It's time for me to post my generic hiking list! With varying configurations this will be used for everything from short weekend hikes to longer backpacking trips, like when I eventually go back to Iceland. Usually hiking with a partner, so can share stove and fuel, but I use my own tent. I expect to encounter temps from 30F to 85F, rain and wind. Sorry I can't give more specific requirements, I don't have any definite plans for future treks.


First off, I have to say this: I don't think I'll be an "UL Backpacker" anytime soon, because:

a. I'm a tent person, bivy's don't work for me, neither do simple tarps. I love sleeping in tents.
b. I have a DSLR, and part of the enjoyment of hiking for me is taking pictures. Sure, I'll ditch it for some quick getaways, but if it's a long or far-away camping trip, the DSLR is coming with me, and probably a good tripod as well.
c. I don't hike enough to justify the cost of the latest and greatest gear.
d. I'm prepared to take those extra items for added comfort and peace of mind, whereas others would have no problem ditching anything absolutely unnecessary.

All that being said, I want to keep improving upon my gear to get it as light and compact as I can, without sacrificing comfort and function. If I carry 7.5 lbs of camera equipment (and that's a lightweight DSLR with a carbon tripod!), everything else needs to get lighter to compensate. Though I'll probably never be a super lightweight backpacker, this forum has helped me tremendously to lower my base weight to an acceptable level.

Here's my list. I've included extra items for comparison; I won't need to take all three pairs of socks or both knives, for example. Weight is in grams...sorry, that's what my scale uses. I'll work on converting the weights to oz after posting (1oz = 28.3g).


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MEC Brio 70L Pack 2790g
Deuter Rain cover 137g


Lunar Solo Tent + Ti stakes 838g (I haven't found a better option for summer, I'm happy with this tent, have no interest in plain tarps or bivys)
or.... Scarp 2 1530g (thinking of buying this for trip to Iceland)
GoLite Ultralite 20 Quilt + sack 750g (projected weight, I don't have one yet)
Thermarest Prolite 3 Pad 460g
Thermarest Foam Pillow 203g


Buff 37.5g
Marmot Mica 203g
Marmot Trail Wind Hoody 133g (I could drop this in good weather, or drop the Mica in really good weather)
Patagonia R1 Fleece 321g
Minus 33 LS 1/4 zip merino 283g
MEC River pants 247.5g
Cargo Shorts 312g (these can be improved upon)
ExOfficio boxers X2 170g
Smartwool mini running socks 38.5g
Darn Tough mini wool 59g
Wigwam mini coolmax 53g


Open Country 1.9L pot 200g
Open Country 0.7L pot 111g
Pot holder 37g
Titanium Spork 17.5g (or a Light My Fire spork for 10g)
Backcountry.com titanium 700ml cup + lid 112g
Snow Peak Giga Power stove 110g
Bic lighter 30g
Nalgene 1L 108.5g (I could drop this for a pop bottle)
Platypus 1L 35.5g


Toothbrush, toothpaste 40g
Pills/vitamins/Polysporin/misc. toiletries 50g
Deoderant 50g (depentant on type of trip + company)
Full small bottle of camp suds 166 (for reference, no need to take a full bottle)
Toilet paper 30g
Blue Shamwow x2 50g
Parachute cord 100g (haven't weighed it by the foot - length dependant on bears - what's a good alternative to parachute cord?)
Ziplocks for organizing/ food/quick dry bag) 24g


Mora knife 102g
SAK 50g (yes, I should pick one or the other, but I like knives)
Petzl e+Lite 28g
Adventure Med Kit First aid in a ziplock 42g
Survival kit (fire starter/tinder/compass/mirror/duct tape, etc) 91.5g
Thermarest + tent repair kit 21g
Bug net 24g


I'm sure there are a few small items that I've forgotten to include.


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For the shoulder seasons:

Montane Down Jacket 434g
Fleece gloves 106g
Under Armour Toque 39g
Smartwool heavy weight long socks 119g
Smartwool medium weight long socks 93.5g (I don't need to bring all the socks I list, obviously)
Synthetic baselayer bottoms 230g
Icebreaker LS 301.5g
Columbia Rain pants 296g


Pentax K-x DSLR with bag and accessories 1800g
Horusbennu carbon tripod 1600g (projected weight, I just ordered it)



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Adding that up I get 8530g / 18.77 lbs for the summer pack. Of course, I could take off 900g (2 lbs) right away by removing a few extraneous and redundant items (socks, underwear, shorts, extra knife, pot, DO, soap, towel, cord), leaving me with a respectable base weight of about 7630g / 16.8 lbs, plus another 3400g / 7.48 lbs for my camera....ouch.


In colder, wetter climes and for longer trips I'll need to add the down jacket, gloves, hat, extra wool shirt, longer socks, long johns, rain pants, and possibly the Scarp 2: an extra 2192g / 4.82 lbs.


Summer: 11030g / 24.27 lbs

Cold/wet: 13222g / 29.09 lbs



My own ideas/analysis:

My MEC pack is very heavy. But I estimate a need of almost 70L for longer trips or travel abroad (thinking of Iceland), where I'll have to carry more clothing. The camera takes up 500 cu. in. of space (not including the tripod, which I'll strap to the back). This pack IS pretty comfortable with heavy loads, but I know there are better out there and that I could save 2-3 pounds easy.

I love my Thermarest pillow, and the way I sleep the pillow is near as important as the sleeping bag, but it is very bulky. I'd like to trial a Montbell inflatable.


Thanks for looking. :)

Edited by berethorn on 05/03/2011 01:05:25 MDT.

It seems from your list you have a lot of duplicate gear.

3 towels Buff + 2 shamwows Really only need one maybe two to avoid odor cotamination.

3 pots Ti Mug + 2 pots Pick one pot and if you want a mug a plastic option would be lighter

2 knives

3 pairs of socks really only need two (one for sleeping, one for hiking)

Pants and shorts -- why not just a pair of convertables?

On the pack size if you still want a full size full featured pack you could look at the ULA Catalyst (I have never used) but its 3 lbs and about 70L

Thanks for taking the time to respond! I have a few duplicate items listed, yes. Some of them are listed for the sake of listing all my equipment - I wouldn't need to take them all at once, they're on the list for reference, and I subtracted a few duplicated from my Summer total.

I don't consider the Buff a towel, though I know a lot of people do, but I'd definitely consider taking a single Shamwow. The double is kind of overkill unless I know of two specific uses when they can't be washed. Better yet, I could cut them down and have two smaller ones...

You're right, I wouldn't take all three pots - or, if I did, we'd share them. Having those two pots was incredibly useful on our last big trip, and the mugs as well, but for my personal carry, I'd only take one pot and the mug. But this is what's great about this forum - someone always has a better idea: I'd never actually thought to carry a plastic mug in place of a metal one if I knew I wasn't going to cook from the metal one... brilliant! :D

Knives...yes, I'll pick one. I so rarely use the functions of the SAK that I'd like to carry the heavier Mora on longer trips.

My convertibles are nearly as heavy as pants + shorts because I'm thinking of getting a light pair of running shorts that double as underwear to replace those heavy cargo shorts. That being said, if I see a good pair of UL convertibles...

I'll check out that Catalyst, it looks like a good pack, but they recommend a base weight of under 20 lbs, and with my camera, and in colder weather I'm not there yet. I was thinking something from Osprey might be more suited to my intermediate pack size?