I'm relatively new to the light backpacking scene but I've lived in the Sierras my whole life and have always wanted to do this trail. The plan is to do it 15AUG-29AUG. I've seen a few other people's JMT pack lists but I was wondering if I could get some feedback on my own (note, I don't own all the equipment yet, this is just a tentative plan). I plan on using all resupply points, so the weights listed for consumables are for the longest stint (MTR to Whitney), which I plan to tackle in around 7 days.

Pack - GoLite Jam2 - 31 oz
Cover - Trash bag

Shelter - GoLite Shangri-La 1 + Floor - 26 oz
Bag - GoLite UltraLite +20 quilt - 25 oz
Pad - Therm-a-Rest Ridge Rest Pad - Short - 9 oz

Packed Clothing
Rain Jacket - Don't have one yet, something cheap and lightweight though
Fleece - Loki Midi Micro Fleece - 12 oz
Gloves - I have some wool inserts, but am considering something more heavy duty..
Extra socks/underwear - Do I need these?
Underwear - ExOficio Boxer Briefs - 2.2 oz

Kitchen
Stove - Haven't got one yet. I am thinking Caldera Cone system or MSR PcketRocket, any suggestions?
Water Container - Platypus 1L w/ Hose - 3 oz
Water Treatment - I am thinking tablets for the weight they save, but I don't know because I only have one Platypus and I don't want to have long wait periods hiking without water while it purifies.
Bowl/pot - BackpackingLight FireLight 550 - 2.7 oz

Other stuff
Headlamp - Petzl e+LITE - 1 oz
Matches
First Aid Kit - will be minimal, with just some bandaids and some ibuprofin
pocket knife
maps - Tom Harrison JMT map pack - small photocopies onto a couple pieces of paper
Compass
hand sanitizer - 4 oz
Bear Canister - Bearvault BV500 - 46 oz
GPS Tracker (SPOT) (for mom's peace of mind....) - 7.4 oz
Camera - Canon Powershot SD1200 - 4.5 oz
Dental care - I was thinking of getting the Toob brush, but would something like Listerine PocketPaks work good enough?
TP + bag
sunblock - 3 oz
chapstick - 1 oz
DEET - 3 oz

Poles - Kmoperdell Contour Foam Trekking Poles - 18 oz

Food (2lbs/day) - 224 oz
1 L water (at any given time) - 34 oz

And of course worn clothing, which is just your typical hiking clothing.

Some questions I have..
I currently don't have the GoLite Jam pack, I have a Gregory z65, which is twice the weight! With the Jam, my base pack wieght (w/out food) is 15 lbs, so with the z65, that would be 17 lbs. With everything I am looking at about 30 lbs carried (estimating for the things I don't have weights for yet), which I'm fine with. But if I stay with my z65 and add a water filter (or if I don't do that, maybe another L of water to have one always ready while one's purifying), I'm adding a good 3-4 lbs. I'm trying to go lightweight but with my inexperience I'm not sure which would be the smarter decision. I was also thinking, to cut down weight, I could forgo the Shangri-La floor and use something like a space blanket, thoughts?

Edited by twiebold on 03/28/2010 12:31:03 MDT.

The Driducks rain gear that you can purchase off BPL would probably work well for the trip. Not expensive and you probably won't have to use it. I believe it weighs around 10 oz. for jacket and pants.

Edited by catalyst81 on 03/28/2010 13:10:42 MDT.

You could probably forgo the rain pants as well since, even though you will get some rain, it is normally is not constant in the Sierras.

The driducks rain jacket weighs 5.8oz I believe.

Pack: I think I have read that the bear Vault will fit inside the Jam2.

Gloves: The liners are enough, but I like having a waterproof shell (MLD) to keep hands warm and dry, eg. hail storm. My hands(fingers) get cold and therefore useless fast.

Water: I carried the stri-pen. It gets a liter of water ready to drink in about 2 min. I got away without carrying any water. I just drank a liter at convenient streams during the day. I di make the mistake of using old batteries, (New, but in my closet for xx amount of time) and they ran out before I reached Mammoth. The only pills available at the store ther was iodine, so I used those until I reached VVR where I had mailed myself fresh batteries. Many do not purify their water in the Sierras, but for me it is easy, so why not? For a couple of days I just boiled up some water at night. I carry a 3 l platypus which I fill at night for dinner, night and early morning hydration.

Rain Gear: I really like the Dri-Ducks jacket. the hood is great. I use for warmth as well as in rain. I use Golite Reed rain pants whenever I needed long pants. I only use one pair of shorts which I wear.
Socks and anything wet dries very fast in the 99% sunny days you should enjoy. I wash a air wear a pair of low cuts and carry one pair ankle Smartwool socks to wear only in camp.

Shelter: I use a floorless shelter and bivy. The bivy double as a ground cover and warmth and rain splatter protection. Several nights I did not put my bag inside. Other nights I was glad for the extra warmth even with a 20 degree bag.
The Golite shelter is great, but you might consider going floorless.

Stove: go with the Caldera or a canister like Snow Peak Giga. I carried both a large and small canister. Cooked for two for 5 days and for one for 9. Did not run out of fuel.

Safety pins: I carry a couple of safety pins to hang washed gear (undies, Socks) to dry off the back of my pack while hiking. If I washed my shirt at lunch time it would be almost dry by the time lunch was done.

Some of the Lakes are not as cold as you might think. skinny dipping at noon is a great refreshment, and you will dry fast.

Edited by rambler on 03/28/2010 18:52:27 MDT.

Socks: i use a wool pair for sleeping and keep one extra pair on running socks in my pack to alternate.

Undies: one pair of exofficio worked just fine for me on the jmt

Water: i only treated water from a lake or two and was just fine, dont worry about filtering and take the tablets just in case. also there is so much water that i never carried it, just stopped and drank when i needed a drink.

first aid: one can never be too prepared for blisters. take a safety pin to drain and some for those nice band-aid jelly blister covers.

spot: i took a gps for mom's peace of mind and didnt use it once. same deal, but anything to make mama happy right?

headnet maybe? but skeeters are usually less of an issue in august

shelter: you can definitely leave the floor at home if you have a good forecast.

stove is a personal choice. MTR sells all types of fuel including esbit

personal: maybe a small notebook and pen to journal? when hiking alone there is plenty of time to reflect. i also brought a 700pg book that i was able to finish

re: water...

I would treat water in Yosemite, anywhere. The Merced is one of those sources where Giardia has been found before. There are far too many people in the water up there for me to trust it. The JMT is pretty much a hiker's (and pack station) freeway as well so pick your sources carefully.

DriDucks would be fine unless you are going off trail somewhere. I'd take at least one extra pair socks and one extra underwear so you can wash and dry as you hike - good foot hygiene is important, and so is avoiding monkey butt. Altho guys seem to take going commando better than most girls...

Space blanket will be flimsy. Use 2mm painter's cloth (plastic) or possibly a contractor bag cut open - either will be more durable than thin mylar. though it is possible to go without easily with some care to site selection - lots of duff up there to pitch in. August or September there will be minimal bugs.

Edited by lori999 on 03/28/2010 22:06:48 MDT.

Although it does not normally rain a lot on the JMT through most of the summer, it can certainly catch you off-guard. A friend planned a nine-day solo trip along one portion of the JMT, and he got rained on seven days out of that.
--B.G.--