OK - so let me preface this by saying (er...typing) that I am not even close to qualifying for liteweight, or UL or any other "lite" for that matter. I wanted to post my current gear list with weights along with some intended future purchases to bring my overall pack weight down. I'm not including food/water because those will vary based on the trip, same with clothing for now. Lastly, I am not including gear I wear on my person (sheathed multi-tool, headwear, etc.) - for now, I am just concentrating on the pack and what goes in/on it.

For the record, my first trip out I was over 60 pounds total weight (including clothing, food and water). Don't ask...if you want to know why 60+ pounds, find my previous post on boneheaded ideas: what to bring and what not to bring!

90L Backpack (+ empty 2L bladder) 103 oz
2 man tent (old Coleman square tent) 82 oz
or
solo tent (Koppen Maelstrom) 78 oz
Sleeping Bag 40 oz
Crash Pad 31 oz
Utility Bag* 27 oz
Ground Tarp 19 oz
Jet Boil System 17 oz
Jet Boil Canisters (x2) 14 oz
Survival Mug 9 oz
First Aid Kit 8 oz

That's 21.625 lbs not including food, water and clothing.

*Utility bag includes 10ft rolled duct tape, safety whistle, trowel and TP, 50' para cord, sparking tool and emergency blanket.

I intend to purchase the Osprey Volt 60 which brings the empty pack weight down to 65oz (including empty bladder). I intend to purchase a Big Agnes Double Z crash pad which is 27 oz. Those 2 changes bring my total weight down to 19 pounds.

Any other ideas/suggestions? Thanks in advance for your help!

Lose the ground tarp. I never use a trap or footprint and every tent I own is in great shape still

I agree with shua... lose the tarp

I don't see any water treatment? or a light?

I think cutting down the size of your bag is a great way to lose weight... if it can't squeeze it in, you can't bring it. Just make sure the bag fits you well with your gear. I think if its a bit tight for your gear now, that's probably a good thing though.

Instead of a sparkler, I find another bic lighter is cheaper, lighter, and more reliable. If you are going somewhere that allows fire, that can be your backup cannister

Ah, forgot to mention that I recently purchased a Sawyer Squeeze, which only adds a few ounces. My light is either a headlamp which I wrap around my hat or a small energizer hard case mini-light on a belt loop which I wear. Either way, the light doesn't get equated into the pack weight.

good questions though!

I have heard that the tarp is a frivolous thing to bring - I guess I thought it would be valuable in a survival situation but hard to justify the 19oz for an "odds against" what-if...

Where/what conditions are you mostly hiking in?
This would help suggest things.
Do you need cold/wet weather gear?
I'm in Arizona and can get away with much less weight for sleeping system, etc. but wind up offsetting that with the amount of water needed for most hikes.
You may want to look into lighter packs than Osprey. I lover my Gossamer Gear Mariposa and it is 2 lbs. how I've set it up. Plenty tough.
Certainly shelter and pack are a great place to start losing some weight. Six Moons Designs has some great shelters that don't break the bank. For a full double wall tent I just got an REI Dash that I'm very happy with at 3 lbs. Heck it out at my blog, www.raisedbyraccoons.blogspot.com and it might give you some ideas. There are so many ways to go. Do your research before you purchase and get the things you would like, not the stuff you'll settle for. You spend less and be happier/more comfortable in the end.
Good luck.

Tread lightly.

Unless you are walking away from your pack or else leaving all your gear in camp, while also taking those 'emergency' items like your tarp and emergency blanket with you, then the gear you already use for camping is your survival gear, too.

Instead of taking both 'primary' gear and 'emergency' backups, I find it is better just to have reliable gear and to always double check it before I go, so I know it probably won't fail. I also take a small amount of repair stuff, like needle & thread and duct tape. That's enough.

Second tent is for your kids? I'm not quite following. Anyway, a few thoughts:

Lighter pack will definitely help, ditto sleeping bag. "Crash Pad" a sleeping pad? A NeoAir can take you well under a pound, plus is super comfortable. Agree that tarp is not needed--if you camp where it's continually soggy perhaps take a silnylon tarp at a few ounces. Is "Survival mug" your cookpot or is that part of the Jetboil? You can knock that weight in half if it's just a mug.

Cheers,

I went through this process about 10 years ago--went from a 50 lb. pack for a week's trip to 23-24 lbs. It can be done, without a lot of $$$, too. I never thought it was possible until I tried it. Note that I'm including my weights here as a comparison, not a prescription--there are no magic numbers.

It can't be done overnight (unless you have lots of $$$ to burn), but I'm sure we can get you down to half the weight you're carrying now--not all at once, but fairly soon.

Have you read the articles on the home page of this site, left hand column? Especially look at the 27-lb., 7-day Gear List, on which I modeled mine (not the specific brands/models, but for a general ballpark estimate on weight). At least it will give you something to compare to. Also, look at phat's sticky post in the "Backcountry Beginners" section. He has links to several gear lists. He's Canadian, though, so his weights are in grams.

Before you do anything else, make a simple spreadsheet listing each single item in your pack, grouped into "systems" as per the 27-lb. Gear List cited above, with the weight of each item. Probably your first investment, if you don't have one, should be a postage scale that weighs to the nearest 0.1 oz. A 5-lb. capacity should be fine; none of your individual items should weigh more than that. This list will not only give you something to compare to other, lighter lists but, when complete, will also give you a gear checklist you can print out for each trip. I don't dare pack without it--if I don't, I forget something important every time!

Although that's a horrendously heavy backpack (mine is 29 oz., and it is framed), I'd wait to replace it until you get your other gear weights reduced. You can easily carry lighter weight gear in a stouter pack, but if you try to carry heavy weight gear in a lightweight pack, you're going to be very uncomfortable. There's also the issue that lighter gear will probably be more compact, so you won't need as much pack volume--something you won't know until later. In the meantime, you can always do some butchery creative trimming to remove unnecessary frills and furbelows from the pack. You might be able to get rid of as much as a pound.

Items I'd look at right away that cost you little or nothing:

Ground tarp--leave it at home--even with a lightweight silnylon tent floor, I've never used or needed a ground tarp. If you must have one, look at cutting the appropriate size from a plastic painters drop cloth, for a fraction of the weight.

Utility bag and first aid--I'm sorry to be critical, but it appears that you are really packing your fears here--you could cut this down to about 6-8 oz. for the two. My combination first aid/utility is 10 oz. and that includes a 5-oz personal locator beacon. A class in Wilderness First Aid really helps, teaching you to improvise from what's on hand so you don't have to pack so much.

If you're planning to buy a new "crash" (sleeping??) pad, there are lighter versions that are comfortable and won't break the bank. I personally require an insulated air pad that's really thick, cushy, and warm, and mine is 19 oz. Admittedly, a good night's sleep is more precious than rubies (IMHO), and sleeping styles vary with the individual--Your Mileage May Vary.

9 oz. is heavy for a mug; I don't even take one but make tea in and drink out of my cooking pot. YMMV, of course. Either eliminate or get one half as heavy. Yes, I know that's only about 1/4 lb., but those ounces add up to pounds in no time!

Clothing: Although you omitted this item, that is the one place where almost everyone overpacks, bringing too many changes (I've been there, done that!). I take enough clothing that if I wear everything at once, it will keep me comfortably warm and dry (and I'm a cold person!) in the lowest temperature I can possibly expect (definitely lower than the "average" temp). The only "spare" clothing item I take is a spare pair of socks. I suggest you examine "clothing worn" and "clothing carried" together, to be sure you have enough but not too much.

Be sure to compare to the various gear lists I cited, not only to find out where you can cut back, but also to see what you left out. I don't, for example, see a light source or anything about water purification on your list. I presume you also want a spoon? Bug repellent? Hand santizer or soap? Toothbrush? Map and compass?

Sorry, but that stuff in your pockets/on your belt should be included in pack weight. It's your own feet and legs that you're cheating! So please add those back in!

Now for the items requiring money.

Since you should wait on the pack until last, I'd look at the tent next. Yours are really, really heavy. There are high quality shelters for half or less that weight. For contrast, I have a 34 oz. 2-person tent and a 27 oz. 1 1/2 person tent (I needed room for the dog, although he's no longer with me). (I also have a 17-oz. tent, but that was hideously expensive and I'm not sure I'm going to keep it.) Here are a few tents to research:

2 person: Tarptent Double Rainbow, Stratospire 2, or Double Moment. Six Moon Designs Lunar Duo.

Solo: Tarptent Notch, Stratospire 1, Moment, Rainbow, or Contrail. Six Moon Designs Skyscape Scout or Trekker (on sale right now). Also look at Lightheart Gear.

Note that if you don't use trekking poles, you can buy poles for these tents from their manufacturer for a couple ounces more.

For the sleeping bag, it depends on whether you want to switch to down and spend a lot of $$$. Do note that if you can afford the up-front cost, a high quality down bag will last a lifetime if well cared-for, while a synthetic bag will have lost a significant amount of its loft in 5 years. In other words, the initial cost spread over the lifetime of the bag is pretty much the same. Of course, if you don't have the up-front cost, for heaven's sake don't pay a fortune in credit card interest cost, just keep the present bag if it's adequate and start saving.

Just think--you could end up with 30 lbs. instead of 60+ lbs, and be a lot more comfortable! Even 40 will be a big improvement--you'll really notice the difference when you're on the trail!

Very nice, OregonMouse. We'll done. I feel better for him and for the process I did a couple years ago. You've confirmed a lot.
Cheers.

Tread lightly.

Wow! Thanks for all that information. I certainly have a lot of reading to do...so to answer a few of the questions posed:

I don't bring both tents - I interchange them depending on the trip (mainly if I am crashing in my own tent or if I will end up having to share).

My trips are primarily in the Northeastern US. I am in NJ and so far we've hiked areas within a 4 hour drive (Catskills, Western Poconos, AT in PA, NJ and NY, NJ Skylands and the NJ Pine Barrens.

My most recent pack weight was around 36 pounds. I probably could have gotten that down to 32 pounds, but I failed to properly share the communal weight amongst the other hikers in my group. My first trip (as an adult) was over 60 pounds but those days are long gone. I have since deleted many frivolous items from my list.

I am definitely a creature comfort person so I don't ever envision myself having a pack weight in the "teens". I sleep on my stomach so some form of pad is necessary - I am also in the market for a rectangular sleeping bag (mummy bags tend to suffocate us stomach sleepers). I haven't seen many lightweight rectangular bag options, understanding that the full-sized footbox adds some weight to the overall bag.

I should probably also mention that the core group is comprised of myself - late 30's, athletic but not in good physical shape, Eagle Scout and outdoors enthusiast. Another late 30s Eagle Scout, not so athletic and also not in the best physical shape. Lastly another late 30's Tenderfoot (he gets teased a lot) but in better physical condition than the more seasoned outdoorsmen.

Again, thanks all for the advice. If you see me out on the trail, I will be the one hunched over from the excessive pack weight but with a huge smile on my face nonetheless.