Heaviest Pack Weight

[Thatguy]

We always hear about how light people's pack weight is when they go backpacking. I always wonder what would be the heaviest pack weight anyone every carried the entire AT. My pack is 38 lbs with food & water. I may not qualify.

[dragoro]

I ran into a guy carrying 50 pounds last year.

[George]

wyoming skateboarder about 90# 2 of everything, a paddle for a stick and not a big dude, may have a journal

[Lion King]

In 1998, I weighed my pack at the AMI ranger station and without water it weighed 67 LBS...

This was due to a lack of experiance or knowledge of hiking at that point, plus I was carrying one of those stupid ass ginormous Rambo style knives with a compass in the handle, as well as base first aid and fishing gear stuffed inside it too.

I had a full size acoustic guitar strapped to the pack, a large 'ski rope' style rope for bear hanging, which I used once.

Never again, but now I carry an 5 LB camera and extra weight in tapes and charger...so...

right now, I average about 45 LBS.
Not too bad considering I weigh 260.

[Lion King]

ps, All that heavy shiz was mailed home from Suches, when they had a store PO back then.

[SouthMark]

My grandson met a guy at Gooch GAP Shelter with an 80# pack. Two stoves, a gallon of fuel and 5# of bacon. He went home at Neel Gap.

[Lion King]

My grandson met a guy at Gooch GAP Shelter with an 80# pack. Two stoves, a gallon of fuel and 5# of bacon. He went home at Neel Gap.

was that in 09?

Did he have a dog?

I think I met that guy, he was in that shelter for like 3 days in the rain bragging on his heavy stuff, but was going home and giving all his food and gear away.

[SouthMark]

Oh and I'll be doing a 130 mile section in Maine this August. I calculate that my starting pack weight will be less than 18#. That's with water and six days of food. My FSO should be less than 22#. Base weight will be 6.62#.

[earlyriser26]

Back in the early 70's a couple guys an me were going to hike from Baxter to Caratunk with no resupply. Our packs weighed about 100 lbs (21 days of food as I recall). Of course we quit after 2 days.

[Mtn Scout]

met 2 guys last weekend. one guy was about 92lbs. his hiking partner was around 70. the heavier guy had 2 heavy duty tarps that you could cover the entire roof of my shop with and its a 16x20. my heaviest has been 36 lbs and that was for a fishing/hiking trip

[SouthMark]

Lion King, it was last year, 2010. I don't think he had a dog.

[Bob McCaw]

I ran into some characters in the 100 mile wilderness that were carrying 95 pound packs. They had come about 15 miles from Monson to the Long Pond Stream Lean-to in three days.

They figured out they were carrying too much and offered me a fifth of vodka, a two-pound tub of peanut butter, and I forget what all.

Oh well, they had a sense of humor. I think they called up Keith Shaw the next day and headed for the bar.

[tuswm]

I have a friend that had about 80# and a big kelty red cloud IIRC. We were in the desert with about 5 days to go to the nearest road and with in an hour his hip belt and then a shoulder strap both ripped off. We feared the last strap might break so we stopped for about an hour and made a new shoulder strap out of duck tape and used a belt for a hip belt. neither would have worked with out the dental floss. I had to do his hip belt for him every time he took his pack on and off for the next week but it worked. We also had to put duck tape and mole skin on his shoulder after it started bleeding from the duck tape shoulder strap.

This same guy later tried doing a backpacking trip with a bug out bag that we got from work (military back pack) when he got home he said he wished a hip belt. Then I told him it was folded in the pack the whole time.

His nick name is meat. This of a 6'6" Rocky but clumsy.

[innermountain]

I saw a guy with a heavy friggin pack - he had about 10 books for the hike. He said he was going to mail them home as he read them, but still, that's a lot of extra weight. Probably 60-70 pounds.

[beakerman]

I always seem to have about 40# no matter how long I'm going to be on the trail. If its just a weekender I carry more luxury stuff like a chair for longer treks I carry less of the comfy things and more food of course...its odd but it always seems to be right at 40#.

I've seen boys try carrying more than that. I had a fellow scout, back in the day, who carried close to 100# of course it was all rocks courtesy of his fellow scouts ;-). he didn't even break a sweat--the kid was a mountain 250# and not an ounce of fat on his body jsut solid bone and muscle....kind of scary really we decided not to make him mad for fear he might rip our arms off like a wookie.

[tirebiter]

And here I thought I was too heavy with my 25lb base weight.

[Croft]

Met a guy last year on his second thru-hike who carried about 65# (lots of camera equipment and I don't know what else) and he successfully completed for a second time. Heaviest I've ever carried is 42# while inter camping in the UP of Michigan.

[Croft]

er--- winter camping ---

[Leapfrog^]

Try as I might just can't get below 32 pounds. Two years ago bought a 2 pound thermarest to save $40. Last year smartened up and bought the one pounder. Learning lessons don't come cheaply.

[flemdawg1]

I ran into a guy carrying 50 pounds last year.

I met a guy carrying about that at the Curley Maple Gap Shelter. His trail name was buck-ten, because he started from Springer w/ 110 lbs.