r/Ultralight

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/dueurt on 2024-10-26 10:57:26+00:00.

In preparation for a trip next summer, I'm trying to figure out which pot/windscreen/burner to bring, and how much alcohol fuel I need.

I currently own:

• TOAKS light 450 paired with an X-Boil 75-85 ultralight windscreen and X-Boil ultralight burner
• Evernew UL 1300 paired with a Vesuv windscreen and the X-Boil ultralight burner
• Trangia 27 UL (aluminium)
• Trangia 25 Duossal (aluminium/steel laminate)

The Trangia 25 weighs more than 1kg and is sized for 4, I'm going to ignore that completely. The Trangia 27 is still far from ultralight, but I've cooked with Trangias for decades, and consider it an interesting baseline.

So today I did an initial test to see fuel consumption of the 3 systems. Unfortunately my thermometer is broken, so instead of an exact temperature, I used a subjective "boil-ish" assesment. In reality i don't use anywhere near boiling water on trips, aiming for something that'll be quite hot when consumed. When I get a working thermometer, I'll do more testing.

The pots were filled with 300g of room temperature water (from the same 2L bottle that had been sitting indoors for weeks).

The same burner was used for all systems. On the Trangia, it was placed in the Trangia gel burner (basically a shallow aluminium holder that fits in the windscreen).

The burner was filled with significantly more fuel than needed, a) to avoid having too little fuel so the test had to be redone and b) because the burner is less hot when nearly empty. Future tests will try to narrow down exact fuel amounts, so I can use that for dosage on trips.

The burner is weighed immediately before being lit. Coincidentally, I hit the exact same weight for all 3 tests. When the water is boiling, the burner is extinguished and the lid is put on (not screwed tightly, but it is closed enough to make any evaporation negligible).

When the burner is cool enough to touch (~10s), it is weighed again.

Fuel is bio-ethanol for heaters. Ethanol content is 93% by weight (96% by volume). Denatured with isopropyl alcohol <1,5% by weight and butanone 1-5% by weight.

Test was conducted outdoors. There was no wind and ambient temperature was ~12°C/54°F. The burners were tested one at a time, placed on concrete slabs slightly above ground level (just because it was a convenient spot).

For anyone thinking "why the hell do you use an alcohol stove" - well, the day they make a canister stove that rivals an alcohol stove for silence, that's the day I might bring a canister stove on solo trips. Alcohol stoves aren't ever banned around here, and if there's a fire ban the canister stoves are banned as well. Actually in state forests here in Denmark, a burner used outside a designated campfire site must be enclosed (like a trangia which the regulations specifically mention). The ultralight canister options I know of wouldn't qualify. I'll add ground protection (aluminium foil or something) to the Vesuv burner to make it legal, so maybe increasing system weight 5g or so.

I registered approximate boil times just because 'why not', but it was just from glancing at the clock before and after, so take with more than a grain of salt. However, the difference between them was significant. Personally I don't give a shit if it takes 1 or 10 minutes, and if you do canister stoves are great options.

| System | System weight | Fuel consumption | Approximate boil time | Notes | |

|

|

|

|

| | Evernew UL 1300, Vesuv windscreen, X-Boil ultralight burner | 187g | 7g | 5 minutes | Bottom of pot covered in soot, so fuel rich burn. Increased airflow or a bit of water added to the fuel might give better fuel economy. | | TOAKS 450, X-Boil 75-85 ultralight windscreen, X-Boil ultralight burner | 106g | 9g | 8 minutes | No soot on pot at all. Significant heat loss could be felt above. | | Trangia 27 w. inner pot, Trangia Gel burner, X-Boil ultralight burner | 492g | 7g | <2 minutes | Boiled so fast it went way past my subjective "boil-ish" into a violently roiling boil before I got it off the stove. Probably feedback heat increasing fuel evaporation. Pot was covered in soot on the bottom, even more so than the Evernew. |

The trip I'm preparing for is 9 days, and I'll probably do 4 boils/day (hot cocoa x 2-3 and dinner) for a total of 36 boils, bringing total fuel consumption to 252g for the Evernew/Vesuv and Trangia and 324g for the TOAKs/X-Boil. Total system weights including fuel for the trip (excluding fuel containers) would then be

• Evernew/Vesuv: 439g
• TOAKs/X-Boil: 430g
• Trangia: 744g

The Trangia is unsurprisingly right out. No matter the amount of optimization I do, there is no way I'll close a 300g+ gap. It is also bulkier than the Evernew/Vesuv, while simultaneously having a significantly smaller pot (1L vs 1.3L), and the handle is less convenient than the attached handles on the Evernew. The only thing the Trangia has going for it, is that the lid can be used as a frying pan. Well, the boil time was also very impressive, but that would actually be inconvenient with any real cooking.

The TOAKs/X-Boil is very small. For weekend trips it is super convenient, super compact, and the weight savings are much more significant (178g total weight for 8 boils, coming in 9g under the Evernew without fuel). The fact that I've never had any soot on the pot with that system is also worth bonus points (I've also used the pot on an open fire though, so it has seen its fair share of soot). But for a longer trip, the size becomes limiting. It is also the most vulnerable to wind of all 3 systems, although still quite good in the wind. And I suspect the 9g savings over the Evernew disappears when taking a larger fuel bottle into consideration.

The Evernew is very large for one person of course, but I'm trying to get rid of redundant equipment, and a 900ml would save me less than 25g (including windscreen) over the 1300ml. 600ml is in the same ballpark as the TOAKs, too small to cook for both dinner and a drink. I'll eat that 25g penalty for a pot that's more practical to cook with and large enough for two. The Trangia 27 will be donated to the local scouts or something. I'll keep the Trangia 25 for now - it fits a different niche: Canister stove for family outings.

Next up, dialing in fuel amount for the Evernew, and looking at mimimizing soot.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Fun_Sheepherder9704 on 2024-10-25 17:34:33+00:00.

So I had always felt that the Decathlon Forclaz Men's MT100 Hooded Down Puffer Jacket was one of the best buys on the market at $79 back in the day. Then, of course, inflation happened and that same jacket started selling for $100. $100 was still a pretty good buy for this lightweight puffy that weighs in at about 11-12 ounces, and is quite warm and comfortable, which I can attest to as I’ve worn it on a couple hikes on the JMT in the last couple years. But at $100, I felt it was a bit of a disappointment, and that one could probably do just about as good at an REI garage sale event or something of the sort. But now I see Decathlon is offering the same down puffer in a non-hooded variety for $89. This is great buy, and in my mind this brings the Forclaz Men's MT100 back to being the best deal for a UL puffy jacket. I would say this jacket is a close clone to the Ghost Whisperer at about a third of the price.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/DaveDavidDavidsonTom on 2024-10-25 13:10:39+00:00.

And should I worry about this? I have never had a problem but I still feel a bit vulnerable sometimes.

Edit: when I say bitten, I mean though the bivy bag by animals or bigger bugs. I'm assuming small bugs such as mosquitoes are dealt with in other ways, such as bivy bags with netting.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/wacbravo on 2024-10-24 19:39:37+00:00.

If you’re like me, the Gaia GPS app has been among my most-used pieces of backcountry “gear”. Since the company’s acquisition by Outside, it seems theres been a major shift towards marketing Gaia as a social media and data sharing tool rather than a navigation tool. Their latest update bundles in Amplitude tracking analytics. Ad blockers filtering this api now cause the Gaia web map to fail to load, even though it ran completely fine with those same ad blockers before the update. Is this already happening in the app, and what can we do as users to protect our data? I’m sure that the folks in here are quite representative of a company like Gaia’s target demographic. Or maybe once we’re? I’d love your thoughts. This sub has a better hand on the pulse of the outdoor community than most.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/flakespancakes on 2024-10-24 00:55:12+00:00.

I just got an email from Amazon about it and then found Peak Refuel's own FAQ.

More information on these pages:

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/htii_ on 2024-10-23 15:34:08+00:00.

I see people mention Alpha Direct + a windbreaker. What windbreaker are you using? Or what is your full layering system? Do you wear something under the AD?

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Ok_Attempt4872 on 2024-10-23 15:55:55+00:00.

I was looking into the Nitecore NU20 and NU25 and I was shocked at how complicated the different modes are:

Short press the power button to access white light low. After 3 seconds short press the power button to turn off. After short pressing the power button, within 3 seconds press the power button again to switch brightness. Hold and press the power button for 1 second to access turbo mode. After 3 seconds, press the power button to turn off. When the headlamp is off, press and hold the power button to access the auxiliary light. Short press the R button to access the red light, and within 1 second short press the R button again to access high beam red light and short press again for strobe red light. Long press the power button for 3 seconds for the SOS. Within 1 second of accessing SOS mode, short press the power to access the beacon mode. Hold and press both buttons to access lockout mode.

Does anyone else think it’s insanity how complicated it is to change the modes on headlamps or am I just dense?? You have to comit to memory a dozen combinations of button presses and durations? So many times I’ve been exhausted in the dark after a long day of backpacking, and the last thing I want to do is try to remember the specific combo of buttons to get what I want out of my headlamp. In frustration I’ve ended up keyboard smashing all of the buttons and prayed it didn’t get stuck in SOS mode. God forbid you borrow a friend’s headlamp and you have no idea what combo of buttons their headlamp requires to switch modes.

I currently have the Petz E+lite and what I love about it is the simple switch toggle that switches between modes. Zero guessing about what mode you’re going to get, zero button combos to memorize, just turn the little white selector dial and go. The only downside is that the headlamp only goes to 30 lumens, which is almost useless in most situations. So I have 2.

Any recommendations for ultralight headlamps that are simple to operate and are relatively bright?

Thanks!

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/MountainsandMe on 2024-10-21 00:22:05+00:00.

Ever since Dan Durston's off-trail trip through the Rockies I've been interested in continuing the project even further north.

This summer I hiked a similar route to Dan's, heading north from the current end of the Great Divide Trail through roughly 100 miles of wilderness to Monkman Provincial Park. Then I resupplied and continued north for a further trip that had never been attempted before (to my knowledge). It's a 97 mile fully off-trail route through the remote Misinchinka Ranges of the Canadian Rockies with 38000+ ft of vertical gain. I finished in 9 days and saw more bears than people (1 grizzly, zero people).

Misinchinka High Route Guide

Digital Route Map

Printable Maps and Waypoints

Gearlist

The mountains in this area are shorter than those further south which allows for lots of ridge walking. There are also beautiful alpine lakes everywhere. The downside is that there's still some gnarly bushwhacking required. Hopefully with more exploration those bits can be avoided as much as possible.

This route ends at a paved road (HWY97/Pine Pass), which is the last trafficked access point before the main crest of the Rockies gets interrupted by the massive Williston Lake. So all combined, you've got the CDT, then the GDT, and these two off-trail routes which comprise a nearly complete traverse of the Rockies for as far as you could possibly hike them before hitting a natural barrier. I don't think that would be possible to hike in a single season, but I'd be happy to be proven wrong!

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Jaakooob on 2024-10-20 09:26:18+00:00.

Hey everyone!

I’ve been eyeing the new Nashville Cutaway in ALUULA Graflyte, but I’m still on the fence about whether the price premium is really worth it.

I know the first packs made out of ALUULA hit the trails this summer, so I’m curious—how’s the material performing in real-world conditions? Does it live up to the hype in terms of durability, weight, and weather resistance?

Any feedback would be super helpful! Thanks!

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/smithersredsoda on 2024-10-19 17:32:06+00:00.

Well, lemonade from lemons, I guess.

Photo/Video

Edit: Reddit lost the whole damn trip report!

2nd Edit: Unpacking and heard a plastic bag scrunch sound coming from the Cutaway. Looks like the cold weather caused a 5-inch patch of delam in my 18-month-old bag - super disappointed. I realize that this is not uncommon with Ultra but I was hoping for it to last longer - Video

TL:DR - Original route was scrapped due to leaving my glasses at the TH and altitude effecting sleep. Some beautiful weather followed by crazy wind and low overnights had me really, really cold but overall, a great trip.

Original Route

Highlights

Piute Pass - very easy ascent

Tomahawk Lake (thanks pastry king)

Tuttle Creek/Alamba Hills

Lowlights

Leaving my glasses at the TH

Altitude effecting sleep (20pt HRV drop) - Diamox is in my future.

Almost losing my aquamira bottle through once in million rube goldberg rock face/crevice (ever wondered if a trip is "cursed"?)

Wind chill - 30mph at 6am had temps below 20f. Windy cold weather is much more difficult and draining than cold still weather.

Gear

Cutaway has the best damn pockets! I think I might switch over to my Nunatak Bears Ears for shoulder/extended trips. Mid 20's in the cutaway is not as comfortable as +3lbs more in the Bears Ears.

Frogg Togg/90GSM Alpha - blown away (literally) at how effective this combo is for sleeping and hiking at or near freezing.

Nunatak Sulo 30f + Xtherm - had to vent quilt at 35f on first trip but comfortable all night long when it hit 25f on the second trip.

Timmermade Waterbear UL Apex - love this thing, keeps me warm and blocks sunlight.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Conscious_Ad8707 on 2024-10-19 01:47:32+00:00.

The Garmin Explore app is now demanding we fork over $50/year for an "Outdoor Maps+" subscription on top of the messaging plan. They have taken away access the USGS quads, satellite, and other previously included maps.

Outrageous company.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/cakehikes on 2024-10-18 15:40:56+00:00.

Hey all, long time lurker, first time poster!

It has taken me a little over a year, but I finally put together a trip report and website guide for a variant of the Wasatch Traverse that I hiked over two separate efforts, in 2018 and 2023. I put a lot of love and time into compiling it into a format that’s (hopefully) easy to digest, and everything is available for free. 🙂

I’m not the first to do a Wasatch Traverse—that honor goes to u/LizThomasHiking (Snorkel). Huge shoutout to her for pioneering the route! Snorkel’s blog post gave me an idea of what to expect. I also want to give a shoutout to Katie Brown (Wilderness) and Jordan Newton (Samaritan). Their hikes also served as inspiration for my variant of the route. Y’all are badasses!

I started planning the route after finishing the PCT in 2017. I grew up in northern Utah, but at the time I wasn’t a hiker. I got into hiking and backpacking after moving to Arizona for school. As I started exploring my old backyard every summer break, the idea of traversing the whole range started to interest me. I made an attempt in 2018 that didn’t go well, so the route was placed on the back burner for a while. In 2021, I moved back to Utah with my partner, SoGood, and we hiked the remaining miles of the route in 2023.

To my knowledge, about seven people have done the traverse so far, with no two routes being the same.

Full disclosure: the southern portion of the variant we hiked (around Loafer Mountain and Provo) isn’t the best it can be. I don’t know the exact footpaths the hikers before us took, but from what I can gather, they likely did it better. I’m more familiar with the northern end of the Wasatch. I included the Bear River Range in my variant because I view those mountains as part of the greater Wasatch. Not everyone shares that opinion. I might be a little biased because those mountains are my backyard. 😉

If you're looking for something "short but sweet" this might be a route to consider. There’s a lot of potential to bag additional summits and follow the crest of the range more closely if you’re willing to tackle some tough off-trail ridgelines with a pack. The route we did was pretty accessible.

Overview

Where: Wasatch Mountains

When: September 16th, 2023 - October 7th, 2023

Distance: ~280 miles, 65,000ft of ascent.

Trip Report

Link (includes pictures):

As stated above, the route was done over two separate efforts:

• July 2018: Southbound from the Utah-Idaho border in the Bear River Range to Mount Ogden.
• September 2023: Northbound from Mount Nebo to the northern end of the Wellsville Mountains.

The trip report is from the 2023 effort I did with SoGood. I hope you enjoy the read and find some useful information if you’re intending to attempt the route yourself.

TL;DR

The route is pretty tough. The grade will often be at 1000ft/mi for 4000 - 5000ft. You’re thrown into steep climbs right out of the gate, so show up with trail legs or suffer! The route overall is fairly dry. We found more water than expected, but that was likely due to the exceptionally wet 2022–2023 winter. There’s a lot of private property along the Wasatch Front, so be cognizant of that when choosing your exact route. We didn’t do the entire effort with overnight gear; 1/3 of it was done as day hikes with a shuttle system toward the end. I'd like to try an end to end hike of the entire thing again at some point.

Gear

Link:

We started with more gear than we needed or usually carry. Gear was kind of an afterthought. I snapped a picture of everything laid out before we left but didn’t end up putting it in an LP list until writing this post. Wow I carried all that… 😅 We were overly nervous about all the unknowns and prioritized just getting out there to do it.

Next time, I’d leave the beanie and thermals at home. The route was hot during the day and never too cold at night in September/early October. There was only one day that I needed both the Melly and down jacket at the same time to stay warm while we were stopped on Mount Timpanogos. I sent the thermal bottoms home in Cottonwood Heights.

There were plenty of places to charge along the way that were right off the trail. We found outlets at parks, campgrounds, and trailhead bathrooms pretty frequently. I ended up taking my heaviest battery pack at the last minute because I lost my smaller Anker 10000mAh and didn’t want to spend money on a new one before leaving. We should’ve ditched it and shared the 10000mAh battery SoGood had.

We carried a single InReach Mini and never used it to check in or anything. Verizon had cell coverage for most of the route. There are definitely nooks and crannies in the canyons and areas further north without reception, but by and large, we had service every day for most of the day. You’re likely to see people every day too.

The long pants were extremely hot and uncomfortable. They were nice in a few overgrown areas and kept the sun off my ginger legs, but I ditched them for shorts in Cottonwood Heights. The Jolly shirt worked great to keep me cool and the sun off my skin. The route is pretty sun-exposed most of the way, so if you burn easily, take that into consideration.

Guide

Link:

The website has all of the data I collected over both efforts. It also has some information on how to get to and from the route, figuring out when to go, and resupply information. Use it to hike the same exact route we did, or as beta for your own variant of the Wasatch Traverse. I wanted to share what I did because information about the traverse is pretty sparse. The variant we did was far from a perfect experience, and I’d love to incorporate feedback from others to improve it.

The downloadable dataset (GPX or GeoJSON) includes the track I recorded (red), some alternate routes (blue) to avoid bad weather, summit detours (green), and water detours (orange). It also includes waypoints I created for every water source we encountered along the way that was flowing. There are observations in the waypoint notes. 

A few tracks are labeled as “proposed” (black). We initially planned on going through these areas but re-routed for one reason or another. I haven’t hiked them yet, so I don’t have complete data for them. I’m hoping to get back out there next season to finish those sections. The 60 miles between the Utah-Idaho border and Soda Springs is an extension to the original route I sketched up that includes the rest of the Bear River Range.

If you hike the route and would like to contribute water observations or suggestions, feel free to reach out! 

SoGood and I would also love to help get hikers to and from the route (as our schedule allows) if you need a ride. You can reach me through DMs here or via the "Contact" link in the bottom right corner of the website.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/WATOCATOWA on 2024-10-17 21:23:06+00:00.

Works great! I’ve been meaning to do it for a bit, but have a possibly cold/wet Lost Coast backpacking trip coming up, so it was now or never! Tested in the house and so nice to have everything stay where I want it. Wish I would’ve done it sooner, but I was a little intimidated thinking about tearing the quilt.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/gatorfelis on 2024-10-15 16:12:47+00:00.

Just returned from 11 days backpacking in WV and realized I have way too many lovingly-framed photos of my Tarptent, my faithful hiking partner, house, bedroom, kitchen… I had a Stratospire two years ago (until Delta lost it somewhere between Reno and DC) and decided to replace it with the Dipole 2 Li, which was a new design in 2022. Before this I was convinced I preferred a double-walled tent. Not so. The dipole is a slightly more straightforward setup than the stratospire. It’s a couple of ounces heavier and offers more interior space and a less fiddly pitch. I sometimes hike solo or with a partner, but usually with my two medium-sized dogs. The dipole is SO ROOMY. When I’m solo it’s downright palatial. It’s very satisfying to pitch once you take a minute to grok the design. It has performed flawlessly for me in both wind and rain, in oddly-shaped, rocky, or otherwise less-than-ideal sites, just wherever. “Room enough for two large/long sleeping pads” = TRUTH. Condensation: sometimes, yeah. Not unmanageable. Finger flick to the walls or a quick swipe with a PackTowl. Good to go. I always use hiking poles since breaking my leg a couple of years ago, so the configuration just works for me. If I hadn’t lost my stratospire I probably would never have tried the dipole, but given the choice today between the two, I’d choose the dipole again. I love my tent.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Wandering_Hick on 2024-10-15 13:03:50+00:00.

It’s been a year and a half since we launched PackWizard.com and we wanted to give the community an update on where things are at and where things are going. As well as get feedback on the current state of the site and the direction it should go. 

For background, myself (Justin) and Thomas started the site to create the tools we wanted for researching gear and planning for trips. Obviously, lighterpack provided a lot of inspiration, as well as the site pcpartspicker.com. 

The three main areas of the site are:

1. Pack Builder - Similar to lighterpack. Some things I think PW does that differentiates it is the gear closet, autofill (from your gear closet or the PW gear database), and the create checklist from pack tool. You can also easily import packs/gear from lighterpack.
2. Pack Browser - Where you can see packs other people have made public and sort/filter by trail, time of year, length of trip, etc.
3. Gear Explorer - Fancy spreadsheets for packs, pads, tents, bags/quilts, and jackets. You can sort, filter, and compare hundreds of different items in each category. Public reviews are also available (although there are only a few at this point).

Since the last update we made a year ago (link), we have done quite a bit of work:

• Made mobile a lot better.
• Streamlined the shared pack page (still work to do here, would love feedback).
• Added insulated jackets and sleeping bags/quilts to the Gear Explorer.
• Made the gear closet more user-friendly.
• Added the review system.
• Made it so you can view all of the packs someone has made via their PW profile.
• Made the “Report” tool better so any errors in specs/information can be fixed quickly.
• Added a deals page that finds the best sales on gear every day.
• Can copy other users packs.
• Added view/print pack as a checklist (with tick-able boxes).
• Tons of bug fixes and UI/UX tweaks.
• And much more.

Things coming up next (let us know what you’d like to see prioritized or what else you think we should work on):

• Stoves database with testing results for things like boil time and fuel consumption
• More UI tweaks like being able to move items between categories.
• Be able to share a Gear Explorer page with all of the filters/sorting saved.
• Metric/imperial toggle for packs
• Revamp to make the gear closet the hub for organizing packs and gear.
• Commenting on packs and reviews.
• Price alerts for gear.

We want to make something as useful as possible to the community, so we look forward to comments and input. We are actively developing the site with no intentions of ever stopping. Part of the reason we are able to do that is the fact that the site uses affiliate links for product links. You can turn affiliate links off for your own packs in your account settings (i.e., if you’re someone with your own affiliate links), but it is what will allow the site to keep building without ads or subscriptions. 

If anyone wants to help with the gear databases, we have a public-facing spreadsheet that we can pull from. You’ll just need to request edit access. The majority of the data has been gathered manually and we’d love to include as many brands and products as possible.

Now with mod approval

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/NotFallacyBuffet on 2024-10-15 02:45:42+00:00.

1. I never knew they were in Minnesota. Always assumed Europe. Tried on one of their hiking boots long ago and it seemed narrow.
2. Different subject: currently deciding between Solomon X Ultra 4 GTX and Merrell 3, based on this article, which honestly might just be product placement. All the links lead to REI, which is okay, but tingles my spidey-sense.

Any suggestions? Could be anything. Trying to avoid Lone Peaks since they reportedly wear out so fast.

Currently leaning toward the Merrells because (a) they're cheaper and I try to be frugal and avoid lifestyle creep or owning things that can elicit jealousy; (b) ordering online without trying on and (i) I've worn Merrells before and know they are wide enough for me; (ii) want them for a Colorado Springs trip in a couple of weeks where I presume there will be outfitters with stock of better shoes that I can try on there--not much in the way of that where I live.

Thanks.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/mountainlaureldesign on 2024-10-14 17:45:26+00:00.

PSA:

We have come together as a group of outdoor brands to help the trail communities devastated by Hurricane Helene. Many of us are Appalachian Trail alumni, so we visit these communities each hiking season and have deep ties to the region and those who helped us along the way.

To encourage all who can donate to relief in the region and provide an extra incentive besides being a good person, we have put together multiple gear kits that will be raffled off to those who donate.

To get more info and how to help and be entered into the giveaway, please visit https://www.treelinereview.com/hurricane-helene-recovery

Prizes provided by: Treeline Review, Six Moon Designs, Purple Rain Adventure Skirts, Toaks Outdoor, Townshirt, LiteAF, Gossamer Gear, Mountain Laurel Designs, FarOut, Cnoc, Chicken Tramper Ultralight Gear, Mystery Ranch, Big Agnes, Katabatic Gear, Jolly Gear, Rawlogy, Sawyer, and Astral Footwear

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/mlarsenault on 2024-10-14 13:31:24+00:00.

Hey folks,

Not sure if this is the right sub for this post, but last year, I started cold weather and winter hiking more and more, but no matter what I do, I always find myself sweating through layers. This weekend, I hiked in temps that were Mid 30s, and then high teens/low twenties with the wind chill. Started with a Merino base layer and a polar Tec powergrid hoody. Once I got above tree line, I tossed on a shell (BD Highline Stretch), with the pit zips all the way open. Took it off as soon as the winds calmed down after leaving the summit. But the problem is I could feel the moisture on the inside of the shell.

Would something like an alpaca layer be better for wicking, or something like the Brynje base layer? Sweating through layers has been my limiting factor on cold weather distance, so any recommendations on what to try/buy would be greatly appreciated!!

EDIT: Thank you all, this has been extremely helpful already! I didn't realize there was much of a difference between a wind shirt and a typical hard shell, so definitely something I will look into now! I thought I was being bold and starting cold, but I guess its time to really brave the cold now.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/phizzle2016 on 2024-10-14 00:31:32+00:00.

Looking for a three season bug bivy to pair with my tarp. Can’t find a good comparison on packed size. I’m in the SE USA mostly, so bug netting and breathable are top needs.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Border-Infamous on 2024-10-12 16:55:43+00:00.

I got back from the West Highland Way earlier this week and am so, so happy that I just went for it despite my limited experience; it was a really nice one to do as (even as we go into off-season), there's so much tourist infrastructure to help you along.

This was the second time I’ve ever camped, and my first time solo camping and/or solo thru hiking. I still have a way to go in my UL journey and thought I’d share my gear and trail reflections here. Partly for anyone thinking of going in October and/or with a limited amount of time to do it, and partly to see what people think of my pack improvements (I'm sure there will be some giggles at my current pack).

That being said didn’t get a single blister, nor did I aggravate a shoulder/back injury or have any leg fatigue after the walk. I’m pretty happy that my gear choices and resulting pack weight let me do what I wanted to without injury.

Itinerary

I did a modified version (71 miles instead of 96) over 3.5 days as I had to get a 2.30pm bus out Fort William on day 4:

Day 0: Leave London 5pm > Glasgow 

(Stayed in a hotel by Glasgow station, then left work gear in a left luggage)

Day 1: Milngavie to Milarochy Bay (20 miles) 

Day 2: Milarochy to Inversnaid (14 miles- half day due to rain)

Inversnaid> Tarbet > Bridge of Orchy 

Day 3: Bridge of Orchy to Kinlochlaven (22 miles) 

Day 4: Kinlochleven to Fort William (15 miles) 

Leave Fort William 2.30pm > Glasgow > London by 11pm 

(Picked up left luggage and had a shower at Glasgow Station) 

I had intended to do 23 miles on day 2 (rather than 14). However, I had a late start at Millarochy Bay due to rain and ended up getting the latest ferry from Inversnaid (3.30pm). That ferry took 30 mins to get to Tarbet, where I had 10 minutes to change onto a bus (otherwise I would have been waiting until late evening). By the time the bus was passing through Inverarnan (where I planned to get off and walk 9 miles to Inveroran, past Bridge of Orchy) it was 4.30pm. As much as I wanted to get to the Inveroran Hotel and wild camp by the lake, I decided to get off the bus at Tyndrum. It meant I could take advantage of drying rooms at By the Way campsite and get a cooked meal in town. I got the first bus to Bridge of Orchy in the morning- 8.30am in October (Bridge of Orchy is 2.5 miles out of Inveroran). The 8.30am bus time did mean I had to watch my pace to get to Kinlochleven (22 miles away including the Devil's Staircase), but the damp and low light made it difficult to start much earlier anyway.

Weather

It was max 16 during the day and got to about 8 at night (celsius). 

Changing between clear and dry to overcast and drizzly during the day, with heavy rain at night. One morning of heavy rain meant a half day on day 2. Last day (day 4) was glorious sunshine. 

Cold wind on some of the exposed final sections. 

Pack

• Base weight : 9.35kg/20.6lb (all items minus food, water, worn clothes and boots)
• Skin out base weight: 11.38kg/25lb (all items, including clothes and boots, minus food and water)
• Skin out weight: 13kg (all items)
• Loaded packed weight: 11.2 kg (in my bag at the start)

Items I’d loose:

• Map. I didn’t need my map on the WHW, and I don’t thing most people would. I bought the GPX map from the Going The Whole Hogg blog and it was great; the GPS worked the whole way and it was really useful to quickly see where water and camping spots were (as I’m still developing my map reading skills!).
• Mid layer fleece (Patagonia FZ100) OR puffy (Forcaz down MT100). It was a cosy treat to have them both on in the evening, but one or the other would have been fine, particularly as both have hoods and I also had gloves and a headband.
• Socks and undies for each day; I took a second top and pair of leggings with me, undies for every day and lots of socks! I wanted fresh socks and undies and assumed that nothing would air dry even if I washed it somewhere. I don’t think anything could have air dried, but on the WHW has lots of campsites had laundry facilities with laundry and drying rooms that you can pay to use.
• Kindle. I didn’t use it. There wasn’t a whole lot of time for reading in this itinerary as my days were pretty long. There’s also plenty of opportunity to socialise in the towns.
• Electric pump for air mattress. It was good, but extra weight.
• Pillow: it just annoyed me.

Things I’d add

• Midge net/spray; even locals insisted I didn’t need to worry midges at all in October, but I still managed to get some bites on my face (luckily I was otherwise covered up) and wish I’d taken something to stop them.

I’d definitely appreciated and would keep the same:

• Wide and warm sleeping mat. I’m 5’3”/160cm and a gym-fit size 10/12, but I carry alot of my fat on my thighs and bum. It was only down to 8 celsius at night, but the ground was wet and cold. If I’d had a regular width sleeping mat, I would have spread over the sides upon lying down and felt the cold around my middle and not slept.
• Windproof shell rather than waterproof: I took a very old but recently re-waterproofed Goretex H5 Active jacket (a heavier version of Shakedry that doesn’t bead quite as well). I it bought for when I used to cycle to work. I run hot and wore my Montane Dart top over a Shock Absorber sports bra (wide straps, lots of coverage) and was still sweating with my average pace of 2.5 mph (that’s including breaks and steeps etc). As I run hot, it doesn’t make sense for me to wear a proper waterproof unless it’s really heavy rain. There was only one morning of walking time when it was heavy rain, and I was able to just adapt around it because there's plenty of infrastructure on teh WHE. My choice was to either start later or buy a cheap poncho/pac-a-mac to go over my jacket if I really wanted to get the miles in. I just waited it out a couple of hours, which meant I had a shorter day and ended up getting the bus a bit longer- but if it had been Summer or Spring, I would have just walked until a little later.
• Battery pack; it wasn’t actually that easy to charge my phone given the pace I wanted to keep, so I’m pleased I had a battery pack.
• Camp shoes: the ground at camps was saturated enough that it caused a splash as you walked through. That would have been miserable barefoot and trying to put boots on whist keeping dry and not letting midges in the tent would have been tricky. My Madrid EVAs got well used each night.
• Microfibre towel (perhaps a lighter one?): I used this to dry my feet and legs when coming back into the tent at night (leaving the towel in a bag outside), and also to wipe the tent down in the morning. When I came in at night, I could sit my bum in the tent and then wipe my feet and legs off before bringing my legs in and shutting the midges out!
• Poles. My knees are so happy. There’s a lot of firm ground and downhill sections.
• Water bottle capacity. I took a 750ml water bottle- that was the right call. There was plenty of fresh water on the last stretch, and lots of taps along the way. I bought a 500ml plastic bottle for Kingshouse>Kinglochleven in case I ran out of steam and had to wild camp, but I didn’t need it. I could get a lighter bottle.
• Boots and daily fresh socks; I wear a pair of Meindl boots that are on the big side and had fresh Bridgedale socks every day. Lots of people at camps were dealing with horrific blisters (even doing half the distance I was and with just day packs), whereas my feet were completely fine and I think that's because I had clean socks and roomy boots (but I could have just washed stuff rather than taking so many pairs on the WHW). Trail runners would be softer on your feet on the Old Military Road sections and would definitely be the way I’d go in Spring or Summer for that reason, but I think having dry feet was key to keeping my feet blister free (albeit tired).

I’d also say that, given my time constraint and (not truly UL) pack weight, cutting out Inversnaid to Bridge of Orchy was the right call. It had been so slippy coming down Conic Hill that I can only imagine the scrambly part of Loch Lomond after Inversnaid would have been miserable. Plus I got to have an Irn-Bru and a Tunnocks Caramel bar on the ferry cruise! The other section I cut out (Inverarnan to Bridge of Orchy) was just walking alongside the road (albeit in a beautiful setting), and everyone agreed I didn’t miss much there. 

Definitely carry food and snacks from Inverraran/Tyndrum/Bridge of Orchy through Kingshouse if you go in October and aren’t booked into the Kingshouse hotel; don’t assume you can get anything at Kingshouse. I did Bridge of Orchy to Kinlocleven on Day 3 and planned to buy lunch and snacks at Kingshouse. However, the Inn in Kingshouse is shut in October and the Kingshouse Hotel was only taking food orders from those who had booked 6 months in advance; it’s a pretty formal setting and there’s no ‘shop’ element. I got lucky and managed to get some soup and bread, but my walk over the Devil’s Staircase to Kinclochlaven would have been miserable if I hadn’t been able to.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Dependent-Aspect3458 on 2024-10-11 06:00:04+00:00.

Good evening. I'm drinking tonight so I thought I'd contribute a novella to the oversaturation of PCT-related gear content on reddit ultralight backpacking dot com. I hiked the trail this past summer, and LASHes in '22 and '23 have contributed to a total of over 4,500 miles on the PCT. I've changed up my gear numerous times during these hikes but overall I have always been interested in the minimalist style. Ultralight as a whole changed the way I hike and I'll always be grateful to this forum for feeding my interest and expanding my knowledge base. So shoutout you nerds who are always nitpitcking on here. I have some opinions to share that are likely not so far out of the ordinary as to to merit serious discussion. Regardless, I post. It's an important part of being young nowadays. Here are some thoughts on some of the gear I used on the PCT this year.

Big three plus :

Pack: I'm using the Pa'lante V2. I replaced my ultra nasty delaminated 2021 ultra V2 with this year's ultra version at the storefront in Bishop and I'm glad I did. In my opinion, these packs are still being improved upon, regardless of the fashion-forward marketing vibe the company has chosen to pursue. They are getting more durable. Weight creep is an issue that lots of people are worried about, and I agree that there are packs on the market that do the same things as the V2 for less weight. However, the little touches here are what keep me coming back. For instance, the curved bottom panel keeps stuff in the bottom pocket. The shape (wider than other packs I've used) is perfect for a regular reusable grocery bag. The dyneema mesh keeps stuff tight and doesn't let in dust. I'm also satisfied in knowing that I could throw this pack off a train and it would look and function the same. I don't worry about putting this pack facedown on rocks, or sitting on it, or using it as a shield in battle with violent wooks in Belden. In my opinon, it has all the features a backpacker needs and not too much extra. I don't really use the stashable hipbelt but I didn't cut it off my new one with the odd rock scramble or tree monkeying scenario in mind. The stake pocket is whatever, I kept my spoon in there most of the time. Other than that, it's put together nicely out of nice materials. It has big durable hardware on it. I think it looks cool. It makes me kinda happy when I look at it. Sue me. In all, durability, usability, and aesthetics are the reasons I like these packs.

I have also used the popular Nashville Cutaway, and while I loved it too, I have actually found the number of pockets on the straps excessive for the way I pack. Additionally, the front-facing bottom pocket had the tendency to scoop up sand and debris when I picked it up without thinking. I try to think as little as possible so this was fairly constant.

Tarp: It's a DIY mid tarp with a small beak I bought off someone on here a couple years ago who let it go because it was too condensation-y. Shoutout whoever that was, I don't remember. I think I paid like 60 dollars for it. If you recognize it from my description know I'm very happy with it and it's done about 3000 miles on the PCT with me. It's made out of black silnylon and weighs a little over 9 ounces with a few guylines. I've pitched this thing maybe 15 times since I started using it. Most nights I am cowboy camping. I have had to scramble to pitch the tarp a few times when it starts raining on me mid sleep but the PCT is generally pretty friendly when it comes to moisture. I have not had to weather any hurricanes in it, but it has kept me alive in heavy blowing rain and cold and I'm confident I could push it further. It's got one side that's pretty open to the elements, so if I have to pitch in a storm, I face that into a bush if possible for extra protection. In the past, if I've been scared I'm gonna die, I'll bust out the emergency blanket for the torso and sleep with my legs inside my pack liner (Trash Bag) to supplement warmth and waterproofing. Not that comfortable, but hey, I'm still here. It makes the sun feel a lot better when it does come out. I mainly use carbon @ stakes which weigh jack and usually don't break. For the main guyline from the beak I use a full size MSR groundhog. I carry a few extra stakes because carbon stakes don't always not break. I would love to make a clone of the tarp using silpoly for all the reasons that silpoly is better than silnylon.

Pole : BD alpine carbon cork. Just the one, the same one for ALL my pct miles. It's very durable. Nice cork handle. I cut the strap off. Used it to savagely attack a manzanita bush that did me harm south of Shasta and it survived. The tip fell off somewhere along the way. I really like it.

Pad: Short Xlite. It weighs around 8 ounces. I use a pillow for me head (Sea to Summit Aeros Big Ass Purple Premium Head Cradle) so at six foot one inches the Mellow yellow bed goes shoulder to knee on me. I find this just dandy for my uses. I fold it up in the morning and put it against my back in the pack. Takes like seven big breaths to pump it up. Worth it! I have used foam in the past but I sleep pretty cold and have hip pains often so this pad is the ticket for me. My feet are on the ground, my elbows are on the ground if I'm sleeping on my back. I'm lucky to have slept very nicely on this trip. This kind of pad might not work for everyone, but I think people should try short pads out if they're at all interested. It's really easy to deploy and pack up, and provides many of the same benefits as a long inflatable for less fuss. I popped it twice on this hike, once really savagely, but was able to repair it on trail just fine. More on this later.

Quilt: EE Enigma 20º 950 reg long. It weighs like 21 ounces. It seems fine for me. Not a whole lot to say about it. It really needs a wash. I don't have the straps. If it's cold I just clip the clips together underneath me. This quilt has always kept me safe, but I think I'd like to get a Katabatic Alsek if I ever get around to it.

Bivy: Borah ultralight bivy. It weighs just over 6 ounces. It is Long and Regularly Wide and it is a chest zip and the top is made of Argon 90 and the bottom is made of 20d silpoly. I do not use a groundsheet anymore. Instead, I am careful about picking sharp things out of my sleeping area, and if I need to put my pad somewhere that looks sketchy, I put my pack liner underneath the bivy for extra protection. If that gets a hole in it there's plenty trash bags at the hostels and hiker boxes to replace it with. I cowboy on top of the bivy most nights, and if it's windy or cold I'll get inside it, usually leaving my head out. I put the pillow in the mesh part so it doesn't get away. This thing is super bomber and isn't showing many signs of wear after many miles. When the bugs were crazy I'd zip it up over my head. I like how tiny it packs. It's chill.

Packed clothing:

I was a long-time user of alpha direct products, but I changed my tune on this past hike, mostly because I like to spend time laying directly on the ground when I get tired. Alpha picks up everything and gets nasty easily. Obviously it is also less durable than some other options. I also happen to find it very uncomfortable when it's gross. My town stops are short and sweet and often do not involve laundry. Sue me. I picked up a normal ass regular pile fleece out of the hiker box in Kennedy meadows on a whim and used it for the rest of the trail, sending my Senchi back home. I find it more comfortable against the skin and it provides a little wind protection without having to put my rain jacket on. I hike pretty hot, so it has to be cold for me to hike in a layer. If it's cold enough for me to be wearing a layer it's probably a little windy, so I like having that extra protection built into the fabric. I slept in it a lot. Yes, it is heavier. I don't care. It's pretty thin so it packs small and it's green and I like it more than my Senchi products for dirty thru hiking. If it's Really Cold i hike with my rain jacket over it, or in the sierra, with a puffy. I also always carry the EE Copperfield wind pants. They pack so small and are so lightweight and can conserve a huge amount of heat for me while moving. I wear them to sleep when I'm dirty. If I shit myself I can hike in them. This is a piece of gear I would not thru hike without. I use a frog toggs rain jacket. Yall know about those. And a warm little hat. One thing about me : I have a buff And. a bandana. I find these useful for different reasons and never regret carrying both.

Worn clothing: Mostly Some nike shorts and columbia tamiami short sleeve shirt. I started wearing cotton joke t shirts from resorts and grocery stores and stuff after this got shredded. I kept it in the pack though. Various hats that I find in hiker boxes and wear for a few weeks then decide I hate. I settled on a ciele short brim running cap eventually this time. Darn tough lightweight hiker crew socks. Lone peaks.

Sierra gear: I rented the bear can from the general store. I used a BV500 and strapped it directly to the top of my V2. YES this is possible you animals. YES it fucking hurt to carry that first day. (EDIT: I made this work by putting my quilt and puffy in the can during the day). I have switched to a framed pack in the Sierra before and decided it wasn't worth the hassle this time. I committed to the bit and did the whole trail with the V2. My pack weighed 31 pounds off the gener...

Content cut off. Read original on https://old.reddit.com/r/Ultralight/comments/1g133a7/pct_gear_and_thoughts/

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/frequency_circle on 2024-10-09 15:38:03+00:00.

While looking for a secondhand ULA bag I made this incomplete spreadsheet-guide to their product history, so I could better evaluate old bags I saw on ebay.

It mainly focuses on the Circuit and CDT as those are the bags I was most interested in, but it has some information about most of their bags over the years.

I got the information from trawling through Wayback Machine. It was quite tedious! Hopefully some folks find it useful or interesting.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/SMPRarity on 2024-10-07 20:52:22+00:00.

Hey guys so here's my situation. I have a loco libre 20° quilt that I have had for 4 years and have taken it for thousands of miles hiking and even more miles traveling. It's been an awesome quilt and I wouldn't hesitate to buy a new one but I want to see if anyone else has a solution before I drop money on a new quilt. Every night I shake and beat my quilt to move the down back to the center and every morning I wake up with cold shoulders from where the down has fallen to the sides of the quilt again. I'm a side sleeper and this doesn't happen anywhere except the upper 2-3 baffles of the quilt and it's a relatively new thing I've noticed. After noticing what was happening I washed the quilt and that fixed the issue for a few nights of camping but I went camping again last night and it has happened again. Maybe it's just time to replace it but a high quality quilt isn't cheap and I just can't seem to find anyone else with this issue or a solution. Any help or things to try are greatly appreciated.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Damiano_Damiano on 2024-10-08 12:40:56+00:00.

Hey ultralighters, I recently bought two spoons that weigh exactly the same (12 grams each), one plastic and one titanium. Now, I gotta say, I’m digging the feel and ‘softness’ of the plastic one, but I’m curious – is there a deeper reason why some of you choose titanium that I’m just not seeing?

Would love to hear your opinions – are you Team Plastic or Team Titanium, and why? Or am I overthinking the spoon game? 😅

EDIT: As far as I can see, the vast majority of responses give preference to Titanium, for a variety of reasons, all valid and interesting.

The only comments against Titanium refer to the fact that for some it is annoying to the touch or on contact with other surfaces (pot).

Some propose the alternative of wood/bamboo... but Titanium is still the winner for the majority! Thank you.

This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/Ultralight by /u/Boogada42 on 2024-10-08 15:31:47+00:00.

• Looks like a thicc X-Mid with an exoskelleton
• cuts one corner off the floor to create a vestibule kinda space
• 1040 grams
• "Pinnacle of Freestanding Tent Design"