golite jam2 - too much stuff?

[vtdrifter]

I just bought a Golite Jam2. It was kind of an impulse buy; I was at the store, they had one, I bought it.

My pack weight, including ~5 days of food and a liter of water, is just about 30 lbs. I know this is the maximum the Jam2 is rated to carry. However, as most of my gear is pretty bulky, I have to strap my pads to the sides and my sleeping bag to the bottom in order to fit everything in.

I've never used an (essentially) frameless pack before, so I don't know too much about them. Would I be better off taking my 4700 ci pack (5lbs) until I switch out my sleeping bag and drop some clothing?

[A-Train]

Doing some rough math, seems your base weight is 18 lbs. That's a lot for a Jam user. Post your gear list here and maybe you'll get some help decreasing the weight and getting rid of stuff.

I don't have much experience using Golite packs, but from everything I've heard they become very uncomfortable when you close in on the suggested weight, more so than other packs.

Take it for a test run or two this spring, and if you're not happy, sell it online for something else.

[wrongway_08]

I got the Jam2, base weight is 16Lbs now. I was carry'n 32 Lbs in it for a while, no problems. I do keep my tent on the outside, its the tarptent Contrail, so its only 1Lb 6.5 oz.

If it feels good - use it. No need to add another 4 lbs of weight on the other pack.


If your able to drop clothes, without being unsafe - do it. That pack is great but its not meant for people who want to bring a lot of useless stuff or doubles of everything.

[vtdrifter]

My gear list:
(the weights aren't exceptionally accurate, because my scale is pretty poor quality)

Golite Jam2 21oz
EMS MountainLight 0 degree 51oz
Ridgerest 3/4 6oz
Blue Foam Pad (extra insulation) 4oz
Tarptent Contrail 24.5oz
hiking poles 16oz


shorts 4oz
spare shorts 2oz
shirt 2.5oz
light fleece pullover 6 oz
windblock fleece 15.5 oz
non-windblock fleece 12 oz
baseball + wool hat 4oz
mittens 10oz
trail runners 22oz
2 bandanas 1.5oz
3 pair wool socks 7.5oz
2 pair longjohns 10 oz
frogg toggs 17oz

other random stuff (weighed together because my scale won't do small weights accurately)
bandages
sponge
toothbrush
ducttape
emergency blanket
chapstick
earplugs
cup
penny stove
2 mini lighters
knife
40' stripped cord
10' regular cord
total 9 oz

more random stuff
fuel bottle
matches
spork
soap
radio + earphones
aquamira
compass
headlamp
total 14oz

3L camelbak 6oz
guidebook + maps ~7oz
sunscreen 3oz
journal + pen 1oz
reading book ~5oz

a couple of random things I haven't weighed
potstand + windscreen
advil and other meds
toilet paper
baking soda toothpaste
shouldn't come in more than a few ounces

The biggest thing I won't compromise on is my mittens, because I get very cold hands very easily. I have basically doubles of my top and bottom warm layers. The only reason I could forsee needing them is if it rained all day and I soaked one set, and then the temperatures dropped more than 30 degrees and I needed dry warm things to sleep in. I'm not sure how likely that is.
Oh, and they're also helping to humor my dad, so he doesn't think I'll turn into an icicle.

[chiefdaddy]

i use the old jam pack and carry two small pieces of blue sleeping pad to put under the straps when i have to load up on food or water or both that is my only problem and it was fixed as soon as it came up

make sure you pack it right or it will blow your back out

[sparky2000]

Good sum! Have fun.

[taildragger]

Do you need a 0* bag AND two pads? might be able to eliminate some bulk/weight there

Also, maybe get rid of one of your fleeces, probably the 12 oz'er.

Others will probably chime in with more.

[A-Train]

why 2 shorts, 2 long johns, 3 fleece, 2 lighters AND matches? Lots of duplicates.

Also, 10 oz for gloves is heavy. You can find something a third of that weight for cheap.

You should be able to get the base weight down a good 2-3 lbs easily.

Are you planning a thru-hike?

[wrongway_08]

Watch bringing doubles, remember - you will be layering them on.

Its not too big of a deal, if you think its too much, mail it home.

I have
- rain pants
- REI pants/shorts combo
- Smart wool micro layer
- Mont Bell down pants

I have never worn the Down pants yet.
Even in the minter, snow, ice and wind areas.
The only time I really wore the other 3 items together is while sleeping on a 7 degree night, with the 7-10 MPH wind and sleeping on the floor of a shelter. Or while hiking slow in those conditions.

I just keep bringing the Down pants because they pack so small and weigh almost nothing. I want to use them backpacking and not just around the house like a yuppie would.

Just something to think about.

Happy hiking

[JAK]

I have a Jam2 also. Also an impulse buy but I like it. A little more volume would be nice but I make it work, even in winter, even with my blue foam pad on the inside. It can be done.

[JAK]

Why don't you take your gear list and estimate how much volume each items takes up. It's not so easy, but if you group it into stuff that packs together and measure the volume of each group and then each item as a fraction of the group that's one way to do it. Then you can see what to get rid of. I think volume is your real enemy in this situation. Not weight.

[JAK]

I keep my packed volume down by the following methods, some of which may or may not appeal to you.

0. Blue foam pad actually goes in first, like a cylinder, which is not a volume saver but it does make the whole pack stand up nicely and protect the pack somewhat.
1. I keep a thick wool sweater on pretty much all the time, as thick as I can wear most days with nothing else on but hiking shorts. Without a skin layer and shell layer and with bare legs and no hat and mitts except perhaps a sun hat it doesn't get too hot. The remaining skin layers and wind layers and hat and mitts for colder windier weather are wicked packable. They sometime fit in that back pouch, leaving the pack for other stuff, but I often keep my skin layers inside my sleeping bag, in reserve for extreme cold. Socks are usually just 3 pair, thin, medium, heavy. Heavy only for winter. Sometime neoprene for early spring instead of the heavy. Having the right sneakers or boots or mukluks can be a volume saver if the one pair will do. Thicker stuff in exteme winter of course, but pretty much the same system year round.
2. For heavy rain I use a rain poncho/tarp which is also my shelter.
3. Sleeping bag goes in first in a garbage bag and I stuff the snot out of it and the garbage bag keeps it from expanding while I toss the bivy on top, followed by food, followed by my miscellaneous stuff bag.
3. The water bottle pouches could be used for tall food cylinders if you carry your water bottle in front. I use mine for my stove and firestarting and tea making kits. Navigation gear like watch, compass, map, thermometer, all go on me someplace on lanyards.

Just some ideas. It's still a work in progress.

[vtdrifter]

Why don't you take your gear list and estimate how much volume each items takes up. It's not so easy, but if you group it into stuff that packs together and measure the volume of each group and then each item as a fraction of the group that's one way to do it. Then you can see what to get rid of. I think volume is your real enemy in this situation. Not weight.

This is great. I will definitely try to do something like it, as I think you're right about my volume problems.

I'm also dumping my extra warm gear - 1 fleece and 1 pair long johns.

Thanks for all the advice!

[JAK]

My preference would be to carry about 20# or so in a Jam2 pack weighing 20oz, but it would be 4200ci or so rather than 3100ci. Same height. Same simple design. But perhaps 15% wider and 15% deeper. This would also be better for using it as a bivy. I like carrying my full sized blue foam pad on the inside like a cylinder, 28" high. In particular I would like the back pocket to be roomier when the pack is stuffed to the gills, and I might add a mesh pocket for my Kelly Kettle, but I would prefer it to be roomy enough that the stuff inside would be snug but not compressed, so there would be very little pressure on the pack. I think I can make 3100ci work though, especially in summer.

[Dirtygaiters]

I can't speak for the people who have used the Jam2 with 30+ pounds, but I was never comfortable with more than 25 pounds in my Jam2. That's fine for me since I was mostly going with 10 pound base weights for short hikes. However two problems I found with this particular pack which motivated me to eventually just sell it are that 1) the 3D mesh in the shoulder straps starts to permanently die the more you use it, and the heavier pack weights accelerate its losing its resiliancy. Also 2) I was never satisfied with the way the pack fit me. I typically fit medium packs, but the large Jam2 was too small on me. I should say that I prefer the center of the hip belt to press against my hip bones. However, it seems Golite has the idea that the bottom edge of a hipbelt should press against the hip bones, which is nonsensical to me. It means that the majority of the pressure is going onto a part of the body where there are no bones to accept the load. To get the hipbelt properly positioned, I'd have to loosen the shoulder straps so the pack sort of hung away from my back several inches. This never felt right so I'd always be re-adjusting it to bring the pack more comfortably positioned onto my shoulders--only then there would be too much weight on just my shoulders. Very frustrating. If you only use the backpack daypack-style, so all the weight is on your shoulders, then it's a great pack though. I just wouldn't want to have more than 20 pounds on just my shoulders.

[Dirtygaiters]

My gear list:
...

vtdrifter, I'm sure others will chime in with specifics, but looking at your gear list, I think I should point out that most people using the Jam2 are people who have gear lists that look more like this:
20-30 degree down bag OR down or synthetic 30-40 degree quilt
1 set of fleece top and bottom
closed cell foam torso-length pad (using the backpack's backpad under their legs)
tarp, tarp & bivy or tarptent
lightweight down vest (such as the Western Mountaineering Flight vest which weighs 6 ounces) or jacket
+other gear...

Something like the above gear list, if you used a 20 degree down bag, a tarp & bivy, fleece top and bottom, and a lightweight down jacket, the average person would be comfortable down to 10 degrees, maybe lower if the sleeping bag is accurately rated or if you're a warm sleeper.

It looks like you will be prepared for sub zero temperatures with your own gear list. If you wanted to take all that onto a backpacking trip where you will experience sub zero conditions, I'd recommend a much larger internal frame pack to help distribute the weight onto your hips and to simply hold it all. The Jam2 really requires low volume/low weight loads to work and some may disagree, but I think a large internal frame pack is a better choice for winter backpacking.

[1/4 moon]

I can't speak for the people who have used the Jam2 with 30+ pounds, but I was never comfortable with more than 25 pounds in my Jam2. If you only use the backpack daypack-style, so all the weight is on your shoulders, then it's a great pack though. I just wouldn't want to have more than 20 pounds on just my shoulders.

I use a Jam2 with a base weight of about 8lbs or so. like most everyone said, I use a ccf pad for support, a 20* down quilt, montbell jacket, long johns(top&bottom) Tarp/hammock, it is supposed to be a fairly minimalist pack, I personally wouldnt want all that stuff hanging off the pack, it would make it ride not so well. My best advice has pretty much been covered already, eliminate doubles, find dual purpose items, compression sacks