- Tarptent Contrail
- Weight: 1.5lbs
A tarp-tent hybrid that provides lightweight shelter and refuge from bugs. See my analysis and review here
- New Balance 573
- Weight: 10.6oz per shoe
Trail runners are my shoe of choice for hiking long trails. I love hiking in them mostly because they’re light on my feet and comfy. On the west coast, the most fun is being able to walk through rivers/puddles/pouring rain and not worry about my boots getting wet (and never drying out). See my analysis here
- Go-Lite Ether Hooded Wind Jacket
- Weight: 4oz
This is my summer rain jacket, that sometimes gets extended into spring/fall. For the CDT, it will be my choice for 95% of the trail. For colder/wilder weather, I’ll carry instead a Montbell Peak Shell. See my discussion of rain wear here
- Western Mountaineering Megalite
- Weight: 1lb 8oz
My true home, a wonderful down sleeping bag that legitimately keeps me warm to 0C. See my thoughts on it here
- Montbell Ex Light Jacket
- Weight: 5.7oz
This jacket is new to me, as my old faithful MEC Northern Lite Pullover has lost all its loft. So far on the few times I’ve had it out, it’s been surprisingly warm. It is incredibly light, compressible, and dare I say, almost stylish?
- ULA Catalyst
- Weight: ~3lbs
On the PCT I found my SMD Starlite to be a bit too lightweight for some of the loads I had to carry (i.e. 10 days of food plus lots of water totaling 35-40lbs sometimes). I resolved at some point in the trip to carry a beefier backpack even if the weights would be much the same. The ULA Catalyst was a pack I saw on the back of many hikers on the PCT, so it gained my attention easily. It didn’t hurt that they all swore by it! So far I’ve used it on a few trips and haven’t found any cause for complaint.
- Thermarest NeoAir Small
- Weight: 9oz
This is a huge comfort upgrade on my old Thermarest Prolite3 Short. The NeoAir is pretty plush, packs up tiny, and has a similar R-value to my old pad. As a side-sleeper, the thickness of this pad really helps me get a decent sleep. I usually wake up multiple times in the night on camping trips with my shoulder or arm asleep. Haven’t had that yet on the NeoAir.
You can click on items in the picture to get details about them. A detailed list of the gear I carried on the CDT in 2011 is here.
Shoutout to Ian for the image map idea.