Date: 2013-12-30
To: Gear Review
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I know in the spring of 2012 as I was preparing to hike my biggest question was ¢What do I carry? Well here is what works for me. I hiked 450 miles of the AT that summer, but more importantly my equipment consultants have been Garlic and Greasepot. The 2 of them have completed the AT and the PCT. Garlic also completed the CDT, so they have been a great source of information. He has kept many great journals here on Trail Journals.com, just search journalist Garlic and they will all come up. Equipment is obviously a personal choice; there is no right or wrong, just what works best for you. I decided to go light (no stove) so I could go further each day and carry less food since I was covering more ground. At first I was a little jealous watching others cook up a hot meal, but I quickly got into my own routine. I am not a coffee drinker, so no worries there. I ended up eating small portions throughout the day. I also enjoyed town food when it was an option.Gossamer Gear Mariposa Plus backpack ¢ I really liked this pack. It is roomy and comfortable. I used 6 sections of the Z Lite sleeping pad for the back padding.      24.0 ouncesMountain Hardware down sleeping bag ¢ This is my new addition for this year. Last time I used an almost 4 pound synthetic bag because that is what I owned. This is a rectangular bag, so I can unzip it and use it as a blanket. This will be great for most of the trip.28.0 ouncesHenry Shires Contrail ¢ This tent was great. It uses a trekking pole for the front. It was much roomier than I expected. No problem keeping my pack inside the tent at night. It is fully enclosed as well to keep the bugs out.      24.5 ouncesTherm-a-Rest Z-Lite Sleeping Pad ¢ I carried a 6 section with my pack and an addition 2 section inside. I slept surprising well with this set up.      7.0Gossamer Polycryo Ground Cloth ¢ I carried this but never actually used it. May leave at home this summer.      1.6Headlamp ¢ Princeton Tec I have had this for years. I had planned to do some night hiking, but never did. I plan to get a new headlamp for this trip.      3.1Leatherman Squirt PS4 ¢ I had friends say I could leave a knife at home. I was glad I had it, but not a big deal either way. This does have pliers which I didn¢t need. I do like having the scissors to trim my nails. If I were to buy a new one now, I would get the small Leatherman with a knife and scissors.      2.0Gatorade Bottle ¢ 2 ¢ It seemed like most section hikers had Nalgene bottles and the longer distance hikers had the lighter disposable bottles. Some were proud to have used the same Gatorade bottle for 1,000+ miles.      3.4Food bag/cup/fork I used a Granite Gear 13L waterproof bag to hold my food. It worked well for hanging on the bear poles.      6.0Marmot PreCip Rain Jacket ¢ I sweat a lot, so who knows if this is actually waterproof. It did keep me warm though. I did hike through some cold hard rains. I may upgrade to an Outdoor Research Helium II and save 8 ounces. It is expensive and I already own the Marmot, so will start with it and see how it goes.      14.0Trabagon Rain Pants ¢ these are light weight. The only time I wore them was to do laundry. I will carry them again this summer.      9.0Marmot Driclime Windshirt ¢ this is a great lightweight wind shirt. I saved it for the cool evenings. I did not want to get it sweaty.      9.5Socks/underwear ¢ I am a big fan of SmartWool PhD socks. That is all I will carry this summer. I have tried probably 10 different types of socks. The SmartWool works well even when wet. I thought I would have feet problems on the trail ¢ but no blisters, even with wet feet.      4.0North Face Long Sleeve ¢ I hiked in the same short sleeve shirt and kept this for camp. I would push the sleeves up if it was too warm. Great light weight shirt. Definitely going with me again this summer.      5.5This spring I will probably start with the MontBell Ultralight Down Jacket. It gets great reviews and only weighs 8 ounces.Nike Fleece Beanie ¢ I had a Buff, but it was taken while at one of the hostels. Nice to have for the cool evenings. I do not like being cold.      2.0Black Diamond Windstopper Gloves ¢ good light weight gloves.      2.3Camp shorts ¢ basically a bathing suit. Again would change into these at camp and hang my hiking shorts up. I liked being dry once I stopped hiking for the day.      6.0Towel/Bandana ¢ I had an REI microfiber towel that I cut in half. Also had 1 bandana      1.3      Money/CC ¢         3.0Aqua Mira ¢ I have thought about carrying a filter, but have stuck with the Aqua Mira. It does require time to work, but is light weight and effective.      3.0First Aid Kit ¢ A basic kit with band aids, Ibuprofen, tape, pads, ear plugs, safety pins, antibiotic cream, iodine. I have duct tape wrapped around my trekking poles.      4.0Personal      4.0Guide Book/misc - I really like AWOL's guide      4.0      Cell phone/charger ¢ I am a Verizon fan. I was surprised how often you could get coverage on the trail.         10.0Plastic bags ¢ I use a trash bag inside my pack to put everything in. I do not use a pack cover. Never had problems with things getting wet. My tent was packed on the outside of my pack.      3.0            186.2 oz      11.6 lbAs far as footwear goes, I will hike in the Solomon XA3DUltra2. I replace the factory insert with the Sole high volume insert. I have a very high arch. I typically have feet problems while hiking and have tried many different combinations. This is what works best for me. I do not use waterproof shoes. My feet sweat and I find waterproof shoes still get wet on long hikes. These shoes dry much quicker than a gortex model. With the SmartWool socks I actually did not mind hiking in the rain. My feet stayed nice and cool. The only problem is they are not very durable, but I have not found any comfortable shoes that are. I will probably go about 600 miles with each pair. I definitely like going with a trail shoe vs. a boot. I was a big boot fan since I had weak ankles. Garlic got me to convert and I am very glad I did. Also ¢ I am a big fan of Trekking poles as is 95% of the thru hiking community.I hike in shorts all the time. I did bring the removable bottoms with me last time and ended up just carrying them the entire way. I will start with the bottoms in April, but will ship them home as the weather improves.If you have any questions feel free to contact me through the guest book.