Items not needed on hike

imported
#1

Always here hikers say they sent a bunch of stuff home or didn’t need all their items but they rarely list what the items were. Plaese, what did you send home? What did you find you didn’t need? Thanks.

Dan Paradise

#2

Candles - I never used them. Batteries. (My one set of batteries kept my flashlight going the whole trip since I rarely used it. These days, if you have a camera, ipod, phone, etc. it’s a different story). Spare pants (I had two pairs of long pants plus shorts. I sent one home and wore the other but kept the shorts to sleep in and as town clothes.) Rain pants. (Once it warmed up I found them much too hot. I was glad I had them in the cold in the beginning though.) Spare t-shirt (heavy cotton.) Bandaids - I carried way too many.

Ginny

#3

Big towel first JMT trip I used a knife and cut it in half. Rain jacket too, I used the poncho I was using for my tent kept the pants tossed the jacket .

The Hobo

#4

Dan this question is a matter of opion to each person.The longer your hiking the more you question what you really need.Like do i really need that 1lb med kit or just some bandaids and vitium I.Plus i think most people over pack on there clothes just because there not from that area and dont no what to execpt.

reststop

#5

Your pack reflects your fears. If you’re afraid of being hungry, you will carry too much food. If you’re afraid of being cold, you’ll carry too much clothing. Afraid of things that go “bump” in the night? Heavy two-wall tent and big flashlight. The more you confront your fears, the more you send home.

One of the biggest things for me was sending home the cook kit. I learned I didn’t like warm salty glop for dinner, and wasn’t afraid anymore of not having an easy source of heat. Another was reading material. Now I carry a few NYT Sunday crossword puzzles. One piece of paper keeps my mind occupied for days on the trail.

Garlic

#6

This stuff I got rid of entirely: Extra set of hiking clothes, radio, gaiters, inflatable pillow, and camera.

Almost every other piece of gear was drastically “refined”, i.e. made lighter.

Remember … the less you take, the more you find.

Happy Trails.

Matt

#7

I have to agree with all of the above. I worried about calories burned, and carried too much food. I worried about getting cold / wet, and carried too much clothing. I found that as my experience and trust in my gear increased, I carried less of everything. What started as nearly 50# was cut to under 30# TOTAL pack weight, and I enjoyed hiking so much more. All in all, I think experience is the key. Happy hiking! 8)

bugleboy

#8

There is a saying something to the affect that if you haven’t used it in the last week, get rid of it. I don’t agree completely. There are some items that I carry for a wider safety margin. You might have great weather for 99% of your trip but get caught in a freak storm in the Whites or an early snow in Maine. While I agree that experience will help you winnow away a lot of useless weight, experience can work against you if it makes you assume that the past is a guaranteed predictor of the future. This past year I saw many PCT hikers scrambling to get cold weather gear when an unusually late storm hit the Sierras. Some who were already in the Sierras had to bail out and get back to town. The AT is much more forgiving in these circumstances as it is easier to get off trail.

Having a light pack is great, just know that you may be giving up on comfort and safety margins with some of the choices you make. For me, my loaded pack with food and water was around 30lbs. As I got stronger, I barely noticed it and at times would have to stop and check to make sure I had everything in it as it felt too light.

If your hiking the whole trail, your pack will be your home for almost 5 months. Try not to be too spartan. A few luxury items can give a great psychological boost.

jalan

#9

Scrubby for my pot, soap, rope (about 1/2 through), extra batteries, . Kevlar bear sack (Ursack).

There was a guy at Trail Days in 2004 who had a whole song dedicated to stuff people should have left at home. It was hilarious.

Jalan

#10

When I started last year’s hike I had one of the lightest packs with four days of food and two liters of water weighing in at the Hiker Hostel in Georgia at 31 lbs. However, as I hiked I started to shed gear left and right to the point that I got down to about 12 lbs (without food & Water). Sent my stove home and just ate cold food and did not miss hot food (thanks Garlic). During the summer my gear only filled up half of my ULA Circuit pack. Look at some of the pictures of me going through the Mahoosuc Notch and you will see how spartan my pack was.

NedtheFed

#11

I’d really like to see a list of some of your pack contents. I swear I can’t get under 40 pounds and I’m not carrying extras. (That includes a full camelbac.)

While the alcohol stove worked great in the house, the water never got to boiling on a hot June day so I use a whisperlite. (I wonder if titanium was too big of a heat sink for the stove?)

My bag is ultra light, the pad is a shortie, the tent is a Hubba so It’s not the weight of those items. Titanium spoon, pot and a plastic measuring cup/bowl.

I don’t carry heavy electronics either.

Pioneer Spirit

#12

Send home the tent, go with a tarp or “tarp/tent” like Wild Oasis from Six Moon Designs.

rambler

#13

Pioneer - if you list your FULL gear list w/ exact weights, you’ll get your pack weight down! Mine dropped 10 pounds easily. I still have 5-6 pounds to drop to be where I want, but I need to spend some dollars for that.

I completely agree that your fears reflect your pack weight problems. Often, it’s toiletries, med kits, cloths, and food that can be reduced.

Trout