looking for gear suggestions

Posted by: 05kas05

looking for gear suggestions - 07/02/13 12:42 AM

looking to buy a few things and would like some suggestions / recommendations if possible. most if not all items will be used for hiking and i will be using some items for bikepacking also.

budget for listed items is 0-150.00 per item could possibly go more per item if the cost is well founded

1. water filter system/ also would like some back up tablets just in case filter system breaks.
2. trekking poles, prefer a set of collapsable poles
3. waterproof tarp for 2 8x10 green or brown or something that will blend into the surroundings better.

0-300.00 budget for items below
4.waterproof bivy


Posted by: lori

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/02/13 01:14 AM

Originally Posted By 05kas05
looking to buy a few things and would like some suggestions / recommendations if possible. most if not all items will be used for hiking and i will be using some items for bikepacking also.

budget for listed items is 0-150.00 per item could possibly go more per item if the cost is well founded

1. water filter system/ also would like some back up tablets just in case filter system breaks.
2. trekking poles, prefer a set of collapsable poles
3. waterproof tarp for 2 8x10 green or brown or something that will blend into the surroundings better.

0-300.00 budget for items below
4.waterproof bivy




Waterproof bivies are going to be as heavy or heavier than some tents. They are specific to mountaineering, where you might end up on a ledge too small for a tent. If you mean a water resistant bivy to pair with the tarp, Montbell has a fine one, very light and compact.

Collapsible poles are legion - there are ones that twist lock, flip lock, and now ones that pull apart like tent poles and fold into sections. Take your pick. If you are not using the poles for a shelter as many do, the pull-apart poles are light and portable.

Water filters - choose one that goes with the area you're in. I use a gravity filter a lot, but have a pump filter so I can wrap a bandana around the prefilter in the event I'm pulling water out of a muddy pond. Preplanning trips, one can figure out which filter to carry. All filters are about the same in terms of effectiveness.

waterproof tarps are legion. You may want one of silnylon if you are budget and weight conscious, and perhaps cuben fiber if you are not caring about budget but want the lightest out there. Blending into the surroundings is sometimes not so desirable - ask anyone who's gone out for a midnight stroll and couldn't find their tent again....

Posted by: Glenn Roberts

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/02/13 07:20 AM

Subject to what Lori said, I'd recommend:

1. Water filter: Sawyer Squeeze (2-liter system, plus some extra bottles), with two additions. First, take along something to "scoop" water with; any small-mouth bottle will not fill easily from anything but falling water. I cut the top off a 1-liter Sawyer bottle, and it works fine. Second, go to a school supply store and buy a "tornado tube" (in the science area, about $3); it's a small piece of plastic that screws onto the filter outlet, and allows you to screw a small-mouth bottle to it.

2. Black Diamond Trail Ergo Cork poles.

3. Any of the silnylon tarps, in a 10x12 foot size, will be palatial for two.

4. Bivy: Integral Designs makes some good ones; the REI Minimalist is really good for the price, and really good for use with a tarp. However, for what you'd pay for a tarp and two bivies, you can buy a good two or three person tent (Big Agnes Fly Creek or Copper Spur series; MSR Hubba Hubba)) and carry less weight. I went from a tarp-and-bivy setup originally to save a couple of pounds over the then-available tents; I went back to a tent when lighter tents became available that weighed less than the tarp-and-bivy.
Posted by: ETSU Pride

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/02/13 08:51 AM

For the tarp, check out Wilderness Logics I have the Tad Pole and is happy with it!
Posted by: 05kas05

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/12/13 11:40 AM

thanks everyone for your suggestions and help.

i picked up a sawyer squeeze a couple of outdoor research bug bivys just to keep the creepy crawlers off of us a cheap poly tarp and a walmart trekking pole.

my daughter and i went on a small hike which was about six miles out then we set up camp overnight and hiked back the next day. we both really liked the bivy and tarp set up.we started out under the tarp but in the end we put the tarp on the ground and put the bivys on top of it so we could get a better breeze and watch the stars and clouds go bye.

the sawyer squeeze worked great my daughter said the lake water we filtered tasted like it came out of the faucet so that is one less worry for me i thought she might not like it you know 8 year old kids can be picky at times, but she was sold on it and the mountain house spaghetti which she said she wouldnt eat. needless to say i went to bed hungry that night after she ate it all haha!!!
we are still on the lookout for a lightweight tarp but so far the gear we got is a good start and it gets us outdoors so thats what matters.thanks for the help and suggestions everyone
Posted by: bpackengneer

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/14/13 11:04 AM

I have some basic gear info on my site if it helps...

Backpacking Engineer - Gear
Posted by: OregonMouse

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/14/13 11:00 PM

Check the articles and gear lists on the home page of this site, left-hand column.

Several of our members have excellent gear lists on their websites, including balzaccom and phat. I don't have a website, but I really should post mine somewhere!

Problem with a waterproof bivy is that your body puts out a lot of moisture (technically known as insensible perspiration) during the night, so by morning your sleeping bag will be soaked from condensation. It's better to use a breathable bivy under a tarp. This also lets you get in and out of the bivy when it's raining without getting soaked. Personally, I prefer a tent (mine weighs 1 lb., although since it's cuben fiber it was expensive!).

BTW, reflective guylines solve the problem Lori mentioned of not finding your shelter in the dark, while still blending into the landscape in the daytime. I believe in replacing all non-reflective guylines!
Posted by: Glenn Roberts

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/15/13 06:23 AM

Sounds like you had a great trip, and the gear you had worked great for you. Keep looking for that lighter tarp, and you'll eventually find one; until then, use what you've got.

It sounds like one of the better things you did on that first trip was plan well: reasonable mileage, and good weather. Quite honestly, the shelter you have might be a bit iffy in prolonged blowing rains, in an exposed campsite. But, if you avoid those more extreme situations, it will work great. You will probably change your mind as you get more trips behind you, and you may work through three or four bivies and tarps until you find the one that's "just right," but that's OK; you just use the spare gear to get other folks out on the trail with you.
Posted by: 05kas05

Re: looking for gear suggestions - 07/28/13 06:03 PM

i have been putting in some overtime so i can get that tarp im looking at either the integral designs siltarp 2 or the oware flat tarp 3.5 so if anyone has any thoughts or opinions on either one i would love to hear them.