Hi all. I am currently in the Army and looking to try out some hiking/backpacking to get me outside more often. I have absolutely zero experience in the backpacking world as a civilian. However, I obviously have the basic skills the Army teaches for rucking, land navigation, patrol bases, etc. How similar is the military version of backpacking to the civilian? Which skills transfer between the two and which ones are different? Does military gear suffice or is it best to invest in civilian equipment? Any other insight is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

PS: any really good places in the north Kentucky region to make sure to go to?

Can't speak to the similarities between military and civilian backpacking; I was in the Air Force (many years ago) and we had airplanes specifically so we wouldn't have to go hiking in the boonies.

As far as places not to miss in Kentucky: the Red River Gorge (southeast of Lexington), Cumberland Gap (Middlesboro - where Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee touch), Big South Fork (Kentucky Tennessee border, west of I-75 - never been, but been told it's pretty), and Mammoth Cave (very nice backcountry on top of the cave.)

i come from a military family (navy,army,marines) and i would say its pretty similar in the basics that u learned in the army is pretty much advanced out here which is awesome! alot of the equipment that the military offers is good and i use military grade stuff like the maxpedition pygmy falcon 2 pack. if you wanna know my detailed basic list then email me at chndlr04@yahoo.com

i forgot to add that military stuff is a heavier so def not ultralight. but if youre looking for quality and convience over lightweight. i can help. also the website has manythings on backpacking as a civilian

Welcome! If you haven't already found them, there are lots of excellent articles for beginners and on gear selection listed in the left-hand column of http://www.backpacking.net/, the home page of this site.

Another good site for gear selection is Mark Verber's website. Lots of ideas for gear, including low-budget alternatives.

Compare these to your military gear and decide for yourself whether or not you want to switch some items.

There are a alot of differences. But, somethings you can probably transfer over. If you have the modular sleep system, you can take the green bag, and leave the rest. If I remember right, that is a 30F bag. The new ACU boots are much better than the old 70's era boots. You can hike in those, or buy some nice trail runners. Or, you can hike in your PT shoes. Your ACU pants aren't that bad. They are poly/cotton, and will hold water longer than a nylon pant, but not as bad as jeans. They are also cut comfortably. You could also use the black nylon PT warm-up pants for hiking. They are probably your best option, and they aren't camo, so some people won't look at you funny. Of course, in Kentucky, you might get strange glares when you don't have camo on . Unless your unit issued you a good pack, I would ditch the ruck and buy a civilian one. You don't need to carry the 80 lbs it is designed to carry. Forget the LBE/LBV, you don't need it. You can bring a canteen with the cup for cooking, but you don't need 2. Bring a gatoraide bottle for an additional water container. Also, you don't need your kevlar . Oh, and if you were issues a shelter half, leave it and bring a civilian tent. You might think of buying a civilian tent with an ACU pattern that can double as personal shelter when in the field. In fact, there are a bunch of civilian equipment that you can buy to supplement your issued military equipment. It will make deployments so much better.

You carry a lot of stuff in the military that you would not carry as a civilian backpacker unless you are out for two or more weeks. Don't make the mistake of putting together a "complete kit". Instead start off with too little and work up, and I know I'm saying that to someone who isn't gonna die on his first trip. It takes a long time to feel comfortable with pretty much nothing but a sleeping bag, pad, stove, water and food. Ok a few more items, but the way to go light is to simply not carry anything "cute" or "neat".
Jim

Making the transition from Army hiking to civilian backpacking meant that I had a 65 pound pack on my first trip, and thought it was really light. Entrenching tool, K-bar knife, huge stove, two large fuel bottles, heavy clothing, etc. For a 4-day sub-20 mile hike in late May in Virginia.

Your skills and comfort in the woods will translate easily. However, I would suggest starting with a blank sheet of paper when it comes to making a packing list. Check out some of the pack lists on this site. You don't want to start super-ultralight, but I'd suggest avoiding the 65-pound pack. For a late spring weekend trip in Kentucky, I'd be looking for a total pack weight around 30 pounds, including food and a couple of liters of water. That's a good target, and if you miss by a few pounds, so what. You can certainly carry some of your military gear to start.

If you can find a local hiking club, that might be a great place to meet other hikers and get out on trips in the area.

Just based on my experience, I think you will find civilian backpacking a lot more enjoyable, whatever equipment you use.

In a couple of weeks I'll be on a 4 day canyon trip with a bunch of guys from work. Several were recently discharged from the Army/Marines but are newbies to civilian backpacking. Did the same trip last year with a Marine who earned a Silver Star in Iraq. He had an old alice ruck, canned food, a 3 D cell Maglight with extra cells, a 3 man tent, on and on. This year he'll be much lighter. I'll post my observations in this thread when we get back.

In my experience friends who I've been out with who have been in the military are used to heavy packs, but if you have a look at a reasonably lightweight backpacking list they do well with that, because they tend to have some field skills, and are used
to dealing with relatively minimal kit for taking care of themselves. They end up carrying heavy loads civilian backpacking because they get sucked in by modern "creature comforts" the same way every other newbie to backpacking does, and aren't afraid of a heavy pack.

If you look at a modern military loadout, it's heavy for two reasons. 1) MRE type meals are still pretty heavy, 2) ammunition is bloody heavy. I'd compare what they carry a lot
to climbers - the load is heavy not because of the basics but because of the specialized tools they have to carry as well.

Were you to take my basic "weekender" all in weight of about 18-19 lbs, then add 5 pounds of military miscellany, 4 pounds because my pack needs to be more durable to carry it, 9 pounds worth of 300 rounds of 5.56, and 7 pounds of C7 rifle, all of a sudden you're now talking 42 pounds of stuff.. and that's still using all my civilian gear!

I actually find ex-military friends more likely to look at what I'm carrying and adapt to that.

Not all air force guys weren't exposed to backpacking. As enlisted aircrew we were required to attend survival school in Spokanne. We weren't given any commercial gear, just basic materials that we had to fashion our gear from (parachute harness, poncho, 550 cord, etc) and very minimal food supplies. On the plus side we got to relax in prisoner of war camp after we came out of the woods! haha