1) wearing polartec fleece socks instead of wool at night in my sleeping bag. Extra weight since I don't hike in them but worth it since I no longer wake up at 3 am with frozen feet. A good night sleep is worth ever oz.
2) liner socks with coolmax socks and my 2003 velocity trail runners; finally a shoe that fits my foot, has great traction that doesn't give me blisters. Also no gortex, I have a problem overheating and these keep my feet cool. I wish Vasque still made them, I have not found a replacement as good and I've tried on everything.
3) It's a toss up between my Marmot Helium 29 oz bag that has kept me warm at 15 degrees or my Nimbus Ozone. Once I put 3 liters of water in my pack I want a pack with a frame. This pack weighs 3 lbs but doesn't feel like it weighs anything on your back, on your shoulders or on your hips, plus I can tilt it back and get that cool air across my back as I hike with just the weight on my hips. Maybe it's ultralight heresy but who cares as long as I can get out and enjoy my trek. I own an Exos 34, have used fanatic fringe, z1 blast etc but I've gone back to my Nimbos Ozone any time the weight of food and water starts to get up there.

Lighter mountaineering boots, the "new" wool,water filtering systems, and eVent as an alternate to Goretex, the competition between the many innovators and boutique manufacturers out there would head up my list.
Not a gear thing but the people who push the envelope showing us what can be accomplished with less.

Sleeping bag - Buffalo 4 Season inner and outer (Now after 18years use, upgraded to the Superbag)

Flint and Steel - Whenever I can, I cook by an open fire (Comfort and warmth)

Hip flask - for a Wee dram (Hic 3-)

henry shires line of tarptents (squall 1 / contrail)

western mountaineering sleeping bags (alpinlite / caribou)

trekking poles

Great questions and post. I'll repost on my site http://www.backpackingconnections.com

- Hennessey Hammock - ditched the tent, pad, chair kit, saving a whopping 7lbs out my pack, slept better, can camp anywhere, etc, etc. Truly revolutionary for me.

- Synthetic fabrics - quick drying, lightweight, field washable. eliminted another 3-4 lbs out of my pack (i.e. fresh new cotton t-shirt each day, fresh socks).

- Trekking poles - hike farther, faster and a lot more stable.

For cold 3 season (Fall, Winter, Spring) use my favorite gear was fairly thin hard (not fuzzy) wool pants that I think were military surplus dress pants. They shed wind and snow well. I can't find them anymore and have long since gained enough weight that I can't fit my old ones anymore. Anybody know where to find some?

For summer, thin light nylon or supplex travel pants are good.

Cameras: old folding roll film cameras from Kodak 620 to Zeiss Ikonta www.mplsdesigner.com/cameras/cameras/ikonta.htm;
Olympus Pen D (not SLR).

Book: Horace Kephart, "Camping and Woodcraft". Gerry Cunningham's book on making outdoor gear.

1) LS lightweight capilene crew shirt, circa 2004-5. THE best and most versatile piece of outdoor clothing yet made. When will Patagonia go back to sizing capilene not for fat people?

2) Pre-2006 MSR Dromedary bag, six liter, with hydration hose. The best water container yet made. Not ultralight at all, but I've carried mine on almost everything I've done outdoors since 2003 and it's as good as the day I bought it.

3) Gossamer Gear cork trekking pole grips. Perfect. Simply perfect.

1. Dryheavogagger 2000--my first sawed off toothbrush. All dentists recommend almost vomiting after meals or at least twice a day.

2. Hiker kilt--air out the boys and make all people you meet uncomfortable around the campfire as they valiantly try to avert their gaze. Lycra shorts are a close second.

3. Mary Poppins umbrella--what better way to get harassed in redneckville than to traipse around town with this accessory? Use with kilt at your own risk.

4. Uh, I got nothing.

1. A buddy of mine handed me Beyond Backpacking and taught me MYOG and freaked my trip. My new hiking ways started with a 17 oz Jardine-style MYOG pack. Reason for addition: it is the beginning.

2. Smartwool Adrenaline mini crews. I have five pairs of these socks, wear them almost every day, for every trail mile and for every running step. I have yet to find a better sock (but I will try from Vermont Darn Toughs when these eventually die). These were my first real hiking (read: everything) socks.

3. TarpTent Double Rainbow. My first UL tent and still my go-to shelter whenever I have someone with me and its not winter out. I love the single-wall design with the mesh-doors. Best of all - it all goes up at one - no separate fly.

4. Honorable mention: Hilleberg Saivo. Not UL at all (10+ lbs?!), but I spent two months in one in 2005 canoeing from the head of the Red River on the border of MN/SD to Hudson Bay in Canada (which is an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean!) Despite all the nasty storms were experienced, this thing never, ever let up.

1) Kelty A4 pack (1970)
2)Colin Fletcher Complete Walker 1
3)Lipton beef stroganoff
4)Nike Lava Domes
5)Svea 123 stove with nesting pots and windscreen
6)plastic tube tent (sorry, but saved my butt many a times-I prefer Tarptent Contrail today)
7) Coated nylon (revolutionary)
8) The early Gerry and The North Face down vest and hooded parkas.
9)parachute cord
10)ensolite pad
11) kodak instamatic camera
12)Patagonia's first synthetic pile clothing (still use mine from 1977)
12)

I stumbled across my Svea stove the other day whilst sorting the piles and decided to see if it would run.
No problemo, fired right up; wasn't it always kind of spooky preheating them by pouring a little fuel in the recess and lighting it?
I loved the sound they made when they were perking away...
I also would put up those first wrap around hinged hip belts on frame packs like the A16 and Alpenlite alongside your Kelty. How about the old TNF Ruthsac?
I remember driving to the Great Pacfic Ironworks in Ventura to pick up some hardware and seeing the first fleece, I wound up swapping some electrical work for a jacket with Yvon. I'm really pleased to hear you still have it, mine is long gone. But I do have a pair of Stand Up Shorts that almost fit that I'll nominate for the best all-time gear.

Zach, that was priceless!!!

Other than the Internet, the fount and source of the "cottage" lightweight gear industry and many other good things, there are a few specific pieces of gear I really love:

Sarbar's new "UL" cozies. I owe Sarah a debt of gratitude for the whole "freezer bag cooking" concept, especially appealing to me because dishwashing has always been my most hated task. Hers is one of many examples of a business that would not exist except for the internet.

Western Mountaineering Ultralight Super sleeping bag. I don't know how many times I've gotten cold but then immediately warmed up and stayed warm after snugging up the draft collar. That collar makes all the difference!

Gossamer Gear/Tarptent Squall Classic tent--nice and roomy for me and my dog, quite streamlined and very easily set up in a taut pitch [EDIT--I can only blame the misspelling--now corrected--on my tendency to type faster than my brain can work]. The '09 model has a zippered beak, doing away with the awful velcro. It also has the best bathtub floor I've seen in any tarptent. I hesitate to laud this tent too much, simply because I have not been able to test it in really severe storms yet. If I don't get a chance this fall, I'll set it up in my backyard in some of our infamous winter east winds to see if it's as wind-worthy as it appears.

Wyoming Wear 200-weight fleece socks for sleeping. My feet sigh with gratitude when I put them on!

My POE InsulMat Max Thermo air pad, which I have put aside (at least for longer trips) in favor of the Thermarest NeoAir, half its weight. Somehow I have not developed the comfortable relationship with the NeoAir that I have had with the POE pad. The NeoAir is comfortable, but not as much as the POE pad. I may make some changes when the new, lighter POE pads (designed to compete with the NeoAir) hit the market. For 1-2 night trips, when weight is not such a big deal, I'll continue to use and enjoy the old pad!

Your mileage may, and probably will, vary.

Edited by hikinggranny on 08/23/2009 22:04:30 MDT.

Hilleberg Akto
Exped downmat
No sniveller (jacks r better) quilt
Pak-lite torch
Bush Buddy Stove

As you can see, i like my sleep :)

re: Stand Up Shorts

I worked at a scout camp for many years, and we wore canvas-type scout shorts as part of our uniform. But they're not really acceptable in public due to their litany of stains. I just discovered the Stand Up Shorts, which are effectively a civilian-type equivalent. And I love them. Definitely a good nomination.

ULA Amigo Pro. I love this thing.

In 1955 Gerry Cunningham pushed the "go light, leave no trace" ethos of backpacking taking all of us on a left hand turn off the Trapper Dan woodsman approach tothe backcountry.
Gerry developed the cordlock drawstring clamp, the child carrier pack,the bombproof Himalayan tent, the resealable Gerry tube for jam etc. and Gerry's little stove,.
Both the Gerry and Roberts stoves were a benchmark in lightweight gas cannnister stoves.
Around the same time Jack Stephenson put together the Warmlite brand featuring high loft down and vapor barrier tents and clothing.
Fast forward to 1970 and we have Don Jenson's 2 1/3# Rivendell packworks Jenson Pack, the first decent frameless pack paving the way to Sierra West's 1 1/3# Half Dome pack and Fred Williams of Moonstone's down bag with no bottom, the father of today's quilts. [A good 10 years before Ray's thoughts]
So along with cordlocks, Gerry tubes, the Robert's stove, Jenson's pack,and Stevenson's Warmlite products I would add Richard Nixon's contribution to ultralite backpacking.
In 1972 Richard Nixon met with China's Mao opening China to the West. This one political move brought the price, availibility, and higher loft count down to the market. Before 1972 down supply was difficult,expensive, and the quality was hit or miss. Many makers used duck down or mixed feathers in their products.

Larry, I enjoyed your history. --Walter

"Both the Gerry and Roberts stoves were a benchmark in lightweight gas cannnister stoves"

Sigh...Now there's a trip down memory lane. Gerry's stove was the first stove I ever carried. Great little piece of kit for its time. Thanks for the memory, Larry.

This is an awesome thread, can't make up my mind yet. MacAurthur voice "I shall return!"