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#151732 - 06/21/11 08:54 AM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: phat]
Dryer Offline

Moderator

Registered: 12/05/02
Posts: 3591
Loc: Texas
Quote:
I've done periodic "pack evictions"


So that's what you call it. grin
My fire kit grew from book matches to lighters, fire steel, and paraffin starters I make up. All that has been 'evicted' back down to 3 book match packs and a couple birthday candles.
I bag the matches and put them in different places to keep 'em dry. Firesteels are only good for stove lighting, I've decided.
I like to practice "single match technique" when lighting the chiminea on the porch...you get pretty good at it after awhile.

Phones/GPS....I'll only carry a phone on day hikes or, if I'm technically "at work" and clients need to reach me, meaning I've stolen away a couple nights. It stays off...on, to check messages.
A GPS is fun if I'm going off trail, but a good map is much easier to read an can't die. I don't own a SPOT.

Hammock...tried all the fancy whoopie slings, tree huggers, biners, etc. and have gone back to single suspension line simplicity. Two/three wraps around the tree...done. Shaved off some ounces and pack size.

I've got a nice 11oz. pump/filter that has traveled many miles and came out of the bag "o" times...it's never been used. So, I evicted it. I have a simple gravity bag/filter from silnylon that is much lighter, if I filter at all.

No headlamps. Sill using a red and white Inova coin cell light. Those hang around my neck with my Silva compass/whistle...then on the ridgeline in the hammock at night.

TP...evicted years ago. Leaves, water, drop of bronners, cloth (8" square of pack towel). Much cleaner, no trash, and much lighter when you consider the ziplocks and what TP rolls weigh. You run out of TP anyway after a few days.

Most clothing...evicted. Depends on where I'm hiking but usually what I'm wearing is all I bring. I'd rather wash it.

Trekking poles...evicted one. Can't hold umbrella and two poles. grin
_________________________
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#151741 - 06/21/11 12:11 PM What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: Dryer]
OldScout Offline
member

Registered: 03/17/03
Posts: 501
Loc: Puget Sound, Washington
Jeez, how are you guys able to do this without a change of clothes????? When I'm done hiking at the end of the day,I am almost always fully sweated out, I mean dripping, if not very moist. I go swimming, hang those rinsed clothes up to dry, and put on the clothes that I rinsed out from the day before. It not just a question of oder but rather moisture. Fires are not allowed in the areas I hike. I DO NOT want to sit around all night in wet clothes. Additionally, what do you guys do if it rains? Put on rain gear and sweat even more? Then what when you get to camp? Its cold and wet and you don't have a change of clothes?

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#151743 - 06/21/11 12:47 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: OldScout]
Dryer Offline

Moderator

Registered: 12/05/02
Posts: 3591
Loc: Texas
Well...OldScout....it's easy. I'm in Texas and hike mostly desert. Yeah you sweat and stink, but your dry. Rain is a blessing. Anyways, I've hiked plenty of rainy places but find the rules are the same. Wear stuff that dries really fast, no cotton. My underwear is the cut out lining of Brooks nylon running shorts. Dries in seconds with a quick rinse. Socks are the thinnest nylon I can find. Sometimes I wear the running shorts to hike in (not cutting out the linings), while my convertibles dry out. My shirt is always a white poly blend, long sleeve, cheapo dress shirt. They wick well, keep me cool, dry super fast. I'll sometimes bring a poly shirt to sleep in...and take advantage of bathing opportunities, which might be a clothing rinse and wet rag wipedown. I'm very careful in the desert to not pollute water sources. If hiking along our lakes or paddling, I'll dive right in. grin

Oh, yeah, the rain part....with a poncho and umbrella, I don't often get wet but sometimes enjoy it in summer. My pants dry out in under an hour, as do shirts, if the humidity is low. So, i try to make sure I'm dried out in plenty of time for camp. There are some fabrics that simply don't hold much water and that's what I'm looking for. I did hike Vancouver Island once where nothing seemed to dry out fast...so, sleep commando, or in your sleeping shirt, and your stuff should be dry'ish by morning. Body heat takes it from there.
Oddly enough, I learned a lot about lightweight travel from Rick Steves....look him up...he's got good ideas.


Edited by Dryer (06/21/11 12:56 PM)
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#151744 - 06/21/11 12:58 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: OldScout]
Rick_D Offline
member

Registered: 01/06/02
Posts: 2939
Loc: NorCal
Unless it's freakishly cold, I doff and rinse my hiking shirt and undershorts at the end of the day, changing into my "sleeping" shirt and boxers. I like wearing clean clothing in my bag, which helps keep it from becoming a biohazard. In the Sierra the hiking clothes usually dry overnight, so I can wear them the next day. If it's raining my clean clothes routine begins to break down.

I don't carry spare pants like I once did, so I suppose I've cut back there, and everything is weighed before I pack it. Those ounces add up.

Cheers,
_________________________
--Rick

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#151745 - 06/21/11 01:34 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: Rick_D]
wandering_daisy Offline
member

Registered: 01/11/06
Posts: 2865
Loc: California
Just so you do not think it is only a "Sierra" thing, when in the Wind Rivers, I also take no second changes of clothes. I get up early and plan to stop by about 3PM. I rinse out my shirt and underware and let them dry between thunderstorms. I wear my fleece or raingear. I do not do this every day- but when the sun shines. Lots of time I take my "dip" in the streams on lunch breaks before the typical afternoon storms. I dry clothes on the top of my backpack while I am walking. Going without underware for a few hours is no big deal. Noon is also my standard time to wash hair. It dries quickly in the wind. Worst case of continuous cold, I simply stink the duration. I also never sleep in my hiking clothes and try to keep one layer mostly clean for sleeping. When the hiking shirt gets too stinky I wash it and put it on wet. It usually dries while I am walking. I wear long gaiters that really help to keep mud off my hiking pants. I wash the gaiters every day. I take 3 pair of wool socks and rotate them. One washed pair on my pack to dry, one on my feet and the other packed inside so I have dry socks at night. Of course, in the sunny Sierra this is a whole lot easier.

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#151748 - 06/21/11 02:58 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: OldScout]
Pika Online   content
member

Registered: 12/08/05
Posts: 1814
Loc: Rural Southeast Arizona
I hiked and climbed in the PNW for over 30 years and almost never took a change of clothes except underwear. When I was on the trail, I dressed lightly and let the clothes I had on get wet either from sweat, rain or both. In camp, I would change into my around-camp clothes, usually down or fleece if it was cold, light fleece if it was only cool. I generally would take a pair of extra socks and that was about it.

A friend and I hiked to Lake Constance one very humid July afternoon on a climb of Mt. Constance. The climb to the lake is about 5000' in about two miles IIRC. Like you mentioned, we were literally dripping with sweat by the time we got to the lake. I just let my nylon pants dry (sort of) overnight and changed into dry undies. Our clothes got just as wet again the next day; we just dealt with it.

Whenever it would rain (a lot of the time) we would just wear as few clothes as possible and try to keep the warm layers dry in our packs. In camp, off came the hiking stuff and on went the warm stuff.
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#151751 - 06/21/11 04:16 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: Pika]
OldScout Offline
member

Registered: 03/17/03
Posts: 501
Loc: Puget Sound, Washington
Well, maybe its a matter of semantics. You say you almost never take along "a change of clothes" yet you change into your "around camp clothes" when you hit camp at the end of the day. I have one set of extra clothes consisting of underwear, wool socks, pants, and a long sleeve shirt, all fast-drying synthetic clothes, except the socks. I wash the clothes that I just hiked in, and put on the dry set, use those for my "around camp clothes" and then hike in those "around camp clothes" the next day while the wet set dries (hopefully). Repeat process.

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#151752 - 06/21/11 04:44 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: OldScout]
billstephenson Offline
Moderator

Registered: 02/07/07
Posts: 3917
Loc: Ozark Mountains in SW Missouri
I mostly backpack in cool/cold weather so usually I take three layers. Since I mix and match those depending conditions you could say I don't bring a change of clothes when I'm wearing all of what I brought, or you could say I have one or more changes when I'm only wearing one layer.

As far as rain goes, I try to have one layer packed to stay dry at all times. Generally that's a pair of fleece pants and shirt when I'm hiking, but it can vary.

In the past few years I have cut back a lot on the weight of the clothes I bring, and I wear everything I bring now too. I don't think I could go much lighter there without spending a lot or being cold.

I'm always looking for a deal though. My nylon zip-offs are getting pretty old and beat up, and I can't find those on the shelves of any stores around here anymore. Don't know what I'm going to do about that frown


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#151754 - 06/21/11 06:04 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: billstephenson]
backpacking4life Offline
newbie

Registered: 06/21/11
Posts: 1
I hike in cooler to cold conditions. To eliminate the problem of bring to much clothes I plan according to the conditions I will be in, not all the conditions possible.

I will wear one set of clothes: a shirt with long sleeve over, and light fast drying pants. I will wear this for almost the whole time (no more than 4 days). If I get wet I have another whole set of clothes. I then bring a light jacket. If it gets too cold I can put on both sets of clothes at the same time with my jacket.

On top of this I will bring a rain suit if the conditions permit. I can wear all of my clothes at once if it is cold, and remain dry no matter how bad it is raining.

To even get more critical, or if you have the money; it would be smart to invest into getting all of the 5 basic layers that are MADE FOR BACKPACKING. These layers are the (1) base layer (2) inner layer (3) mid layer (4) insulating layer (5) outer layer. If you want more information on this visit Backpacking For Beginners , my website (still under construction). If you can stick to these you will be comfortable.

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#151804 - 06/22/11 11:43 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: Dryer]
Glenn Offline
member

Registered: 03/08/06
Posts: 2617
Loc: Ohio
OK, a couple of days have passed since my "gear eviction." I got my summer weekend weight, including the pack, food, and a liter of water, down to just over 17 pounds, according to my spreadsheet; I even weighed it, packed, and the spreadsheet load really did weigh 17 pounds! That 3-pound, 60-liter pack is suddenly looking like a lot of dead weight, so I began looking at lighter packs (principally large daypacks, like the Deuter ACT Trail 32 or Osprey Talon 44, and at "frameless" packs like the Golite Jam that still had at least a pad pocket and padded hipbelt.) Most weighed 1 - 2 pounds, and were rated as "comfortable" for 15 - 20 pound loads. No problem - take my current 17 and deduct 2, and I'm at 15. I should leap at this, right?

Then I relearned a lesson that Colin Fletcher talked in Complete Walker IV (or was it III?), on the relative merits of the ultralight rev- or evolution.

The 15 pound load, in the large daypack, is blissful on those summer hikes, with the sun shining through the 70-degree air, as you walk along with a stream always burbling beside the trail. Then you hit the point, just after noon, where the trail veers off from the stream, heads uphill for 2,500 feet, and eventually rejoins the brook about noon the next day. You load up an extra 3 liters of water, and suddenly you're carrying 21 pounds in a frameless daypack rated for 15 - and will be doing so for about 5 hours.

As Fletcher said, water can make a hash of the best-laid ultralight plans.

I'm thinking the two extra pounds of pack, mostly suspension, is not really a frivolous luxury. Overkill at 17 pounds, yes; but then I thought about my last 3 trips, and realized that all of those loads found me carrying extra water, and carrying at least one layer of warmer clothing - all of that had me carrying 25 pounds for at least an afternoon, if not a full day. Another spreadsheet theory shot down by reality.

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#151809 - 06/23/11 11:43 AM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: Glenn]
Haiwee Offline
member

Registered: 08/21/03
Posts: 330
Loc: Southern California
Water can often be an issue for me as well. Just last weekend I took my ten-year old on a two day trip into the local mountains. He weighs just 68 pounds, so I figure his maximum load should be around 17 pounds (one quarter of his weight). I weigh everything down to the gram and have him at 12 without water -- then realize I'm hiking into a canyon where, while I'm reasonably sure there will be water, I'm not absolutely certain.

So I weigh him down with three and a half liters of water, putting him over his weight limit, at least for the first couple of miles. He did fine (plenty of water in the creek, after all), but it brought home again the importance of considering everything. Think I'll see if I can shave a few more ounces from his load before our next trip.
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#151810 - 06/23/11 12:19 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: Haiwee]
Glenn Offline
member

Registered: 03/08/06
Posts: 2617
Loc: Ohio
Once, I came up with the idea of carrying freeze-dried water, but I could never find any comercially available. I tried dehydrating my own, thinking I'd store it in ziploc bags, but it never quite worked, somehow. smile

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#151811 - 06/23/11 12:52 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: Glenn]
oldranger Offline
member

Registered: 02/23/07
Posts: 1735
Loc: California (southern)
When you load up on water, you have a peak load, but it doesn't (or shouldn't) last very long. As you drink regularly, the load diminishes. It is false economy to "ration water."

I can't understand why commercial interests haven't taken an interest in developing a good brand of tasty dehydrated water. There is definitely a market, and we need job creation.

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#151813 - 06/23/11 01:23 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: oldranger]
hikerduane Offline
member

Registered: 02/23/03
Posts: 2124
Loc: Meadow Valley, CA
For week+ long trips, I can't seem to get under 30 lbs. but then I carry two qts. of water also, with a 2 lb. bear canister. 5lbs. right there. All those other little things add up in a hurry. I think I need to leave the 4 oz. flashlight at home along with the 11 oz. camp shoes etc. I have not used my 20oz. Slinglight chair for a few years, so can't blame that.

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#151815 - 06/23/11 04:32 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: oldranger]
Glenn Offline
member

Registered: 03/08/06
Posts: 2617
Loc: Ohio
In the example I used, my peak load would be 4 liters, diminishing to 3 liters by the time I got to camp. I'd use 2 liters overnight (cooking supper and breakfast, and drinking), and leave with my "standard" 1 liter load, which would be enough to get me to water sometime late in the morning. (That's typical for the part of the country I hike in; other climates might require modification of my numbers to fit those conditions.) So, I'd be carrying 6 to 8 pounds of water most of an afternoon - not the end of the world, but definitely noticeable as I climbed the hill, and definitely more than enough to overwhelm a lightweight suspension like the one in my 32L pack.


Edited by Glenn (06/23/11 04:33 PM)

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#152060 - 06/28/11 09:37 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: phat]
TomM Offline
member

Registered: 11/05/05
Posts: 26
Originally Posted By phat

YES! geez, I have a heck of a time finding both good guy lines that aren't heavy - guylines make my tarp a *lot* heavier!



You might want to take a look at mono-filament fishing line as a replacement.

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#152079 - 06/29/11 12:43 PM Re: What?!?!?!? No Change of Clothes??? [Re: OldScout]
JPete Offline
member

Registered: 05/28/09
Posts: 304
Loc: Eastern Ontario
Back to clothes, I follow the pattern suggested here I think by Oregon Mouse (good luck with Hysson)some time ago. The clothes I have with me can all be worn at the same time (including into the sleeping bag), and, in total will keep me toasty warm on the coldest night I am likely to face on a given trip. If I'm wearing boots for a particular trail, I will also carry crocks, and I have spare undershorts and socks, but that's about the extent of my duplication.

I also have a poncho and rain gear, but the poncho is also my shelter, and my rain gear is what I wear in town while everything else is in the laundry. The jacket doubles as my wind shirt, and I use the rain pants when the trail conditions require long pants.

Aside from what I've mentioned, I'm usually wearing shorts and a short-sleeve shirt (often over wicking T-shirt). I typically carry a WM down vest, a set of lightweight silk longies, a fleece cap and light fleece gloves. That's it.

Hope this is useful. Best, jcp

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#152094 - 06/29/11 07:28 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: TomM]
RHodo Offline
member

Registered: 01/22/09
Posts: 60
Loc: Texas Hill Country
Funny you should mention. I just stripped some braided Dacron off the fishing reel to hang my food bag.

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#152099 - 06/29/11 09:22 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: TomM]
phat Offline
Moderator

Registered: 06/24/07
Posts: 4107
Loc: Alberta, Canada
Originally Posted By TomM
Originally Posted By phat

YES! geez, I have a heck of a time finding both good guy lines that aren't heavy - guylines make my tarp a *lot* heavier!



You might want to take a look at mono-filament fishing line as a replacement.


tangles horribly, and terrible to tie and untie wink

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#152100 - 06/29/11 09:23 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: RHodo]
phat Offline
Moderator

Registered: 06/24/07
Posts: 4107
Loc: Alberta, Canada
Originally Posted By RHodo
Funny you should mention. I just stripped some braided Dacron off the fishing reel to hang my food bag.


Dacron backing is ok for some stuff - but is not the greatest to tie and untie, and if you need to haul up or down a heavy food bag with it you may find it a bit difficult/uncomfortable to deal with pulling on line that thin.
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#152105 - 06/29/11 10:47 PM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: phat]
RHodo Offline
member

Registered: 01/22/09
Posts: 60
Loc: Texas Hill Country
Originally Posted By phat


Dacron backing is ok for some stuff - but is not the greatest to tie and untie,

I planned to follow my eldest brother's example and untie it with a knife!
Originally Posted By phat

and if you need to haul up or down a heavy food bag with it you may find it a bit difficult/uncomfortable to deal with pulling on line that thin.


First I switched to paracord because it's lighter per foot than the braided cord you find at Wallyworld but it snags when running over a branch. Even with paracord I always wrap a few loops around a stick and use that to haul with.

You bring up good points, I'll try hauling a couple of gallons of water up a tree at home before heading out. I'm also concerned about it cutting thru the bark and plan to abandon the idea if it does.

Thanks,

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#152120 - 06/30/11 08:55 AM Re: So, back to 'lightweight backpacking'...Who still [Re: RHodo]
phat Offline
Moderator

Registered: 06/24/07
Posts: 4107
Loc: Alberta, Canada
Originally Posted By RHodo
Originally Posted By phat


Dacron backing is ok for some stuff - but is not the greatest to tie and untie,

I planned to follow my eldest brother's example and untie it with a knife!


Doesn't work so good if you need to use it more than once. and if the lines tangle, it's a bear to undo..

Quote:

Originally Posted By phat

and if you need to haul up or down a heavy food bag with it you may find it a bit difficult/uncomfortable to deal with pulling on line that thin.


First I switched to paracord because it's lighter per foot than the braided cord you find at Wallyworld but it snags when running over a branch. Even with paracord I always wrap a few loops around a stick and use that to haul with.

You bring up good points, I'll try hauling a couple of gallons of water up a tree at home before heading out. I'm also concerned about it cutting thru the bark and plan to abandon the idea if it does.

Thanks,


I found it cut through stuff pretty good and wasn't very good to hang stuff - I did try this once a while back smile
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