First let me tell you a little about myself. As a teenager I was very active with the boy scouts. I enjoyed backing trips usually about twice a month. As an adult, however, i do not get such a luxury. I'm 30 now, 74" tall, and about 200 pounds. I Live in alabama where it is pretty damned humid. Any trips I would take would be no more than 3 consecutive days.
I have the tent I want picked out. I'm looking at the Marmot EOS 1p with matching footprint.
I figure that is going to be the largest piece of kit that goes into my loadout, so i'm going to base my pack around it. and that's what i need help with. I need suggestions on a pack and a sleeping bag. The pack must be hydration bladder compatible. keep in mind that during the summer it gets well over 95 degrees, and is usually pretty humid.
for food, i'm planning on getting some mre main courses, and maybe the breads from them. They would provide plenty of calories for the days. maybe some trail bars for a snack. Point being that i'm not entirely sure that i'm going to need any type of cook stove.
Also need a line on a relatively cheap, but good water filter.
Have a look at the replies in the other "getting back into it" thread in this area - My reply there applies to you too. There are lighter options for a solo tent from tarptent or six moon designs that you may wish to consider.
MRE's are heavy as heck, you carry a lot of water with it. carrying a small stove or esbit tablets and backpacking food without all the water in it can actully save you weight.
Iodine is seriously old school and (imo) nasty tasting, if you're going to go filterless (I do) consider the more modern chlorine dioxide treatements like aquamira or pristine. Alternatively I'm sure you'll get some suggestions for filters here (I'm a confirmed filter hater..)
I really liked that tarptent.com reference. The contrail looks like exactly what i'm looking for. will it support my wieght though, cause it looks like it is suspended off the ground.
i'm now looking at the osprey aether 60, argon 70, and a fleece blanket for a cover instead of a sleeping bag.
Registered: 10/27/03
Posts: 820
Loc: north carolina
If I lived any further south than North Carolina, my hiking season would be November through March. It's already plenty hot up here in the summer -- so I feel your pain.
I would take a light down 40-F rated sleeping bag. Make SURE it has a full zipper, so it can be opened and used as a quilt on the warmest nights. If you want to do any spring or fall trips, I would get a 30-F rated bag, which still works okay in the summer. If you want to do real winter trips, you need two bags, one for winter and one for the other three seasons.
Other than that, my advice is also in the other, similar thread. Good luck.
Shotgun scabbard -> depends - if the pack has side compresson straps you may attach the scabbard to those and it should hold just fine.
As for tent - Depends what you wanna do and what sort of tent you have. I stuff my hammock or solo tent in my pack, but its small. with a big thang you might strap to outside, but there really aren't any hard and fast rules. I generally avoid outside the pack for the danger of losing gear, but not always. Just do what makes sense and is comfortable.
I boil to purify water, but carry Micropur tablets as an alternative. If fires are safe and allowed, boiling is simple, effective, and free.
For a sleeping bag, I would go with something with Climashield insulation. I wouldn't use down for a warm weather bag in moist climates. I use a Climashield quilt I made from a kit, but am still undecided on whether to go back to a bag.
For food, I just buy packable stuff at the supermarket: peanut butter, Power Bars, granola, rice, instant oatmeal.
Shotgun scabbard -> depends - if the pack has side compresson straps you may attach the scabbard to those and it should hold just fine.
As for tent - Depends what you wanna do and what sort of tent you have. I stuff my hammock or solo tent in my pack, but its small. with a big thang you might strap to outside, but there really aren't any hard and fast rules. I generally avoid outside the pack for the danger of losing gear, but not always. Just do what makes sense and is comfortable.
for grunts and giggles let's say i wanted to put the tent in the pack. right now i think i'm leaning towards one of the tarptents, the contrail which is 14x4 compressed or the rainbow which is 20x4 compressed. For the summer i'm thinking a thin fleece blanket should suffice for a cover (would go in the sleeping bag compartment), and probably a thermorest lining the inside of the pack. would i need larger than a 4000ci pack?
for grunts and giggles let's say i wanted to put the tent in the pack. right now i think i'm leaning towards one of the tarptents, the contrail which is 14x4 compressed or the rainbow which is 20x4 compressed. For the summer i'm thinking a thin fleece blanket should suffice for a cover (would go in the sleeping bag compartment), and probably a thermorest lining the inside of the pack. would i need larger than a 4000ci pack?
I don't know. I wouldn't, I can do fine with the kind of gear you are talking about in an *1800* CI pack, but I am not you.
You've mentioned your possible big three, but not what else you are taking. While you're making a light and compact choice for shelter, a moderate choice for sleeping, You're also talking about taking lots of extra and heavy stuff (I.E. a shotgun, which is also pretty useless without a box of shells)
So the answer is simple "depends on how much other stuff you take :)"
cloths (haven't decided on that load out yet), some eating utencils, Surefire G2L and maybe some spare batteries Water Filter (100oz bladder in the pack) Field Stripped MREs (get down to the entree and bread only, no heater) GPS Trek Pole 20ft of paracord maybe a camp tool (fiskers is my personal brand) Spare box of shells (maybe. gun holds 6+1+10)
how strong is ripstop nylon? if i throw some military grade webbing on the sides, and drop a shotgun scabbard on the side, will it hold? or rip apart?
Out of curiosity, what's the shotgun for? Hogs? Bears? Or are you outfitting for a hunting trip?
paranoia. seen one to many horror flicks not to go prepared when traveling alone. ever seen deliverance? cabin fever? it's like carrying a hand gun to me. it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.
I could fit all of that into my 2200 ci pack. I carry a 40 degree synthetic quilt which takes up 25% of the main compartment.
i was browsing backcountry's website last night and got an "im" from a sales person. they were pitching a 4k ci pack or better for out to a three day with the tent sizing i was looking at. she was very helpful in finding the thermorest i think i'm going to get.
Registered: 10/27/03
Posts: 820
Loc: north carolina
Originally Posted By arolfsen
paranoia. seen one to many horror flicks not to go prepared when traveling alone. ever seen deliverance? cabin fever? it's like carrying a hand gun to me. it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.
Based on your other, fairly light, gear choices, the sales person should have pointed you toward the Osprey Exos 46 or 58 pack, or a Gregory Z-series pack, or a Granite Gear Vapor or Nimbus series pack. You really don't need a 6+ pound pack. Assuming that your total load of food, water, and gear is under 30 pounds, you probably want to look at packs in the 3-pound-and-under category. By the way, Backcountry Gear, also accessible through the Portal above, has the two Exos packs on sale right now. (Disclaimer: I recently switched from the Granite Gear Vapor Trail to the Osprey Exos 58. Both are excellent, but I like the Exos better.)
What Glen said.. if you are making relatively light gear choices there's no need to add 3+ pounds to your load with a huge giant pack. (unless you are also planning on taking up rock collecting on the trail or bringing 30 pounds of clothing and crud with you).
Not to discount salespeople who can be very helpful, but often I find that outdoor retail people tend to "upsell" newbies a lot, and since the expensive stuff is either the large "expedition" things or the hyper lightweight uber technical ultralight stuff, the nice stuff in the middle that is well suited to most hikers often gets ignored in favour of buying something "bigger and more durable" (I've never worn out a pack yet..)
I would suspect you should be able to get a pack that will fit you well and be comfortable with a lighter load that weighs around 3 pounds. The choices Glen has mentioned would be the same places I'd point you at to start. (I have a Granite Gear bag myself, and I've had lots of freinds very happy with the Gregory Z packs) If you were shopping with me I'd drag you into the local store and make you walk around for half an hour with a Gregory Z55 on your back with 25-30 pounds of weight in it.
If you can, go to the store, load your gear in, and try them both on. I looked at the Z55, but it was awkward (for me) to pack, and I couldn't get a good fit; it was very close, but no cigar. The Exos 58 worked very well on both counts. Aside from the great fit on the suspension, what really sold me was the two vertical outside pockets: I could store my fly in one, tent inner in the other, and have a wet fly separated from a relatively dry inner; the poles store in whichever pocket balances the load from side to side. Storing the tent in the outside pocket has two other advantages: it lets me pitch the tent without opening the main pack in the rain, and it lets me pack inside the tent, then take down the tent and pack it without having to open the main pack and expose it to the rain.
If you can't get to a store, and have room on the credit card, order one of each pack from a dealer that allows returns of unused gear for a full refund. Leave all the tags on, and load in your gear, then walk it around the block. Send the one you don't like back.
in a rush and not paying attention to what i was doing, i accidently deleted the osprey pack from my shopping cart and kept the gregory. i got the pack, the tent, and a drop cloth. the hiking pole i wanted sold out while i was deciding on everything else. i got everything from the backcountrygear.com. they say they will exchange whatever as long as it's new and unused, so if i don't like the z55 i can always swap it out for the exos 58. but i got both for just over what i was looking at for just the other osprey pack.
i ditched the pad and the filter, as i'll pay cash for those at a local outlet. but i charged the other two.
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