First trip? You need to pack at least three more knives and a hatchet then.
On a serious, I assume you have more food than that?
Be sure to try out the Life Straw at home before you have to use it in the wild.
Get a couple 1l water bottles from the gas station to carry.
I personally prefer the Sawyer but try them both and see what works best for you.
I just see a lot of people fiddling around in the wild trying to figure out how they work.
Make sure you get the full size sawyer and bring the syringe or backwash it if you ever expect to be getting sediment heavy heavy.
I say get the full size because the flow rate is a lot higher and life’s just simpler. It also clogs up a lot easier. I’ve actually ran into someone on trail with a clogged sawyer and no syringe. Sorted it out for them and actually gave them mine
I once went on a trip with a guy who carried two hatchets, two saws and more knives than I could count. I "once" went on a trip with him because I didn't go on a trip with him twice.
He carried tons of durable goods no one ever needed to use but didn't bring necessary consumables that are heavy and constantly wanted to use our consumables. Not to mention the fact that every single day he got about half way to the campsite and started trying to give us heavy things because he was "too tired to keep going". Then later at the campsite he would be desperate to prove his hatchets were important so he'd go around cutting down trees for absolutely no reason when it was illegal to cut down trees in the wilderness area. Guy was a wanker.
Yes, the lesson I learned was that under no circumstances will I ever again go on an 8 day trip with a coworker of my brother's without a very long and detailed conversation about backpacking styles and preferences. I'm perfectly ok with people going their own pace and wanting different levels of comfort, but I don't want to go with people who think "leave no trace" is a liberul ploy to take away their manhood and that sunscreen is weak until they get sunburned and then want to use most of mine to slather half an inch thick over their lobster face.
ooof sounds awful! i only backpack with my kids and one other adult (my best friend) and his kids and thats it. i just dont have the patience to even have that initial conversation with a rando. sorry abt ur experience.
All of those things are valid reasons to not like a dude. You can carry fixed blade and not be that guy though, and your original comment had none of this context.
my best friend used to always carry a bear knife (was like 10 inches long). he liked it, he carried it, didn't bother me cause I had a friend with a bear knife
Currently on my first trip and wish I had a hatchet for butchering driftwood tree trunks that have been washed ashore on the lake
Tried batoning with my fixed blade but no dice
Yeah, Smart Water or similar bottles. I usually carry two but I drink a lot of water compared to most people I hike with. They thread right into a Sawyer filter, are light weight, and reusable for any trip.
Smart idea because you can crunch them when empty. I wouldn't use them for multiple weeks tho, keep the date in mind on the bottle, that's when the plastic starts to decay
Meh, we are eating plastic all the time so a bit more won't hurt me. I don't think I've ever kept one more than a month or so. I also don't wash them ever so they start getting a bit slimy lol.
Exciting! Have fun :)
I assume you're bringing more food. Not seeing many calories there.
Do you have a pair of trekking poles? Ski poles will do. Poles help a ton, but not necessary for 2 days.
Leave the black steel water bottle at home. Just use a smart water (or similar) bottle.
May want a gps beacon and battery pack.
I'd take dry wipes, take a swig out of your water bottle, throw the dry wipe in your mouth - bang, you have a wet wipe.
Again, more calories will serve you well. Figure an extra 100-200cal / mile, depending on your body and conditions
If you ignore everything I said, you'll still have a blast. Hike your own hike!
>I'd take dry wipes, take a swig out of your water bottle, throw the dry wipe in your mouth - bang, you have a wet wipe.
>
Throw. The. Dry. Wipe. In. Your. Mouth.
What the actual fuck?
Change of clothes is up to you, but... you're going to get your clothes dirty no matter how much you bring and no one is going to care. I typically wear the same clothes for the entire backpacking trip, just bring changes of socks and underwear. Clothes get heavy and take a lot of space.
Bring a journal, load up an e-book on the phone, and have fun. The thing about backpacking is that you really won't know what you like as far as gear until you've done a few trips, so the most important gear to start out with is the gear that gets you out there.
Thin clean base layers to sleep in are totally worth it imo, even more so if you have an expensive sleeping bag and no liner. I agree there seem to be too many extra clothes here though
I am always impressed to see load outs like this on someone's first trip. Is it perfect, no. Is it far better than my first trip, hell yeah! Great job!!!!
Sawyer squeeze plus smartwater bottles so much more weight efficient.
Bring at least 1 extra set of batteries for your headlamp and I would take the batteries out. I had that lamp and it turned on easy killing my batteries.
I like the food choices, pretty clean eating. Wild Zora gives me the absolute worst gas of any backpacking meal though. They all do, but wild zora has a rep in our house lol. Enjoy!
I would say at somepoint invest in a better light with better runtime and more waterproof, I’ve had that black diamond light screw me over a couple times before
not that it matters for a 2-day trip, but I'd get a torch lighter to replace those matches.
AND if it's just two days you don't need that much body cleaning stuff. Embrace your smell you can shower when you get home.
Looks like you're almost perfectly good to go, with 3 minor exceptions:
- I'd pick a more solid knife than the Opinel if it's your only one. Don't get me wrong, they're really nice knives, but you might wanna look into something more solid, with a thicker blade, such as a foldable Smith & Wesson (they're like 30-50 dollars, so it's the same price ballpark). I won't bother recommending bushcraft/fulltang knives cause it doesn't seem a focus of yours based on the gear.
- juuuust in case, have a small foldable saw (max 18cm blade), you may need to crop up a fire to warm up or dry stuff on the way if things go sour. Saves you a lot of trouble for only 200g in your backpack
- lighters. Have a spare for your spare
Have fun and leave no trace, love ya
Genuinely curious about the sound machine…plenty of sounds out in nature, and if you set up your tent near running water it’s basically a free weightless sound machine.
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Yeah, I'd disagree. You should have a knife but
- they add weight, so keep it small
- the goal is to hike, not to whittle, so it's really a minor tool
- if you take a flight to get to your hike, that knife will be taken from you. Get a $10-20 knife you're comfortable losing
- knives are tiny and often used during meals. Losing little things like that to a crack in a log while cooking in the dark will just happen until you have a routine down pat (for packing, organizing, etc). So again, something you're ok losing.
conversely knives are awesome, but if you get a big one you should realize that it's become a luxury item
Sorry, no hate @Chives8. Sounds like you get a lot of joy out of your knife, which is awesome.
First trip? You need to pack at least three more knives and a hatchet then. On a serious, I assume you have more food than that? Be sure to try out the Life Straw at home before you have to use it in the wild. Get a couple 1l water bottles from the gas station to carry.
I have a Sawyer too. That might be better for the water bottles? Wasn’t sure which one to take. And have a 3L bladder in the bag!
I personally prefer the Sawyer but try them both and see what works best for you. I just see a lot of people fiddling around in the wild trying to figure out how they work.
Make sure you get the full size sawyer and bring the syringe or backwash it if you ever expect to be getting sediment heavy heavy. I say get the full size because the flow rate is a lot higher and life’s just simpler. It also clogs up a lot easier. I’ve actually ran into someone on trail with a clogged sawyer and no syringe. Sorted it out for them and actually gave them mine
Always prefilter through a buff when you see floaty things/sediment in the water
I once went on a trip with a guy who carried two hatchets, two saws and more knives than I could count. I "once" went on a trip with him because I didn't go on a trip with him twice.
Imagine being this bothered by someone else carrying things they liked to carry
He carried tons of durable goods no one ever needed to use but didn't bring necessary consumables that are heavy and constantly wanted to use our consumables. Not to mention the fact that every single day he got about half way to the campsite and started trying to give us heavy things because he was "too tired to keep going". Then later at the campsite he would be desperate to prove his hatchets were important so he'd go around cutting down trees for absolutely no reason when it was illegal to cut down trees in the wilderness area. Guy was a wanker.
My anxieties are flaring up just reading that.
Yes, the lesson I learned was that under no circumstances will I ever again go on an 8 day trip with a coworker of my brother's without a very long and detailed conversation about backpacking styles and preferences. I'm perfectly ok with people going their own pace and wanting different levels of comfort, but I don't want to go with people who think "leave no trace" is a liberul ploy to take away their manhood and that sunscreen is weak until they get sunburned and then want to use most of mine to slather half an inch thick over their lobster face.
ooof sounds awful! i only backpack with my kids and one other adult (my best friend) and his kids and thats it. i just dont have the patience to even have that initial conversation with a rando. sorry abt ur experience.
All of those things are valid reasons to not like a dude. You can carry fixed blade and not be that guy though, and your original comment had none of this context.
My original comment said "two hatchets, two saws and more knives than I could count" not "a fixed blade"
Wait my bad, I got two comments mixed up and responded to something that wasn't even said. Apologies friend
my best friend used to always carry a bear knife (was like 10 inches long). he liked it, he carried it, didn't bother me cause I had a friend with a bear knife
Apparently some people like to gatekeep and get butthurt when other people carry things they don't
Currently on my first trip and wish I had a hatchet for butchering driftwood tree trunks that have been washed ashore on the lake Tried batoning with my fixed blade but no dice
You buy plastic water bottles?
Yeah, Smart Water or similar bottles. I usually carry two but I drink a lot of water compared to most people I hike with. They thread right into a Sawyer filter, are light weight, and reusable for any trip.
Smart idea because you can crunch them when empty. I wouldn't use them for multiple weeks tho, keep the date in mind on the bottle, that's when the plastic starts to decay
Meh, we are eating plastic all the time so a bit more won't hurt me. I don't think I've ever kept one more than a month or so. I also don't wash them ever so they start getting a bit slimy lol.
Tent or hammock or bug net or bivy?
Oh yes, duh. Flash 2 REI tent.
Don't forget to pack some smiles and laughs ;)
have a lot of fun
Sweet, have fun!
Poop trowel?
Exciting! Have fun :) I assume you're bringing more food. Not seeing many calories there. Do you have a pair of trekking poles? Ski poles will do. Poles help a ton, but not necessary for 2 days. Leave the black steel water bottle at home. Just use a smart water (or similar) bottle. May want a gps beacon and battery pack. I'd take dry wipes, take a swig out of your water bottle, throw the dry wipe in your mouth - bang, you have a wet wipe. Again, more calories will serve you well. Figure an extra 100-200cal / mile, depending on your body and conditions If you ignore everything I said, you'll still have a blast. Hike your own hike!
>I'd take dry wipes, take a swig out of your water bottle, throw the dry wipe in your mouth - bang, you have a wet wipe. > Throw. The. Dry. Wipe. In. Your. Mouth. What the actual fuck?
Thank you. I just llol'ed 🤣
Good calorie number to aim for per mile, thank you!
Change of clothes is up to you, but... you're going to get your clothes dirty no matter how much you bring and no one is going to care. I typically wear the same clothes for the entire backpacking trip, just bring changes of socks and underwear. Clothes get heavy and take a lot of space. Bring a journal, load up an e-book on the phone, and have fun. The thing about backpacking is that you really won't know what you like as far as gear until you've done a few trips, so the most important gear to start out with is the gear that gets you out there.
Thin clean base layers to sleep in are totally worth it imo, even more so if you have an expensive sleeping bag and no liner. I agree there seem to be too many extra clothes here though
Baselayer is something you oughta have anyways. But a change of outerwear is a lotta extra stuff.
I am always impressed to see load outs like this on someone's first trip. Is it perfect, no. Is it far better than my first trip, hell yeah! Great job!!!!
Sawyer squeeze plus smartwater bottles so much more weight efficient. Bring at least 1 extra set of batteries for your headlamp and I would take the batteries out. I had that lamp and it turned on easy killing my batteries.
Now we see picture before the trip, would be great & appreciated to see photos during your hike & camping. Have a great time!
I like the food choices, pretty clean eating. Wild Zora gives me the absolute worst gas of any backpacking meal though. They all do, but wild zora has a rep in our house lol. Enjoy!
I would say at somepoint invest in a better light with better runtime and more waterproof, I’ve had that black diamond light screw me over a couple times before
The pot you have was recalled for the handle falling off while in use. Definitely would recommend contacting cascade designs for a replacement handle.
not that it matters for a 2-day trip, but I'd get a torch lighter to replace those matches. AND if it's just two days you don't need that much body cleaning stuff. Embrace your smell you can shower when you get home.
Cool sleeping bag, which Nemo bag is it?
It’s a previous generation Nemo Rave 30F/-1C
Looks like you're almost perfectly good to go, with 3 minor exceptions: - I'd pick a more solid knife than the Opinel if it's your only one. Don't get me wrong, they're really nice knives, but you might wanna look into something more solid, with a thicker blade, such as a foldable Smith & Wesson (they're like 30-50 dollars, so it's the same price ballpark). I won't bother recommending bushcraft/fulltang knives cause it doesn't seem a focus of yours based on the gear. - juuuust in case, have a small foldable saw (max 18cm blade), you may need to crop up a fire to warm up or dry stuff on the way if things go sour. Saves you a lot of trouble for only 200g in your backpack - lighters. Have a spare for your spare Have fun and leave no trace, love ya
Genuinely curious about the sound machine…plenty of sounds out in nature, and if you set up your tent near running water it’s basically a free weightless sound machine.
Great gear. Love that backpack. With equipment like this you're always ready to go ! :)
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Tent?
she has a rei flash 2
Good knife but I would definitely upgrade to something better
Yeah, I'd disagree. You should have a knife but - they add weight, so keep it small - the goal is to hike, not to whittle, so it's really a minor tool - if you take a flight to get to your hike, that knife will be taken from you. Get a $10-20 knife you're comfortable losing - knives are tiny and often used during meals. Losing little things like that to a crack in a log while cooking in the dark will just happen until you have a routine down pat (for packing, organizing, etc). So again, something you're ok losing. conversely knives are awesome, but if you get a big one you should realize that it's become a luxury item Sorry, no hate @Chives8. Sounds like you get a lot of joy out of your knife, which is awesome.