What's in Your Pack?

Imagine you are going on an extensive backpack trip into the wilderness. You will be totally self sufficient. How long is up to you. What do you carry in your pack? Especially things you consider essential.

Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada

Wouldn't that depend on where you were and time of year? I mean, you wouldn't need bug spray in the middle of the winter. Obviously you need about three butane lighters (more than one in case they fail,) a small but bright flashlight, a compass & map, sharp sturdy sheath knife, small folding pocket knife, cable saw, water filter, a simple small cooking pot and cup, rain gear, small first aid kit (bandages, antiseptic, antibiotic ointment, ibuprofen tabs, etc.), maybe a small bit of fishing line & a couple of hooks (for emergency food,) appropriate sleeping bag & mat, small tent, and maybe a small length of rope. Clothing will depend on climate, and l like the synthetic kind that washes easily and quickly dries. I might also want bear spray, but that would clip to the pack's strap rather than go inside.


Kent in SD

I always carry a ceramic water filter and also keep some 'Potable Aqua' tabs in my first aid kit.

This might sound a little goofy, but I always carry extra sox; both liners and outer. I change into dry sox before crawling into the bag, because I hate cold toes when I'm trying to get some zzz's.

Depending upon expected conditions in the mountains, I may opt for heavier mountain boots, and an ice-axe and a pair of crampons. If I plan to climb, rope and hardware gets added to the mix (and the weight).

For extended trips, I ask my doctor to write prescriptions for pain med and a broad-spectrum antibiotic.

And last, but not least: Lots of TP!

-PB

Wouldn't that depend on where you were and time of year?

Kent, we will make it the Rocky Mountains and the time of year will be autumn. But if anyone wants to tell me what's in his pack in a different environment, I would be very interested. It would make for an interesting comparison.

What kind of stove do you take, Kent? I prefer one that screws onto the top of a propane cylinder. I have seen and tried the ones with the liquid fuel and you pretty well have to set them on fire to get them going.

Preston, I would consider the extra sox as essential, especially now that the destination is the Rockies and in the fall. I have had solid frozen sox and believe you me they are not easy to put on.

A compass and map is only good if you know how to use them.

Essential stuff can also mean things related to photography.

Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada

Being a minimalist, I've never used a stove. If you don't know how to use a map & compass, you have no business in a wilderness. I wouldn't want to be relying only on GPS--what if it gets wet, malfunctions, or batteries run out? For autumn in the rockies, high calorie food and heavier clothing/sleeping bag is the top priority.


Kent in SD

I've backpacked extensively over three decades including with a 4x5 system the last few years. For instance this year I made six trips. When one looks at typical gear lists in magazine how to stories or those listed by enthusiasts, they tend to generalize and leave out minor items. My current camping gear list organized on a spreadsheet has over 160 items and my photography gear over 90. I probably bring 80% of those items on each trip. The reason I list items in detail is it is too easy to leave out things or not address gear maintenance needs if one relies on memory or some crude list. For instance many times I've backpacked with others who brought along weak batteries in their flashlights becasue they forgot to check such or forgot some simple item like a spoon to eat with. ...David

The basics: TP, headlamp, rain shell, First Aid kit, some kind of shelter (bivy sack, tent, or tarp), pocket knife, food, water, purifier and tablets, storm matches, 20ft or so of synthetic cord (thin rope, or string), insect repellant, hat, antiseptic wipes, sunglasses, map and compass, sleeping bag and pad

Clothing: all synthetic, always think layers, pack as many layers as make sense based on the best and worst weather you may encounter, plenty of socks (ideally change at least twice a day, especially if your feet get wet), good fitting boots

If walking in snow: snowshoes/skis and/or crampons as needed, ice axe (walking length)

If carrying a heavy load: trekking poles or ski poles

Luxury items, if you can take on extra weight: stove and cooking kit (with dehydrated food, coffee, oat meal, etc.), sandals or flip-flops to wear around camp, GPS (in addition to, not replacing map and compass), book

Obviously your choice of camera gear. I suggest establishing a maximum pack weight and working backwards from that rather than try to take it all. Even if it feels "doable" at home, after a couple of miles (especially at high elevation) you will feel every extra ounce.

Guy

Keep in mind I backpack in the south. I used to carry a pretty heavy backpack, but have pared it down over the years a great deal. I now carry what I consider essentials only. Some things I consider essential others might consider frivolous, but to each his own. One complete change of clothing (winter), 200 wt. Marmot fleece jacket, ultralite wind jacket/pants, TP(in zip-loc bag), Good sleeping bag (in cold weather), my Thermarest 3/4 LE pad, Snow Peak mini-solo cookset and Brunton mini-stove, food, the little stuff (compass, tiny 1st aid kit, headlight), tent & good book (only if it's going to rain), camera stuff. Not counting camera gear, usually I get on the trail at under 15 pounds (including pack). With camera gear (I don't even want to think about that-makes me depressed - this probably doubles the weight). Still, if I can be on the trail at under 30 pounds in the winter, with all my camera gear, I'm pleased.

I have always had a map and compass in my pack but never needed to use it. Many of the trails are in terrain that makes it impossible to wander off from and there is enough things such as cairns to guide me on the right path. There are alpine routes which do not have a trail to follow. I have followed an alpine route of sorts. On the Skyline trail in Jasper. The snow had barely melted and hundreds of little rivelettes and streams meandered from the hills and inundated the trail so it was impossible at times to tell trail from runoff. Even then it became quickly apparent when I chose the wrong path and it was easy to correct. That was on my first ever backpack.

A spreadsheet listing all the items you need is a great idea, David. Although it would be a challenge for me to think of 160 items. Usually beginners take too much and at the same time there is always something that is forgotten

A pack weight of under 15 pounds is getting it right down to a science, Bill.

Guy, I find it a little curious that you list stove and cooking kit along with the food as a luxury item. And you too Kent apparently consider a stove as a luxury which you have declined to use. What then do you take for food?

Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada

Will, I can (and have) live on food bars, nuts/trail mix, and jerky for days. It gets boring quickly but it keeps me going if I want to go light.

Guy

Will, keep in mind that the pack weight of under 15 pounds is if no rain is expected. If I bring along a tent that adds another 4 lbs. Also, I think Guy is really on to something. As strange as it seems, my appetite actually tends to be less on the trail than at home, even with the extra exertion. This seems to be true for about 2 days, after that my appetite seems to come back somewhat, but still not greatly. I carry more energy food (gorp, quaker bars, etc. something I can eat while still walking) The main reason I carry a stove is for warm instant oatmeal in the mornings and hot chocolate at night (definitely an essential). Fortunately, here in the south, water is not a concern either. I usually carry 2 empty lexan water bottles and 1 half empty bottle). I typically cross many streams while on the trail and usually never have to carry more than about 8 oz. of water at any one time. I carry the empties to fill up for cooking water, etc., then empty again in the morning before heading out. A lot different from when I lived in west Texas and hiked in the desert. Usually had to carry between 2-3 GALLONS then. That get's heavy real quick!!!!!

I like high calorie energy bars, especially in cooler temps. I also take dehydrated dinners to boil at night, and tea with sugar. I'm also opportunistic and will eat what I find/catch along the way, but you won't have many fruits/nuts etc. where you are at that time of year. I have no trouble building a small fire to cook over--the cable saw is used to cut wood. I am careful to put the fire out of course, and cover it before leaving to leave the site "clean." My first camping trip was with the Boy Scouts, in January. I was 12 years old. It went below zero so you better believe I learned how to build a fire and keep warm.

Map & compass. They don't weight much, don't take up any room. If you ever wander off those trails and do get lost, remember that it will be cold in the mountains. If it snows, the trails will be buried and everything will look alike. (Been there, done that!) Inexperienced hikers will often panic in that situation and get REALLY lost. If it gets overcast for weeks and snows so you can't see the sun, a small compass is very worth it. Saved my butt twice in the past 20 years anyway.


Bill--
Fifteen pounds? You are a TRUE minimalist! I tip my hat to you.


Kent in SD

Hi Kent - again, keep in mind I backpack in the south - much warmer here, even in the winter; and that's for a weekend trip, which account for about 95% of my trips. Also, that's just the non-camera stuff. I'm sure I could/should pare down the camera equipment as well, but just haven't gotten around to getting serious about it.


Also, my TOTAL weight is about the weight it was 30 years ago, only now most of the weight IS my body and less in my pack.

I'm headed to Glacier National Park next Wednesday to kick off a 2-month trip involving many long, Autumn and Winter Backpacks. My first trip will be 6 days in duration and I'll be trekking through some higher areas that have recently received about a foot of snow. These are prime conditions for me - which usually happen about the same time everyone else leaves the backcountry. But I have to be prepared for a number of variables this time of year, especially on a longer trip. Short trips (2-3 nights or less) are easier to predict due to the increased accuracy of forecasts, I can usually at least get a basic idea of whether there are any big storms coming in so I carry less gear. At 6 days, I take extra precautions including a pair of snowshoes should a big storm hit. These add 4 pounds to my pack so I resist doing so.

I carry 15 pounds of photo gear with me, so I'm already off to a heavy start. I choose a 1-person tent or bivy for sleeping (in this case it will be a tent) which weighs under 3 pounds. With temps expected down to the teens, I'll carry 2 light weight base layers of Patagonia Capelline, 3 mid weight synthetic top layers for insulation and Arc'teryx hard shell XCR jacket and pants for rain/snow/wind protection. These layers, along with hat, socks, gaiters, ect., weigh in at 12-15 pounds, but I'll be wearing some of them at all times. For food, I usually try to keep it under 2 pounds per day and keep my dinners under 6 oz. I'm also carrying ice axe and sometimes crampons at this time of year. A single burner MSR canister stove for size and weight advantages with a titanium pot. The cook set-up weighs less than a pound without fuel included. In warmer weather, I would take a water pump for shorter trips but here I'll use iodine to save weight, or melt snow. Speaking of snow, don' t forget your sunglasses! Very important in the high country for bright snow and/or blowing snow.
Oh yeah, the sleeping bag. You'll need one of those but the debate of synthetic vs. down is a good one. Down is much more compressable and with a better warmth/weight ratio but costs twice as much and gets wet easily (even with my "dry-loft" marmot shell fabric). Synthetic bags handle moisture easily. I have four sleeping bags for the various conditions I'll encounter, but obviously have to choose one for each trip. If you expect getting damp - go with synthetics. If it's frigid or mostly dry, go with down. And get a full lenth thermarest if weather is in question, especially if you have a down bag.
Also, everything Guy has mentioned including first aid, waterproof matches and storm lighter, water resistant maps, compass, ect. I'll take trekking poles with optional snow feet for heavy loads, but not if a lot of off-trail travel is involved through brushy terrain.
Lastly, I'll take a paperback book for when I get trapped in camp for a day or two, a flask of Yager , tea and coffee, TP, bear rope if in bear country for hanging food, bear spray canister and that's pretty much it. Sorry to be long winded about it.

My pack could run anywhere from 30 pounds in the summer with photo gear to 60 pounds in the middle of winter for a week long trek.

Marc

Another general recommendation - get several distinctly colored stuff sacks of various sizes. This will make it much easier to find things and to compress them inside the backpack. It's also easy to consolidate all your food, toothpaste, and other bear-attracting items into one bag so you can just hang it off a tree.

Guy

Marc's carefully considered sometimes conservative mindset in the backcountry follows my own. My camera gear being large format does weigh twice as much. I also bc ski and winter camp besides my other work and know how difficult overnight winter work becomes so avoid such if possible by day trips. Best of luck Marc on those efforts and will be looking forward to seeing some results in the future.

I have some pics and summary of my photography gear I bring backpacking on my website homepage one might view by selecting the "Backpacking" field. After guessing about how much I actually bring on my trips in my above post, I bothered to actually count what I brought on the 5-day Minaret/Shadow Creek story I also have posted there. Easily done with a spread sheet by simply putting a numeric 1 in each column and summing the columns. Note I just count as one item type several individual items instead of several. For instance my six film holders count as one item type. The result showed 124 item types of camping gear and 86 photography items for 210 total. ...David

Will, I can (and have) live on food bars, nuts/trail mix and jerky for days.

-Guy

As strange as it may seem, my appetite actually tends to be less on the trail than at home, even with the extra exertion

-Bill

I too seem to eat less when on the trail too. Simply too busy to think of eating. Lunch is often forgotten. Still, the body need "fuel" to keep from fatiguing too quick so high energy "munchies" are essential. I could probably survive for a few days on nuts and trail mix but when I am back my knife and fork will be a blur over my scrumpteous meal at the nearest restaurant

Kent, I don't need convincing about the map and compass. The map to know the direction to take and where you started from. And it is standard practice for backpackers to leave an expected time of return with the Park officials. If you are not back by then, they will go and search for you. Mind you, you have to let them know you are back, or else their search will cost you plenty.

Marc, you had inspired me to post this thread. As to the sleeping bags I prefer the down over the synthetic. The trick is to stay dry. In winter it is far better to camp in sub-freezing temperatures than when it is mild and thawing. A good tent with a fly that actually covers it will help keep you dry. But I think you have enough experience to know how to stay dry. I look forward to seeing some of your work from your trip.

David, I will check out your website and the "Backpacking" field. You are a very well organized individual. The only way to be

Thanks to all.

Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada