I did not explect I would get to go on this backcountry hike by getting reservations, or I would have planned my purchases in advance. Of course if I had planned ahead I would have missed the excellent advise from folks I have met along the way.
Backpack:
The first thing I needed was a suitable backpack. What size? What options?
Here is where asking friends and sales people pays off after you do some research.
With every oz. counting now towards what I have to carry I chose the above pack based on size, weight, and features.
Size: I need the pack to fit on the front passenger floor out of my way. I also spoke with a number of people that told me a 50 liter bag should suffice for size.
Weight: For weight at 3 lbs. 13 oz. I'm getting a bag without the stiff wire frame so it may be a tad heavier than others but it will fit well on the floor of my Prius.
Features: After reading reviews having external pouches or compartments make the bag so much easier to access items, but this is a bit more material and zippers. This pack come with outside compartments that can be accessed by another hiker while you wear it and has a separate sleeping bag pouch, and the bottom pouch has an internal zipper that the main compartment can be accessed from the bottom and not just the top.
Sleeping Bag:
The next big item is the sleeping bag. I have one I use in my Prius but it is rectangular and very bulky. Therefore it is not suitable for backpacking trips.
The main considerations are weight, temperature rating, and size stuffed in a sack.
Weight: At 1 lb. 13 oz. this is an excellent weight for a lower temperature bag.
Temperature: The bag is rated for the lower limit of 19 deg and comfort of 30 deg. I'm expecting temperatures overnight around 40 degrees.
Stuffed sack size: At 8" x 17" and moldable it fits directly in the backpack pouch designed for the purpose.
Sleeping Pad:
I have a rectangular Thermarest sleeping pad in my Prius but after checking the weight it is 2 lb. 10 oz. and this is way to heavy if I'm trying to stay light weight.
Weight: This sleeping pad just came out for sale at REI and is only 15 oz. and is tapered to save weight.
Thermal: This mattress manually inflates by blowing into it. Typically air mattresses have poor thermal rating but the R value is if this one is 3.7 and this is actually very good.
Pack size: 4" x 9.5"
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Total weight so far:
- Backpack 3 lb. 13 oz.
- Sleeping bag 1lb. 13 oz.
- Sleeping pad 15 oz.
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6 lb. 8 oz.
The good thing about REI purchases is that if they fail they will replace them and if a product isn't right for me I can return and get credit for something else,
As I resolve other items I still need I will include them in another post and tally the total weight.
Brent
macaloney@hotmail.com
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