Gear Systems
Philosophy
I refer to my style of backpacking as Luxury Ultralight Backpacking. I want to make my pack really light to enable me to cover more miles each day with less effort. However, I am not willing to give up my creature comforts. Nearly everything in my pack could be considered a luxury item. I could use a tarp instead of a tent but I don’t like the idea of sleeping with things that bite such as ants, spiders and mosquitos. I could sleep on a thin foam pad but I like the comfort of a full length air mattress. I could cold soak but I enjoy a hot meal in the evening. I could use an alcohol stove but I like the convenience, speed and cleanliness of a cartridge gas stove. These and many other decisions enable each backpacker to have a unique style of backpacking. There is no right way to make these decisions. It is personal preference, and my style works for me.
I try to minimize the amount of fiddling I have to do. For example I designed my tent to be easy to set up without a lot of guyline adjustments. I dislike camp chores, especially cleaning dishes so I only boil water in my pot and eat out of the Sous Vide bags I use to rehydrate my meals. My first dinner Sous Vide bag becomes my trash bag.
To save weight I try to eliminate as many stuff sacks as possible. Stuff sacks serve the purpose of compressing gear into a smaller volume, such as your sleeping bag, or to keep your gear organized. But the number of stuff sacks can get out of hand and add significant weight to your kit. To reduce weight the main compartment of my pack is a dry bag and I just stuff my quilt into the bottom of the pack. I stuff my down sweater into its sleeve to eliminate a separate stuff sack. I put all of my loose gear into my one and only MYOG stuff sack including my clothes, mishap kit, down sweater, and cook kit.
My gear is tuned for the conditions I might find on the Colorado Trail in the summer and shoulder seasons. Different trails and weather conditions would dictate different gear. For example for a PCT thru-hike I would start with a larger pack that could carry more water and swap it out when I got to the Sierras for one designed to carry a bear canister. I would use this gear until the fall when I would swap back to the larger pack and add warmer gear for the end of the hike.
The gear I carry is part of a system where pieces work together to provide the function I want with the minimum of weight and the maximum of convenience. Many items serve two or more functions. My gear evolves each year as I gain experience using the gear I have, as new products are brought to market, and as I make new gear. The following sections discuss each system of my kit.
Hiking System
I obviously hike with a backpack but the other parts of the hiking system are the clothes I wear and the things I carry in my pockets.
Broad brim hat to keep the sun off my face and neck. It has a chinstrap that tucks into the hat when not in use and keeps my hat from blowing away in strong winds when needed.
Headlamp made from a Photon Micro-Light II on a shock cord lanyard. I can always find my flashlight in the dark. Not really adequate for night hiking which I avoid but great for cooking, finding things in my tent, and useful in an emergency.
Convertible long sleeve shirt that gives UPF 40 sun protection. I generally hike with long sleeves unless it is really hot and then I simply push the sleeves up and roll them over. I removed the roll-up sleeve and tab holders since I don’t need them.
Convertible long pants while hiking and sleeping. Being able to take off the bottom part of the legs works well in hot weather. I wear them long in cool weather or when I need protection from brush while hiking on overgrown trails.
Underwear briefs.
injinji Nuwool liners or Smartwool light weight crew socks. I am still experimenting with this choice.
Hoka-One-One Challenger ATR 5 Wide w/Oboz Ō-Fit inserts.
GossamerGear LT4 trekking poles that seem to solve my bad knee problems (along with Aleve) and have more than once kept me out of a creek.
In addition to what I wear I also keep some items in my pockets:
iPhone SE in my shirt pocket used as a camera, watch/timer, InReach interface, Guthook app, and much more…
Ditty bag that holds the things I might need handy while hiking
Colorado Trail data book pages and a pencil in a plastic bag
A paper towel in my back pocket
I keep a rain jacket and rain pants at the top of the back pocket of the pack for easy access. If the rain is light I just leave my hat on as a small umbrella. If the rain is heavy I pull the jacket hood over my hat and leave the brim sticking out to keep rain off of my face. With the jacket zipper partially open I get a wide brim, good visibility and good ventilation. In windy conditions I close the jacket zipper to keep out the driven rain. My jacket and pants breath really well and even closed up will dry inside while I am hiking. I also keep a pair of Smartwool Merino 150 Gloves and Mountain Laurel Designs Rain Mitts in my rain jacket pocket.
Packing System
My 4.8 oz. pack is compartmentalized to function with a minimum of weight. The main compartment is a cylindrical dry bag that has the best volume to weight ratio and eliminates the need for a separate stuff sack for my quilt. My quilt is stuffed at the bottom of the bag followed by an odor-proof bag of food and then my gear stuff sack. The main compartment keeps its shape as my food supply dwindles. When I have a lot of food the quilt is tightly compressed, when I have little food the quilt is lightly compressed. The quilt compression automatically adjusts to take up the vacated volume.
On the back of the pack is a large vertical pocket that holds all of the things that typically get wet. The pocket holds my rain gear, tent (no stuff sack), waterproof toiletry bag and pee bottle. The pocket is made of non-stretching material to keep its shape and keep the contents closer to my back.
On each side of the main compartment is a water bottle pocket, one for the filter/flask and the other for a ridged 1L bottle. I moved away from a water bladder inside my pack to eliminate any chance of leakage drenching my quilt.
At the top of one of the shoulder straps is a custom pocket to hold a Garmin inReach Mini two-way satellite communicator. This gives the Mini a clear view of the sky for better reception and battery life.
On the waist belt is a small pocket for holding the day’s snacks and lunch. The goal is to not need to get into the main pack compartments during the day, especially if it is raining.
Sleeping System
My tent, quilt, mattress and pee bottle comprise my sleeping system. Total weight is currently 1 lb. 15 oz. The tent keeps me dry and keeps out the bugs. The quilt keeps me warm without the added weight of traditional sleeping bag zippers. The air mattress insulates me from the cold ground and is comfortable to sleep on. I attached buckles that match the ones on my quilt to the underside of the mattress to eliminate having to fiddle with adjustment straps. I stay warm and dry by using a 600 mL pee bottle instead of going out in the rain, I also avoid disturbing other hikers with the sound of tent zippers in a group camp setting. The sleeping system uses five more items that are not included in the total weight. I use my trekking poles to pitch the tent which are not included in the tent weight since I carry them anyway to protect my knees from injury. I stuff my down sweater into its sleeve (no stuff sack) as a pillow. I tie the diagonal corners of my Snoopy Backpacking bandana together and use it as a comfortable cotton pillowcase. I wear a fleece cap that is also used around camp. I wear my spare pair of socks to keep my feet warm and to keep my quilt clean.
Cooking System
I prefer a canister stove because it is convenient, fast and clean compared to alcohol stoves. Also in my part of the country there are frequent fire bans where only cartridge stoves are allowed. My cooking system weighs 7.7 oz. I use a titanium cup with a custom handle, a BRS-3000T Stove, a Mini Bic Lighter, an MSR folding spoon and a MYOG koozie for rehydrating meals. I carry my food in an odor-proof bag. The system is very fuel efficient because titanium does not hold much heat and so I am not wasting fuel just heating up the metal. The dark color also absorbs radiation well. On my 2017 Boulder to Durango thru-hike I had 28 hot meals and used only 97.4g of fuel from a single 110mL canister, 3.5g of fuel per meal. If I could find a titanium refillable fuel canister I’d buy it.
A word of caution about the BRS stove. This stove is not designed to support heavy pots or be operated with a really high flame for extended periods of time. The pot supports will soften in these conditions and warp. It works great for me because I use a small pot and generally only heat water to just below the boiling point.
Hydration System
Over the years I have transitioned through many water treatment regimes such as boiling, iodine, other chemical treatments and eventually filtration. For years I used the lightweight Timberline filter with a pump and then came along the Sawyer Squeeze. The Squeeze worked well and I thought I would try the Sawyer Mini to save weight but gave it up because of its slow flow rate and went back to the Squeeze. Then came the Sawyer Micro which significantly improved the flow rate but when it completely failed me recently I tried the Katadyn BeFree. At first I passed on the BeFree because the 600 mL water bottle was too small. Then the 1 L bottle came out but its bulbous shape would not fit in my packs side pockets.
Now I use a BeFree water filter with a 750mL HydraPak SoftFlask. I have an additional 1L wide-mouth water bottle for extra carrying capacity and to mix my instant breakfast drink. I keep these in side pockets of the pack to keep all liquids outside of the main dry bag compartment. Together they weigh 4.4 oz.
Sanitation System
I keep my toilet items in a zip-lock bag stored in the back pocket of my pack to keep it handy and to keep it away from my quilt, food, and clothes bag. I use a Deuce of Spades aluminum trowel to dig a cat hole, usually the night before. Even with the sharp trowel it is difficult to dig a proper cat hole in the Rocky Mountain soils but it is so necessary for LNT ethics. Charmin To Go paper comes in a cute plastic container that helps keep it dry. A small bottle of hand sanitizer and a small tube of Aquaphor complete the kit.