Thanks for the thoughts and welcomes! I actually tried on the Atmos (I think) at REI the other day, and really liked how it fit and how light it was but given that I have the ILBE, it had all the same features (load lifters, etc), I chose to eat the extra weight for now to see if we really enjoy doing this or if we are better suited for driving the Jeep out till we lose cell service and camping.

In regards to weather, well... We are in AZ right now but if I can find a job in Ohio or KC we will be moving back East, and the tarp tent idea is something that I could do myself but the wife seems to get bitten by anything within a few miles.

Some other things that I didn't mention are things like my wife being a bit of a hippy. She makes a cleaning solution from essential oils that we can use to clean everything from the toilet to our face, and can even drink it to improve our mood. We have had her Camelbak Pack up to about 17#s and she hasn't had any issue with it doing some scrambling up rocks and things like that, which from what I'm reading should be enough for here to last about 3 or 4 days if I'm carrying the stove.

Right now price is a big concern for us until we can validate that we CAN do it. I'm certain we'll enjoy it, just unsure of if our bodies will allow it. The upcoming trip should be awesome. I'll post up in the Planning section after we map our ideal routes (backpacking trips but no backcountry permit yet) as well as our backup day hike routes if we can't get a permit. Right now we are thinking of cutting Bryce Cyn to a late night arrival followed by sunrise day hikes till about noon then striking out for Zion so we can get a permit and really spend a few days there.