I got all sorts of nerdy and listed out all of my gear, how much it weighed, and then, stared at it for a long time. Made some adjustments. Went on a short hike. Repeated the above.
There is no ONE RIGHT gear choice.
Seriously. Everyone that has ever been on a long hike will tell you that one size does not fit all when it comes to gear (well, everyone that is not an egotistical jerk). What works for me doesn’t work for everyone. The key is finding out what’s important to you and then having fun tweaking your gear choices based off of what you are learning about yourself and your style with each passing hike.
Here’s what I know is important to me when I choose what I am going to carry on a long hike:
I want a light and comfortable pack. I’m all about lighter gear, I cut tags off things to save weight. But. There are certain comforts and preferences that I am not willing to give up. So while my pack is fairly light weight, it is not ULTRA uber crazy stoopid light. I count ounces but I am stubornly attached to certain things that make my pack middle of the road in the lightweight game.
Here’s what I’ve figured out about my hiking preferences after 3 thru hikes:
I prefer a one person double walled light weight tent that is free standing.
Why?
on a clear, warm night I like to sleep with just the mesh/body of the tent. Sure, I could cowboy camp but when I am alone I feel too exposed and don’t sleep as well. Funny, I know, but even just being surrounded by some mesh means I’ll have a good, deep sleep. Mainly because: no bugs on me. No Spiders. No mice (I’ve had mice run across my face cowboy camping. Don’t love that)
I like free standing tents because I’m lazy and don’t want to have to stake my tent or trip over guy lines when I’ stumble out to pee in the middle of the night.
on a rainy day I can set up my fast fly (ground sheet and fly) as a wind/rain shelter to eat/nap/break.
I can’t break away from my Osprey pack.
I ADORE Osprey’s mesh back panel on their packs. I HATE a sweaty hot back…barf. Having the airflow helps so much with preventing chaff (on my back AND in my butt crack from sweat dripping down).
This gal will not hike with a pack that does not have a super comfortable hip belt. Even if my pack only ever weighed 15lbs, I can’t have weight on my shoulders for that long, I will go insane and cry and then quit.
So, I wear the Osprey Eja. I LOVE it. And I’m not going to lie. When I see folks with itty bitty frameless packs that would fit my sleeping bag only, I wonder if I’m being judged. I’m trying to give less shits.
Gimme that fast boil, bb.
If I do not have warm coffee in the morning and a hot dinner with a hot coco at night, what is even the point of waking up and walking? A very dramatic way of saying, I carry a stove. I have a 0.8 liter jet boil. It’s not the lightest stove out there, but it’s so damn fast, stable, and easy to use in the wind…I just can’t give it up.
My CDT Gear List
Here’s what I plan to carry (at some point) on the CDT. Some gear I’ll pick up in mail drops along the way depending on the terrain, and some, just like every other time, will end up being mailed back home when I’ve had enough of my pack feeling like a monster trying to smash me into the earth.
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