Getting Started | Core Ideas

Some paragraphs will appear with borders like this one. While the information in these paragraphs is still valid it has been supplanted by more recent ideas. Typically, you will see this only when I am discussing specific items of gear like backpacks or sleeping bags.

Getting Started

Getting started in Ultralight backpacking is deceptively simple. If your goal is merely to replace your gear the process is quite straightforward. If, however, you want to go further you will find yourself spending plenty of time examining your needs for a backpacking trip more carefully as you try to determine what you do and do not need.

The most useful thing you can do first is invest in a decent scale. The more accurate the scale the better, but you don't have to get one that weighs things to the gram or even every four grams (1/8 of an ounce) though accuracy to at least the ounce is highly recommended. Initially you may find that the scale in your local post office will more than suit your needs as long as you don't mind curious looks from other people directed your way as you weigh your tent, sleeping bag, backpack, stuff sacks, first aid kit, and everything else you currently own.

Once you have access to a scale you need to weigh everything you currently own and/or typically use on a backpacking trip. Don't rely on the weights supplied by manufacturers. The values they provide are often not really accurate. I am not going to tell you that the manufacturers are lying, but the actual field weight of most gear is usually quite different from the weight written down in the product literature. Chances are you will be surprised at how rapidly the total weight of your gear adds up to considerably more than you would have thought possible. While a substantial amount of weight is in the "big three" items (shelter, sleeping system, and backpack; I'll talk about lighten the big 3 elsewhere) you will notice that your smaller items quickly add up too. you'll come to realize you nickel and dimed, as it were, your way to several pounds of weight. This nickel and dime effect usually is most noticeable in clothing, kitcchen, and emergency and/or toiletries gear.

A backpacker's kitchen could include a 1.5 or so liter pot with lid, plate, drinking cup, spoon, fork, stove, pot scrubber, maybe a pot lifter, measuring cup (say the top of a cough syrup bottle that holds a known amount of liquid), food hanging rope, and stuff sacks for it all. Do you really need all of that stuff? Could you get by with just a single smaller pot, stove, spoon, and necessary stuff sacks and modest amount of hanging rope? Clothing is another area where it is easy to bring far more than you need. Do you need a second set of clothes for sleeping? Do you need to carry the fleece jacket and/or vest, fleece pants, rain jacket and rain pants, fleece hat and gloves, and perhaps long johns? When I carried heavier loads I considered much of this stuff important. After all, I wanted to be sure I was prepared.

The combination of this "nickel and dime" effect along with the fact that most people tend to over protect themselves when considering what clothing, sleeping, shelter, backpack, and other gear to carry quickly results in packs with base weights that can easily pass the 25 pound mark. Here is a comparison of some of the stuff I used to carry versus what I tend to carry now on a 3 season trip.

Even this partial list shows that I was carrying an awful lot of gear. It doesn't even include the kitchen and other essential hiking gear which probably adds 5 or so pounds to the "heavy load" and perhaps half that to the "Ultralight load."

This comparison shows substantial overall weight differnces. The biggest savings are found in the shelter and backpack choices. If the trip had been somewhere where I would expect cooler temperatures differences would be more pronounced in clothing choices too since I'd carry more insulation in the "heavy load" catagory, but merely change my hiking pants for a different type in the "Ultralight" catagory. In some cases heavier items are replaced with lighter counterparts; but sometimes the type of item changes completely or is even left behind.

An ultralight backpacker is not going to remove important emergency items from his or her pack, but where the less experienced backpacker may carry a pre-packaged first aid kit that weighs half a pound or more a ultralight backpacker might make his or her own substantially lighter one. He or she will likely choose lighter alternatives for such items as a flashlight, a smaller pocket knife, leave the sunglasses at home altogether (I almost always do now), and carry less of other items (this is where experience beomes important).

Once you have learned what your gear weighs you can start to focus on reducing the overall weight. While the biggest savings will initially be found by changing your backpack, sleeping gear, and shelter, you may want to start elsewhere. It's important to remember that while you are going on your backpacking trips to have fun that you need to be safe too (i.e., coming back alive is vital). You may not feel comfortable replacing the "big three" items right away since they have worked so well for you in the past. If you don't feel comfortable replacing an item or changing an approach on how you choose gear don't force yourself. Small steps are fine. In fact, small steps can lead to tremendous weight savings. If you can reduce the weight of sixteen (16) items of gear by just an ounce each you will have shaved a pound off your load. This is where you will find yourself falling into deep thought about pieces of equipment you take.

Core Ideas

At the core of ultralight backpacking is a way of thinking. Even if you merely replace heavy items in your backpacking kit with lighter counterparts you are still, at least a little, contemplating questions that are at the core of the ultralight philosophy. That way of thinking can be expressed in the following questions:

• Can you get by with less of a given item?
• Can an item serve multiple purposes?
• Can you change your style of use of items to make them more efficient and/or effective?
• How much flexibility are you willing to give up to save weight?

The answers to these questions when applied to the various components of your kit determine how much weight you will be able to shed. For this reason it is important to consider everything. As I've said before most backpackers, including myself, tend to over protect themselves with gear. As you gain experience that tendency diminishes. For example, just how much toilet paper do you really use on any given day? How much liquid soap do you use? A "heavy" backpacker will carry far more of these two items than he or she is likely to ever use. An "ultralight" backpacker will pair down the amount to a much more realistic level.

Evaluate how often you use a piece of gear against its overall importance when it must be used. Is it something you don't use often that is of reletively little importance? If so maybe you can take less or leave it at home. If it is an item you use rarely but when you do use is essential, such as first aid supplies, perhaps you can find a lighter substitute. While an Ace bandage is quite useful you can probably improvise something with clothing, tape, gauze, and other things if you must (I'm not suggesting you do this and wilderness first aid skills are important things to learn).

Evaluate how often you use a piece of gear against its overall importance when it must be used.

Finding gear that can be used in more than one way is a great way to reduce weight. A classic example is the bandana. Most people carry a copule of them and a camp towel. But, a bandana can be used to sponge off water pretty effectively when it is warm. The bandana can replace a pot scrubber. It can, in a pinch and if reasonably clean help in first aid tasks (though it is no substitute for sterile wraps). The bandana can replace a a hat too. Small tea candles can be used in several: a light to read by and the wax makes good fire starter. Your rope can be used for all sorts of things from hanging a food bag, securing a splint, or a clothesline. Duct tape, often considered the backpacker's best friend, has numerous uses from repairing gear to covering hotspots (instead of mileskin). Many other items can be used in emergency situations: hiking poles and a foam sleeping pad can help immobilizing injuries, your sleeping bag can serve for emergency shelter. Consider using your smaller pot as your bowl and mug for hot drinks. This becomes much easier to do if you change the type of meals you eat. If you are willing to package meals in baggies that can stand boiling water you can just use those bags as bowls (let the food sit in the baggie "simmering" for a while. I talk about lightening your food load elsewhere).

Finding gear that can be used in more than one way is a great way to reduce weight.

Try to think beyond the manufacturers orignial dsign purpose for a product. If you have an idea that something can be used in a new and different way experiment at home to see how well your idea works. It is important that you be sure you know how your gear works when your are using it not only for its original design purpose but when you are using it for something else.

There are as many styles of backpacking as there are backpackers. Your style of backpacking has an impact on what gear you choose to bring. This is perhaps most obvious in the choices people make for their clothing. While I explore my ideas on clothing elsewhere it's important to raise the general issue now. While the classic layering system of a base wicking layer, an insulating middle layer, and a "waterproof/breathable" shell may work for you it is worth considering other options that can be substantially lighter. Other areas where a change in style can substantially affect overall weight include the type of shelter and the sleeping system you employ. Another place where a change in style can greatly impact how much you carry is in your eating and drinking habits (see food page for more details).

Your style of backpacking has an impact on what gear you choose to bring.

Changing your overall style of backpacking is difficult, but if you can make changes you may find that you are able to reduce weight considerably. By changing when and how much water I drink I have been able to significantly reduce the amount of water I need to carry when hiking on a trail where water is common. I can drink a large amount of water before leaving camp in the morning, carry just a liter or so during the day, and at the end of the day drink considerable water at camp. If I am hiking in hot weather I can carry more water or gathering fresh water when I arrive at a water source. By keeping the amount of water I carry between water sources down I reduce weight considerably since water is exceedingly heavy (1 liter = 1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds; 1 pint = 1 pound).

Switching to an ultralight strategy does not mean you need to sacrifice flexibility, but if you are willing to make some compromises you can shed plenty of weight. An area where this can be most appreciated is clothing. How many types of clothes do you really need? If you are going on a trip where the chance of severe weather is slim do you need to bring the "heavy duty" rain suit or will your windbreaker suffice? If you are willing to sleep in your clothes perhaps you can get away with a lighter sleeping bag that isn't quite as warm as your heavier one. While a camp chair is nice can you be happy just sitting on the ground or on your closed cell foam sleeping pad instead? Do you really need a powerful headlamp when all the night hiking you ever really do is around camp where a small LED flashlight is more than sufficient?

If you are willing to make some compromises you can shed plenty of weight.

By making intelligent compromises you can still travel safffely and in reasonable comfort and save substantial weight. Of course, what you consider "safe" and "reasonable comfort" is likely to vary from trip to trip. I make fewer compromises if I am going on a winter snowshoeing trip than when I am out for several days during the summer. I may choose different things to take on a trip when I am pretty sure blackflies and other annoying flying menaces are going to be out in force than I would when those pests are nowhere (or nearly so) to be found. I do limit my options somewhat, but the gains outweigh the losses and my back and hips thank me in the end.

Last update: August 18, 2002
First Written: March 12, 2001