Date: 2015-09-04
From: Post Hike 1 Gear Review

To: Post Hike 1 Gear Review
Miles today: 0.0

This post is a gear review of what I used and saw on the trail. I will do another one for clothes and shoes.Backpack - ULA Catalyst Backpack. I had no problems with this pack. It had enough room to carry all my gear and 5 days of food with water. Besides ULA packs, I saw a lot of Ospreys and Granite Gear packs.Tent, Hammock and sleeping pad -My Big Agnes Copper Spur UL 2 was a great tent. I saw a lot of these on the trail. It had a lot of room for the weight which was great in bad weather. I did stay in the tent about half of the time when I had it with me. During the warmer months I used an ENO Jungle Nest Hammock with the ENO Pro Tarp and Slap Straps. You see a lot of both on the trail. In the end I had my tent and think I liked it the best between the two. Only because you can spread your gear out and sit up in the tent. I kept my pack under the tarp below me when I used the hammock. You do sleep well using a hammock and finding a place to camp is much easier. I will probably use both on future trips depending on the terrain and weather. Hammocks can be cold in cooler weather. I used the Thermarest pro Lite for the whole trip. I had no problems with it. I also used it in the hammock, I just didn't inflate it all the way. For a pillow I used a medium Exped and it worked fine for me. Some hikers that started without a pillow ended up with one. Sleeping Bags -Sierra Design Zissou 12 Dry Down Bag. This bag worked great. I kept it in a dry sack and it compressed fairly small. I stayed warm during the colder temperature and used it like a blanket part of the hike. I did switch to a Snugpak Jungle Bag for the warmer months. I really like it and it worked great in the hammock.Leki Cristallo Treking Poles - I trusted my life with them on steep descents in the white mountains. What more can I say.Black Diamond Spot Headlight - I only had to change the batteries once. Used it for some night hiking. Be sure you have a lock and red light feature on your head light.Anker Battery Pack - worked great for charging my IPhone 5s. I could get 3 charges out of it on the trail.Sawyer Water Filter - used the large one 3oz. Also used two sawyer bags and a platypus bag. The larger filter has a better flow rate. Everyone I know that started with the mini bought the large within the first few weeks. Other than chemicals I saw no other filter being used. I back flushed mine once a month but never had any problems with it. Just don't let it freeze or its toast.Cooking -Used my MSR pocket rocket because I already had it and a snow peak 700 titanium pot. Also used a titanium spoon and a Guyot flexible bowl. Saw this setup and the Jetboil setup. Had no problems finding fuel canisters. I only used four on the whole trip but I only cooked at night. There were a few alcohol stoves but I didn't see many. Too easy to just light the gas. Outdoor Research Dry Sacks - used for my food and clothes. They never leaked and kept everything dry. Used some cheaper Walmart bags for misc stuff.ZRest Sit Pad - the best piece of gear I had. Used it multiple times a day.The main thing to consider on gear is get a backpack that fits your body type and don't get one that is too large or you will fill it up with gear you don't need. I would suggest getting your pack after you have all your other gear to ensure you get the right size.