I have talked with my "friend's friend" who works for REI and this is what I have to say.

First of all, he has a 15lb 'full' load when he goes backpacking. Looking at his gear, I now realize that I can do that myself w/o as much sacrifice as I thought. There are so many awesome light-weight options out there, that I didn't even know about. To be honest I think he is more comfortable then I was with a 40lb pack because he had really cool misc things that really came in handy.

He has a 2lb bivy and a 32 degree down bag. He said that he can go 3 season in the Rockies with no problem. He is a little guy like me so I can trust his opinion. I am a little weary though because that seems very aggressive, especially for the Rocky mountains. It is known for its quick afternoon thunderstorms and light snow at nights. Waking up with a couple inches of snow isn't very uncommon.

In an above post it was mentioned that you can just wear good insulated clothing when you sleep and you will be fine. I was told that this isn't a good idea in a down bag because you defeat the purpose of releasing heat into the bag which then heats you up. I did see that his list was down clothing though. I don't think that down clothing for me in the Rockies is a good idea though so I would have to figure out another techinique.

Gossomer has this sweet 19 ounce solo tent that is just insane. I think I might get it, but I really have my heart set on a tarp/bivy combo for many reasons.

It was also stated above the the integral design 8x10 silshelter was not recommended and I would like to ask why? It seems like a very nice tarp to have.