Gear list: GR55 Alps in July staying in refuges

Hi,

I'm an early 30ies male from the UK with some back problems (hence trying to backpack lite). I am planning to do about 5 days of GR55 (Vanoise N.P., French Alps) on the 2nd week of July, staying in refuges in a group of 4. This would be my first multi-day hike ever, although I've done day-hikes in the area before.

I've put together a checklist, some of it what I already own and some of what I still need to acquire (in which case it sometimes lists the options I'm thinking about). I'm into photography, hence the 850g of camera gear.

I'd appreciate a sanity check - anything missing? Anything unnecessary?

Do I need more insulation for warmth (I'm quite inclined to have cold feet, etc.)? Right now when it is cold I just intend to use almost all the clothing that I have at once and hopefully get through it fine.

I will do a "test run" end of this month in Madeira for the stuff I already have, and probably will have a chance to test some in Britain too before July, but the climates and situations won't really match.

I will be able to share some of this, like shampoo/sunblock, with my gf, but don't hope for too much reduction from that.

Not sure about trekking poles, I've never used them and don't look forward to adding 438g to the weight, but perhaps they might come in handy if we encounter snow or even if not.


Clothing hot weather:
Long pants: Rab Easy Rider (300g)
Long-sleeved shirt: Helly Hansen HH Dry Stripe Crew 48800-001 M (143g)
Short-sleeved shirt: Icebreaker Tech T Lite or Smartwool merino (150g)
Hot weather hat: Tilley LTM6 Airflow Khaki 7 5/8 (105g)
Cool socks or liner socks: Some hot weather socks, not sure which (80g)

Clothing cold weather:
Insulation layer: Fleece - Jack Wolfskin Gecko? TNF Aurora Stretch? (250g)
Cold weather hat: Extremities Power dry beanie (23g)
Long underwear leggings: Icebreaker 150 leggings? Divide and Conker merino leggings ? TNF Aurora Stretch Tight ? (180g)
Warm socks: Smartwool Hiking Medium Crew L (96g)

Clothing wet weather:
Shell jacket: RAB Drillium eVent M (378g)
Rain pants: Rab Drillium eVent L (238g)
Waterproof socks: SealSkinz Mid Light Sock Large (118g)

Underwear:
Mens Underwear: Icebreaker Merino Beast Anatomica M (80g)
Mens Underwear: Icebreaker Merino Boxers size M (90g)

Footwear:
Hiking footwear: Inov-8 X-Talon 240 (540g)
Secondary footwear: Tyvek hut sandals (Shoe covers) (22g)

Documents, maps and essentials:
Maps: Topoguide FFRP#530 GR5 GR55 (140g)
Passport: (28g)
Insurance: BMC Alpine or Trek? EHIC? (4g)
Driving license: (5g)
Credit/debit cards: GBP + EUR (8g)
Local currency: Euros (30g)
Money belt: Jag Bag Double Pocket (31g)
Glasses: Existing optical (15g) - taking no sunglasses
Contact lenses: As backup if glasses lost (20g)

Tools, survival items and misc:
Knife: Spyderco Ladybug 3 PlainEdge (18g)
Flashlight/headlight: Petzl Tactikka 3 AAA battery with batteries (78g)
Fabric repair kit: McNett SilFix Fabric Repair Kit + needle and thread; Safety pins, gaffer tape (20g)
Emergency shelter: Light space bag, e.g., Lifesystems Thermal bag (85g)
Compass: TBD 20g

Food containers and medicine:
Hydration : Plastic tonic water bottles (100g)
Sunblock: Care Plus Skin-Saver – Gel Concentrate SPF 25 (80g)
Lip sun balm: Care Plus lip sunblock (14g)
Emergency purification tablets: Aquamira? Kaytadyn Micropur MP1? Aquaventure? (20g)
Medicine: Paracetamol/Ibuprofen? Activated carbon? Bepanthene??? (20g)
Towels: MSR Paktowel Ultralight (52g)
Toothbrush: Snap off end (20g)
Blister aid items: Compeed For Blisters (10g)
Napkins: 1-2 packets (20g)

Storage:
Backpack with cover: ZPacks Blast 20 (33 liter) (300g)
Zipper bags: Lifeventure aLoksak (50g)
Plastic bags: For clothing - TBD (80g)

Sleeping:
Sleeping liner: JagBags fine silk regular (101g)
Earplugs: TBD (10g)

Photography:
Tripod: Carbon fiber backpack stays + eBay mini-tripod (118g)
Camera: Panasonic GF1 (365g)
Spare battery: For Panasonic GF1 (54g)
Lens: Olympus 9-18mm (155g)
Lens: Panasonic 20mm (100g)
Filter: Polarizer filter Hoya HD 52mm (15g)
Filter: ND filter Hoya HD 52mm, with adapter for 46mm (18g)
Microfiber cloth: Spudz 18% gray (19g)
Memory cards: Have 4+4+2+2 = 12 GB (16g)

Communication, entertainment:
Mobile phone: Samsung Galaxy S 2 (?) (116g)
Mobile phone charger: Micro USB charger (100g)
Earphones: iPhone earphones (11g)

Total: 5,259g excluding consumables

Consumables:

Probably 1-2 liters of water depending on how far the next refuge is. I intend to use water from 'fonts' mostly, with the treatment tablets only as emergency backup.
Don't intend to carry much food besides some dry saucisson and maybe a bit of bread, mostly intend to eat at the manned refuges.

I will be thankful for your advice.

Hi Hamster,
My wife and I trekked the Tour of Mont Blanc in 2009 and stayed in refuges.

Here is a link to a trip report I wrote: Tour of Mont Blanc

Obviously, this is a different trek, but the similarities seem to be enough for me to comment.

You seem to have kept your pack weight to a decent level. Are you including clothes you will wear? If not I would think that shorts would be a worthwhile addition. Also, could you combine long pants and rain pants?

At that time of the year you may not need long underwear. The refuges provide blankets so you should be warm enough at night.

If you are concerned about the weight of the trekking poles you could take only one. They are very useful especially on steep descents. Also sun glasses are pretty useful at higher elevations.

This sounds like a great trip. As far as lunches go, bread and sausage or cheese is good.

Hope this works out for you.

Dave

Thanks for your reply, Dave!

Thanks - I will certainly read it!

Yes, the list includes everything.

I've decided against shorts as my legs eat up a lot of sunblock .

Only if it turns out I don't need rain pants. I was thinking the long pants would be very breathable and thus cool, while the rain pants would be wind-proof and useful if we get caught out on wet windy days.

I'm quite prone to being cold. How cold does it generally get there? I thought at times it can still get near the freezing point in the mornings.

Yes, I think I need to add them.