while ;-)? A couple of these are so obvious, I am guessing that you probably already thought of...

A map?
A zipper pull compass/thermometer
A journal?
A camera?
An AT Companion or Guidebook?
A food bag to hang from rafters or tree?
A telephone calling card (or the required numbers, anyway)

Must be exciting to think about hitting the Trail so soon. Have a great trip.

Rick B

[Grimace]

I agree with the kilted hiker. Wear a kilt. Definitely forget the underwear unless you're a woman. If so, I'm not sure what is best. Leave the cotton shirt at home.

You only need one pair of pants. Keep the Frogg Togg bottoms and forget the EMS pants.

Not sure what the 3 pieces are of your cookset but you only need a one liter pot and lid. Keep that grippy thing at home too and use your bandanna as a pot holder.

Your swiss army knife just needs to be the classic. The real small key chain one. One blade, scissors, real small. The leatherman micra is also a good choice.

Make sure the ball cap is a red sox hat. we need all the help we can get

Do not get your pack cover from REI, that thing attracts water. Equinox makes a cool one out of silnylon as does moonbow gear.

The Nalgene bottles weigh more than a soda bottle. If you get a soda bottle you get to drink the soda. Man, did I crave the stuff on the trail.

Just some suggestions. To lighten the load a tad. I think you have a great list.

[Happy]

I would consider to eliminate the cotton t-shirt and the extra pair of shorts as you already have zip-offs. Eliminate at least two pair of the underware.....you will discover quickly that ounces develop into pounds!

[hopper]

Nice to hear from you all.

Yeti,
I hear ya about the cotton, I've generally taken one piece of cotton clothing in the past and that's a t shirt. It usually winds up wrapped around my head soaked in water.
You're advice on the undies is taken, I'll ditch em.

They make kilts out of Silnylon??? ;P

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

rickboudrie, good thinking
Got all the maps
Got a compass/mirror combo
still looking for a nice small journal
I've got hte companion and the data book. Think I will be doing some cutting
I've got a silnylon food bag from integral designs. It's pretty large and should fit every thing that I have that would stink in it.
The calling card is also taken care of.
Camera??? Still not sure about this one. I don't want to spend alot on one, let me know if you have any ideas.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Grimace,
You say ditch the pant eh? hmm.. They do zip off to shorts though. Maybe I could ditch my other pair of shorts..... or maybe I should just take your advice
The cookset weighs in at a hefty 7 ounces. Getting rid of the smaller pot would save me less than 2 ounces, suppose I could though. I figured it would be nice to be able to boil water for my green tea while I'm scarfing down my food. I guess a couple ounces is a couple ounces though... point taken.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Happy,
thanks for the reply. The underwear is def staying home as well as the cotton t. I'm going to have to decide which pair of shorts I want to live in I guess.





Thanks!

Keep the ideas coming if you have more

[DebW]

---Stove: Optimus nova, 14 oz bottle not filled.

Trade the gasoline stove for alcohol and save a pound. Bring 2 bandanas. So many uses (some of which are incompatible with other uses).

[SGT Rock]

Originally posted by hopper
I'm leaving april 2nd
I'd love to hear your opinions!

Shelter: Henry Shires Tarptent (vigra)25 oz

Sleeping pad: Therm-a-rest, UltraLite 3/4, 1 lb.

Sleeping bag: Feathered friends Hummingbird, 1 lb. 14 oz.

Pack: Osprey Aether 75 (a little heavy, but rides sooo nice)

Shoes: Garmont Otero trail shoe.

Hiking Poles: Leki Super Makulu.

Rain Gear: Frogg Toggs Pro Action Suit top and Frogg Toggs Pro Action Suit bottom

Insulation (top):Snowcreek synthetic jacket

Convertible Pants: EMS

Shorts: Columbia

Long Underwear Top: Patagonia Capilene

Long Underwear Bottoms: Patagonia Capilene

Balaclava:Patagonia fleece balaclava

Hand warmth: OR Basic Mitt shells

T-Shirts, 2: One Capilene and one cotton.

Loose the cotton shirt.

Underwear bottoms: 2-3 pair

Wear one, carry one.

Socks: 3 pair. 2 smartwool light hiker, one pair hiker.

Ball Cap: any

Bandana: Cotton. Washcloth, etc.

Wristwatch: Wenger Swiss army watch.

Flashlight: Black Diamond super nova

Parachute Cord: 50 ft

Swiss Army Knife: one with can opener and a couple blades.

Pen and Pencil: Ballpoint pen (felt-tip bleeds)

Just take the pen.

Duct tape: 10 feet wrapped around water bottle.

Needle: 1-2. use floss for thread

Ziplock Bags: as needed

Mirror/Compass: Combo of the two.

Credit/ATM Cards: check card

Driver's License: For ID

Toothbrush/Paste: A small tube of paste, brush.

Floss: Works good for thread, too.

Blister Fixer: Compeed/Band-Aid Blister Block Bandages are good.

Toilet Paper

Stove: Optimus nova, 14 oz bottle not filled.

Swap for alcohol

Fuel: 1 optimus fuel bottle

Lexan Spoon

Pot Gripper

You don't need a pot gripper with the Snow Peak three piece.

Cooking Pot: Snow Peak 3 piece ti set.

Just carry the big pot and a foil lid

Water Bag: 3l platypus

Lighter

Water Purification: inline "safe water anywhere" filter

Extra Water Bottle: 1 nalgene or equivelant

Use a soda bottle

Garbage bags: 1 garbage compacter liner, extra trash bags for whatever

Sunblock: 30 w/ aloe

Small medkit: Ibu, superglue, couple bandaids, etc.

Pack cover?

I realize I'm probably forgetting a couple small things, I'll add more as I pack.

[hopper]

Deb,
I debated the alcohol stove for some time, I just have no experience with them so I hesitated. I've been hearing that switching to a lightweight alchohol stove is one of the most common changes a thru hiker makes, it's quite possible I'll be doing that somewhere along the way. I've studied the how to's posted on the net on making your own from soda cans. I think I'll give it a whirl in the next couple days and see how it goes.

As far as the bandanas, I usually carry a couple. Usually one stays relatively clean in case I need to use it for first aid.

Sgt Rock,
Nice website
Advice taken, I'll be making some changes.
The pot gripper was left over from when I planned on taking my old msr pot, the snow peak ones have handles (which I'm sure get too hot to use and I'll wind up using a bandana).

Cotton->gone
Alcohol stove.. gonna test one.

As far as the lid, you dont find you have trouble keeping a foil one intact? I guess I should just drop it... since I wont end up using it much.

I've got a wide mouth poland springs bottle sitting here which seems a mere fraction of the weight of the nalgene.. couple ounces gone there.



good stuff, thanks.

[fwassner]

Well, I've got nearly 7 months ahead of me to plan (March 2004)but already I see that my concept of gear is flawed.

First, I have a Gregory Wind River pack. I'm not sure how much it weighs in at but it's probably too big and heavy.
I've already figured that my MH NightView is way too big and heavy. I'm planning to get a lighter and smaller one for the thru-hike.
My bag is a Sierra Designs that weighs 4 lbs (it's a winter bag).
I am also planning to get a much lighter bag.

I bought all that stuff with winter hiking in mind, but to be honest haven't done much. I do plan to do a lot this coming winter though, to prepare me for the trail in March.

Any suggestions for a light tent and bag?
I do prefer a tent over shelters. Just a matter of personal preference <g>.

I am taking the suggestions on reducing clothing to bare necessities. After all, what's a bunch of damp smelly stuff going to do for me once I've worn it and am carrying it as dead weight?
And if I really find that I miss something I didn't take along, I can always pick it up on the way.

I was even considering my GPS, but who needs it? Good trail maps are much lighter and more reliable, as I have found by experience!

What a great resource this forum is!

[A-Train]

Hopper,
you seriously look good to go man. All the suggestions by other folks were great. One thing i noticed. I see you got the platypus thing goin on. IMO those things are nothing but trouble. They rip and leak very easily and they can empty out on you at any time. A guy named Donkey I hiked with in the smokies had his empty ONTO his sleeping bag in a shelter. Nothing like a soaking bag on a freezing march night at 6000 ft! I'd suggest the thicker blue rubber one (forget the name). They sell them at most outfitter. They are slightly heavier but way more durable. Or you can just go with 2 1 quart gatorade bottles as i did.

Fwassner. I suppose if your trying to watch spending the bag is ok but 4 lbs is pretty darn heavy. If you have some extra cash i'd look into a lighter bag (western mountaineer, feathered friends) where you can cut that weight in half.
The Greg is an awesome pack, but its darn heavy. You really dont need a 7 lb pack its just inviting to add more weight and gear you dont need. I highly recomend the granite gear packs. They came very well recommended by a lot of folks this year. They're in the 2-4 lb range and are built real well. Seem to run about 150-200 bucks. I know neels gap in georgia carries them, might be worth checking out. If your gonna go with the Greg atleast leave the top loader at home, you'll cut a pound right there. Need any help just ask.
A-Train GAME 03

[meBrad]

I have come to understand that my participation in this forum is counter productive. In an attempt to ammend this I am deleting my posts and have requested to have my account deleted

[bulldog]

keep the cotton shirt. i personally loved the feel of it after a hard days hike getting into camp and taking off my smelly capilene shirt and putting on a somewhat clean cotton t shirt. was basically the only "unnecessary" item i had. next time though i plan to have lots of "unnecessary" items and be nice and heavy.

[fwassner]

I suppose that the more we carry and further we hike the stronger we become, thus enabling us to carry more further!

I don't know what my finances are going to look like by Jan or Feb when I will be buying new gear.
I would hate to leave the Gregory at home, but I may take A-Train's advice and leave the top-loader at home. However, I do like the fact that the top-loader doubles as a fanny pack, which can be handy if I want to walk around town.
It also holds my hydration system on top of the pack.

I will need to experiment with my gear through the fall and winter. I should have enough experience with it by then to know what can stay and what needs to go, and what my budget is looking like.

I'll keep those gear recs handy... thanks.

[yogi clyde]

A-Train

1st - congrats!!

Re the platapus - was it the zipper one that burst?
I just bought the non-zip one, not as good as my CamelBak unbottle, but much lighter.

Also, which Granite Gear pack are you referring to?
I'm considering the Nimbus Ozone, or a ULA P-2 for next years thru-hike.

Thanks and welcome back.

[A-Train]

yogi clyde,
The thing i was talking about is a camelback. I used neither but it came well reccomended from many. I dont know about the zipper platypus but i think it was the one a lot of folks had and had problems with, the plastic water bag with tube attached.
Highly recommend the p2! Its a great pack. They also made a variation of it ccalled the mxp2 i think...? Neels Gap sells those packs and theyre very well mnade. Grunt, a guy i hiked with for 1700 miles used and loved that pack. he hiked with it from pearisburg to katahdin, no problems with it at all. its so light but still gave good support. he was able to carry as much as 30-35 lbs in it, whether comfortably or not i dont know. but i never heard a complaint.
As far as granite gear, the 2 people i know both had ozones and loved them. if i were to hike again id probable go with this pack its just so well made, and light weight. the vapor trail is a little lighter (2 lbs i think). couple people had that and alsop seemed to like it. hope this helps.
A-Train

[yogi clyde]

A-Train

Thanks, do you have your gear list posted anywhere?
It is not on your trail journal.

Also, any words of advice for a 2004 thru-hiker?

[tlbj6142]

Originally posted by A-Train
I dont know about the zipper platypus but i think it was the one a lot of folks had and had problems with, the plastic water bag with tube attached.

The attachment point does get quite a bit of stress. I solved this issue by placing my Platty upside down. With the attachment point at the top. I, then, cut a lenght off of the hose a bit longer than the height of the bottle and wedged it into the backside of the bottle adaptor. This makes for a shorter hose (which is nice cause they are too long) and the attachment point doesn't get crushed by the weight of the bag.

You can't quite get all of the water out of the bag this way, but you'll have less than 1/2 a cup left which you can drink at your next refill point.

Platty should really look at moving the connection point to the side of the bag (a la CammelBak) where there is far less stress.

A couple of bananas for those that love them...

[yogi clyde]

I agree, the hose is too long, and I don't like having the
screw top on the bottom - good idea I think I will borrow it.


Now I just have to figure out where on my pack to place it and run the hose.

Happy Trails

[MadAussieInLondon]

i have a 3L camelbak Omega bladder from my bikeing camelbak i plan on taking. Ive not used the plats, only my CB bladder..

so theres another vote for the CB bladder!