Well, we can all see how this is shaping up: Welcome to the Dark Side, Luke!

If you like the cat stove, you'll probably fall in love with the hardcore ultralight gear: Tarptents, quilts, frameless packs, chemical purification instead of filters, etc. It's not a bad path to go down, either. Some manufacturers to check out include TarpTent, Gossamer Gear, and Six Moon Designs - I've used some of their gear and found it well made and functional, although I returned it or gave it away. The Tarptent Rainbow was a neat single wall tent, but I ended up choosing a Carbon Reflex tent (mostly subjective reasons; the Gossamer Gear pack (one of the GVP originals) was way too big for me to ever come close to filling, and the SMD pack had a torso that was just too short for me.

I've gotten down to an 18 pound load for a summer weekend, using mainstream gear and ruthlessly winnowing out the unnecessary items (my back contends that the chair kit is no longer a luxury.) If, in a few years, I need to drop a few more pounds, I'll head straight to Six Moon Designs for a starting point. I'm sure the true ultralighters on the forum can lead you to other gear sources.

All kidding aside, if you're trying to reach the weights you listed in the earlier posts, you'll need to head toward the true ultralight gear, and share gear wherever possible.

Enjoy the ride!